Thousands of creative workshops across the UK
Duration: 6 days in total
Price: £895
Contact: Rosie Hazleton at Wild Rose Escapes
Course Start Dates
About the Course
Come and join us in the Highlands of Scotland to get really immersed in traditional wool crafts.
We run our Fleece to Felt weeks in May and August, our Dye to Spin weeks in July and August and our Craft retreat in September. We start our May and July weeks by shearing one of our Shetland sheep and washing and sorting fleeces. We go on to picking dye plants, making natural dyes and dyeing our fleece over outdoor fires the traditional way. Mid week we visit some of the areas stunning scenery for inspiration, including Glen Affric (one of Scotland's most beautiful glens). The last two days of the course are spent either wet felting (usually a wall hanging inspired by the stunning landscapes and colours around us here) or needle felting with Fi Oberon (UK renowned needle felter).
Fi creates stunning animals from hand-dyed fleece. This year guests went home with garden birds, a badger, Highland cows, hares and of course sheep! Once the technique is learnt it can be applied to any animal, bird or sculptural piece. Last year Fi released one the most comprehensive and beautiful books published on needle felting. She is an excellent teacher who is great fun and very knowledgeable.
Bridie teaches hand-spinning on our Dye to Spin week, she has been teaching in the Highlands for over 20 years; she is relaxed and very skilled. Guests also have a chance to have a go at spinning on our Fleece to Felt week as well as listen to traditional Highland weaving songs and enjoy comfortable accommodation by the river Glass at Kerrow house or the Old Stables at Corimoney.
Our September Craft retreat, is based at the Old Stables, where guests can really enjoy the surroundings and relax, with views out to the local RSPB reserve, the river and the farmland all around.
Our craft retreat includes; natural dyeing, eco-printing, walking and felting, along with an evening relaxation session and optional yoga. We also love to cook and we are happy to cater for all dietary needs. We produce and grow as much of our own food as possible.
We also run weekend and shorter courses please visit our page for information on other courses.
If booking with a CraftCourses voucher for part or all of the course fee, please fill in the contact form above. Your voucher code must be provided at the point of booking.
What's included in the price?
Once we pick guests up from Inverness everything is included in the week (all the workshops, materials, food, accommodation and transfers).
We are happy to cater for any dietary needs. We love to cook and produce as much of our own salad and vegetables as we can and we use local suppliers for our fish and meat.
Travel to Inverness is quite easy as you can fly or take the train. Easyjet flies to Inverness from London, Bristol, Birmingham and Manchester. There is a regular train service from Glasgow and Edinburgh connecting all major cities in the UK.
Each guest goes home with a sample book of the fleece they have naturally dyed and bag of dyed fleece, course notes and their own needle felted sculptures or a wet felted piece.
I attended a weeklong fleece to felt course in May 2019, which included room and board, a sheep shearing demonstration, foraging for natural dyes, fleece washing, picking, carding and spinning. Hand dyeing fleece, silk, and cotton with natural dyes, botanical printing, wet felting, and needle felting.
Anyone interested in these topics, whether a beginner or experienced will benefit from the knowledge of the instructors and the interplay with other class members. The instruction was very hands on and easy to understand and follow. Interesting historical context was included when appropriate. Instructors were very open to questions and to sharing time saving techniques.
Our accommodations were very comfortable. Meals were well prepared with a focus on health, flavour, variety, and aesthetics.
Our lessons on washing, carding, and dyeing were at an off-the-grid croft; an interesting setting to learn about and experience. Sustainablity practices were evident at the farm, at our accommodations, and in our course instruction. Access to outdoor walking was available all week.
I thoroughly enjoyed the structured class time and the hours in between. As a visitor from America, this was a wonderful immersion opportunity for learning about Scottish history, customs, and current culture --in addition to all the class topics that I mentioned above.
If you are interested in fibre arts, you won't regret taking a course with Rosie!
Deborah Martell - - #22538
Response from Wild Rose Escapes:
Thank-you for your review Deb, and i'm so glad you enjoyed your week with us. I hope you enjoy the next part of your travels.It really was everything I hoped, and much more. My room was really nice and slept very well. Rosie is excellent cook, got new ideas also on that area. Course itself is well planned, each day has something unique to offer. You really see and learn about the whole process of felting and dyeing. Recommend highly and the area has amazing nature and views.
Marika - - #16506
This course exceeded expectations. The instruction and felting was well planned, with a good amount of learning and work with a nice amount of breaks. The setting is breathtaking so hiking and walking were superb. The food was fantastic! Rosie was a wonderful host who was super responsive to requests and suggestions. And she was knowledgable about the subject and the area, so I learned a great deal. I would return.
Lynn Booth - - #16496
Came from across the pond for the express purpose of taking the May week-long session in dyeing and needle felting and I was not disappointed. Instruction was excellent, as was the accommodation and the wonderfully delicious and nutritious meals. Even the bread was homemade. Week was packed full of activities without being in any way rushed. Very much enjoyed the opportunity to get away from the big city and savour country life. We even went for a day long hike in the ancient pinewoods in Glen Affric.
Kudos to Rosie for making this week a holiday to remember!
K. Imrie - - #15298
Words really are insufficient to describe how grateful I am for such a lovely, funny, charming, warm, hilarious, silly, breathtaking, beautiful, meaning, creative, week.
From the minute we were picked up at the station we knew we were in good hands. The house we stayed in was so comfortable, and Rosie's meals were exception - she never stops working!
We met all the animals, sheared Lavender the sheep who thinks she is a dog - the beautiful goats - and Otto the dog who thinks he is a sheep.
Rosie is brimming with knowledge about plants and herbs and flowers and the dyeing process. Gathering local flora, dyeing wool over open fires in their woods and then finally using all the wool in a needle felted project run by Fi Oberon was so exciting and interesting. We had a lot of good laughs too. Rosie also took us on hikes to visit the River Affriq, Plodda Falls, and admire the beautiful scenery.
I highly recommend this course to anyone who wants to get away for a week into an uncluttered and more simple world, and also for those who love nature and love to create....
Rosie and Alex and their two adorable children - could not do enough for us.
Rosie and Alex are an amazing couple - and so inspirational.
Charlene Lundgren Frischer - - #15171
Excellent course informative with good instructions clear and concise handouts. Accommodation and food five stars. Excellent tutors
Debbie Rossall - - #15168
This craft course provider has been awarded Platinum status for receiving 50 or more 5 star ratings from previous students.
The Students' Choice award ensures that course providers get recognised for their efforts in the teaching and practice of UK craft.
They also allow tutors to gain valuable feedback on their courses and for new students to find the course that's right for them.
