West India Quay Festive Workshops

London, , GB

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In preparation for Christmas, West India Quay in the Docklands had arranged a number of Festive Workshops where you would learn the skills you needed to create some amazing homemade gifts.

Our first stop was Browns for a wreath making workshop and we arrived to find a gorgeous table set out with wreath hoops, twine, snippers and glasses of prosecco.

Hosted by Columbia Creative, we were given a quick demonstration and then set loose on a table filled with fir branches, pine cones and foliage

Columbia Creative prefer to work with natural materials, so everything we added to our wreath would be biodegradable.

Once we had wrapped the fir branches and sprigs of foliage around our wreaths equally, it was time to get creative and add pine cones and bows.

I was thrilled with our finished wreaths and the smell of pine was lovely.

There was a short break before the next workshop, so we made our way to Pizza Pilgrims for lunch.

It was then time to head back to Browns for a candle making workshop with Earls of East London.

The table was now set up with a tray of candle making jars and pots which looked like a chemistry set.

Earl Of East then explained the basics of candle making to us and how scents work together, passing around scents to smell and chocolates to taste to demonstrate.

Once we had all the background information we needed, we were sent off to mix the oils we needed to make our chosen scent.

We then set our wicks, mixed our scents with melted wax and then left our candles to set.

An hour later, our candles were ready and smelling amazing. We made a Smoke & Musk candle which smelled of spices and campfires, which we used on Christmas day with our TV playing a scene of an open fire in the background.

Our final workshop was Terrarium making with Jar & Fern at Pizza Pilgrims.

The tables had been set up with everything we needed when we arrived and after settling down with cups of tea, Jar & Fern talked us through the history of terrariums.

The prospect of a plant that only needed watered every few months was very appealing, so we popped on a pair of rubber gloves and got stuck in.

Our terrariums were large mason jars which we started by filling with stones and a layer of activated charcoal which would help with drainage.

Things got a little messy as we started adding the soil and separating the plants, using a cork to get everything nice and level.

It was then time to get creative and pick out which plants we wanted to add, arranging them in our jars with a layer of moss and small stones on top.

Our final terrariums looked beautiful and we left West India Quay with a bag full of crafts, ideal to add a touch of festiveness to our home and give away as Christmas presents. For information on upcoming workshops and events at West India Quay, check out the website!