Gloucester Road WI

What a lovely garden walk we went on in the heart of St Werburghs.

Was had strong turn out and Garden Folk CIC treated us to a lovely evening walking around their regenerative market garden where they produce mixed salad and flowers. And quite a few of us availed of the opportunity to treat ourselves to bouquet of beautiful flowers grown in the garden.

We were invited to step into a world of Rubies and Remembrance with the brilliant storyteller, Clare Reddaway from A Word in your Ear,  as she brought Clifton’s streets to life with tales that shimmer with history and heart.

We headed off-site for this walking storytelling adventure, setting off at 7pm sharp—so we could soak up every word before the sun set!

Find out more about Clare and her not-for-profit organisation, A Word in Your Ear, at https://www.awordinyourear.org.uk/

It was Mental Health Awareness Month

We enjoyed a calming and informative session with Bridget Tyrell from Osna Therapy, a fellow businesswoman right here on Gloucester Road. She shared the many benefits of massage and showed us some easy self-massage techniques we can use anytime we need a little reset. 

We also had a small, but successful, plant sale to raise funds for our WI group.

We were treated to a collage workshop with Bristol’s very own art junkie, Adele Lippiatt — the queen of collage and recycled materials. Adele guided us through a hands-on journey of cutting, layering, and creating art.
We were a good mix of seasoned makers and those who were just collage-curious. This workshop provided a wonderful opportunity to dive into a world of colour, texture, and creativity. And did we get inspired, letting our inner artist run wild! Everyone got to take home a framed collage they had made, and some at least have proudly hung them up at home, on display for all to admire.  
Find Adele on Instagram @bristolartjunkie.

We had a great evening with the Bristol Rum Company. The founders, all from Bristol, shared how the city’s spirit of freedom and creativity is reflected in both their business principles and the rum they’ve chosen. They also talked about Sofia, the Colombian goddess of Free Thinking, who inspired their golden Colombian rum. Best of all, we got to taste it — and it didn’t disappoint!  https://www.thebristolrumcompany.co.uk/

From the jungles of India to the mountains of British Columbia and the cliffs of Pembrokeshire to the urban streets of Bristol, his home city, Toby Packard is a wildlife photographer and filmmaker who has spent the past 13 years working on his craft and as well as for himself has worked for the BBC, National Geographic and Netflix.

To an enthusiastic crowd, he presented his photographic and filmmaking portfolio from his journeys over the years. He explained what he’s learnt along the way through both handheld and camera trap photography. And, he shared some advice on how we can improve our own wildlife photography.

For December, in place of our usual meeting, we booked a table at a local restaurant.

This was member only event.

 For those members who wanted to join us for a festive meal a non-refundable cash deposit of £10 was required to secure your place.

Some members who could not join us for a meal joined us for a drink and socialise.

We held our usual Christmas raffle and four lucky ladies went home with great prizes.