This one day course is your chance to make the classic Adirondack chair, the chair is made in spruce softwood, which will be supplied. The course will introduce some basic woodworking skills on mainly power tools, saws, routers etc. At the end of the day you will have a sanded chair, which you will not finish at the workshop, we will advise on finishes you can apply, due to the varying types and colours available. The chair can be transported in two pieces, and will take 5 minutes to set up at home. This is a chance to have a great day out making your own chair and learning some skills along the way!!! What's included in the price? wood, tea and coffee included. Cancellation policy Easy - Cancellation and a full refund can be obtained up to 2 weeks before the course starts
Are you ready to take your photography skills to the next level? The Photography Lab is designed for enthusiasts and professionals alike, providing the perfect environment to experiment, learn, and perfect your art. 🌟 Expert Mentorship: Get personalized feedback and guidance to refine your techniques. 🌟 Creative Experimentation: Explore various photography styles and techniques in a supportive, innovative environment. 🌟 Collaborative Community: Connect with fellow photographers, share ideas, and collaborate on projects. Build a network of like-minded creatives passionate about photography. Join Us Today! Spaces in our Photography Lab are limited, so don’t miss this unique opportunity to elevate your skills and creativity. Whether you’re aiming to turn your passion into a profession or simply want to explore new techniques, our lab offers the perfect platform. Total length: 7.5 hours divided in 5 sessions 1.5 hours each (Thursdays only) Sessions (18:30-20:00): 1) 17/10/2024 2) 24/10/2024 3) 31/10/2024 4) 07/11/2024 5) 14/11/2024 This lab is for adults only. Maximum number of participants: 10 Step into a world of endless possibilities at our Photography Lab. Transform your vision into reality and capture the world like never before! Booking is necessary.
Reclaiming Regulation is a series of individual, in-= person workshops for women who are seeking to explore nervous system regulation, somatic awareness, and embodied wellbeing. These 90 minute workshops offer accessible, practical tools to support emotional balance, reduce overwhelm, manage nervous system regulation and develop a deeper connection with the body. Each session is a stand alone experience that blends nervous system theory with somatic practices, breathwork, and grounding practices. The workshops are inclusive, trauma informed, and accessible to all levels, including complete beginners. Who These Workshops Are For WOMEN ONLY These sessions are ideal for women: seeking body based tools for managing stress and supporting calm feeling disconnected, tense, or emotionally fatigued curious about nervous system regulation and somatic practices wanting to reconnect with the body in a safe, supportive space No previous experience is required Somatics & Nervous System Regulation: Benefits for Stress, Trauma, and Emotional Regulation: Reduces chronic stress → Helps shift the body from fight-or-flight into rest-and-digest (parasympathetic state) Supports trauma recovery → Allows stored tension, stress and trauma symptoms to be released safely through the body Improves emotional regulation → Builds capacity to experience emotions without overwhelm or emotional shutdown Enhances self-awareness → Encourages a deeper connection to bodily sensations and internal states Increases resilience → Strengthens the nervous system's ability to recover from stress more quickly Promotes grounding and presence → Helps you feel more centred, calm, and connected to the present moment Reduces anxiety symptoms → Calms overactive stress responses through breath, movement, and awareness Improves sleep and rest quality → Calming the nervous system supports better rest and recovery Empowers self-regulation skills → Teaches tools to manage emotional ups and downs independently Strengthens mind-body connection → Enhances the ability to listen to and trust bodily signals Workshop Format Schedule: One in person workshop each month (October–July) Duration: 90 minutes per workshop Structure: Each workshop is a stand alone experience, attend one or as many as you choose Location: Art & Spirituality Facilitator: Led by a trauma informed integrative somatic therapist Provided: Comfort props, optional reflection prompts, and follow-up resources Each session includes: Accessible nervous system education Guided breathwork and somatic practices Restorative and grounding practices Optional moments for reflection or group connection Take home practices for integration Monthly Workshop Themes November: Befriending the Body Reconnect with body awareness through gentle movement and body scanning Learn to interpret internal signals and physical cues Cultivate presence using breath and orienting practices Workshop Outcomes By attending one or more of these workshops, participants will: Understand key nervous system principles that support emotional balance Build body awareness and confidence in reading internal cues and sensations Gain practical breath and movement tools for everyday regulation Reconnect with the body as a resource for rest, presence, and wellbeing Cultivate more compassion and awareness of widening their your window of tolerance Why This Work Matters In a fast paced and often dysregulated world, many women are seeking grounded, body based tools to support their wellbeing. These workshops offer a gentle, empowering, and science informed space to reconnect with the body’s organic intelligence. Through movement, breath, and embodied awareness, participants can cultivate more resilience, rest, and a renewed sense of aliveness, one moment, one step at a time. This FREE workshop is for Adults women only and is sponsored by CORRA and HENRY DUNCAN GRANTS By attending this class you release Cori from Koa, Giada Gaslini and Art and Spirituality Cic, from any liability arising out of any personal injuries, emotional or physical release, death, physical reaction, expectations of results, theft in the venue or damages that may happen to people and objects while attending. Pictures will be taken during the workshop, if you prefer not to be in them, please inform the teacher.
