Creating your own festive highlights
Posted:12 December 2011
Making our own gifts, Christmas cards and festive wreaths can add that bit more cheer to this time of the year. Recent workshops at The Garden House have included Book Binding with Nicola Jackson, Paper Collage with Jane Robbins, and recently, wreath-making classes with Deborah Kalinke – it’s been a whirlwind of creativity (even for those who mistakenly think they don’t have a creative bone in their body!).
And what’s more, these crafts are all about recycling, using what’s to hand an ethos that is very important to us. Smallish pieces of leftover wrapping paper can be employed as beautiful note- or sketch-book covers (customized to suit a gardening friend, poetry lover or travelling artist), scraps of newspaper (The Guardian is Jane’s favourite) are snipped into delightful collaged artworks – and of course, fresh foliage, sumptuous berries and cones from the garden create the most bountiful of decorative wreaths.
Again we collaborated with the wonderful Much Ado Books in Alfriston for two of our wreath-making workshops. Alfriston is a picture-perfect Sussex village, with Much Ado Books at its heart. This very special bookshop offers both new and second-hand books and owners Nash and Cate are always on hand to give recommendations. It is well worth a visit at any time, especially if you combine with tea at the renowned Badgers Tearooms just around the corner (scribbled on one wall: “love and scandal are the best sweeteners of tea”. Love it)…
Next year we have another exciting and diverse programme of workshops, courses and garden visits lined up, starting mid-January with Making a Bag or Cushion and Next Steps in Knitting (cosy, indoory activities!). For the more horticulture minded, our 16-session Principles of Horticulture, and 8-week Intermediate Gardener courses both start in February.
We’ve also lined up a visit to the wonderful winter garden at Cambridge University Botanic Gardens in mid-February. All great ways to prepare for the new gardening year!