Latest reviews

Louise Jessop reviewed: Beginners pottery wheel throwing

"Attended with my husband as his birthday present. Charlie is welcoming and attentive throughout the day. All equipment provided and prepared on our arrival. Charlie gives clear and thorough instructions and continues to help during the day for individual instructions. Made cylinders and bowls. Guidance given for onward firing and glazing. COVID rules followed so all good there. The day flew by. Would highly recommend- and to top it all there was tea and choccy biscuits!"

Charlie's Pots responded:

"Hello Louise & Tim Many thanks for your lovely review. I am glad you enjoyed it and it was lovely to meet you both. I will be in touch once all your pots have been fired. Many thanks Charlie"

Nell Dalton reviewed: Introduction to making mosaics (Beginner level)

"Sally is an experienced and intelligent teacher, gently organising you as needed through the day so you can go home with something you're happy with and new skills. She's a skilled facilitator, providing inspiration as well as all the necessary materials. My daughter and I enjoyed her relaxed company and had such a fun day together. My daughter chose something more technical to do so very happily went home with a project to finish. Sally was very helpful in providing guidance on tools and materials. Social distancing and care were observed and we felt safe in the situation. Good directions, easy parking, clean toilet, warm room."

Craft Workshops responded:

"Thank you Nell, I am so pleased you enjoyed your day together and had such fun. I hope to see you both again in the future :)"

Joanne Knaggs reviewed: Candle Making Workshop with Bilsington Priory Afternoon Tea

"The candle making course far exceeded my expectations. Karen was a great tutor, very professional and informative and easy to understand. She gave good attention to detail. There were plenty of fragrances and ingredients to choose from and and I came away with a selection of 8 candles and melts that I had made. Whilst the candles were curing we were served a jaw dropping cream tea. I would highly recommend this course. Thank you"

The Aromatic Candle Co responded:

"Thank you for your lovely review Jo. I am so pleased that you and Kim enjoyed the day and that your expectations were exceeded!"

Jenny Howard reviewed: Marvellous Mosaic one day workshop

"Spent a great day with Lindsey yesterday and came away with a piece of mosaic art that I love! Her work is amazing. Thank you Lindsey Jenny"

Lindsey Kennedy Portfolio responded:

"Thank you for the lovely review, Jenny, and I am so glad that you enjoyed your day after such a wait! I’m hoping you are inspired to continue the craft at home and I look forward to you sharing photos of your next creation with me. Thank you so much for booking the workshop, it was great meeting you."

Christine reviewed: Beginners Soap Making Course

"Had a lovely few hours learning about making soap from Paula. Everything was explained very clearly with a set of notes you can take away, and it was great fun. Learned so much . A few people were going to take things further and sell their soaps (after getting the correct certification of course which was explained) and some were like myself, a complete beginner, just happy to know how to make some fab smelling soap for gifts and presents. Had a lovely cream tea to finish . Everyones soap looked good enough to eat and smelt gorgeous. Highly recommended for anyone ."

Old Bexley Soap & Candle Co. responded:

"Hi Christine, thank you for your review. I am very pleased to hear you enjoyed the course, I hope you love making lovely soaps for you and your family. Paula"

Lynn reviewed: Beginners Soap Making Course

"What a fantastic course! Cannot recommend this enough as an introduction to soap making. The course covers all the legislation and information if you wish to turn this into a small business. Paula is engaging, enthusiastic, and highly knowledgable. The location is super accessible from London if coming by train (the course location is five minutes walk from the mainline train station in Bexley - Oyster Zone 6, and only 21 minutes on the fast train from London Bridge), or if driving there is plenty of available parking. It was fantastic to see the various creations other participants made, and a lovely afternoon tea topped off the day. Paula very kindly caters for dietary requirements - the vegan scones were wonderful!"

Old Bexley Soap & Candle Co. responded:

"Thank you Lynn for this great review, it is great to hear that coming from other parts of London was easy and it was worthwhile. All the best. Paula"

Jane reviewed: Beginner’s Soapmaking Workshop in Salisbury

"Lovely day. Catherine was really welcoming and clearly knows her subject. The safety precautions for both the soap making and Covid were fantastic and reassuring. I came away feeling confident to make my own soap and keen to experiment with different fragrance and texture."

Charlotte reviewed: Beginners Soap Making Course

"I’m so happy I came across this course. It’s brilliant and I had such a lovely day. Paula knows her stuff and the amount of help and information she gave us was fantastic! Any questions we had were answered and I left with everything I wanted/ needed to know along with 8 little bars of my very own first batch of soap!! Thank you Paula for everything. I highly recommend!! :)"

Old Bexley Soap & Candle Co. responded:

"Hi Charlotte, I'm glad you are happy to have found this course and that you now feel confident to make your own at home. All the best. Paula"

Jerrell Torres reviewed: Textured Jewellery Making

"I thoroughly enjoyed the ring making workshop with Katherine. She is a brilliant teacher - encouraging and patient. We were extremely happy with what we learned during the workshop but now have the rings themselves as a memento of the experience. We would love to do another workshop and learn how to make other jewellery."

