Girlfriends Getaway | Crafting Retreat in Bethlehem, PA
Crafting Retreat Dates | October 16-18 Enjoy a fall crafting weekend that's perfect for a girlfriends getaway, ladies retreat, or mother-daughter trip. Learn crafts like pottery making, jewelry making, embroidery, and natural dyeing.
Choose from more than a dozen craft classes including pottery making, jewelry sculpting, and candlebox building
You and your friends will enjoy a fun fall weekend in the Lehigh Valley where you can choose from more than a dozen craft classes. You can choose two classes each day. All of the necessary class materials and tools are included. Classes are beginner-friendly and include more advanced options for experienced students.
Here are some examples: In the natural dyeing workshop, you’ll turn colorful flowers into dye that you’ll use to color your own scarf. There’s a pottery class where you will make your own artisan cheese board. Literature lovers will have a blast in a class where they make their own paper and bind a custom book. Scroll down for a full class option list.
Small craft class sizes ensure you get personal attention
Class sizes are limited to six students per session to ensure you and your friends get personalized attention from the master craftsperson leading the session.
Full Girlfriends Getaway Craft Class Schedule
You will select your classes after you purchase your craft weekend admission.
Friday Evening Maker’s Retreat Schedule
Friday, October 16
- 5 PM: Check-In Opens
- 6 PM: Birthplace of Industry Tour
- 7 PM: Welcome/Meet & Greet
Saturday Maker’s Retreat Classes
Saturday, October 17
- 10 AM – 1 PM:
- Introduction to Printmaking
- Metal Jewelry Sculpting
- Blacksmithing 101
- Intro to Woodworking: Create Your Own Candlebox Part 1
- 1 PM – 2 PM:
- Lunch
- 2 PM – 5 PM:
- Natural Dyeing 101
- Bookbinding 101
- Hand-Building Pottery
- Bottle-Opener Blacksmithing Class
- 6 PM – 9 PM:
- Make & Mingle Open-Studio Time
Introduction to Printmaking
Students will sketch, carve, ink and press their way through the linocut process from start to finish. By the end of class, each student will have pulled a series of prints and a reusable block of their own design.
Metal Jewelry Sculpting
In this metalsmithing workshop, students will take bronze pieces and meticulously heat, hammer, and shape them into their very own wearable earrings. Experience the heat of the blowtorch, the throw of the hammer, and the satisfaction of having created your own wearable piece while learning the basics of anticlastic and synclastic metal shaping techniques.
Blacksmithing 101
Take your experience beyond watching and get into the soot with the Blacksmithing 101 course. Staged in our historical 1750 Smithy, watch learn, and hone your skills with one of our professional blacksmiths using the same tools of the trade that were available in the colonial days. Students will learn essential blacksmithing skills including shaping and punching iron, scrolling, and will explore decorative design techniques to create their very own hook to take home with them.
Intro to Woodworking: Create Your Own Candlebox Part 1
Trade the power tools for a hand saw, chisel, and plane, and build a candle box the way it was done for centuries. Students will feel the rhythm of cutting joinery by hand, the curl of shavings off the plane, and the smell of fresh-cut wood as their box takes shape. This is a two-part class, and students must take both parts to finish their project.
Natural Dyeing 101
Take fabric dyeing back to its roots in this immersive, nature-inspired workshop. In this 3-hour experience, you’ll begin your botanical dyeing journey and discover creative ways to draw rich, unexpected color from native plants that can be grown right in your own backyard. Learn the bundle dyeing method as you create your own one-of-a-kind scarf or bandana and watch natural patterns and hues unfold. All materials are provided. Come ready to experiment, explore, and be surprised by the colors you create!
Bookbinding 101
Design and bind your own journal in this beginner-friendly, 3-hour bookbinding workshop. Fold and gather your pages, sew them with a combination of tab and Coptic binding techniques, and create stitching that becomes part of the design before cutting and attaching book boards that let your creativity shine. You’ll walk away with a 30-page book of your own design and the satisfaction of seeing your design come together piece by piece.
Hand-Building Pottery
Get your hands dirty in this playful and creative hand-building pottery workshop. Explore form, texture, and movement as you delicately shape clay to form your one-of-a-kind witch sculpture perfect for the season. Let the creativity flow as each step slowly brings your witch to life!
Bottle-Opener Blacksmithing Class
Step into our 1750 Smithy, pick up a hammer, and forge something you’ll actually use. Working at the forge with one of our professional blacksmiths, you’ll heat iron until it glows, then bend, twist, and shape it into a bottle opener with a handle hammered to fit your own grip. Expect heat, sparks, and a little soot on your hands, and a tool you’ll be showing off every time you open a bottle.
Sunday Maker’s Retreat Classes
Sunday, October 18
- 10 AM – 1 PM:
- Metal Jewelry Sculpting
- Hand-Building Pottery: Sgraffito
- Intro to Woodworking: Create Your Own Candlebox Part 2
- Papermaking
- 1 PM – 2 PM:
- Lunch
- 2 PM – 5 PM:
- Introduction to Wood Carving
- Beginner Embroidery
- Intermediate Blacksmithing
- Introduction to Leatherwork
Metal Jewelry Sculpting
In this metalsmithing workshop, students will take bronze pieces and meticulously heat, hammer, and shape them into their very own wearable earrings. Experience the heat of the blowtorch, the throw of the hammer, and the satisfaction of having created your own wearable piece while learning the basics of anticlastic and synclastic metal shaping techniques.
