Last week some of the team travelled up to Banbury for a festive tablescaping workshop. As the festive period is upon us we thought this would be a great way to hone some new skills, tips and tricks. The workshop was hosted by florist Willow Crossley at Ashbrook House – the most beautiful, quintessentially British location. The house itself was simply stunning and we tried to subtly have a nosy around as we enjoyed tea before the workshop began. We learned that the house and it’s grounds are used for shoots and events and we’d definitely love to go back again soon. 

Once everyone had arrived we headed into a big airy barn with a crackling fire. Willow Crossley, a renowned florist and author, began the workshop by talking us through a festive tablescape she had put together, with particular focus on the natural plant elements that could be found on country walks or within florists. We thought the attention to detail was amazing, and picked up tips and tricks for place settings, such as using dipped pine cones, napkins that don’t need to be uniform to look beautiful and where to source tablecovers without spending a fortune. Willow mentioned using small bud vases such as our ones here to create wintery centrepieces, suggested unique glassware and where to find elegant candles to provide the ambient atmosphere.

Following this we were treated to an incredible lunch spread consisting of beautiful organic dishes served in the main house. This gave us a chase to chat to other guests about how we found the first workshop and ask Josephine who owns the property about her beautiful house. We are lucky enough to be going back to Ashbrook House to shoot a new campaign. After lunch we made our way back to the barn to put our own skills to the test and create a floral centrepiece. Willow demonstrated how to use chicken wire in a bowl to create a structure through which we fed flowers and foliage and candles. This was harder than it looked to achieve a result that wasn’t too pristine but looked good enough for the Christmas table. 

We really enjoyed our day out and came away with lots of tips for our festive tablescapes!