If you’re a beginner bag maker, this Retreat is perfect for you. A whole weekend to immerse yourself in fabrics, stabiliser, professional techniques and tips to boost your confidence and your skills. Hopefully, there’ll be a lot of chat and laughter too! **This retreat is a little different from many others in that making a bag isn’t the point of the weekend, although you will indeed make one. The focus is on learning new transferable techniques and skills that you will be able to use on so many bags you make in the future. We have our own ‘Retreat Suite’ of rooms, including a spacious, light and airy sewing room which is equipped with a display screen so everyone can easily see demonstrations from a working viewpoint. We also have our own bathroom and kitchen facilities. If you wish, you are free to continue work after dinner and until as late (or early!) as you like. You will need to bring your own sewing machine, fabric scissors and any other favourite sewing tools, but everything else is provided. Come and join us in the exclusive Facebook group Bag Makers Retreat at https://www.facebook.com/groups/bagmakersretreat/ for all the latest retreat info, chat, gossip and more, plus a chance to meet other like-minded folks. If you have dietary requirements, please tell me before you book, so I can be sure we can meet your needs. All meal main courses are included in the retreat fee, as are Saturday and Sunday lunches and breakfasts. Starters, desserts and drinks with meals are not included but the meals are so huge you probably won’t want starters and desserts anyway!! Tea and coffee is available whenever you need, but you do have to make it yourself! If you’d like to stay an extra night or two, maybe to arrive on Thursday or leave on Monday if you have a long drive, let me know and I’ll check availability with our host. If you’d prefer to travel by train, we are happy to ferry you to and from the station, just ask. Please aim to arrive no later than 2pm as we have a lot of pattern cutting and fabric choosing to get through on Friday! Friday The fun starts here as you arrive at your weekend home-from-home – a beautifully refurbished, 4-star 18th century coaching inn with all the comforts you would expect. You’ll have time to settle into your own delightfully comfortable en-suite room which has all the anticipated little luxuries, before an introductory get-together with me and your companions in the sewing room at 2pm. You’ll be given your own copy of the bag pattern, which is very beginner- and domestic machine-friendly but which will incorporate a lot of features and techniques that are also in much more complex designs, making this an excellent springboard to any bag you want to make. Then you can wallow in the plentiful stash of fabrics to choose from, including some of my exclusive feature panel prints which aren’t available anywhere else. All the materials, interfacing, stabiliser, threads and bag hardware you need are supplied. As soon as you’re ready, you can start preparing and cutting out your pattern and some of the bag pieces so we can hit the ground running in the morning. After a superbly-cooked and substantial evening meal at around 6pm or so, you are welcome to continue working in the sewing room or to simply relax and chat there before bed. Saturday After an excellent breakfast, we can really start work adding to and adapting your bag pattern. You’ll work at your own pace from around 9am with no pressure – I want your weekend to be fun and not stressful! We will walk through the techniques together and I will be there the whole time to answer questions and troubleshoot any tricky bits. You’ll also have the chance to try sewing with faux leather , if you haven’t already, and we’ll explore ways and techniques to use and apply rivets. Refreshments are freely available all day and you can take a break whenever you wish. A light lunch (with homemade cake!!) is also provided and we’ll have a short break in the middle of the day. The rest of the day will be similar to Friday – sewing, dinner at 6ish and more sewing if you wish to before bed. Do feel free to have a walk or just sit outside for a breather if the weather is kind. Sunday How can it be Sunday already?? Breakfast over, we’ll get back to work. You will need to allow a few minutes to pack and check out of your room, as it has to be made ready for Monday’s guests. Apart from that, it’s uninterrupted sewing (with refreshments and lunch breaks!) until your bag is finished. We’ll be heading off for lunch at 12.30pm or so. We have the sewing room for the rest of the day. If you don’t quite get done, there’s absolutely no need to worry as you’ll easily be able to complete your bag at home. If you finish earlier feel free to head home whenever you’re ready. Amongst loads