Heather Faulkner reviewed: 3 x Christmas Fragrance Soy Candle Making Kits + Online Video Tutorial

"Great service ant wait to make them. Would also make great gifts"

Rowhill Candles responded:

"Heather - many thanks for your review, which is appreciated. Rowhill Candles"

Peter Quayle reviewed: Bladesmithing Experience Day

"The course from start to finish was fantastic. A great bunch of passionate, professional and down to earth guys at the top of their profession. Lunch was great, the banter and brew flowed throughout the day and the expert training and support to give everyone attending an end product of a working knife is testimony to the way the course was run. Brilliant, thank you."

Clarke Knives responded:

"It was a really good day Peter. We all hope to see you again in the future"

Peter Quayle reviewed: ** SPECIAL OFFER ** 10% off - Bladesmithing Experience Day - Wiltshire

"The course from start to finish was fantastic. A great bunch of passionate, professional and down to earth guys at the top of their profession. Lunch was great, the banter and brew flowed throughout the day and the expert training and support to give everyone attending an end product of a working knife is testimony to the way the course was run. Brilliant, thank you."

Clarke Knives responded:

"It was a really good day Peter. We all hope to see you again in the future"

Gail Sadd reviewed: Driftwood Harbour workshops with Harbour Wood Design at Walford Mill in Dorset

"A wonderful way to spend time together and come home with an "achievement"! Lovely workshop, great selection of driftwood, string, nails, paint, glue, nuts and bolts to name a few! Excellent help and friendly guidance throughout the day which ensured each of us had a result! Thank you Michelle. (And the cafe on site was also excellent offering coffee, cake and lunch!)"

Harbour Wood Design responded:

"Hello Gail , thank you so much for your review, it was wonderful to meet you and your family . You all did amazingly well !!"

Amy Saunt reviewed: Create your dream business from candle making - One to one session

"I really enjoyed my time with Jane I left the session feeling really confident and ready to get started. I had learnt things that I didn’t even know about which was really useful and helped me not waste any time. The legal side was really informative and I was given a booklet to take home so I can always refer back to this. The sandwiches and teas throughout the day were excellent great service. Will be definitely keeping in contact with Jane for my future development would highly recommend this course for anyone thinking about doing this. Just go for it!! Thanks again Jane."

The Candle Coach responded:

"Thank you Amy for your lovely words, it was a pleasure to spend the day with you and I’m really excited to see your business flourish, you are going to be great!"

Dishi reviewed: Introduction to candle making workshop

"Hey Pauline Absolutely loved the candle making course yesterday, it was so informative, fun and I got to take home my first ever handmade candles!! You are a brilliant instructor and took care and pride of each one of us. So glad it was a small class od five people, Covid safe as you came well prepared with apron's, masks for each person and the facilities were clean and safe. I'm telling all my friends and family about it and highly recommend this class Let me know when the next class is following on from the introduction."

Bonita Candles responded:

"Hi My lovely, thank you for your awesome feedback! I'm so happy you had a great time. Your work was amazing. We loved working with you and cant wait to show you some for tricks. Your going to love it! Thanks for being a great participant. xx"

Harvey Alison reviewed: Timber framing courses

"Probably the best course I have ever taken! Alan, Mary, Connor and Sid made everyone very welcome. Their holistic approach meant that our week together was so much more than learning to timber frame. It was also a week camping with new friends, fine dining al fresco, campfire whittling, great conversation and playing music with like minded folk. I learned a huge amount about timber framing each day, with lots of hands on work. The course project was to construct a small frame for Tom, who was also taking the course to reinforce his knowledge. It was a great feeling to be contributing to a structure for his family and generations to come. Hopefully I will be able to return to take the advanced course in the future. I'm certainly feeling inspired and confident now to begin the journey with my own projects. Would recommend this course to anyone, whether you are looking to learn new skills for your professional career, or like me simply seeking to enjoy making things and lifelong learning."

Lisa Mcdonald reviewed: Upholstery course - bring your own project

"I have recently spent the most enjoyable three days upholstering my armchair with the expert help and guidance of adorable Polly. Polly’s knowledge and teaching skills are second to none. Together with her hospitality (Polly is a feeder!) and her warm personality, there is no better place to go in order to learn the art of upholstering. I really did love my experience and cannot wait to enrol on another. Thank you Polly, I wish you every success. You absolutely deserve it. Warm Regards, Lisa."

