Workshops & Honey

2023-2024

Thanks once again to Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council (LCCC) Community Support Grant we are able to hold a series of events and workshops. Our venues once again are The Little Green Allotments, 3F Whitemountain Road, Lisburn. BT28 3QY for our 15th anniversary celebration and The Ulster New Zealand Trust at Ballance House 16 Glenavy Rd Lisburn for our three workshops.

Details of all our 2023/24 events including photos are on our facebook page and Nextdoor (Pond Park) page

22 July 2023 : we held a 15th anniversary celebration which went down really well with our largest community turnout event.

26 August 2023: we held a clay tile creation workshop with the group of enthsiastic locals making a number of air dry clay tiles. Anansarch provide a great tutor.

30 September 2023: we held a pebble art workshop with Chanel McKinstry keeping all right on getting the most out of pebbles, leaves and twigs.

9 March 2024: we will hold a floral art and photography workshop using some natural materials . Again, Chanel will be the tutor.

Bumblebee monitoring: As part of the all Ireland pollinator plan we plan to hold more bumblebee monitoring afternoons at Belshaws Quarry Nature Reserve. Watch out on our facebook page for more details. In 2023, the Carder Bee was the most popular noted at the reserve.

AUGUST 2022 Workshops & Honey reservations

Whitemountain & District Community Association (WDCA) will hold a ‘Pollinator’ themed hands on pottery workshop on Saturday 20th August 2022 from 11am to approx 1.30pm. Attendees will be able to try out making pots from air dry clay with designs added on the 2022 workshops theme of 'Pollinators'. No experience is necessary and you do not need to have any artistic flare as the professional tutor (Chanel McKinstry) will keep you right.

If you wish, bring a few sketch ideas with you for a design to the outside of your hand made pot. Some design ideas will be on hand anway. It could be something you see outside or something personal to you.

Attendee numbers will be limited and closing date for you to book a place is very soon on 7 August (to give Chanel time to finalise materials orders).

As per previous workshops, the cost is £10 with the rest funded by WDCA through the Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council (LCCC) Community Support Grant.

The venue is The Little Green Allotments, 3F Whitemountain Road, Lisburn. BT28 3QY.

THE WORKSHOP BOOKINGS ARE NOW FILLED - HOWEVER, in case places become available, pre-book your place by sending a note via the More > Contact Us tab and we will get back to you as soon as possible. Ideally, include a contact number also.

HONEY HONEY HONEY - The Grand Choice funded Whitemountain Bee Hive Project is now in it's second year and August will also see the harvest of this years local, mostly wildflower, honey (classified as raw seived honey - the honey is simply extracted , seived and jarred with no heating or changing the composition of the honey).

To reserve a 1lb/454g pot, at £9 per lb pot, please send us a note via the More > Contact Us tab and we will get back to you as soon as possible. Ideally, include a contact number also. Half pound pots at £4.50 are also possible.

Availability (for collection) will be late August or early September. Orders may be limited to 1 lb per Customer initially depending on the final honey availability (some needs to be left behind to see the bees through winter). Payment info will be later. First reservations dealt with first.

Proceeds go back into getting the bees through winter to next year.

JUNE 2022

Whitemountain & District Community Association (WDCA) held a successful ‘Pollinator’ themed workshop on Saturday 18th June 2022. Attendees were be able to try out the process of screen-printing to create their own unique piece of artwork in the form of greeting cards and a piece of wall art as tutored by Linda Barbour from Belfast Print Works. Photos are on our Facebook page.

This follows on from a series of workshops that WDCA has held over the past few years, in particular a Pollinator themed bench top in Belshaws Quarry Nature Reserve, and gives residents a great opportunity to try their hand at some straightforward art based tasks.

The results were unique to attendees because they were able to send in ahead of time an idea, a photo or a sketch. Linda took that input and translated it into a design and a screen print which each attendee then ‘printed’ in the workshop and finishd off by hand (hence adding the unique touch).

The cost was £10 with the rest fuinded by WDCA through the Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council (LCCC) Community Support Grant.

The venue was The Artbarn, Drumsill Road, Lisburn and included a tour of a sculpture and wall art gallery on site. The Artbarn is also holding a special charity fundraiser mini-music festival on 10th September.

2021 Workshops

Please visit the Projects page for more on our events and workshops

7 November & 21 August - Artisan baking/cooking

All of August - reserve Whitemountain Community honey

2020 Workshops

COMMUNITY BEE HIVE WORKSHOPS March to June 2020 - See Activities / Volunteer Tab

CRAFT WORKSHOP, NATURAL HISTORY AND BAKING - See Projects Tab

2019 Workshops

CHRISTMAS 2019 WREATH MAKING WORKSHOP.

Book your place now for a very interesting Christmas Wreath Making workshop on Sat 16 November .

The hands on activity be one where you can put your own individual aspect into it.

The main wreath shape will be built up from lengths of small diameter branches so is an environmentally friendly use of materials.

Tutor will be Lina Morgan from a Craftworks called A Misty Kind Of Blue.

As per our other workshops, numbers will be limited to 15 maximum. Cost is £15 which must be pre paid and will include tea, coffee and maybe even a cup of homemade soup.

We will have the place to ourselves with a big cosy fire also to keep us warm in the country barn style location.

To book, please reply via the contact us page on our web site www.whitemountain.org.uk

See also our 2 November volunteer event.

This community volunteering event is made possible by the Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council Community Grant.

BASKET WEAVING WORKSHOP

On 3rd August 2019, as part of the Little Green Allotments Annual fair, Whitemountain & District Community Association held a willow weaving introduction to basket weaving techniques.

With part funding by Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council Community Fund, the 3 hour workshop was tutored by Belfast's Brid McKeown of Blackmountain Baskets who is a willow basket specialist. Each attendee was shown how to use prepared willow in a traditional style as an introduction to the weaving techniques.

Even in the short period (a full basket takes nearly ten hours), each person was able to go home with a finished piece.

After the workshop, attendees were able to take in all that was on offer at the Little Green Allotments show and visit the nearby Belshaws Quarry Nature Reserve and Sculpture Park. Details of a photographic competition at the reserve are also on our web site.

Watch out for our next workshop.