Latest reviews

Sue Thompson reviewed: 'Bag in a Day' Practical Leather Course - Rucksack/ Backpack

"I’ve tried several crafts and usually my initial effort is consigned to a “could do better” drawer and never seen again: but not this time. I am amazed at the quality of the bag I made, and everyone who has seen it has been pretty impressed, (maybe a few too many incredulous “you made that??” comments). Georgie is an excellent tutor with so much expertise and endless patience, and she made the day so relaxed and so much fun. I would highly recommend – I am going back to make another!"

Stuart Hyslop reviewed: Beginners 1-day 1-2-1 woodturning workshop for 1 person

"Thank you Simon and Louise for your hospitality, chat, fabulous lunch and of course a great day of tutoring by Simon on the pleasures of making all things wooden. I came away with a lot of advice and pointers. What a wonderful surround and setup!! No hesitation in recommending Blended Monkey Go on, give it a go, you won’t regret it. ??"

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

"Hi Stuart. Thank you so much for a lovely review. You were a pleasure to teach and I hope you take up the craft; any help you need, please just shout. -- Simon"

Rob Bartlett reviewed: Glass blowing course - taster

"This course is absolutely brilliant. Angie, Steve and Chris are so welcoming and they really put you at ease straight away. The course itself was superb, loads of hands on and we made lots of glasswork to keep as a mementos of a great day. Steve and Chris are incredibly patient and great teachers. Their skills are second to none and they passed on this knowledge and I definitely improved as the course went on (who knew I could make a glass swan!) it was really good fun, informative and safe. I would strongly recommend the course to anyone of any ability, it is so good and Steve and Chris will guide you all the way. Thank you for an absolutely excellent time."

Chew Valley HandMade Glass responded:

"Thank you so much Rob for your lovely Review, it was a pleasure to meet you and Steve said you were a pleasure to teach. We are so glad you enjoyed your time with us, and hope we see you again. Kind regards Angie, Steve & Chris"

Bronwen & Maureen reviewed: One day stained glass workshop London for beginners and enthusiasts

"Tejal is a very, friendly, interesting and knowledgeable instructor. Both supportive and encouraging. We had a lovely session making our individual projects. It was lovely to finally meet you x"

GlassSeasons responded:

"Thanks, appreciate it"

Isobel reviewed: Indian wooden block printing in Leicestershire

"I thoroughly enjoyed this workshop. Sue was a great tutor, very patient, helpful & full of ideas. The workshop in her garden is excellent. I had never tried this skill before & was very pleased with the results. I would definitely recommend this workshop to anyone."

Sue Tildesley Craft & Design responded:

"Thank you for your review, I’m glad you enjoyed yourself."

Anita Gouly reviewed: Mosaic kit Make your own hedgehog - pre cut tiles

"Bought this to make for a hedgehog mad friend,and it did not disappoint. Well packed good instructions, and the finished hog is adorable. I have made a few mosaic projects and this is one of the best ones"

Moon Hare Studio responded:

"Thank you for your lovely review! Im so glad you enjoyed my kit."

Kirsten Hinds reviewed: Machine made lined curtains

"I have just completed the beginners 1 to 1 tuition and the machine made Roman blind courses. Janet is a complete professional. She explains everything clearly and has the patience of a saint! The course has left me feeling confident to start making my own blinds and also hungry for more. I'm definitely going to book on another course to further my skills. Thank you Janet."

Linda Cook reviewed: Natural dyeing course in Pembrokeshire

"Loved the weekend in the woods with Susan. She is very knowledgeable and made it an interesting course with so much variety of mordanting, dyeing on fabrics, yarn and paper. I came away with so much more confidence and I'm looking forward to using everything I learnt over the 2 days."

Sandra reviewed: Colour for ultimate well being: Retreat in Nature

"A really interesting, enjoyable and relaxing day. With the beautiful setting of Lucy’s garden, and lovely food, being the icing on the cake. I came away with a much greater awareness of why we are drawn to certain colours and their influence on our lives. As an added bonus, the yoga and guided meditation left me more relaxed than I have been in months. Thank you, Lucy for a great day."

