As you can imagine Fran absolutely leapt at the chance of visiting the phenomenal Gartmore House, and despite a 10-hour drive from her Pembrokeshire base to Stirlingshire in Scotland, Fran was fizzing with excitement for the weekend ahead. 

 

To check out the meet the maker blog that inspired Fran's journey click here. 

Here’s Fran to tell you all about her adventure: 

 

When the marketer at Gartmore House, Alison, offered me the chance to visit them in the flesh I couldn't believe my luck! We agreed I would visit for one of their 2-night weekend retreats, and I was given a choice of three fabulous craft workshops to take part in: photography, lace making or eco-printing and indigo dyeing. I have a lifelong passion for textiles and being able to use natural techniques and materials in my art so eco-printing and indigo dyeing sounded just up my street. 

The communication from the team at Gartmore was impeccable, I received arrival information that got me excited about my trip and prepared me for what I would need to pack. (I never pack light)  I then had personal contact from the course tutor, Liz, who gave me a lowdown of what we would be learning and a warning that ‘things could get messy’ so to wear some old clothes, (as a messy creative this was music to my ears.) 

 

The drive to Stirlingshire was quite incredible, through the mountains of mid-Wales and then through the rugged landscape of the Yorkshire Moors and finally over the border into the idyllic backdrop of Scotland. As I arrived at the post code for the venue, I couldn’t believe my eyes, there was a gatehouse at the entrance and a long landscaped driveway, I felt like royalty. 

 

As I pulled into the drive, I was astounded by the beauty of Gartmore House, the building and its surroundings were absolutely jaw dropping. I checked-in with the reception team, they gave me the warmest welcome, a fantastic introduction about my stay and helped me with my heavy bags to my room. 

 

Imagine my pure joy when I unlocked the door to my room to find I had been given the most stunning suite for my weekend retreat. I was astounded by the view, the finish of the room and the quality of the fittings. I had to pinch myself to make sure it was all real. 

 

I had arrived on the Friday afternoon and after a warm, group introduction we were provided with a gorgeous meal and dessert prepared by a fantastic chef. The whole trip was catered with stunning meals prepared for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and traditional bakes and coffee in between- I have never eaten so well! All of the staff at Gartmore were friendly, helpful and enthusiastic about providing the best experience to their guests. 

 

I explored the grounds on the Friday evening and felt like I was the lady of the manor parading the lawn. The grounds were landscaped beautifully and there was a secret walled garden that I was eager to explore.

I was also incredibly fortunate to arrive on a weekend where the team were selling off some of the surplus furnishings from the grand house, let's just say I filled my car for future craft projects!! 

The next two days were jam-packed with creativity as tutor, Liz, inspired us with natural botanical printing and creating our own vat of indigo dye. We made prints on paper, dyed cotton fabric with intricate designs and made two delicate silk scarves with a botanical theme. We all achieved incredible results and felt we had learned a new skill for life.

If you would like to read about my experience of indigo dyeing and botanical printing I have put together a full article all about it that can be found here.> 

 

I left my weekend at Gartmore feeling refreshed, motivated and inspired to try-out my new-found skill. I had met like-minded people, who were equally obsessed with crafting, and I am sure I will book another stay at Gartmore soon, as their range of workshops is fantastic!! THANK YOU GARTMORE!

Upholstery- 5 night holiday
£979

A fabulous week of creativity spent with an awesome tutor that will expertly guide you through essential upholstery skills.

Felting- 2 night weekend retreat
£399

Fully catered accommodation for two nights in this glorious venue, with 2 days of expert tuition in the super popular craft of felting.

Mosaics with slate- 5 night holiday
£979

Create stunning mosaics with the most natural of materials in this gorgeous 5 night workshop.

Aromatherapy- 5 night retreat
£979

5 nights of bliss in a stunning location and then relax into the world of aromatherapy with expert tuition. It may even be a new career option for you?!

Christmas crafts break- 2 night retreat
£399

Surely we are all ready by now to get into the festive spirit! This weekend break would be the perfect way to start your Christmas season and come away with some Christmas decorations and gift ideas made by your own fair hands!

Bird identification- 5 night retreat
£970

You couldn't ask for a better location to learn about bird identification. Gartmore is set in 75 acres of superb woodland and pastures and you will be guided to identify all the birds that you see during your stay and what features to look for.

Fran had a fantastic stay at Gartmore and cannot recommend the location, the creativity and the team enough!! Her advice is to add it to your bucket list and get to Gartmore as soon as you can!

To learn more and view the full selection of stays available at Gartmore House please click here.