Latest reviews

Paul Rutt reviewed: Metalwork Craft weekend with The Iron Lady - Bradwell Blacksmiths

"Natalie’s experience and enthusiasm for everything metal shows through, add to that the ability and patience to teach results in a thoroughly and enjoyable introductory course for beginners. I would highly recommend Natalie to anybody either looking to get involved with metal for the first time or seeking to improve their knowledge. I will certainly be keen to visit again to learn more. Paul."

Karen George reviewed: Abstract stone carving course with Mark Stonestreet

"Such an amazing few days .. post COVID the studio is clean, safe, well equipped and thought out to make you feel totally safe and at ease. The tuition from Mark was fantastic and he ensured that everyone was made to feel comfortable and confident that they could achieve their initial ideas although none of us had attempted working in this medium before. Mark was always on hand to give support, advice and encouragement and with his help everyone on the course was overjoyed at what they achieved after just three days and I will definitely be booking on another course at the Phoenix studio as soon as I am able!"

Nick Buckland reviewed: Glass Fusing with Enamels Taster Class - Make a Tealight Curve

"My wife bought the taster course for me as a wedding present, one of the best I’ve had! Excellent course, Steve was good company and really knows his stuff, took me through the process and was on hand to help throughout. Plus the added bonus of a tea light made with my own (plus a bit of Steve’s) fair hand! Highly recommended!"

Diana newton reviewed: Hare Sculpture workshop with Jo Garden Art in beautiful Norfolk/Suffolk

"My husband brought a day course making a hare for me and I throughly enjoyed the whole experience. From the moment I arrived Jo and her husband made me welcome and the day was great fun and I was very pleased with my hare. I would recommend the course for everyone."

Jo Garden Art responded:

"Thank you Diana! It was lovely meeting you and your husband and I'm so pleased you enjoyed your Christmas present in sunny (or perhaps not so sunny) August! Jo ;-)"

Katherine Cooper-Young reviewed: Lampworking Workshop: Full Day Beginners Workshop

"I had the best day with Suzanne. Everything we made was achievable and I had some good early success which boosted my confidence, making the later, harder work less daunting. Suzanne is a great teacher. She gave clear instructions and helpful guidance as I went along, and each time a very clear objective that we were aiming for. I loved the freedom Suzanne gave me to experiment and play as well as the structure she gives to the day which leads to successful outcomes. Suzanne was a pleasure to be with - easy company, encouraging and kind. Her workshop is so well laid out and really inspiring to be in. A few days after the course, I was thrilled to receive not only my own beads, but also the beads Suzanne had made as examples! I cannot wait to be able to go back for another full day. I've been truly bitten by the lampworking bug!! I cannot recommend this course, and tutor enough. If you're considering the course you should DEFINITELY book it now."

Suzanne Jewellery responded:

"Hi Katherine, thank you so much for taking the time to write such a lovely review. So pleased you enjoyed your workshop and I look forward to hopefully seeing you again soon. Suzanne x"

Ursula Wharf reviewed: Free Machine Embroidery

"Had the most enjoyable day at Ruth's Free Machine Embroidery course. A warm welcome, well equipped studio, delicious lunch and a knowledgeable and encouraging tutor all ensured a wonderful experience. I learnt techniques which made this skill much less daunting. I would thoroughly recommend this course to anyone, whether a beginner or an experienced machinist wanting to expand on their creativity with textiles."

Rachel B reviewed: Full day leather craft workshop

"It is the skills of the tutor that makes or breaks a course like this; Rosanna was patient, calm and thorough yet clearly excited by what she does - a really superb teacher. She talked us through the skills we needed, gave us lots of tips for continuing to use them at home and tailored the day to our wants and needs. Her workshop is an inspiring space and she is very definitely an inspiring woman. We had a really lovely day and I am completely delighted with the things I made."

Jayney reviewed: Macrame Pot Hanger Workshop

"I really enjoyed this course, the timing was perfect and the explanations clear. It's nice to have something to take home. The venue (the round tower) was such a lovely space to do this, you could hear the waves."

Jo Moore reviewed: Box making weekend in Cumbria

"Great course. I love wood and have wanted to learn more about working with it for a long time. I booked for myself, a 40-something year old woman a little bit scared of power tools, and my 17 year old nephew, who, having just finished his first (somewhat disrupted) first year of joinery at college, already has more experience than me. We both got a huge amount out of the weekend and came out with new skills, more confidence and a beautiful wooden box each. This is a relaxed course with plenty of time to finish the project without feeling rushed. The different methods offered for making the boxes meant that the 4 students came out with 4 very different boxes and there was enough time to learn by observing demonstrations of all the alternative techniques being used. A very satisfying and highly recommended weekend."