Lucy Renshaw responded:

"Thanks so much for leaving such a kind review. I do hope to see you again x"

Denise reviewed: Creative coil pots - Introduction

"Had a wonderful evening , thanks Mollie would highly recommend this course ,"

Molly Brown's Emporium responded:

"So glad you enjoyed the workshop Denise. Thank you for coming to the workshop and the review."

phillip calvert reviewed: Damascus knife making in Grassington

"What a great experience and course. Richard is a great tutor, is very patient and helpful. If you are not used to swinging a hammer for a hour or more then expect a good blister or 2. That said it's totally worth it. You can't help walking away with something that you'll talk about for months to come. I'd recommend this to anyone who wants something unique, fantastic to use and something no-one you know has. I'm sure I'll be back in the forge soon..."

Alison White reviewed: Mid Century Modern Refinishing & Restoration Workshop - All levels - 3 days

"Ollie manages to balance imparting huge amounts of his vast knowledge and at the same time enabling you to build confidence, take on new techniques and stretch your own abilities. At the same time he approach is inclusive, appraising unexpected issues that arise and jointly agreeing options and solutions. In my experience this is the sign of a great teacher. I was totally absorbed by the process of transforming my piece of furniture but also building the foundations of knowledge for future practice and further skills development. It was a full on 3 days but hugely enjoyable, with good company and I feel confident that my skills have been well and truly expanded."

Linda Glendinning reviewed: Damascus knife making in Grassington

"Brilliant day for my husband and I. We made a Damascus dagger with Richard from Ember Ironworks. He was extremely informative and helpful and we were very pleased with our end result. We’ll definitely be making a return visit and would recommend Richard to friends."

Sally Wood reviewed: Colour for ultimate well being: Retreat in Nature

"Wow- this day course literally was what it says in the title…in fact more so! This exceeded my expectations in so many ways. Lucy has such a calm, friendly relaxing presence, aided by her incredible setting of her home and stunning British country garden. Following the freshly picked herbal teas on arrival (and I am usually an avid English breakfast tea drinker!), followed by some yoga, I immediately felt at ease and my mind a million miles away from my work, kids/usual hectic mindset, which is a rarity. As a result I felt really able to tune in to the amazing theories of colour and the different ways we can proactively bring colour into our lives depending on what we may be needing/seeking- I found this fascinating. The links between this and the nutritional benefits of colour provided by Lucy Kay was just brilliant. Lunch was divine with home made (gluten free- thank you) fresh vibrant lunch and all helping making up the colourful delicious salad with Lucy Kay really helped cement just how easy, but yet how yummy and satisfying bringing more colour in to your diet can be. The day finished off picking out various colours from nature that we were drawn to, or bits of colour from Lucy’s collection to prompt consideration of our natural seasonal colour tendencies. I left feeling truly treated to such valuable insight and treated to proper ‘me-time’ as well as genuinely useful “take-home” ideas. Brilliant- I thoroughly recommend and I shall be back, thank you!"

Lucy Renshaw responded:

"Thank you for such a detailed review Sally! It was lovely to spend the day with you. Hope you’ve been enjoying the lemon balm and catnip..... I haven’t forgotten to pot some up for you x"

Shayne Darby reviewed: Willow Curlews with Phil Bradley in the Yorkshire Dales

"Really enjoyed the day. It was so nice to learn a new skill in such good company and amazing location. It is a day I will remember for many years and would heartily recommend. As an added bonus I also have my curlew to remind me of a lovely experience."

Broadrake responded:

"Thank you Shayne! Glad that your husband enjoyed his walk up Ingleborough too whilst you were weaving! Rachel"

Laura reviewed: Copper Foil Technique Stained Glass

"I bought this as a gift for my mum. She absolutely loved it. Patient and engaging teacher and she came away with her home made gift. Highly recommend it."

Dragonfly Glass Art responded:

"Hi Laura, Just wanted to say, thanks for taking the time to write a review! Best Wishes, Amanda x"

Joanna Purdue reviewed: Introduction to candle making workshop Mother’s Day Special with afternoon tea

"Julie and Carol's course is exceptionally well structured, carefully organised and very informative. Class sizes are appropriate for the space available, ensuring that COVID 19 safety guidelines can be observed, whilst also enabling enough 1-1 help and discussion, if needed for each attendee. Each step is explained in detail, together with the associated data for the required ingredients and methods. Attendees made and took home a variety of natural wax products using high quality ingredients and each one turned out perfect and smelling fabulous. Lunch was great and tea and coffee was on offer throughout the course. Overall, a really well run and good value course, which I highly recommend."

