May 2025 in The Walled Garden
May 2025 in The Walled Garden
As spring turned to early summer, we hosted a number of masterclasses in The Walled Garden throughout May, including: lampshade printing, sauna sessions, yoga retreats, pasta making, a sound bath, birdwatching, qigong, rag rugging and wildflower identification.
Here’s a rundown of the exceptional workshops we hosted on Hawarden Estate in May 2025…
3rd May - Lampshade Making with Studio Zef
During this masterclass, we learnt the art of block printing onto a cotton lampshade. With a huge choice of blocks and paint colours, guests created a completely unique and beautiful pattern.
Printing on lampshades is harder than it looks, so we made time for lots of practice! When confident and happy with our patterns, we were ready to print onto the shades guests would take home. (This technique can then be transferred onto linen shades, card shades, curtains, napkins, cushions, cards, wrapping paper; the list is endless.)
9th May - Finding Balance From Within with Emma Garland & Lucie Platt
In this special Retreat Day, we explored various postures to listen to our bodies' needs; gaining a greater awareness of finding that balance between effort and peace. Yoga is a fantastic tool for helping us understand and listen to what we actually need. This beautiful day was spent focusing on mindfulness, movement, breath and relaxation.
Multiple Dates - Sauna Sessions in The Walled Garden
These simple, super popular sessions are available for communal bookings or private use. Whether you’re a seasoned sauna-user or keen to try it for the first time, The Walled Garden on Hawarden Estate is a beautiful place to unwind, relax and recharge.
10th May - Pasta Making Masterclass with Olivia Cavalli
Making pasta from scratch is both fun and satisfying! It takes practice, but with the right knowledge and tools we were on the right track in no time. Together, we learnt how to make pasta, and gained the knowledge to recreate the same results at home whilst creating delicious dishes alongside Olivia Cavalli's expert tips and techniques.
Olivia guided guests through how to make two types of semolina dough, then used this to create orecchiette, raschiatelli and cavatelli using a cavatelli board, the prongs of a fork, a blunt knife or the fine side of a box grater.
This was a great way to learn fundamental skills that will improve our confidence in the kitchen.
16th May - Sound Bath & Cacao Ceremony with Angela & Wayne Hassall
Guests experienced the powerful healing energy of sound and resonance, in our beautiful location. Our bodies were nurtured in nature and felt the healing benefits of sound at this very special restorative day.
Sound impacts us all and we have a natural vibration that resonates with the earth. This was a great opportunity to seek solace, allowing our bodies to slow down and relax in this fast-paced world.
17th May - Birdwatching with David Winnard
During this morning walk across Hawarden Estate we looked at how to identify a variety of species that occur on this great estate. We did this visually as well as learning some of the bird songs and calls we encountered on our walk.
The grounds are the home of some wonderful bird species such as both the Green and Great Spotted Woodpeckers, Nuthatch, Treecreeper as well as Sparrowhawks, Tawny Owls and Buzzard.
17th May - LifeForce Qigong with Ben Calder
Whilst the birders roamed the estate, another group of guests enjoyed a nourishing day of mindful movement in the serene surroundings of The Walled Garden. This retreat is part of a 5-Element seasonal series, helping us attune to the natural rhythms of life and align with the changing energy of the seasons. This summer, we embraced the Fire Element, strengthening Heart energy and releasing arrogance and jealousy, allowing us to cultivate love, joy, and deeper emotional harmony.
31st May - Wildflower Identification with David Winnard
In amongst the stunning setting of the Hawarden estate, around the old castle, the old woods and the meadows are some wonderful wildflowers that call this area home. From the beautiful to the sublime we explored these grounds to discover some of the best wildflowers that Hawarden has to offer.
From natives to aliens we learnt how to identify some of the commoner species as well as learn about their history, folklore and place in the eco-system.
31st May - Modern Rag Rug Techniques with Darn It! Workshops
Rag Rugging is a technique traditionally used to turn rags into textural rags. In this open-ended session we learnt two versatile rag rug techniques that can be used to make a piece of wall art, homewares, a brooch and more.
As rag rugging takes a long time to complete, we didn’t all finish our pieces in the session (unless opting to do a brooch). But we did go away with tools and skills to complete it, and take on many more projects!
