It’s been a week since the Cheers & Sips Crafting Retreat and I thought that the best way to re-live the amazing time was to write a blog post. It was a creative weekend getaway in PORT Port Macquarie, NSW, where paper crafters came together to stamp, make cards, and relax. My ladies were spoiled all weekend with little gifts, treats, and a bag full of Stampin’ Up!® crafting supplies.
The Venue – A Beautiful Space to Relax and Create
I am so blessed to have found the Comfort Resort Waters Edge hotel in Port Macquarie (Mid North Coast of NSW). The venue gave us the perfect retreat space, with room for every crafter to spread out (we all had a whole table to ourselves), relax, and enjoy the creative atmosphere. The view is wonderfully relaxing and inspiring too!
The Projects – Handmade Cards, Stamping, and Creativi-tea!
The weekend was filled with handmade card making and stamping projects. The projects at this retreat gave everyone something new to try. I created six exclusive card making projects for all to create, these Make ‘n’ Takes were given out on the Saturday for everyone to work on at their leisure. I provided written instructions as well as video tutorials for these exclusive Make ‘n’ Takes. I don’t share the Make ‘n’ Take projects outside of the retreat, but I will share my favourite! It features my new favourite Stampin’ Up!® colour Strawberry Slush!
There was plenty of time for everyone to work on their own projects, catch up on the UFO (UnFinished Objects – we all have them around), and enjoy and relax. There was an inspiration board using the swag bag products.
The People – Friendships, Inspiration, and Paper Crafting Together
One of the best parts of any retreat is the crafting community. The creative connections inspired us all. It felt as a weekend catch up with paper crafting friends. This wasn’t the first weekend crafty getaway for anyone, with two participants having been to all eight of my retreats. It was wonderful to spend a relaxing weekend together.
We had one giant long table where we could all chat, craft and enjoy. It was wonderful to get inspiration from each other and to learn new layouts or techniques. I loved hearing all the fun conversations around the room and many laughs were shared.
Highlights from the Weekend – Our Favourite Memories from the Cheers & Sips Retreat
This crafting retreat was such a special creative getaway, and it reminded me why I love bringing paper crafters together. My bucket gets so filled with all the wonderful moments that we have over the weekend. Everyone is so lovely and so grateful. My favourite comment on arrival was – “I’ve been looking forward to this for months!”.
Friday nights start the fun off with a bingo night. We play four rounds, but everyone gets five cards and can choose when to play the extra card. The last two rounds are always more challenging to complete and there were some number requests and suggestions!
Prizes were Stampin’ Up!® products – Bloom Impressions DSP, Most Adored Specialty DSP, Scenic Garden Stamp Set, and finally the top prize was the In Your Words Stamp Set with the Flight & Airy DSP (a delicate favourite from the past).
Door prizes are always a fun part. Everyone got a door prize and this time they drew out a raffle ticket and had to match the other side with the one taped to the prize. It was fun looking for your number and discovering your prize.
This retreat, I was able to invite the lovely Rebecca and Tracey from Devine & Indulge for some extra spoiling with massages. This was just blissful. What a great way to enhance a Saturday afternoon. We are already looking forward to the next retreat and their magic! Does this sound like your kind of weekend? Be sure to join the interest list so you don’t miss the next one!
I love to spoil my ladies with gifts over the retreat weekend. The gifts vary from each event and this time I made a big effort to have cocktail/mocktail themed gifts – I just HAD to with it focusing on the Cheers & Sips Stamp Set from Stampin’ Up!®. Everyone got a mini resin cocktail with their name, a cocktail themed tote bag, a Stampin’ Up!® Blender Pen (to use with their Watercolor Pencil Assortment as part of their swag), homemade cocktail sugar cookies, a cocktail candle and I had to have a Mocktail Night serving three different mocktails and a fun balloon glass for everyone to keep.
Barbra also gave me a very thoughtful and beautiful gift. Some cocktail chocolate holders and adorable cocktail tea towels! I was so touched by the thoughtful gift.
My favourite highlight from the weekend was the Add-On Class using the gorgeous Extraordinary Flora Bundle. I had given the ladies an opportunity to purchase this with a small discount when registering for the retreat. It was wonderful to share three projects with them highlighting different fun techniques that they can do with this bundle and their Watercolour Pencil Assortment.
Little Miss (my daughter) joins us on the Sunday and I know for her the highlight is drawing out the raffle prizes. I love seeing the excitement when ladies win a prize. 3rd prize was Watercolor Pencil Assortment 1 (to add to their collection); 2nd prize was a set of Stampin’ Up!® Clear Books in sizes B, C, D & H (as you can never have too many clear blocks), and 1st Prize was the Stampin’ Glass Mat with Accessories. All winners were grinners!
Thank You – Gratitude to Everyone Who Made It Special
I am so grateful to everyone who joined me and to those who helped behind the scenes to make this creative community retreat such a success. My friend Bec helps transporting all the supplies, decorations and gifts from my place to Waters Edge. Without her help it would take me multiple times longer and twice the many car trips. Bec and along with Barbra were amazing workers setting up and decorating the room. Barbra went beyond duties and helped me out whenever I needed over the weekend. Without her my days would have been longer. Thank you so much!
What’s Next – Join Us for the Next Crafting Retreat
If you missed this one, I’d love to welcome you to one of my upcoming crafting retreats. Be sure to join the interest list so you don’t miss the next creative getaway!
📅 Save the Date – Crafting Retreat with Tatiana Creative 2026
I am already planning the next Crafting Retreat with Tatiana Creative – and I’d absolutely love for you to join us!
🗓️ 20–22 February 2026
📍 Comfort Resort Waters Edge, Port Macquarie NSW
It’s going to be another unforgettable weekend filled with card making, stamping, creative inspiration, and plenty of laughter. ✨Click here for all the details and to secure your spot!
Have you ever been to a crafting retreat? I’d love to hear what you enjoy most about them – let me know in the comments below!
