Craftivities Retreat 2025
Last weekend we had the beautiful privilege of hosting a group of women who came from all sorts of walks of life. They created white space in their lives to step away and be refreshed and rejuvenated. This is hard for anyone, but with the roles women play, it seems especially hard for women to do. We are grateful for the ones who were able to make this happen this year.
Our staff worked together to transform our Hub into a beautiful and peaceful space filled with all the little touches we love to bring to this event.
Patti was a one-woman show this year pulling off all manner of magic that delighted both heart and belly. (Sadly, so many pictures were never taken of all the goodness Patti created. It was exquisite!)
We had a candle making workshop, led by local friend Shauni Cripe, on Friday evening. Everyone learned the secrets of successful candle making, chose from a plethora of scents and dried flowers to complete two candles to help them make home a bit more peaceful and beautiful. One woman said, “These are really not that hard to do, I definitely want to do this at home!”
Saturday we were led by our very own Susan Propp on the making of fiber baskets. Her skilled teaching helped everyone succeed in taking a basket and supplies for other ones home with them. As one woman later shared, “Simple, hands-on crafts encouraged us to slow down and appreciate the present moment.” Practical, uncomplicated, and beautiful! The rhythmic process of fiber baskets really does calm the mind! Everyone felt accomplished taking something they made home with them!
We were also able to create space in each of our sessions for the ladies to be encouraged and then break off for designated time sitting with Jesus and working through devotionals to help them process things of the heart. Every day life can make quality time listening to Jesus really hard to find, so we took advantage of them already having done the work of getting away to offer that time for them!
We saw Jesus encounter them in the very personal ways they were needing. One lady shared, “What you shared and these devotionals are really just relevant and needed right now.” Another said, “The timing of this is so perfect. I needed this so badly. Thank you for giving us this time.”
Sipping tea from real tea cups, connecting with good friends and new friends, making something with our hands, going home equipped to keep going (both in craft and in life), sitting in the quiet with Jesus and His Word — this is what the weekend was intended to be, and we heard and witnessed it being a very big success.
Thank you Jesus for showing up this weekend to be with your girls. And thank you to everyone who came to be a part of this year’s Ladies’ Craftivities Retreat! Same time next year? (April 17-18, 2026!)
(If those of you who came happen to be reading here, would you let everyone know in the comments what your experience was?)
