Garden & Gather Retreat

Jun 10

This June Flutter Magazine and I had the privilege of hosting 10 women from around the world for a 5 day adventure in the Cotswolds. Our adventure started with a beautiful dinner at our home for the week, Norton Hall. We were treated to a beautiful dinner and sweet pastries baked by Mon Annie Cakes, all while seated next to a roaring fire with my Ella Fitzgerald playlist playing in the background. The next morning we woke up for a watercolor course with Rosie Harbottle. Setting out to see the beautiful countryside, we visited the towns of Stow-on-the-Wold and Bibury and ended the day with a beautiful dinner and garden tour of Barnsley House. The next day we toured the beautiful gardens of Daylesford, selecting ingredients for our cooking course (which included a generous amount of wine!) The highlight of the trip for me was our visit to David Austin Roses. As an avid collector and grower of roses and someone who has tended to a number of David Austin varieties in my own yard, this trip was a very special treat. We were given a full tour, including a visit to the private gardens of David Austin Senior. Following the tour Alicia of Bows & Arrows gave us a floral demonstration and invited us to use the beautiful roses to create our own arrangements. After we had completed our floral class, we all moved our arrangements into a greenhouse for a beautiful private lunch with David Austin Junior (I’ll share my board for the lunch tomorrow!) For a traditional meal and pub experience, we headed to the Ebrington Arms for a cosy dinner complete with lots of beer and wine! On our last day we got cosy at Norton Hall, and I lead a course in flatly styling - a way through which we made visual representations of our experiences that week. After a beautiful lunch, we all headed out into the fields to forage for a fun flower pressing activity. We ended our week with a beautiful large circular table filled with candle and flowers and shared everything we had learned and loved that week!