Posts for October, 2025

In this workshop you will create a stunning wreath using fresh foliage, seasonal decorations, and personal touches. Perfect for beginners and seasoned crafters alike, this workshop promises to be an enjoyable way to welcome the holiday season. The workshop will cover techniques for arranging greenery and adding unique ornaments, ensuring that each wreath reflects your personal style. All tools and materials will be provided as a decorating ready seasonal greenery base, you’ll leave with a beautiful, handmade wreath ready to adorn your home or to give as a heartfelt gift.

Spaces are limited, so be sure to reserve your spot early!

Price includes:

All necessary materials to decorate the wreath;
Sustainable greenery & foliage,
Decorations & ribbons
All Equipment
Breaktime refreshments- Mulled wine, tea, coffee and cake
Why not make a day of it and stay for Sunday lunch afterwards (separate table reservation required)

Unleash the magic of the season and join us to create a stunning, one-of-a-kind Christmas table centrepiece.
​Using the highest quality fresh Nobilis pine and lush greenery as our base, you’ll learn how to build a fragrant, long-lasting display. We’ll then adorn your creation with a sophisticated mix of seasonal treasures: flickering candles, warm sticks of cinnamon, vibrant dried orange slices, and other festive sundries.
​This isn’t just a decoration—it’s an experience! You’ll leave with a beautiful, handmade piece that fills your home with the unmistakable scent and glow of Christmas.

Spaces are limited, so be sure to reserve your spot early!

Price includes:

All necessary materials to decorate the centrepiece;
Sustainable greenery & foliage,
Decorations & ribbons
All Equipment
Breaktime refreshments- Mulled wine, tea, coffee and cake.

Why not make a day of it and join us for Sunday lunch beforehand (separate table reservation required)

A walking workshop to collect the ‘living’ placenames of the high Cairngorms, as used by you – hill-goers, local residents, mountain enthusiasts – but which aren’t on any maps or recorded in any way. This workshop will be delivered by Sarah Hobbs. Please bring footwear and clothing suitable for a 1-2km walk.


This project will map, record and eventually share placenames used by many different folk who live or work in the hills, and the corresponding stories behind them. Aiming to highlight ongoing and varied human connections with mountain habitats in the Cairngorms, the project will create a snapshot of a point in time as the climate and land use changes.


Who it’s for: Anybody who lives, works or plays in the Cairngorm Mountains (the high hill ground), and who may have their ‘own’ names for places – from individual memories, to names made up by families or social groups.


What to expect: 2 hours max – a mix of outdoor walking (2km max, on accessible paths) and indoor mapping.


This workshop has been made possible with funding from the Cairngorms Trust and the Scottish Government in partnership with the Cairngorms National Park Authority and the National Lottery Heritage Fund, thanks to National Lottery players.

A one-and-a-half-hour workshop where we will draw using our senses and work with tree-based inks.

Using ink made from trees and employing tree branches and leaves as found tools, this session is a drawing meditation, exploring ways to perceive trees beyond sight.

We will begin with observing the sounds of being amongst trees, the feel of bark under our hands, and the scent of early autumn leaves. Drawing will not be about creating a finished outcome but about observing and responding to qualities discovered through our senses.

“The body is not negligible,” Shepherd wrote, “but paramount. The hands have an infinity of pleasure in them. The feel of things, textures, surfaces, rough things like cones and bark, smooth things like stalks and feathers and pebbles rounded by water, the teasing of gossamers… the scratchiness of lichen, the warmth of the sun, the sting of hail, the blunt blow of tumbling water, the flow of wind—nothing that I can touch or that touches me but has its own identity for the hand as much as for the eye.”

Participants will leave with a deeper awareness of trees and their own sensory engagement in drawing, guided by the textures, smells, and sounds of the natural world.

This workshop has been made possible with funding from the Cairngorms Trust and the Scottish Government in partnership with the Cairngorms National Park Authority and The National Lottery Heritage Fund, thanks to National Lottery players.

A walking workshop to collect the ‘living’ placenames of the high Cairngorms, as used by you – hill-goers, local residents, mountain enthusiasts – but which aren’t on any maps or recorded in any way. This workshop will be delivered by Sarah Hobbs. Please bring footwear and clothing suitable for a 1-2km walk.

This project will map, record and eventually share placenames used by many different folk who live or work in the hills, and the corresponding stories behind them. Aiming to highlight ongoing and varied human connections with mountain habitats in the Cairngorms, the project will create a snapshot of a point in time as the climate and land use changes.

Who it’s for: Anybody who lives, works or plays in the Cairngorm Mountains (the high hill ground), and who may have their ‘own’ names for places – from individual memories, to names made up by families or social groups.