of other hints and tips, you’ll learn – Interfacings – what to use and not to use Using stabilisers – which is best and why How to create a zipped pocket the pro way Adding a recessed zipper main closure to almost any bag Installing hardware Incorporating a built-in key fob Installing a rectangular base Sewing the bag together and topstitching A sneaky way of getting your bag right-sides-out without ugly seams! An easy way to add a zipper pull without tools Working with different types of rivet machine Faux leather on a domestic machine You’ll have handouts on all the techniques to take home. And I hope you have a lot of fun and make new friends while you learn!! I never abandon my students at the end of the course so if you get stuck on anything at home, you are welcome to give me a shout on Messenger and we’ll sort out your problem together. The not-so-small print Book your place using the simple booking system below – just click on your choice of dates and go from there. The full price is £395.00. The deposit of £60 is non-refundable if you cancel but can, however, be credited towards a future retreat booked within the next 6 months. It is completely refundable if I or the venue cancel. The booking page only shows the Friday, but the course is running until Sunday. The balance of £335.00 is payable by approx 6 weeks before the retreat date and payment instructions will be sent to you in good time. Cancellations 4 weeks or less before the retreat date can only be refunded if someone on the waiting list can come instead. *Don’t worry that your booking confirmation may be headed Unicorn Studios – it’s just the site that I’ve run my booking system from for years… it’s not a scam!! *
Within this day you will learn how to mould a part of your/your partners/ your childs body in a safe, non toxic, water based material called alginate. You will then learn how to make a cast from that mould using a sculpture plaster. Once the cast is removed from the mould you will learn how to 'fettle' the cast in other words make it perfect, then you'll have the option of adding a colour to the cast or mounting it on a stand. What you learn during the course can be used to cast your children's hands and feet when you're back at home, I can supply all the materials you need to do this. I've been running this type of workshop for 25 years so I'm very experienced in the process. I cast my own mothers hands about a year before she died and they are my most prized possessions as they have picked up so much detail
This course is ideal for all, from beginners to confident makers. You will learn the basics of leather craft for accessories and be introduced to techniques including machine stitching on leather, hand finishing and hand cutting. You will also be working with the full spectrum of leather types from soft leathers and suedes to a hard sturdy veg tanned leather. This is a perfect introductory course to start your journey into leatherwork and bag making as you will experience the wide variety of tasks involved in the work. In order to complete your bag in a day we will use part pre-prepared components and the bag will be made from a ‘Hands of Tym’ pattern but do not fear there is still plenty of work for you to do. During the day you will be directed by your tutor Leathersmith and London College of Fashion Lecturer Georgie Tym to make a 'Turned seam' Leather backpack with drawstring and flap closure. It will have raw edge straps with buckles to adjust and one flat pocket. The dimensions of the bag are 250mm x 310mm x 200mm. The bag is fully lined and it will be the same construction as the bag in the photos - please contact for more info or view online Parking available on the drive with easy access via the M40. Banbury train station is a 30 min walk. Trains run from both London Marylebone and Birmingham to Banbury in 50mins. Also well connected to Reading, Oxford, Leamington Spa to name a few. Maximum class size is 3-4 What's included in the price? There are no additional costs. All leather, hardware and other materials will be included. There will be a selection of leather and hardware colours for you to choose from.There will be lunch served at midday and tea/ coffee breaks throughout. Cancellation policy Easy - Cancellation and a full refund can be obtained up to 2 weeks before the course starts About Georgie at Hands of Tym During training at Cordwainers, London College of Fashion in 2010 I learnt how to design, make and manufacture bags professionally. Following a varied career in Accessories design and development across many roles and international brands I set up Hands of Tym in 2016. The courses I offer are suitable for all, from experienced to total novice. Come along to learn something new, and design and make your own leather bag in a day.