Alan Linee reviewed: Log to tumbler with Gedwood

"My log to tumbler course was great, Ged is a very knowledgeable, friendly and inspiring teacher whom is passionate about his craft and sharing his skills, the workshop is in a beautiful sheltered setting in Speyside , Scotland with plenty of room for getting to grips with the tools needed ( pole lathe was great fun) yet creating a friendly sociable space, something helped by Geds friendly, relaxed approach and the kettle always ready for a brew. I started this course not quite at beginner level along with some who were, we all learnt a wealth of green wood working skills and finished with a product to be proud of.. I highly recommend learning your green wood working skills with Ged in this great setting..."

Gedwood responded:

"..ahh thanks very much Alan for your kind words. I'm glad you enjoyed it. It was a pleasure sharing my knowledge with you?"

Elisabeth Fraser reviewed: Craft Workshop: Learn to make silver art clay jewellery in a day (beginner)

"I had a great day making my very first pieces of silver clay jewellery and Sally is a great teacher, encouraging, enthusiastic, supportive and knowledgable. The day sped by and I learnt so much, techniques and clever tricks of the trade and I took home two lovely pieces of Botanic Jewellery. The workshop is really well equipped and very safe. I have already booked the next course and am so looking forward to it."

Craft Workshops responded:

"Thank you for coming and making it such a lovely day. Your pieces of jewellery are fantastic! I'm looking forward to seeing you again very soon!"

Faye reviewed: Bespoke Contemporary Fine Art Encaustic Wax Workshop.

"I would thoroughly recommend this one day workshop with Lyn! She made me feel very welcome and it was really fascinating to learn more about this ancient art form. The course comes with an extensive list on how to set up your own encaustic studio and lots of tips from Lyn in how to manage the materials. Lyn is clearly very experienced and skilled! She broke down the process into manageable steps, but also gave me enough space to play around with the techniques independently. Her studio is bright and full of inspiration: be it from the many objects/ textures Lyn's collected, her own beautiful art work or the coastal location. I only came to learn about the process, but I was pleasantly surprised to make a painting that I would be happy to hang on the wall! Thanks so much Lyn!"

Contemporary Encaustic Wax Workshop with Lyn Kirkland responded:

"It was a joy to share encaustic with you Faye. Enjoy your painting, and I hope that you do some more. Thank you for your kind words."

Thys Simpson reviewed: Log to Stool with Gedwood

"Did this course with the "Ged Master" last year and my son is now using this stool for his drumming lessons! I realy enjoyed the relaxed environment at Gedwood as much as learning how to make a stool. Enjoyable, informative and a great hand crafted result which is a useful stool. Perfect."

Gedwood responded:

"Thanks Thys. Glad your stool is being put to use! ?"

Thys Simpson reviewed: Make your own shavehorse with Gedwood

"Having done this course I can truthfully say it is excellent. Good value for money by a teacher who is passionate about green woodwork and superb at sharing this with you. Ged is calm and helpful as well as patient with everyone. The result of the course was that we all went home with our own finished hand crafted shavehorse. Brilliant."

Gedwood responded:

"Glad you enjoyed it Thys. Its one of my favorite workshops to run as you learn so many green woodworking skills making a shavehorse."

Thys Simpson reviewed: Log to tumbler with Gedwood

"Enjoyed my day with Ged. He is a great teacher who takes his time with you on those things you find difficult to do. Fantastic setting too. Highly recommended."

Gedwood responded:

"Thanks again Thys. Really enjoyed delivering this workshop. Hope your making good use of your whisky tumblers - slainte!"

Andu Atkins reviewed: Box making weekend in Cumbria

"I've just come home from this course after 2 fabulous days. Covid pushed the course back by 6 months, but it was well worth the wait. Mark has all the right controls in place and, if you chose to, you could spend the entire 2 days in high level PPE with a very low risk. The course would suit anyone, from an experienced home woodworker to a complete novice (I'm closer to the latter, but there more experienced people on the course) as there's lots worth learning and the results are very professional."

