It is the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness and above is one of our last Watermill harvests of the year. These are the glorious golden orbs of cacchi, persimmons, culled by Lois from our tree at the end of the walled garden, and here they are, ripening in the Watermill courtyard. We are looking forward to eating them soon, taking them to Florence to share them with our friends there. They are easy to eat: you just slice the top off and scoop out the sweet orange contents with a teaspoon.
Harvesting the cacchi reminded us of our two lovely black Labradors, Bella and Rosa, sadly no longer with us. They loved cacchi, eating up the windfalls, even though it did their stomachs little good. Here’s Bella with a dilemma: which one shall she eat first?
Autumn is also the time to look forward to the burgeoning new year — and to the inspiring 2023 season of Watermill creative courses. What better way to keep warm this winter than with the glow of anticipation of a week here, painting, writing, knitting or learning the Italian language, enjoying inspiring teaching, warm hospitality, beautiful settings, delicious food and wine and the convivial company of like-minded guests pursuing their creative passions?
Yes, it is time to book your place on a Watermill 2023 creative course, especially as we have an Early Bird offer which means that if you book now there is a £75 (English pounds) discount on each of next year’s courses.
The courses are already filling fast: some 195 people have already reserved a place, out of our maximum capacity of some 250 or so places. Book now, as they say, to avoid disappointment!
Below you will find dates and links for all our 2023 courses. Just click on the link of the ones you like to find out more detail. You will see that some of our creative weeks are already fully booked, but if you fancy that particular week or that particular tutor, don’t despair: there are often cancellations. Please get in touch via the Watermill Contact Form (by clicking here) and we will put you on a waiting list.
First of all, our inspiring painting courses:.
Harry Westera
15 – 22 April 2023 – still plenty of places
Watercolours
To learn more about Harry and his course at the mill, please visit his 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Ali Hargreaves
22 – 29 April 2023 – fully booked, waiting list open
Watercolours
To learn more about Ali and her course at the mill, please visit her 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Randy Hale
13 – 20 May 2023 – fully booked, waiting list open
Watercolours
To learn more about Randy and his course at the mill, please visit his 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Pamme Turner
20 – 27 May 2023 – two or three places available
Watercolour and gouache en plein air
To learn more about Pamme and her course at the mill, please visit her 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
James Willis
3 – 10 June 2023 – one or two places available
Watercolours
To learn more about James and his course at the mill, please visit his 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Herman Pekel
10 – 17 June 2023 – four places available
Watercolours
To learn more about Herman and his course at the mill, please visit his 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Maggie Renner Hellmann
24 June – 1 July 2023 – two or three places available
Oil and watercolour (acrylic, pastel)
To learn more about Maggie and her course at the mill, please visit her 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Fiona Graham-Mackay
1 – 8 July 2023 – still plenty of places
Painting en plein air (oil, acrylic, watercolour, pastel)
To learn more about Fiona and her course at the mill, please visit her 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Belinda Biggs
8 – 15 July 2023 – still plenty of places
Watercolours
To learn more about Belinda and her course at the mill, please visit her 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Cynthia Armstrong
19 – 26 August 2023 – still plenty of places
Watercolours, Travel painting in watercolours and gouache
To learn more about Cynthia and her course at the mill, please visit her 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Mary Padgett
26 August – 2 September 2023 – still plenty of places
Pastels (and other portable media) en plein air
To learn more about Mary and her course at the mill, please visit her 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Mike Willdridge
9 – 16 September 2023 – one or two places available
Watercolours and drawing (also gouache and acrylics)
To learn more about Mike and his course at the mill, please visit his 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Brienne M Brown
16 – 23 September 2023 – one or two places available
Watercolours
To learn more about Brienne and her course at the mill, please visit her 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Charles Sluga
23 – 30 September 2023 – three or four places available
Watercolours (acrylics and oils)
To learn more about Charles and his course at the mill, please visit his 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Tim Wilmot
30 September – 7 October 2023 – four places available
Watercolours
To learn more about Tim and his course at the mill, please visit his 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Grahame Booth
7 – 14 October 2023 – still plenty of places
Watercolours
To learn more about Grahame and his course at the mill, please visit his 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Our wonderful knitting weeks:
Georgia Farell
29 April – 6 May 2023 – just opened, still plenty of places
6 – 13 May 2023 – fully booked, waiting list open
Knitting and La Bella Vita
To learn more about Georgia and her course at the mill, please visit our 2023 Tutor Profile Page.
Watermill Knitting Retreat
15 – 22 July 2023 – still four places (two suites available, each suitable for a couple, or friends sharing)
Knitting and La Bella Vita
To learn more about the Watermill Knitting Retreat at the mill, please visit our 2023 Retreat Page.
Our inspiring writing course:
Jo Parfitt
17 – 24 June 2023 – five or six places available
Write your life stories
To learn more about Jo and her course at the mill, please visit her 2023 Profile Page.
Our unique Italian course:
Giulia Balestri
14 – 21 October 2023 still plenty of places
Learning Italian with the Italians
To learn more about Giulia and her 2023 course at the mill, please click here.
There’s more about everything on the Watermill website, which you can see by clicking here. Cast aside those November blues and contemplate the blue Italian sky and inspiration of a creative Watermill course…