This workshop has been made possible with funding from the Cairngorms Trust and support from the Cairngorms 2030 programme, funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund – thanks to National Lottery players.

This workshop will be delivered by Clare-Louise Battersby and is designed for artists, makers, and creative practitioners who wish to explore how their practice can align more deeply with place, land, and non-extractive ways of working. Rooted in the principles of biophilic design and the Gaelic concept of Dùthchas, the session invites participants to reconnect with their creative practice through sensory exploration, storytelling, and material reflection.

Come and explore our Grantown-on-Spey Trail Map during North East Open Studios (13–21 September) and enjoy a unique opportunity to step inside the creative world of local artists. Visit them in their working spaces, chat about their practice, and gain insights into the inspirations and processes behind their work.

If you’re looking for a short, walkable trail, nine participating artists are based in and around Grantown-on-Spey. You can download our trail map to plan your visit, or head further afield to discover many more artists across the North East of Scotland via the North East Open Studios website.

Studios come in all shapes and sizes, from purpose-built creative spaces to private homes, garden sheds, galleries, and more. The art and craft you’ll encounter are as varied as the spaces themselves, reflecting a wide range of skills, inspirations, and experiences. Part of the joy of North East Open Studios is stumbling across artwork you’ll fall in love with in unexpected places and always receiving a warm welcome along the way.

Look out for the yellow NEOS signs guiding you to our artists’ doors. You’ll also be able to pick up a copy of the yellow guidebook from many local shops and galleries in Grantown-on-Spey.

Please check individual artists’ opening hours, as these may vary.

Join me for a creative workshop where we will explore different printing techniques using screen printing, LEGO printing, nature and recycling.

July 28th – Screen print with Lego dots to create your own unique prints
July 29th – Be inspired by nature and print using found objects outdoors or simply take inspiration from colours and shapes outdoors to screen print adventure patches
July 30th – Bring along some of your recycling and get creative making patterns, shapes and print a wooden wall tile
July 31st – Bring along your own T-shirt and design and screen print your own unique design

Classes run from 9am – 3pm (bring your own lunch) and cost £38 per day per child or book all four days in advance for £140
Suitable for children age 8 – 16

An opportunity for local S1-S3s (for the 2024-25 year) interested in art, creativity and this amazing landscape.

Landscape Creatives is an opportunity for local young people to explore art and creativity through different landscapes, habitats and species. Based at Badaguish Outdoor Centre and working outdoors as much as possible through a series of workshops, we’ll create and reflect on the wellbeing and positive futures of landscapes we’re all part of.

Free to attend and no special skills required, just a keen interest in exploring and learning about nature in creative ways, including choreography, film-making and drawing.

We are asking young people interested in taking part to complete a short expression of interest form, available on our website: https://bit.ly/LandscapeCreatives

Deadline for expressions of interest: Wednesday 25th June 2025.

Join us this year for our first retreat – Bag Making!

Our Bag Making Weekend will include:
– 2.5 days of sewing, with all patterns, materials, haberdashery and hardware included
– 2 night stay at The Railway Rooms – boutique group accommodation in Kingussie
– Breakfast, Lunch & one Dinner (leaving one evening to sample local restaurants, grab a takeaway or bring your own meal)

Sewing Projects will include:
– Project Pouch from Country Cow Designs – an opportunity to sew with vinyl & create a great storage bag for your sewing projects
– Caravan Tote from Noodlehead – an amazing tote bag with so many pocket and customisation options
– Kaede from Country Cow Designs OR Haralson from Noodlehead – both lovely crossbody/hip bags with adjustable straps
– Optional: A collaborative evening project, bring fabric scraps to share with the group & create a patchwork pouch as a special keepsake from the event

Check In: 5pm on Friday 31st October
Check Out: 5.30pm on Sunday 2nd November

All initial bookings must be completed on the Learn & Create website. To secure your place you must:
– Complete the online booking
– Agree to the terms and conditions
– Pay the deposit

Once we receive your booking we will ask you to complete a detailed booking form where you can highlight any dietary needs, room preferences, workshop options and any other retreat specific questions. Please complete this & return it promptly so we can confirm your preferences. 

All rooms at Railway Rooms are double occupancy so if you would like to bring a non-participating friend or partner you are welcome to for an additional cost of £150 – this covers room and meals but not participation in workshops.
Unless bringing a guest, participants will get their own room, with a choice of double or twin.

Please note – as this is our first retreat images shown are from Country Cow Designs & Noodlehead websites. Further images will be updated soon