One of the unexpected joys of moving to New Zealand has been discovering fibre retreats.

For some reason, they seemed to be relatively rare in the UK, and when they did happen they were often centred around a tutor-led, multi-day course. They were wonderful, but by the time you added tuition, accommodation and travel, they weren’t exactly budget-friendly.

New Zealand seems to have embraced a different philosphy and I absolutely love it.

Here in Auckland we’ve been lucky enough to have at least 4 fibre retreats every year. Rather than everyone working on the same, tutor-guided project, they’re more like a creative escape. We spend two or three days away together, sharing accommodation, meals and ideas, while everyone works on their own projects.

The best part? Inspiration is wonderfully contagious.

Someone will usually demonstrate a technique, that others will then add their own interpretation to, someone will try a different fibre, another will change the resist or shape and someone else will scale it up… and before long half the room is experimenting with the same idea, each taking it in a completely different direction.

It’s impossible to come home without learning something new. This is a post I wrote after a previous retreat that perfectly demonstrates how everyone will take the same idea and take it in so many different directions my mind boggles.

Of course, retreats aren’t just about making things. They’re about uninterrupted creativity, glasses of wine, home-made cakes, solving each other’s problems, enabling each other’s fibre purchases (“Go on, you know you need it!”), and those conversations that only make sense to fellow fibre enthusiasts.

Sadly, at our last Auckland Felters retreat we received some disappointing news. Bella Rakha, the retreat centre we’ve called home for years, has been sold, and the new owners won’t be hiring it out.

Our March retreat was our last one there 🙁

Finding a replacement is proving much harder than any of us imagined. It turns out we are (mostly) well behaved but rather particular guests.

We need a large hall with hard floors (water and carpet are not natural companions!), comfortable single or twin-share bedrooms rather than bunk rooms, somewhere to prepare or reheat shared meals and enough space for up to 20 felters to spread out with what can only be described as a completely reasonable amount of wool and equipment. 😉

So far we’ve discovered that most venues can offer either the accommodation or the workshop space but rarely both.

I have been contacting boarding schools to see whether they’d hire out their facilities during the holidays. So far… no luck.

Fortunately, Lyndal, one of our AFF members who makes the 1.5 hour journey from Hamilton to Auckland for our regular meetings and retreats, came to the rescue. She found a lovely venue closer to her home and very generously organised a weekend away.

It cost a little more than Bella Rakha, but the facilities were wonderful. Bright workspaces, comfortable rooms… and, perhaps most excitingly for a group of wet felters, a laundry complete with spin dryers and tumble dryers right next to the hall! Luxury indeed.

Sadly, it’s probably a little too far south to become our permanent home, as it would mean a three-hour drive each way for members travelling from Auckland’s northern suburbs. Some of whom can only attend retreats as day visitors due to family commitments.

Still, every retreat produces at least one memorable story…

This time, mine involved a boring, green plastic mailbox.

I’d decided to make a cover for our rural letterbox in the shape of a purple tabby cat. Everything was progressing beautifully until I fitted the felt over the postbox and discovered I’d positioned the ears incorrectly.

They were so far apart that my elegant feline looked less like a cat and more like… well… something more porcine.

After a few moments of artistic denial, I accepted the reality.

My purrfect, pampered purple pussy became a pig.

A very cheerful, glittering, purple pig. He looks like he is ready go dancing!

We called him Percy, Percy the Purple Piggy 🙂

Even though he isn’t what I imagined when I started this make, I love him to bits and Jaq’s idea to add an ear tag for the house number was inspired!

Perhaps that’s another lesson retreats teach us. Sometimes the best creations aren’t the ones you planned—they’re the ones that happen after you’ve made a mistake and decided to embrace it.

Can You Help?

The search for a new Auckland retreat venue continues.

Do you know of somewhere within an hour’s drive of central Auckland that might suit a group of enthusiastic fibre artists?

We’re looking for:

• a large hall with hard floors
• at least 10 single or twin-share bedrooms
• kitchen or meal facilities
• somewhere affordable enough to keep retreats accessible

If you know of a retreat centre, boarding school, scout camp, church facility or hidden gem that might fit the bill, we’d love to hear from you. Please leave a comment below or send us a message.

Who knows—you might help us find the next home for many more weekends of creativity, friendship… and the occasional accidental purple pig.

