Madrona Winter Retreat FAQs | Madrona Fiber Arts

Retreat Dates: The retreat is being held February 16-19, 2012
Retreat Location: The retreat is being held at the Hotel Murano in Tacoma, Washington.
Hotel Murano
1320 Broadway Plaza
Tacoma, WA 98402
Local Phone: 253-238-8000
Toll Free: 1-888-862-3255
www.hotelmuranotacoma.com
More information: See Hotel and Travel Information page.
Travel Information: See Hotel and Travel Information page for information about getting to the Hotel Murano including the shuttle to and from the hotel and SeaTac Airport, the train and bus to Tacoma and driving directions.
Parking: The Hotel Murano has parking available for hotel guests at $10 plus tax per night and $15 per day for other visitors. Additional parking options are listed on the Hotel and Travel Information page.
Hotel Reservation Requests: Madrona Fiber Arts has arranged a special rate for Winter Retreat Attendees at the Hotel Murano. The Hotel Murano has created a special online reservations page just for Madrona Winter Retreat Attendees. Attendees are responsible for making their own hotel reservations online using this page. Hotel room rates and instructions for making reservations are on the Make Hotel Reservations page.
Roommate Matching: Madrona will assist persons looking to share a hotel room with another attendee. Please see the Make Hotel Reservations page. Fill out the online form provided and submit it. You will be contacted about a roommate referral.
Meals: You are on your own for meals at the Winter Retreat. Many excellent local restaurants are close by. We’ll have a list for you. Lunch break at the retreat is between 12 noon and 1:30 PM. The Hotel Murano is providing the following options this year:

Breakfast buffet each morning before classes begin.
Lunch time buffet during the class lunch break each day between 12 noon to 1:30 pm.
Saturday and Sunday sandwich and salad concession in the Pavilion Rotunda from 11 am to 2 pm.
Sit down served meals at the 4th floor BITE restaurant for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
The hotel lobby espresso and bar is open from early morning to late evening.
Complimentary coffee, tea and water are available daily in the hotel lobbies and the rotunda of the Pavilion.

Registration opens on Tuesday, November 15th. We will not be giving you a specific time.
Registration is available only online on a first come, first served basis. Please go to the Registration Instructions page for complete instructions. When registration opens on November 15th there will be a red “Begin Registration” button to click on at the bottom of the Registration Instructions page that will link you to our registration process. BE SURE TO REFRESH YOUR BROWSER OR YOU MAY MISS THE OPENING. Follow the Registration Do’s and Don’t's when registering so that the process will go smoothly. To understand more background information about our registration process you can go to Understanding Madrona Registration page.
Mini Classes at Madrona: This year we are offering “Mini’s” – 1.5 hour classes for those of you who find you can come at the last minute, didn’t get all the classes you wanted in the regular registration, or just want an introduction to a new skill or technique. Mini Classes are 1.5 hours each and there is one class for each 1.5 hour time period with a 10-12 person limit. We will do a totally separate registration for the Mini classes at the end of January. The mini classes will be announced in December by email message and also on the website.
Registering for someone other than yourself: Every person taking classes must be registered separately. One registration per person. If you are registering for another person be sure you have all of their contact information and register using their email address. If the other person you’re registering for does not have an email address, then you can use your own email address. If you have already registered for yourself with your email address, you will be asked if you want to begin a new registration. Click on the button labeled “Begin a new registration with this email” and proceed to enter the new name, address and phone number. Note that if you use your own email address for somebody else’s registration, you will receive all future notifications related to that person’s registration. We will rely on you to pass along the information to the other person.
Listing of classes that have openings: After registration opens, we will be posting which classes are full on the Class Schedule on a daily basis for the first several weeks and then frequently there after. After the initial registration opening you can go to the Class Schedule to check for classes that have openings before going to register or requesting a change.
Wait List: When you register, be prepared with alternative class choices. Many classes fill quickly. If the class you preferred is full and you want to be sure to have a class in that time slot, you need to choose another class. If you still want the class that is full, fill out the online Wait List Form and submit it. You CANNOT be on a wait list and also enroll in another class during that same time slot. You will be placed on the wait list in the order that your form is received and notified if an opening becomes available. You will have 2 days to respond before we move to the next person.
Changes to your registration: No changes can be made online through the registration process. For Cancellations, class exchanges or additions and any other changes to your registration, fill out the online Change Registration Form and submit it. We will take care of the change ASAP and notify you to confirm. A fee may be charged for changes and cancellations. Check our Cancellation and Refund Policy for more information.
Saturday Night Banquet: Go to the Registration Instructions page and proceed through registration. You can register for the banquet when you register for classes and add extra banquet tickets for your guests. If you are not taking any classes you will be allowed to register for the banquet only. Banquet tickets are $48 each for a Salmon dinner. A vegetarian alternative is available.
Our speaker at the banquet will be Deborah Robson, teacher, author, editor and publisher. Deb will present “The Fiber Odyssey”, the behind- the-scenes adventure in search of fibers both rare and all sorts that became the “Fleece and Fiber Sourcebook” published this year to great acclaim. More information is on the Saturday Class Schedule.
Teacher Information: For more information about each teacher click on each teacher’s name on the Class Schedule or go to the Meet the Teachers page. Many teachers have websites with pictures of their work and we’ve listed them for you in their write-ups.
Class Fees: There is no registration fee. You pay only for the classes you want to attend. You are welcome to come to the retreat any and all days you wish. Fees are below:

