
Summer Retreat – Here we come!! Ready or not!!!
Hi there,
Thanks for popping in!
It’s Clarity Retreat Week here in Kent, and many, many of our loyal and lovely Clarity friends are here for a few days of learning, laughter and crafty creativity.
We set up the room yesterday, in readiness. Paul and I went to the Wholesalers en route to the gig, to pick up coffee, tea, biscuits and all the gear for lunch…

Then we started the set up. We are at Ditton, where we held the Open Days. It is a superb venue. Huge room. Huge empty room at 10 am Sunday!

Always the same loyal crew there to help…
Paul, of course. He preps all the workshop stash Tom, always.
He preps the entire shop.Pete, our Head of Accounts. Always there to lend a hand. Steve. He ain’t heavy – he’s my brother. Never ask someone to do a job you wouldn’t do yourself. And darling Dave.
Our Sound & Site engineer.Lovely Jilly. Always happy to help. If we run out of Tuna mayo filling,
this is why!
Silly me. Got too busy and forgot to take a before and AFTER photo! But rest assured it looked brilliant when we left at 4pm.
What have we got lined up this time? Well, stamps and brayers are in peach position first thing. I decided it was time to dust off that wonderful Speedball brayer and put it through its paces again. We gallop on to new things so fast, that sometimes we forget the really cool stuff. Let’s call it a Brayer Revival!
We’ve got some brand new designs lined up too, which is always cool for the guests – to be the first to play with a new design or idea. I do hope they enjoy what’s in store. I do believe that what we get out of something is mostly in direct proportion to what we are prepared to put into it. Looking at the list of guests, and recognising so many of the names, I KNOW we are in for a superb week.
Love & Hugs,
Barb xxx
42 thoughts on “Summer Retreat – Here we come!! Ready or not!!!”
Loved my trip to the retreat can’t make this year. Hope everyone has a great time
Awake really early and can’t wait to attend the retreat.
So looking forward to the next couple of days 😃😃💕
I will try and pop in to see you all one day with Samuel. Have fun everyone xxx
It would ne loby to see you if you can manage weds or thurs. Hxh
Have a lovely time everyone. Maybe I’ll get there next year. I’m going on holiday at the end of the week so couldn’t fit it in this year. Very jelly!! xxx
Have fun! Definitely going to be Speedball Brayer after that HUGE bag of yorkshire tea ……. 🤣🤣 xx
Have a brilliant time. I do hope to be back there one day. Can’t wait to see the action photos. 😁😁😁
So sorry not to be able to come this year. Have an absolutely fab time everyone xx
On our way! Having a couple of days in East Sussex first. Going to Rye today to see the stencil!! 😂 See you on Wednesday. X
See you on weds. Rye is stunning especially from the tower!!
I’ll be their, can’t wait. See you Friday x x
On our way tomorrow. Glad the brayer is making a return. Should be fun and the venue is fabulous . Plenty of tea then, always a good start. Have fun today doing what you are fabulous at. X
We set out tomorrow ready to be there on Wednesday and Thursday. This will be my fourth Retreat and I am soooo looking forward to it and meeting up with very good friends that I made on that first visit back in 2016. They took me under their wings then and we meet up at every Clarity do.
Love
Roz.xxx
Oh how I wish I could be there, I could learn so much ready to show the ladies in a class I am starting here in Spain ,
Hi Barb,
What a great team you have at Clarity. Setting up must be such a massive task, so great that you have such a dedicated crew. Lovely for the “guests” too that they get to play with brand new goodies. I remember at the Leyburn workshop last year that we got to play with a brand new plate of Linda’s ( the Christmas Rose) and felt very privileged. I hope that everyone attending has a fabulous time. Love and hugs, Alison xxx
I’m a Retreat “virgin” and really looking forward to Wednesday plus super-excited to read about the brayer as it’s a technique I’ve always wanted to learn.
See you on Wednesday!
Hi sandy i am coming on weds thurs too. We are on our way from birmingham staying at premier inn west malling. I will be there in a red wheelchair. Give me a wave. You will live it. Hx
Will be there on Friday & Saturday – sooo looking forward to it! Don’t sell all the stock before i get there! 😆
Looking forward to my first retreat on Friday. Really pleased it will include the brayer. Hope there will be decaf coffee, if not no worries I always travel with a stash!
Enjoy everyone! X
Sad I can’t be there but have a load of fun everyone! xxx
Just finishing washing drying and packing ready to set out tomorrow. It will be great to meet up with so many friends on Wednesday and Thursday. Excited now!!!! xxx Maggie (Silvercrafter)
Hi sandy i am coming on weds thurs too. We are on our way from birmingham staying at premier inn west malling. I will be there in a red wheelchair. Give me a wave. You will live it. Hxhi
Have fun everyone! Xx
Hi Barb, that last photo is sooo funny, the 3 guys sat in a row eating. Reminds me of an auld Scottish nursery rhyme – 3 craws sat upon a wa’!!! Hope everyone has fun. Wish so much, it hurts, that I didn’t have to be shut out of soooo much of normal life, and especially the good/special things, in this society. Sooo little is autism friendly… Pace yourself Barb, don’t want you undoing all the good from your holiday, love you xx
I am sure you will all have a great time at the retreats this week & look forward to seeing what you get up to.
Gutted I can’t make it this year. I know you’ll all have a brilliant time .😄😄🖌️🖌️🖍️✏️
Have a fantastic time with Barbara, Paul and the team. You never forget one of Barbara’s retreats.
Nadia
Nice to see the men working hard (hahaha), obviously eating to keep their energy up to match yours !!!
Looks fabulous, so disappointed I can’t be there, sure it will be a fabulous week for all.
Have fun 🍒🍒🍒
ps: still not getting my comments showing up on Clarity Matters.
Have a enjoyable week, I’m sure everyone will. xx
Can’t wait. Eva and I are setting off tomorrow lunch time so we can be fresh on Wednesday. Hope everything is going well on the first day.
Hi, sure you all are going to enjoy the retreats. I do hope you are going to show us some step by step of what has been going on this week. Thank you
So pleased to see the brayer making a come-back. I have so many ‘old’ stamps I’d love to see revived (remember the set of elephants -love them). Maybe you could have a month of using the older stamps that you still have in stock to give us more inspiration to get them out again. Mine go back 26 years!!
Have fun! Hopefully I’ll get to an event next year x
Thanks for a brilliant day Barbara. Thoroughly enjoyed myself although my brain hurts a bit from all the learning! Can’t wait for tomorrow though x
Great to see some of the gang. They deserve their ‘fodder’ break. Travelling Thursday so I can be there Friday/Saturday. Might have chosen the wrong place to stay as I believe they do not do breakfast. Will have to make the best of it.
I hope everybody has had a great day. xx
Have a fantastic time. Looking forward to seeing what you get up to.
Have a lovely time everyone!
Love Myra x
The hall looks great Barbara and I’m sure everyone will have the best time, at least you won’t run out of tea in a hurry…lol. x
Barb, that looks like the beginning of wonderful! Wish I could make it, but hey maybe next year right. Enjoy yourselves everyone, can’t wait to see more pictures. Take care all. Bx
We always have so much on in August with the kids being off, Holidays, catching up on Jobs etc because its the longest time that Paul is home. I would have loved to have come this year. Hope all goes well and that you all have fun, well I know you will.
Hi margaret will be great to see you there. #slightlynervous as i havent stamped since i firzt did a groovi bookmark on a retreat the year groovi started!!