This post is from guest author and our multi-talented felting friend, Sarah Ritchie, please check out her website to see all the incredible things she does (it’s not all felting!): https://www.sarah-ritchie.com/

Earlier this year, I had the privilege of being part of Deeply Felt (and the stories carried within) – a group exhibition by Auckland Felters, a Creative Fibre community of contemporary felters from across the Auckland region. The exhibition was held at Nathan Homestead Pukepuke in Manurewa, Auckland.

This exhibition was spearheaded by Teri Berry, whose vision and leadership brought the group together to present a cohesive and thoughtful body of work. Auckland Felters is a diverse group, and what makes this group so special is the breadth of practice within it. While we are united by wool fibre as a medium, the way each maker approaches it is entirely individual.

That diversity was evident throughout the exhibition. Works ranged from finely detailed fibre paintings and wall hangings, to sculptural forms and wearable works, each reflecting the interests, techniques, and creative voices of the felters involved. There was no single style or narrative, but rather a celebration of process, patience, and the tactile nature of fibre. It was also a privilege to bring fibre to the attention of the public as an artform – more than just a functional material or a craft.

As needle or wet felters and fibre artists, we all understand the time it takes to bring a piece into being. The process itself becomes embedded in the finished work. That sense of time and touch was present throughout the gallery, inviting visitors to slow down and engage with what had been deeply felt and carefully made.

This was the second exhibition held by Auckland Felters and it felt like a natural progression for the group. There was a sense of growing confidence – both individually and collectively – and an excitement in sharing felted works as art.

Held in Remembrance

Alongside the exhibition sat a special art installation titled Held in Remembrance.

The original idea came from Clare Hocking, who envisioned a collective work of handmade felted poppies to mark ANZAC Day. What began as a simple concept quickly grew into something much larger.

A call-out was made through our personal networks, social media channels and Facebook felting groups, inviting contributions from the wider felting community. The response was immediate and generous. 287 poppies were sent in by more than 50 felters from across Aotearoa New Zealand and around the world. Each poppy was handmade and unique, and many were accompanied by messages of personal connection with the men, women and animals who served.

What arrived was not just a collection of objects, but a gathering of individual acts of making. Different techniques, fibres, and interpretations came together, unified by a shared intention of remembrance, and a remarkable generosity of time, resources, and care.

I had the privilege of leading the installation, with the support of Clare Hocking, Teri Berry, and Jaq Spirrett. Jaq also created the felted barbed wire that formed a central element of the work, adding both visual structure and symbolic weight.

Constructing the installation was not without its challenges. Covering 3.6m wide and 2m tall, each poppy was attached to clear nylon thread and suspended between two battens. The felted barbed wire added a strong narrative to the artwork. Every poppy could be seen. Every maker’s contribution held its place within the whole.

The installation was created as a fundraising initiative for the RNZRSA (Royal New Zealand Returned and Services’ Association), supporting the health and wellbeing of New Zealand’s veterans of military service and their families. All qualifying donations will receive one of the poppies from the installation as a thank-you gift.

If you are reading this before 4th May 2026 and would like to take part, please follow this link for more information.

Apart from its fundraising purpose, what stands out most to me is the sense of international connection and camaraderie the project created. Felting can often be solitary, yet Held in Remembrance brought together a wide and generous community of makers – many of whom we have never met in person, yet are now connected across distance through a shared act of making.

The Open Day that wasn’t

We had originally planned to hold our exhibition Open Day on ANZAC Day itself, bringing together the Deeply Felt exhibition, Held in Remembrance fundraiser installation, a fibre market, and a workshop. However, we were advised (at short notice) that Auckland Council-run galleries would be closed that day, and the event could not go ahead (though, fortunately, the workshop ran as planned in an alternate location). This was immensely disappointing to everyone involved.

And yet, in some ways, it felt fitting. ANZAC Day is, at its heart, a day of pause and reflection. While we had hoped to gather, the quiet absence of that event served as a reminder of the deeper purpose behind both the exhibition and the installation.

What remains is the work itself – the hours of making, the shared effort, and the connections formed along the way. For Auckland Felters, Deeply Felt was more than an exhibition. It was a continuation of a collective journey, and a reflection of what can happen when individual makers come together with a shared intent.