Stephen Arkwright reviewed: Box making weekend in Cumbria

"What a fantastic few days, Mark was so calm and helped us through all of the steps, clear instructions and demonstrations, so you always knew what you where doing. Many different options and combinations of the box to choose from, the wood, the shape, the lid, so no one is making the same box. Even more impressed that Mark was always on hand just in case any doubts crept in, he would set every one off doing a task but always new where to look for anyone that needed help. From start to finish was an excellent course, not just the box making but also loads of tips and discussions on tools in general, even threw in a demonstration on sharpening chisels, plane blades and scraper blades. Cannot recommend this course any higher than by saying I will be booking another course very soon."

Kay reviewed: Fused Glass Half Day

"I have recently visited Julie to do a half day workshop. It was very well organised and I felt very safe with the PPE Julie has in place. Julie had time to explain and show me how to create my glass wave I made. I am so pleased with the result. I will be going back to do Christmas decorations with family."

Christine Nicholls reviewed: Painting with beeswax & dyes - Batik Pictures

"A great ‘hands-on’ experience - wonderful guidance through the whole process of batik and would highly recommend. It was a very enjoyable day and really pleased with the resulting piece of work."

Feltworld - Creative Arts responded:

"Thank you Christine. You and your sister Shiela created unique art works as complete beginners and they looked brilliant. I am looking forward to seeing your pieces framed :-) and teaching you in the future."

Debbie Leigh reviewed: Art classes for adults at Ushaw College. 7 Week Course

"I enrolled on the April course which then unfortunately had to be cancelled due to COVID-19, however Michael and Jane then offered a zoom option, which I gladly joined. It was excellent in terms of content, organisation and the opportunity to get together. I tried techniques I’ve never tried before and thanks to their patience and encouragement was able to achieve some reasonable output. I’m now looking forward to meeting them in person at the September class and trying new things."

Colour Wheel County durham LTD responded:

"Thanks Debbie"

Gavin Simmonite reviewed: Bladesmithing Weekend

"Had a fantastic day with Graham, David and Deklan. Really enjoyed my day learning about bladesmithing. Would highly recommend this course."

Ashley Golder reviewed: Make a shave horse at Sallerton Wood

"Excellent course for learning some basic woodworking skills using non-powered tools. The Shave Horse is a very useful tool to come away with after a weekend of learning these skills. The woodland setting is a great place to spend a few days and Andy's easy and laid back teaching skills combine with his in-depth knowledge to make this an experience to remember."

Sallerton Wood responded:

"Thanks, Ashley, for your kind review. We're very pleased that you enjoyed the course, and we would be pleased to see you back at Sallerton Wood sometime in the future. We hope that you get many hours of pleasure using your shave horse."

Jamie reviewed: Macrame Pot Hanger Workshop

"Purchased as a birthday gift from my husband, I did the workshop last Sunday (originally booked for earlier in the year but was rescheduled). Alice make the class totally compliant with social distancing, so it felt safe. The location was also very pretty and inspired creativity too! The macrame tutorial was brilliant, Alice was patient and helpful - and the end result was a fabulous plant holder which now has pride of place in my bathroom (super chuffed as I've wanted a plant in my bathroom for ages!) I have already recommended the class to people I know and I would not hesitate on recommending it to the person reading this! Excellent workshop"

James deakin reviewed: The complete basics of woodturning (2 days)

"The two day course covered everything I hoped. My main objective was to learn how to sharpen tools and pick up on skills I thought I would remember from school 25 years ago. Mark diligently took me through my existing tools and we made a wish list of what I needed and can lust after. He managed my tangents and questions well and made excellent tea, I will be returning for more lessons. Mark shares his knowledge freely and makes it fun. I could not recommend highly enough and can not get the words unsupported edge out of my mind 8 weeks later! Thank you Mark."

Mark Hancock responded:

"Thank you James for your feedback."

Heidi Turtill reviewed: Kate Morrell willow sculpture courses

"This is my second willow sculpture workshop with Kate having completed a marvellous heron first time around and this time a barn owl in flight. Excellent workshop, great to come away with a decent piece at the end of a very enjoyable day. Kate is relaxed, easy going and accommodating, guides you through the stages of sculpting the willow into your desired piece without fuss, stress or despair and if you trust Kate and go with the process you get amazing results! The day is therapeutic and we enjoyed Kate and Dave's hospitality with lovely tea, coffee and lunch. A great day, highly recommended."

Kate Morrell willow sculpture responded:

"Many thanks for your kind words i so enjoyed the day lots of laughs and lovely sculptures"