The Willow Barn reviews

28 Nov 16'

Alison Baker reviewed: Fresh Christmas Wreath Making Workshop

"What a pleasurable morning I had on this course. Very patient and knowledgeable tutor with a great sense of humour. I was very proud of my wreath and would love to come to more courses here. Would definitely recommend!"

28 Nov 16'

Michelle Brook-Woodcock reviewed: Willow Christmas reindeer

"Great day long course and everyone walked away with a fab handcrafted willow reindeer at the end of it. Victoria is very knowledgeable, approachable and accommodating with lots of tea/coffee and cakes/biscuits to keep you fuelled throughout the day. This is my second course with The Willow Barn and I can't wait to do a third! If you are thinking about going on this course - do it and give it a go, I don't think you will be disappointed."

28 Nov 16'

Lesley Dale reviewed: Fresh Christmas Wreath Making Workshop

"Had a lovely morning making a Christmas wreath. Friendly, helpful and encouraging. Tutor was excellent. She offers lots more courses and when I get chance I will be going back for more!"

13 Nov 16'

Sue Tucker reviewed: Willow Christmas reindeer

"What an amazing fun day- Ive now caught the Willow Bug and I dont mean canker! Pre course contact, confirmation and reminder from Victoria was a very good start. On the day we were met by a smiling Victoria outside her newly refurbished workshop and a lovely hot cup of coffee and biscuits (which were never in short supply) . The group was small, just 4 of us so Victoria was able to spend lots of time helping us individually. She was an excellent teacher, informing us about the product being used and pointing out diseases to look out for and telling us about the soaking process. Her teaching skills were fantastic - we never felt rushed and she gave us lots of encouragement - in fact Victoria went out of her way to help Claire who had to leave earlier and then stayed with us until 6.30 pm on a Friday evening as she was so determined that we would leave with a complete reindeer which we could be proud of . I would highly reccomend visiting the Wilow Barn or attending any of Victorias courses. Looking forward to making sheep and pigs next. Thanks Victoria - best fun day out ive had for a long time xxxx"

12 Nov 16'

Mrs E Jones reviewed: Willow hearts and flowers

"This is the second willow workshop I've attended at The Willow Barn with Victoria. This time I brought a friend too! We arrived just before 10am and were warmly welcomed into the workshop by Victoria with hot drinks and big smiles. The workshop is a fabulous, very large but homely portacabin filled with lots of inspiring decorations and plenty of workspace. There's an area with lovely comfy sofas and a coffee table where you can eat your own packed lunch. We were given a choice of things to make and started with willow spheres. Once completed (with much laughter) we moved on to making an angel, stars and a Christmas tree each. The one thing that my friend really loves is dragonflies and we even got to make one of these each too, which was a fabulous surprise. Then we got to decorate our creations with bells, stars, sequins, ribbons, etc. The Christmas trees were 'planted' in florist's oasis in pots that we'd already decorated and were finished with lovely fresh holly and fir fronds. Plenty of hot drinks and lovely festive pies throughout the day and a lot of fun. I cannot recommend one of these workshops highly enough. Great fun, lots of inspiration and a great gift to give someone too."

23 Oct 16'

Sheila Oldfield and Joanna Lazenby reviewed: Willow Piglet workshop

"Wonderfully relaxed day, informal, helpful tutoring by Victoria - clear and easy to follow instructions. Interesting information about the Willow and a delightfully characteristic piglet produced by the end of the session--- Highly recommend anyone to "have a go" --I would go so far as to say it was therapeutic !!!!!!"

22 Oct 16'

Dean reviewed: Willow Piglet workshop

"Thoroughly enjoyed the day, Victoria's style of teaching was very relaxed and informal which allowed us to get the most out of the day. For anyone interested in willow weaving I can't recommend Victoria highly enough."

22 Oct 16'

Lesley Pritchard reviewed: Willow Piglet workshop

"Fantastic workshop in a lovely setting. Victoria was a great teacher and made sure the day was both relaxed and fun. It was a credit to Victoria that we all came away with recognisable piglets!!"

21 Oct 16'

Dianne Charysz reviewed: Willow Sphere / Ball

"Victoria was very welcoming and friendly. Great way to learn a new craft and the ball I made under her clear and really helpful guidance will be a great talking point in the garden for years. Great to learn about more about willow and Victoria very happy to share her knowledge."

10 Oct 16'

Susie Davidson reviewed: Willow Piglet workshop

"Great environment and lovely trainer. The course was well thought out and everyone managed to produce a great product irrespective of ability. Nice location with fabulous cabin to work in with everything required available. Many thanks"

9 Oct 16'

Lynda Hennessey reviewed: Willow Piglet workshop

"Victoria was very friendly and welcoming. Facilities were excellent and instructions were very clear. With help, I produced a piglet that I am extremely proud of. Thank you Victoria for a lovely day. I'm hoping to return to make a companion animal for the patio."

19 Jun 16'

Sarah Lewington reviewed: Willow Piglet workshop

"Great fun- learned a new craft and had a good laugh while we were at it!"

18 Jun 16'

Catherine Bainbridge reviewed: Willow Piglet workshop

"Absolutely brilliant, I've been willow weaving before but this was by far better, already booking my next session!"

18 Jun 16'

Mrs E Jones reviewed: Willow Piglet workshop

"A great day in beautiful surroundings. Victoria made us all feel at home and led us through the process of making our piglets really well. I thought I'd struggle more with weaving as I have osteoarthritis, but managed without problem. The hardest part of the piglet has got to be the snout and I only wish I'd taken my time with that bit to get it right. Irrespective of that, I love my piglet"

23 May 16'

Allison SCott reviewed: Willow Piglet workshop

"Had a lovely day and I brought home Henrietta to join our family. It has inspired me to do more willow craft. Wear warm clothes and substantial footwear as shed open and standing on a cold concrete floor for hours makes you colder. Luckily Victoria bring plenty tea/coffee on regular intervals."

11 May 16'

Kate White reviewed: Willow Piglet workshop

"Great day, clear instruction and encouragement and we all went home with recognisable piglets! One improvement would be a bit of pre course information such as saying that the venue might be on the cooler side (as it needs to be to work with the willow etc), so bring a few extra layers."

3 Apr 16'

Kathryn McClaren reviewed: Willow Piglet workshop

"We had a very enjoyable day , Victoria was very friendly , welcoming and encouraging throughout, we were kept topped up with buns and coffee, and left very happy with our completed piglets."