The Thinking Behind Our Retreats

 

Debra has a passion for enabling others to develop and grow through the experience of working with Felt making. Using wool, alpaca, silk and velvet to create things…it could be a picture, a vessel, a sculpture, jewelery or even, with practice, a piece of clothing!

 

There is strong evidence to suggest that working with your hands, engaging your senses, learning a new skill or rekindling existing talents can be good for emotional and physical wellbeing.

 

Our intention is to create a safe supportive environment to enable our clients to take time out for themselves, and to develop their artistic skills for pleasure and personal growth.

 

We start from the premise that we are born to be joyful and happy. People have danced, played music and produced art for thousands of years…but somehow many of us lose that connection with ourselves, and research shows that many people report rising levels of unhappiness. This can be for a variety of reasons...personal situations, living with increased uncertainty with recent economic, political and social change, illness, fear of failure, and or feeling overwhelmed with the roles we play in the communities in which we live and work.

 

Our workshops are designed to give our clients the chance to take time out and invest in themselves, taking a holistic approach.

 

The bedrock of our retreats is Feltmaking…and more specifically, how we use it to  boost wellbeing. The joy in creating art can be healing in itself, and we frequently observe clients getting lost in their creativity, often stimulating a greater sense of ease.

 

Scientific studies demonstrate that art changes what is going on in both body and mind…including the nervous system, immune system, physiology and blood flow to vital organs. Our clients often describe a deeper sense of wellbeing and altered emotional perspective when working with us.

 

We also include music in our retreats as along with art, music can alter our brain waves in a helpful way. For longer retreats we can also include sessions on mindfulness, meditation, yoga and other healing therapies from our skilled professional therapists. Our belief is that for utter ease, the mind, body and spirit need to be more balanced.

 

Debra draws upon  her shared talents and experience in human development.

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What Can You Expect?

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• Beautiful venues around the Uk and beyond ( French Alps,The Lake District UK, Norway) or from Debra's studio  in a converted chapel venue in the heart of Appleby, Cumbria

• Warm welcome, superb hospitality

• Fabulous nutritious food cooked lovingly by our in-house chefs

• All the materials you need to participate in the workshops

• A daily workshop experience centred on felt art, with some element of music to help the creative flow.

• other shorter daily workshops in Meditation/mindfulness ,Forest bathing Yoga or Pilates delivered by a highly qualified practitioner.

• Skilled guidance and gentle, supportive coaching from Debra and her colleagues.

 

 

What’s on Your Mind?

• Taking time out to recharge and refresh or take stock?

• Who you are? Have you lost a sense of you amidst the different roles you play in life such as partner, parent, family member, friend, member of your community, your work?

• What gives your life purpose and meaning?

• Do you understand your own values and are you living them to the full?

• Do you feel compromised or constrained by your current circumstances?

• Do you want to try something new to support you in transition?

 

We SElj;asfj bespoke day retreats to meet your personal needs, residential long weekends and residential week long retreatshkh. Please leave your details if you are interested  to go on our mailing list as we are currently planning new dates for RETREAT this year.

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