Country Crafts

South of England Rare Breeds Centre

Country Crafts

Throughout the year we are holding a wide variety of Country Crafts Courses and 'Have a Go' days in the woods and countryside of the Rare Breeds Centre.

Whatever your skills or abilities, you can try your hand at everything from willow weaving and wood carving through to coppicing and charcoal making. Our Rural Craft Tarining is tutored by Alan Sage.

The groups are small with plenty of one-to-one instruction, so do come along and do something different this year.

Call us on 01233 861 493 ext 221 for more information

See also www.ajscrafts.co.uk

2008 dates:

WILLOW SCULPTURE:
Saturday 17th May

Saturday 27th September

10am till 4.30pm
Plaiting, weaving, tying, binding & freeform techniques will all be used to create several different animal & geometric shapes. Then you can have a go at creating your own masterpiece.

WILLOW CULTIVATION:

Saturday 9th February

10am till 4pm

Learn how to plant out a new withy bed whilst harvesting an existing crop. Spacing, ground preparation, maintenance and different harvesting techniques will all be explored.

HEDGEROW BASKETRY:

Saturday and Sunday 15th and 16th March

10am till 4pm

See hedgerows in a completely new light. There is a fantastic array of colours and textures available from a wide range of hedgerow materials. Learn how to utilise then to weave your own contemporary style round basket. Suitable for both complete beginners and those with some previous basketry experience.

HAZEL LAYERING:

Saturday 22nd March

10am till 4pm

First learn how to make your own wooden tools, which you can then utilise to restore and restock some of Kents neglected Hazel coppice. You'll layer existing young shoots to help regenerate new growth and stimulate new stools.

WILLOW GARDEN STRUCURES:

Saturday 5th April

10am till 4.30pm

You can choose to make either a conical type plant support, a woven herbaceous garden border, trellis or a woven panel. All made to measure for your own garden using Willow&/or Hazel.

CORACLE MAKING:

Saturday & Sunday 12th & 13th April

10am - 4.30pm

These excellent one man boats are ideal for getting up or down a stream, they are light enough to carry on your back. Making your own is as much fun as paddling one! The focus will be on Irish Boyne style coracle with a calico covering complete with seat and paddle. This workshop will be tutored by Olivia Elton Barratt from the Coracle Society .

BRENTWOOD HAZEL FURNITURE:
Saturday & Sunday 14th and 15th June
10am till 4.30pm
Create a beautiful bentwood hazel chair for the home or garden using hand tools and simple joining techniques. The techniques employed can also be used for your own projects to create tables, racks, shelving etc.

ROPE & CORDAGE:
Saturday 12th July 10am till 4pm
Man has been creating cordage for millennia utilising the properties of many different woods & plants, The focus will be on using Lime bast for very fine cordage but other trees & plants maybe experimented with as well.

BEGINNERS BASKETRY:
Saturday & Sunday 26th and 27th July
Saturday & Sunday 11th and 12th October
10am till 4.30pm
Using both traditional & contemporary techniques, weave a round basket from a wide variety of willows. History, cultivation & preparation of materials will also be covered.

CORN DOLLIES:
Saturday 8th September 10am till 4pm
Make a traditional offering to the corn goddess or your lover from this years harvest. You can learn a wide range of plaiting techniques to create various regional dollies & favours.

PRIMITIVE BOW MAKING:
Saturday & Sunday 2nd and 3rd August

10am till 5pm
Using simple hand tools you'll learn to make a primitive type bow from a single stave, tillered, strung & ready to shoot.

CORN DOLLIES :
Saturday 13th September 10am till 1pm
Make a traditional offering to the corn goddess or your partner from this years harvest. you can learn a wide range of plaiting techniques to create variousregional dollies and favours.

YULE DECORATIONS:
Saturday 6th December 12am till 3pm
Using completely natural materials make colourful wreaths, hangings & table centre pieces to decorate your home during Yule time

PRACTICAL COPPICING:
Saturday 29th December 10am till 4pm
Coppicing native broadleaf trees in winter is a traditional form of woodland management which also benefits wildlife biodiversity. Learn the basic skills using hand tools & find out what products can be fashioned from the freshly cut wood.

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