Short Courses for Spring - West Dean - Chris Ison

Short Courses for Spring
1 March 2026 to 31 May 2026

Spring is a season of renewal, and there’s no better time to awaken your creativity. Immerse yourself in inspiring arts and crafts courses at West Dean this spring.

Whether you're in Sussex or London, we offer the perfect opportunity to immerse yourself in art, with our spring courses designed for every skill level.

Our diverse spring course selection includes: painting & drawing, textiles, pottery & ceramics, jewellery & silversmithing, bookbinding, sculpture, photography and many more.

If you have specific months in mind, check out our variety of creative spring short courses in March, April and May.

Why not turn your course into a creative retreat? Book a beautiful period room at our Sussex campus and enjoy an art short break with friends or family. Plus, with West Dean Gardens right on your doorstep, you'll find extra inspiration in the stunning spring colours during your stay.

Give the gift of creativity to someone special this spring with a Short Course gift voucher.  They can be used in full or as part-payment on all of our short courses and make the ideal experience gift for all ages.

Explore our spring art & craft short courses and book your place today!

 

The winter garden – Creating and maintaining interest

28 Feb 2026 | West Dean
Booking closed
Tutor: Benjamin Pope |
Suitable for all
£170

Creative rag rugs with found fabrics

1 to 3 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Booking closed
Tutor: Debbie Siniska |
Suitable for all
£319

Enamelled copper beads – torch fired

2 to 6 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Booking closed
Tutor: Sharon Ford |
Beginners/Intermediate
£611

Botanical French beading – helleborus

3 to 5 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Booking closed
Tutor: Holly Parr |
Beginners/Intermediate
£347

Fine felt making with British wools

3 to 6 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Booking closed
Tutor: Liz Clay |
Suitable for all
£496

Contemporary Kantha stitching with re-used fabrics

5 to 8 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Booking closed
Tutor: Amarjeet Nandhra |
Beginners/Intermediate
£474

Lettercutting in stone and slate

6 to 9 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Tom Perkins |
Suitable for all
£504

Freelance writing

6 to 8 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Joanna Moorhead |
Beginners
£326

Sculpting the figure with clay

6 to 9 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Gilbert Whyman |
Beginners/Intermediate
£590

Painterly monotypes with collage

6 to 8 Mar 2026 | West Dean
1 place available
Tutor: May Everett |
Beginners/Intermediate
£334

Photorealistic free machine embroidery

8 to 10 Mar 2026 | West Dean
1 place available
Tutor: Julie Heaton |
Beginners/Intermediate
£327

Rushwork – make a shopping or a picnic basket

9 to 10 Mar 2026 | London
Places available
Tutor: John Page |
Suitable for all
£270

Writing your family history

10 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Joanna Moorhead |
Beginners
£162

The extended sketchbook

10 to 13 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Annabel Tilley |
Intermediate
£486

Kumihimo – Japanese braidmaking

10 to 13 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Jacqui Carey |
Suitable for all
£471

Tailored lampshade making

11 to 13 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Moji Salehi |
Beginners
£334

Wheel-throwing with components and hollow forms

12 to 15 Mar 2026 | West Dean
2 places available
Tutor: Jo Davies |
Intermediate
£537

The Interior Design Business Blueprint: Pricing and contracts

12 Mar 2026 | London
Places available
Tutor: Oana Jackson |
Beginners/Intermediate
£170

Experimental batik on paper

13 to 15 Mar 2026 | West Dean
2 places available
Tutor: Hetty Van Boekhout |
Beginners/Intermediate
£326

Writing for children and young adults

13 to 15 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Catherine Johnson |
Suitable for all
£314

Plant-led spring propagation

14 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Hannah Fox |
Suitable for all
£172

Lithography on lino – an eco-printmaking technique

15 to 19 Mar 2026 | West Dean
2 places available
Tutor: Mary Dalton |
Suitable for all
£616

Indian brass inlay block-printed textiles

16 Mar 2026 | West Dean
1 place available
Tutor: Jenney Kelly |
Beginners
£196

Free machine embroidered pictures

17 to 19 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Linda Miller |
Suitable for all
£319

Silver clay – lidded pot

17 to 19 Mar 2026 | West Dean
1 place available
Tutor: Grainne Reynolds |
Beginners/Intermediate
£391

