Bonus Spring ‘26 newsletter
I’ve just sent out my bonus spring newsletter to my mailing list and thought you may also like to read my latest news! To be added to my mailing list please sign up in the footer of any of my website pages.
__________
Welcome to my bonus spring newsletter! My thinking is that right now we need to find what matters most, to take time to connect back to ourselves, to connect with nature, to connect with each other. With me willow weaving, basketmaking, is an experience that enables this to happen. If you’d like to find your ‘flow’, switch off and enjoy time in good company whilst creating a beautiful useful basket then please book on my spring / summer workshops.
And my reality… I work so incredibly hard but in order for me to continue being a basketmaker, a highly skilled craftsperson who designs, make and teaches, who champions the heritage craft form that I love, who’s on a mission to create a better present and future for us and our next generations, well right now I need your support more than ever before.
Over a decade ago I created my own successful teaching business offering group workshops in Devon and Somerset. Due to my circumstances, sole household income with dependants, and low income self employed, (which means I now receive little if any welfare support), the way for me to earn enough to survive, for me to be a basketmaker, is for me to be regularly teaching my group workshops. By learning to weave a basket with me you’ll be vital in helping me to continue and you’ll have an unforgettable crafting experience! Thank you.
Find out below my latest series of workshops, upcoming craft festivals, my continuing events at Kelmscott Manor and much more. Sarah X
Website Shop: A range of baskets and willow lighting features, all handwoven by myself, can be purchased through my online shop. I’m currently busily weaving baskets for up-coming festivals, if the basket you wish to buy becomes out of stock you are now able to pre-order.
Bespoke Weaving Experiences: At my home studio in a beautiful Devon garden setting I offer the opportunity to make one of the baskets that I’ve designed for my Willow Day Workshops. For up to 3 people, great for those who wish to learn in a smaller group or for that special occasion. From £175.
Having teaching specifically tailored to you is incredibly rare and extremely valuable. This is why for intermediate basket weavers, I now offer one day, (or more if you’d like!) private training with 1:1 or 2:1 tuition. From £200.
Workshop Gift Vouchers: Making ideal birthday and special occasion presents, you can purchase part or full payment vouchers towards any of my one and two day workshops. A great experience for loved ones and friends who can choose which basket they will be creating. Valid for 2 years, your lucky recipient will receive an electronic gift card that can be emailed or printed out. From £65 - £195, available to purchase instantly from my website.
Events: Craft Festival, 12th - 14th June, Bovey Tracey, Devon. I’m delighted to have been selected to showcase my baskets, lighting features and chair seating for my 4th consecutive year. Featuring over 200 of the top contemporary UK craft makers, Craft Festival is the ultimate creative feast for all our souls! For further details & ticket booking https://www.craftfestival.co.uk/Bovey-Tracey
Exeter Craft Festival, 9th - 11th July, Devon. Following last year’s success, I will be again showcasing and demonstrating my craft on the Cathedral Green. With over 100 stalls featuring the work of the West Country’s best artists and makers. Free admission. Further details https://exetercraftfestival.co.uk
Maker in Residence at Kelmscott Manor, in Oxfordshire. Once the cherished home of William Morris, the great designer-craftsman, writer, conservationist and revolutionary socialist, in 2025 I had the experience of a lifetime being their Maker in Residence. During this April - October season you can experience the community sculpture Willow Bough. Hundreds of visitors from all over the world took part last year in a series of willow leaf making workshops with me, experiencing the magic of willow weaving. In a nod to Morris’s most famous willow patterned wallpapers and to our collective need for joy, learning and hope, as you enter the manor grounds you now walk alongside Willow Bough.
From May - June you will be able to view the Kelmscott basket that I have created in response to my time at the manor, (see accompanying image). Inspired by Morris’s love of fishing on the near by Thames, antique creels and the challenge of a highly advanced and critically endangered basketry technique that has been rarely undertaken in the last 100 years, I have in response created this contemporary white willow skein work basket.
From May - September I will be involved in Maker events, demonstrations and workshops. Follow Kelmscott Manor and myself on social media for more details (Instagram @sarah_le_breton @kelmscottmanor). You will also be able to purchase my Morris inspired basket collection at the manor shop. For Kelmscott Manor details & ticket booking https://kelmscottmanor.org.uk
_______________