Linda reviewed: One day leather bag making workshop

"Rosanna’s workshop is an Aladdin’s cave of leather-working: skins in so many colours to choose from, all sorts of tools, sewing machines, all the hardware you need for bags, key-rings and belts, material for linings, and all the beautiful bags she makes to sell. Two things impressed from the very start: the fact that the three of us had all arrived early, so we started early and Rosanna’s passion. Well, Rosanna has it for both leather and teaching. The couple, on the three-hour course, were making a number of small items: such as a credit card case, a key-ring tassle, glasses case, luggage tag, bookmark, notebook cover and trinket tray. So Rosanna divided her time between them and me and not once did any of us feel we were left waiting. I started by learning how to cut the leather pieces out, using a template and a rotary cutter. These pieces were then glued together, before stitching on an industrial sewing machine. That last piece of equipment was new to me, and it took a little time to get used to the slight differences from my home version. Zips, linings, tabs and hardware followed. Rosanna was happy to work through lunch, me too, so we carried on and had an early finish. And I was delighted with my fold-over bag."

Sylvia reviewed: Silverclay beginners jewellery workshop in Newcastle upon Tyne

"This course was fab, Claire is lovely and a really good teacher. I'd never done anything like this before but somehow managed to produce an amazing piece of jewellery in just three hours! I came away feeling inspired and I'm keen to practice what I learned at home. Thank you."

ToDot Handcrafted Goods responded:

"Thank you so much Sylvia! So pleased you enjoyed it and I look forward to seeing what you continue to make! Claire"

Pam Smith reviewed: Willow Curlews with Phil Bradley in the Yorkshire Dales

"A lovely day in stunning surroundings. We received a warm welcome from Rachel on arrival. The Barn in which we worked was a delight in itself. It has been sensitively converted and there was plenty of space to enable social distancing. Phil our tutor was friendly, relaxed and endlessly patient. I didn’t feel I had made a masterpiece but I learned a lot. All this AND a delicious veggie lunch and refreshments throughout the day. I was a very enjoyable day with lovely people."

Broadrake responded:

"Thanks Pam, it was lovely to meet you and glad that you had a great time. Rachel"

Toni Risebro reviewed: Paper Making - Hand Made Recycled Paper

"I really enjoyed the course and learnt a lot in the 2 hours. Wendy is very friendly and knowledgeable. This is a craft you can easily do at home without needing too much equipment."

Andrea Higgins reviewed: Willow Curlews with Phil Bradley in the Yorkshire Dales

"What a fabulous fun day in beautiful surroundings! My first ever willow weaving course and I can't believe I've brought something home that actually resembles a Curlew! Phil was an excellent tutor; clear instructions with an abundance of patience and support! Thank you Rachel and Mike for hosting and providing a lovely homemade lunch, cakes and biscuits. I will be definitely be booking another course!"

Broadrake responded:

"Thank you Andrea! We're delighted that you enjoyed your first adventure into the world of willow. We'd love to see you again! Rachel"

Noelle Darwent reviewed: Willow Curlews with Phil Bradley in the Yorkshire Dales

"Fantastic day - just the right combination of excellent instruction, relaxed, fun group, wonderful lunch and a very pleasing curlew to take home. Many thanks Phil. This was a great introduction to working with willow, we learnt how to work prepare and weave the willow and appreciated the skill of the professional willow worker. There was a good balance of prescriptive training and some free rein to make our curlews our own plus lots of help when things weren't going too well. Also the location was beautiful."

Broadrake responded:

"Thank you for travelling so far to join in the fun along the way creating your willow curlew. There was a lot of laughs from your end of the room! Hope it has inspired you to have another willow challenge. Rachel"

Trevor Williamson reviewed: Willow Curlews with Phil Bradley in the Yorkshire Dales

"An excellent day making a willow curlew. Lovely setting, Phil the tutor was fantastic and the other group members were all great. Rachel was attentive with teas/coffee etc and lunch was first class. Couldn’t have had a more enjoyable day. My curlew already had pride of place in the garden. Highly recommend."

Broadrake responded:

"Thanks Trevor! It was great to see how well you mastered working eith the willow so well and your Curlew was really beautiful. I'm sure it will be much admired. Hope to see you again at Broadrake for another workshop."

Gemma reviewed: Introduction to candle-making as a business

"The course was great! Jo was really approachable and generous with her knowledge."

The White Candle Company responded:

"Thank you so much Gemma. Good luck with going forward x"