Calligraphy – modern pointed pen, copperplate or italic

19 to 22 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Full - join waitlist
Tutor: Gaynor Goffe |
Suitable for all
£486

Silversmithing – an emphasis on traditional skills

19 to 22 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Full - join waitlist
Tutor: Julian Stephens |
Suitable for all
£473

Glass fusing and slumping

20 to 23 Mar 2026 | West Dean
1 place available
Tutor: Katrina Beattie |
Suitable for all
£546

Drawing – brilliant basics

20 to 22 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Full - join waitlist
Tutor: Ruby Saul |
Beginners
£371

Landscape painting in soft pastel and mixed media

22 to 26 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Full - join waitlist
Tutor: Sarah Bee |
Intermediate/Advanced
£630

Furniture making – a dovetailed box

23 to 27 Mar 2026 | West Dean
1 place available
Tutor: Tom Kealy |
Beginners/Intermediate
£616

Historic photographic printmaking – cameraless techniques

23 to 26 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Peter Renn |
Beginners/Intermediate
£567

SketchUp – for Interior Design

23 to 25 Mar 2026 | London
Full - join waitlist
Tutor: Hitesh Maroo |
Beginners/Intermediate
£400

Interior Design – the Art of Window Treatments

25 Mar 2026 | London
Places available
Tutor: Alice Constable Maxwell |
Beginners
£165

Photoshop and InDesign – for Interior Designers

26 to 30 Mar 2026 | London
Places available
Tutor: Federica Capitani |
Beginners/Intermediate
£650

The Interior Design Business Blueprint: Growing your business

26 Mar 2026 | London
Places available
Tutor: Oana Jackson |
Beginners/Intermediate
£170

Paint it big

26 to 29 Mar 2026 | West Dean
2 places available
Tutor: Louise Rainbow |
Intermediate
£596

How to write poetry

27 to 29 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Janet Sutherland |
Beginners/Intermediate
£319

Jewellery making with an emphasis on fastenings and findings

27 to 30 Mar 2026 | West Dean
1 place available
Tutor: Sarah Macrae |
Intermediate/Advanced
£472

Introduction to stone carving

27 to 29 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Simon Keeley |
Beginners/Intermediate
£348

Botanical drawing – colours and textures of spring flowers

27 to 30 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Ann Swan |
Intermediate/Advanced
£471

A novel in a day

28 Mar 2026 | London
1 place available
Tutor: Nina Millns |
Suitable for all
£125

Cordage and structures from repurposed materials

28 to 29 Mar 2026 | London
Places available
Tutor: Alice Fox |
Suitable for all
£250

Interiors styling for press and publicity

28 Mar 2026 | London
Places available
Tutor: Joanna Thornhill |
Suitable for all
£190

Interior Design – the Power of Colour

28 to 29 Mar 2026 | London
Full - join waitlist
Tutor: Adrienne Chinn |
Beginners
£300

Vision of colour

29 Mar 2026 to 3 Apr 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Andy Pankhurst |
Intermediate/Advanced
£745
Alison Sandeman

Developing a sense of form for wheel-made pots

30 Mar 2026 to 3 Apr 2026 | West Dean
1 place available
Tutor: Alison Sandeman |
Intermediate/Advanced
£660

Nettle thread making

30 Mar 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Allan Brown |
Suitable for all
£167

Musical instrument making – traditional stringed and keyboard instruments

31 Mar 2026 to 9 Apr 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutors: Andy Butterworth | Geoff Bowers |
Intermediate/Advanced
£1,371

Boro bobbin diaries – stitching stories by hand

31 Mar 2026 to 3 Apr 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Deena Beverley |
Suitable for all
£496

Musical instrument making – classical or steel strung acoustic guitars

31 Mar 2026 to 9 Apr 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: David Whiteman |
Intermediate/Advanced
£1,371

Sculpture skills – rubber mould making for lost wax casting

16 to 19 Apr 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Stephen Coles |
Suitable for all
£571

Conservation of Leather

20 to 23 Apr 2026 | West Dean
Places available
£810

Conservation of Transport & Industrial Collections

11 to 14 May 2026 | West Dean
Places available
Tutor: Dave Morris
£1,063