Pick, Paint & Picnic: Grandmas Garden, Cheltenham

Pick, Paint & Picnic at Grandma’s Garden, Cheltenham, is a three-hour alfresco workshop that marries hands-on ceramics, seasonal blooms and a leisurely lunch in a working flower field. Hosted by Paint Pot Parties Ltd at Grandma’s Garden, Southam Lane, Southam, Cheltenham, the event runs from 12–3pm and gives visitors a simple, tactile way to take home something personal: a hand-painted ceramic vase filled with a self-picked bouquet. The experience begins at a communal table under shade or open sky, where artist Brydie guides each guest through vase design and paint techniques—no prior experience required.

The clay surfaces accept bold brushstrokes and delicate marks equally well, and the process is paced so you can sip tea, laugh with friends and try layouts before committing your final color. Once your piece is complete it is left to set, then boxed to travel home. Between painting and pickup the workshop serves an individual picnic box prepared by Wellfed Kitchen Ltd.

Think seasonal sandwiches, crunchy salads and a sweet treat—portable fare designed for reclining on a blanket among rows of seasonal flowers. After lunch a guided tour of the garden leads the group through the fields, pointing out bees, pollinator-friendly plantings and varieties of stems that perform best as cut flowers. The tour culminates in a pick-your-own session: each guest selects ten stems to arrange in their new vase with simple instruction on cutting angles and conditioning stems for longer vase life.

What makes this offering special is its low-key combination of craft, food and place-making. Grandma’s Garden is a working flower field where horticulture meets community—an accessible slice of rural Gloucestershire close to Cheltenham and Tewkesbury but feeling a world away. The hands-on element separates the event from a standard afternoon tea: guests leave with a usable object and the skills to arrange blooms afterward.

Practical details: the workshop is suited to ages 12 and up, lasts three hours and requires only curiosity and a light jacket for changeable English weather. Tickets are sold through Paint Pot Parties Ltd; spaces are limited so early booking is advised. Whether you come for the ceramics, the picnic, or the flowers, Pick, Paint & Picnic offers a restorative few hours outdoors that rewards both creative impulse and slow, grounded attention to place.

Public transport options are limited—arrive by car or taxi and allow extra time for narrow country lanes; parking details will be provided at booking. The workshop makes an excellent gift or small-group outing, and Brydie accommodates individual pacing so first-timers aren't rushed. Because vases must dry before final handling, allow time at home for paint curing; the hosts provide wrapping to protect wet work for the journey.

Expect light dirt on shoes and smiles.