Join us for another year of Workshops at Waltons Creek! Saturday, September 27, 2025 we welcome you to join us at the farm as we host a day of fun, learning, community, and celebration of the old fashioned ways, slow living, and a handmade life. With limited seats available we encourage you to purchase your tickets ASAP.

• ADD ON: Sign up for the full day of workshops and receive Ben’s book Escape to the Country with free shipping! A beautiful introduction to slow living and life a Waltons Creek.

• ADD ON +: The Christie Book Bundle: if you haven’t started collecting Christie’s books yet, now is the time! This add on includes three CJR books. Titles may vary. Bring them to the weekend for Christie to autograph. 

The Agenda: FULL DAY WITH LUNCH

8: 20 am: Pour Your Own Candle: OPTIONAL A staple of our workshops we invite you in on this tradition as we start the day at Waltons Creek. Quickly learn the process of creating a custom scent, melting and pouring the wax, and finishing a jam jar candle.

8:30 am: Welcome, coffee, and pastries. Meet your hosts for the day and join them for this welcome session and meet and greet. Visit with our workshop leaders and educators and a special hello with the 2025 featured educator Nicki Franklin who joins us from Northampton, England.

9:00 - 11:00 am: Pumpkin Stitching with Nicki Franklin of The Stitchery

OUR FEATURED GUEST NICKI FRANKLIN

The women in my life have all been very creative. My great granny taught me to embroider when I was six. My mother is a trained seamstress and so I grew up around creativity; stitching, knitting, sewing and dressmaking. My mum would make my dresses and would always make a matching version for my dolly.

Stitching today makes me feel nostalgic for those simpler days fand gives me a feeling of wellbeing that I am keen to share with other people. Running needle and thread through fabric is such a rhythmic, tactile practise that I notice my shoulders dropping and my breath slowing and at the end of it I have a beautiful piece of textile art to gift to a loved one or decorate my home.

At our workshop at Waltons Creek we will use antique French linen and beautiful silk threads to create a small piece of seasonal embroidery that can be framed and displayed with your Fall decor. With just a few simple stitches you can produce something that looks impressive! |If you aren't already, I can promise you will be hooked! Suitable for beginners and experienced stitchers alike, I will provide all the equipment and materials needed. I am looking forward to seeing you for a cosy, inspiring day in the Kentucky countryside.

11:00 - Noon: Watercolor Pumpkin Workshop with Christie Jones Ray

Learn the basics of drawing and painting a pumpkin using watercolors. Workshop attendees will be provided drawing pencil, micron pen, watercolor paper, and the use of paints. Bring an open mind and a creative spirit.

Noon - 1:00 PM: A Farm to Table Luncheon with Ben

During this hour all full day workshop attendees will be served a light but tasty luncheon grown here on the farm and in the gardens. At Waltons Creek we are known for our luncheons. A place to come together, to create, to share good comfort food, and a place to celebrate community. Today we celebrate all those things. Join us as we share the autumn fruits of the season grown right here in the gardens.

1:00 - 2:00 PM: What Quilts Teach Us with Jen O'Connor

The history of quilts is one that is deeply embedded in the fabric of America. Join us for this workshop and discover the vibrant and rich history of The Quilt in the US, from how to identify patterns, fabrics, and wear as a way to date quilts, to learning and discussing proper care and cleaning practices. Please bring a quilt of your own to share with the fellow attendees as we do a bit of show and tell during this interactive workshop.

2:00 - 3:00 PM: The Art & Science of Creating Your Own Watercolors

For centuries watercolors have been a staple of the art world. Join us as we welcome one of our favorite artists as she teaches us how to make watercolors from natural minerals, plants, and elements. This workshop will be part history, part science, and all fun. She will be leading an hour long demonstration and lecture.

3:00 - 4:00 PM: Scone Making with Kevin

Our friend Kevin will be making the trip from his bakery in Hartford, CT to instruct this scone making workshop. Learn about the history and process of making and celebrating this very British tradition.

4:00 - 5:00 PM: Botanical Workshop: Using florals and natural elements from the garden and farm one of our upstate New York Friends will be teaching us how to work with these elements as we create a beautiful treat that will be a celebration of the Autumn season here in Kentucky.

5:00- 5:30 PM: Free Time. Please sit and rest, you've had such a full day. Take this hour to wrap up unfinished projects, to continue conversations with new friends, or to explore the garden and the yard. Have a glass of sweet iced tea and a slice of homemade pumpkin pie. There will be additional self guided craft activities to create on your own. If you would rather use this time to go freshen up before Southern Supper that is also allowed.

Coffee, tea, and light snacks will be available all day for workshop attendees. This day is all about southern hospitality and welcoming you into my (Ben's) home. Aunt June and the ladies from the Baptist church taught me how to be a good host and I take this seriously. I want you to feel as welcomed as possible in my studio, my garden, and here at Waltons Creek. Whether this is your first visit or you're here annually everyone is welcomed and I hope you make yourself at home. Please join us as we spend this day together with joy, happiness, and an informal spirit. Sit a spell, have a conversation, make new friends, and enjoy the autumn season. We encourage you to linger, to sit a stitch, to perhaps pick up a book, or to create.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Lodging: Our county offers a variety of Airbnb, Bed and Breakfast, and hotel options. We also recommend looking at Owensboro and Central City for hotel options.

Airports: We are 1.5 hours from both the Nashville and Louisville International Airports

Additional Things to Do: Western Kentucky offers a wealth of antiquing and thrifting, a perfect area to shop…look out for our guides to shopping in the area. The International Bluegrass Museum is 30 minutes from the farm in Owensboro and the birthplace of bluegrass legend Bill Monroe is 20 minutes away in Rosine. Visit the Rosine Barn on a Friday night for old-fashioned bluegrass music, a New York Times endorsed must see. The Corvette Museum is 45 minutes away in Bowling Green and is close to Mammoth Cave National Park.