Lesley reviewed: Beginners Soap Making Course

"I searched for weeks to find a soap making course and I luckily came across this one. This course is fantastic, it is incredibly informative and Paula talks you through all the steps within the process in a manner that is easily digestible. She has a wealth of knowledge that she openly shares with you, gives you plenty of hints and tips on how to be successful when making soap and setting yourself up as a business. I happily played around with choosing the scents for my soap - which are currently providing my flat with a lovely air freshener. Very excited to use them, and to get started on making some of my own creations, as I feel very inspired. I couldn't have asked for anything more. Oh! And sconces are seriously delicious too!"

Old Bexley Soap & Candle Co. responded:

"Hi Lesley, thank you so much for this lovely review. Enjoy your new skill, once you try your own handmade soaps you will not look back. Paula"

Stephen Frankish reviewed: Bountiful baskets at Cowshed Creative in the Lake District

"What an amazing experience! I can’t recommend this enough, George and Hanna were perfect hostesses and the location was very welcoming with lovely homemade lunches provided."

Cowshed Creative responded:

"Thanks Steve for such lovely feedback. Great to meet you at last and thanks for your patience with lockdown delays on the course."

S A Hirst reviewed: Bountiful baskets at Cowshed Creative in the Lake District

"Really gentle presentation, good pace and lots of choice and excellent guidance. Hannah gave me the confidence to have another go with a different shaped basket. Great food too. Thanks"

Cowshed Creative responded:

"Many thanks Sheila for such good feedback. Hope to see you again"

Wendy reviewed: Upholstery for Beginners Workshop - in Cheadle, Gr Manchester

"I really enjoyed the recent upholstery course at Poynton. We were a small group and the atmosphere was relaxed with Jo on hand to help us all at each stage. Jo is extremely helpful, patient and knowledgable and gave us some great advice and tips to take our new found skills further. The cakes and scones were an added bonus and very much appreciated, thank you Jo’s mum! I am so pleased with my footstool which is so much better than I expected it to be. A great day. Thank you."

The Boho Shed responded:

"Thank you so much Wendy, It always makes my day to receive such a lovely review and my Mum is delighted you enjoyed her cakes. You did a lovely job of your footstool. Enjoy putting your feet up!"

Julie Shaw reviewed: Marvellous Mosaic one day workshop

"Really enjoyed my day with Lindsey on the mosaic course. She went to great care to make it all feel safe and gave very clear instructions on the processes involved. I think we all came away with something we were pleased with. Would definitely recommend to others and would love to do another one. Thankyou Lindsey."

Lindsey Kennedy Portfolio responded:

"Thank you for taking time to write such a lovely review. I’m so pleased that you enjoyed your workshop experience and felt safe at the same time. Don’t forget to send me photos of any further mosaics you create as I love to see where it takes everyone! Many thanks Julie, your feedback is much appreciated (and you are always very welcome to come back on another workshop)."

LEIGH HUNT reviewed: Blacksmithing Introduction courses in Yorkshire and the North East

"Good day, good food, good company and good metal working. Thanks"

Paul Frost reviewed: Beginners 1-day 1-2-1 woodturning workshop for 1 person

"WOW what an excellent day, from the gate opening to the gate closing when we arrived and finished the welcome we recieved from Simon and Louise was second to none. Simon is an excellent tutor who works at your pace, his knowledge no only for the skills of wood turning but also about the types of wood, and what the tools are used for. This being my first experience of this skill has given me an appetite for more. Louise was lovely keeping the tea and coffee coming and the wonderful lunch. I thoroughly recommend this work shop for anyone wanting to learn this skill."

Blended Monkey - pottery - woodturning - green woodworking - pole lathe - throwing responded:

"Hi Paul, We're super pleased that you and Simon enjoyed the workshop. It was a pleasure teaching you, and you both turned some really lovely pieces :-). Feel free to contact us if you'd like to attend a more intermediary session. We're not currently advertising this, but it's something we can offer to those who might need the next level. Again, fab meeting you both!"

Jess D reviewed: Drapes to Dungarees at Cowshed Creative, the Lake District near Windermere

"I honestly can not speak highly enough about this course! I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it! Meg was fantastic and helped me every step of the way. I hadn’t used a sewing machine since I was at school but Meg gave me the confidence to just have a go - and it paid off! Meg was so welcoming, calm and enthusiastic and left me wanting to go home and make dungarees for everyone in my family! George was a fantastic host. She made everyone feel welcome, kept us warm, topped us up with water, coffee and tea, and made the most amazing lunch - I asked for the recipe it was so delicious! I really would recommend this course to anybody! Still buzzing about it a week later! ?"

Cowshed Creative responded:

"Thanks Jess for such amazing feedback. Lovely to meet you and hope to see you again."