3 hr. classes: $85
6 hr. classes: $160
2 Day (12 hr.) classes: $295
Saturday Night Banquet: $48 (see Saturday Class Schedule)

Class Materials Fees: If a class has a materials fee it is listed on the schedule with the class description. The materials fee will be added to the class fee and collected together when you register for that class.
Payment Options: You may pay by check or credit card. We accept Visa, MasterCard, and Discover Card. Pay online with our secure online registration process. If you pay by credit card, the full amount for your registration will be charged within 5 days after you register. If you choose to pay by check full payment must be received within 10 days to remain registered for your classes.
Check payment instructions: Make your check out to Madrona Fiber Arts and send to: Madrona Fiber Arts, P.O. Box 1343, Issaquah, WA 98027-0055
Cancellation and Refunds Policy: If you need to cancel or change any classes or your entire registration, you must fill out the online Registration Change Form and submit it. No changes or cancellations can be done online through the registration process.

A $15 fee will apply to each class that is cancelled or changed up to a maximum of $60. (That means if you cancel 4 or more classes the maximum fee applied will be $60.)
No refunds after January 16, 2012. HOWEVER, individual class fees may be refunded minus the $15 cancellation fee ONLY if your place is filled from a wait list for that class before February 5, 2012.
Materials fees and the banquet are fully refundable until February 5, 2012.

Class Hours: Classes begin at 9:00 AM each day and end at 4:30 PM with a lunch break from 12 noon till 1:30 PM. The Class Schedule page shows the time for each class and also the evening events.
Supply and Homework List: For all classes will be posted on the Madrona Website by December 15th.
The Marketplace at the Winter Retreat: The 2012 Winter Retreat Market will continue to offer the very best and unique yarns and fibers from around the world. Your favorite yarn shops, unique specialty vendors, books, patterns, equipment, accessories, dyes and one-of-a kind items are all in one place. If you can imagine it, our vendors will have it. The market is free and open to the public all 4 days of the retreat in the Pavilion at the Hotel Murano at 1320 Broadway Plaza, Tacoma, Washington. More information, market hours and a list of the 2012 vendors will be available in December on the Yarn and Fiber Market page.
Evening Events at the Winter Retreat: Thursday and Friday evening events begin at 7:30 pm and are free. No registration required.

Thursday evening is our traditional Charity Knit-In. Please join Stephanie Pearl-McPhee for a fun rewarding evening and help support our Charity Partners.
Friday Evening is our teachers gallery where you have a chance to meet our wonderful teachers and see their work up front and close. We welcome Sarah Swett as our speaker prior to opening the Teacher’s Gallery. Sarah is one of the most exciting, versatile and passionate fiber artists working today. Her presentation “The Luminous Ordinary” will give you the opportunity to view her incredible work and know the back story of the richness and expanse of all that Sarah’s fiber art includes.
More information on both evening events will be featured on the Madrona website in January.

Mail List Sign-up: Many of you are already on our mail list. If you aren’t on our list, click on the Mailing List in the header at the top of each webpage. Your information is totally private and the list is used only to send periodic announcements concerning Madrona Fiber Arts events. If your email address has changed, just click on the Mailing List and enter your new email address. Some people sign up and don’t receive our emails. We send out “group emails” that maybe identified by some email filters as spam. Some of you who get your email at work may have filters that don’t allow emails from us. Be sure to list the following domain names in your safe contacts or white list and this will help us get past your filters: suzanne@madronafiberarts.com, events@regonline.com.
Still More Questions? Contact Suzanne Pedersen through the “Contact Us” link at the header at the top of our website.