Hand-Building Pottery: Sgraffito
In this workshop you’ll hand-design your own cheese and display board, coat it in color, and carve a pattern that’s entirely your own. Experience how this ancient technique, Italian for “scratching”, slowly and steadily transforms your clay piece into something unique and intricate. Bring your ideas and personal creative style and design anything from florals, geometrics, initials and leave with a board built to be used.
Intro to Woodworking: Create Your Own Candlebox Part 2
Trade the power tools for a hand saw, chisel, and plane, and build a candle box the way it was done for centuries. Students will feel the rhythm of cutting joinery by hand, the curl of shavings off the plane, and the smell of fresh-cut wood as their box takes shape. This a two-part class, and students must take both parts to finish their project.
Papermaking
Slow down and get your hands wet in this beginner-friendly papermaking workshop. You’ll learn the basics of turning pulp into beautiful sheets of handmade paper, forming couching, pressing, and drying, while exploring simple ways to add color texture, and natural inclusions. All materials are provided, and you’ll leave with your own handmade papers to use for notes, prints, collage, or future art projects.
Introduction to Wood Carving
Pick up a knife, feel the grain give way, and discover why carvers describe this craft as meditative. You’ll learn to hold and sharpen your tools, work with the wood rather than against it, and let the shape reveal itself one careful cut at a time. Expect the smell of fresh-cut wood, a pile of shavings at your feet, and a piece carved entirely by hand.
Beginner Embroidery
With just a needle, hoop, and thread, experience the meditative nature of embroidery, a trade that has shaped textile design for centuries. In this relaxed workshop, students will tread and stitch a wildflower pattern learning some of the most common embroidery stitch techniques. Students are encouraged to find their own flow to discover the intricate designs their imagination takes them.
Intermediate Blacksmithing
Take your blacksmithing skills to the next level in this Intermediate Blacksmithing class. Designed for those who have completed Blacksmithing 101 or have basic forging experience, this hands-on workshop dives deeper into technique, precision, and design. You’ll refine essential skills such as forging dimension, joinery, and decorative elements while tackling more complex projects at the anvil. Come ready to work hot, challenge yourself, and push your craftsmanship further.
Introduction to Leatherwork
Revel in that familiar new leather smell as you cut, stitch, and design your own wearable belt. You’ll measure to your own fit, then cut, punch, and hand-stitch full-grain leather, feeling it soften and take shape under your hands as you work. Add your own tooled details and finish and walk out wearing a belt that will only look better with age.
Your weekend getaway includes a welcome party and history tour
Kick off your fun fall weekend in Bethlehem with a welcome reception and history tour. A Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites guide will lead you on a tour of properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places. They include a working waterwheel from 1762. Plus, you’ll explore the Moravian Church Settlements–Bethlehem World Heritage Site.
Special hotel rates are available for this girlfriends getaway
The Historic Bethlehem Maker’s Retreat is a short drive from New York and Philadelphia. So, it’s a great weekend getaway for friends and mother-daughter duos.
For a luxurious stay, we suggest Historic Hotel Bethlehem, which is offering special rates on overnight accommodations for full weekend retreat participants. Call 855-264-2598 to book your room and let them know you’re attending the Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites Maker’s Retreat.
Plan your Maker’s Retreat visit | Frequently Asked Questions
Are overnight accommodations available for these artisan workshops?
Yes, overnight accommodations are available at Historic Hotel Bethlehem, a three-minute walk from the Colonial Industrial Quarter. Maker’s Retreat participants can take advantage of the Hotel’s special weekend room rate by calling 855-264-2598 and letting them know you’re attending the retreat.
Bethlehem Maker’s Retreat Registration Fees
Registration is $400 for the entire weekend, including the Friday night welcome and tour. A single day pass is $200.
Where in Bethlehem do these weekend craft classes take place?
The craft classes take place in Bethlehem’s Colonial Industrial Quarter, 459 Old York Road, Bethlehem. Craft workshops take place in three of the Colonial Industrial Quarter buildings: the 1782/1834 Grist Miller’s House, 1869 Luckenbach Mill, and the 1750 Smithy.
Do I need prior craft experience to participate in these craft workshops?
You don’t need prior craft experience to participate in the retreat. All workshops are beginner friendly. Experienced attendees can work on more advanced projects.
What is the minimum age to participate in these craft workshops?
Craft workshop participants must be at least 18.
Where do I park for the craft retreat?
You can park onsite at the Luckenbach Mill, 459 Old York Road, Bethlehem, PA 18018. Historic Hotel Bethlehem guests may also park in the hotel’s parking garage.
Are the Colonial Industrial Quarter sites accessible?
Due to the historic nature of the buildings and sites, many of the buildings are accessible only via stairs. The Luckenbach Mill has an elevator that takes guests to the building’s upper floors. For specific accessibility details, contact Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites (HBMS) Colonial Industrial Quarter Site Manager Jackie Armao.
What is the cancellation policy?
Registrations are non-refundable and non-transferrable. For questions on refunds and cancellations, please contact HBMS Colonial Industrial Quarter Site Manager Jackie Armao.
