Paper, Paint and Ink

Ink-Making (Friday)

Candide Turner-Bridger

A chance for you to make brown and black inks out of walnut shells and charcoal. The perfect accompaniment to your quills, calligraphy skills or even your paper-making.

Booking Essential (suitable for age 8 upwards)

Paint-Making (Saturday)

Candide Turner-Bridger

Explore your prehistoric roots as you use the natural colours of the earth to make your own paints and pigments and then create your own pictures.

Drop-in (suitable for age 8 upwards)

Charcoal Making (Thursday)

Candide Turner-Bridger

Using locally sourced willow and sitting around the campfire you’ll make your own sticks of charcoal to take away with you and use for drawing.

Drop-in (suitable for age 8 and upwards)

Paper, Paint and Ink

Cyanotype Printing (Wednesday and Thursday)

Sue Nicholls

Cyanotype printing was first discovered in 1842 and is a form of photographic printing that produces a blue-coloured print. Taking inspiration from natural forms around the farm you’ll be able to make your own cyanotype print home with you.

Please note that cyanotype printing really needs a bright and sunny day. So if it isn’t that then we’ll shift it to another day and hope for the best.

Drop-in (suitable for all ages)

Book Binding (Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday)

Alan Fitch

Join local book binder Alan Fitch to create your own handstitched leather-covered notebook to take home with you. The paper being used is deckle-edged which means the edges of the paper have a rough look to them. Please note that there is an extra cost to take your notebook home.

Booking Essential (suitable for age 15 upwards)

Arabic Calligraphy (Wednesday and Thursday)

Razman Ul-Haq

Known as Khatt, Arabic calligraphy is the artistic practice of handwriting based on the Arabic alphabet. It is rightly regarded as an artistic form in it’s own right. In this workshop you will learn the basics of Arabic calligraphy using traditional materials.

Booking Essential (suitable for age 8 upwards)

Wood, Metal, Glass and Clay

Simple Spoon Carving (Tuesday

Nick Gosman and Wednesday)

If you ’ ve ever wanted to get into greenwood working using traditional tools like axes and knives, this is your chance. Using techniques and skills dating back hundreds of years, Nick teach you how to make a basic cooking or eating spoon using wood that has been sustainability collected from local woodlands.

Booking Essential (suitable for age 14 upwards)

Greenwood Whittling (Thursday)

Chris Russell

If you missed your chance to try some spoon carving with Nick or if you want to carry on developing your carving skills then join Chris for one more day of wood whittling. You could make a spurtle (Chris will tell you what they are) to take home with you.

Booking Essential (suitable for age 14 upwards)

Wood, Metal, Glass and Clay

Small-Scale Pewter Casting (Tuesday and Wednesday)

Chris Russell

The morning session introduces a number of mould-making options with plenty of time to try more than one process. In the afternoon you will go through casting including Health and Safety, (showing how this can be done at home) before fettling and finishing the castings.

Booking Essential (suitable for age 11 upwards)

Treehouse Building (all week)

Jonathan Fell

During the week Jonathan will be planning and building a new treehouse for the Treehouse Festival. He’s going to need people to come along and take part in the planning, preparing tools and materials and in putting the treehouse together.

Drop-in (suitable for age 10 upwards)

Glassblowing (all week)

Graham Reed

During this workshop you will learn the basic skills of glassblowing. You’ll find out how to work with a burner and to blow rotate, manipulate and shape a piece of glass. At the end of the workshop you’ll be able to take away your own home-made glass object. All you need to bring is your own ‘puff’.

Booking Essential (suitable for age 6 upwards)

Wood, Metal, Glass and Clay

Blacksmithing (all week)

Daniel Johnson & Henry Ball

Our blacksmithing workshops are introductory sessions for complete beginners who have never used a hammer on an anvil. You’ll learn the art of blacksmithing with hands-on personal instruction as you create your very own hand-forged item.

Booking Essential (suitable for age 13 upwards)

Pottery and Kiln Building (Monday, Thursday to Saturday)

Chris Russell

This workshop starts with making pinch pots on the Monday, building the kiln on the Thursday and firing it on the Friday finally on Saturday morning you get to see your results. Those making pots or their own creations on the Monday get first shout on Thursday's kiln building - the very messy bit. Friday's kiln firing takes all day so drop in to see how it is progressing, but there is not much to do - or see, until around 5.00pm when the kiln ignites! A spectacular end to the process. The items cool down in the the kiln overnight and can be collected on Saturday morning.

Booking Essential (suitable for 8 upwards)

Renovating and Sharpening Tools (all week)

Stephen Biddle

Looking after tools is an important part of any craftsperson’s work. Join Stephen and find out how to bring your old tools back to life.

Drop-in (suitable for age 12 upwards)