Living the Good Life | A Working Weekend at The Lint Mill | Available to Book All Year Round
We are delighted to offer this new experience following enthusiastic feedback from our ‘A Beginner’s Guide to Organic Smallholding’ course participants who want to get more involved.
This residential course is for a couple (or small family) who would like to spend the weekend at The Lint Mill fully immersed in all the aspects of living and working on a smallholding. It’s an opportunity to don your wellies and to get involved in everything that running a smallholding entails, from feeding the animals to mucking out, from watering and weeding in the kitchen garden to milking the dairy goats as well as doing the odd fence repair, if required. This course is a ‘hands-on’ approach and is inspirational as well as informative.
We know that a weekend away should be a special treat, so it’s not all hard work. The delightful, comfortable and relaxing 4* Green Tourism Gold B&B suite, together with Colin’s wonderful food will ensure that you feel that you have been thoroughly spoiled as well as inspired to live the ‘good life’ for yourselves.
Cost
The fee for the weekend is £325 per person (a negotiated rate is available for children depending on their age) and covers accommodation in our delightful B&B suite, all tuition and meals cooked by Colin are from fruit and vegetables grown and meat reared on our organic smallholding (we can accommodate all dietary needs so please inform us at the point of booking).
This weekend is always available to book (subject to availability). We are also able to accommodate those who would prefer to come midweek. Please email us on courses@thelintmill.co.uk with your preferred dates.
Please note that there is a 10% discount for those who have participated in our ‘A Beginner’s Guide to Organic Smallholding’ course.
The Structure of the Weekend
(The weekend will be led by your particular interests and the activities will be dependent on the season, so this timetable is indicative).
Friday
5.00 pm: Arrival and Welcome to The Lint Mill
7.30pm: Dinner with Colin and Deborah. This is an opportunity to get to know your hosts and to share your own smallholding aspirations over a delicious 3 course meal made with ingredients from our organic smallholding.
Saturday
7.30am – 8.00am: A quick early breakfast of porridge or cereal and tea and coffee
8.00 – 11.00am: Morning jobs (feeding and turning out of animals, morning milking)
11.00 – 12.00 noon: Brunch – A traditional full Scottish breakfast (or another choice from our breakfast menu)
1.00 – 4.00pm: Afternoon jobs depending on the season (time in the kitchen garden, polytunnel, processing logs for winter)
4.00 – 4.15: Tea and homemade cake
4.15 – 5.15pm: Evening jobs (feeding and bringing the animals in, evening milking)
5.00 – 7.30pm: A chance to relax before dinner
7.30: A hearty 2 course supper followed by a final animal check before dark
Sunday
7.30am: A quick early breakfast of porridge or cereal and tea and coffee
8.00 – 11.00am: Morning jobs (so much of smallholding is sticking to a routine so here is the same on day 2)
11.00 – 12.00 noon: Brunch – A traditional full Scottish breakfast (or another choice from our breakfast menu)
1.00 – 4.00pm: A choice of activities to be booked in advance (what follows are examples and will depend on the season)
- making sourdough bread
- seasonal preserve making (jams, jellies, cordials)
- cold press soap making
- peg looming with rare breed fleece
- tree and hedge planting
- scything with an Austrian scythe
4.00 – 4.15: Tea and homemade cake
4.15 – 5.15pm: Evening jobs (feeding and bringing animals in, evening milking)
5.00 – 7.30pm: a chance to relax before dinner
7.30: Sunday Roast Dinner followed by a final animal check before dark
Monday
8.00 – 10.00am: A relaxed breakfast and departure
Each couple will leave with gift hamper from The Lint Mill containing seasonal produce, sausages, Goats Milk Soap and preserves. They will also take away anything they have made.
What to wear/what to bring/how to find us:
We will provide detailed information when you book.
About Us
Colin runs the smallholding. He grows all our fruit and vegetables and manages the livestock. He is an excellent chef and baker (he trained with Andrew Whitley of Bread Matters) and he prides himself on preparing delicious meals using all our own produce. Colin spent most of his salaried working life in finance and arts management in the city before ‘escaping to the country’. Colin has valued returning to a life he remembers from his childhood on his uncle’s farm in Wiltshire.
Deborah is a former Professor in arts education but now works full-time on the smallholding alongside Colin. She is responsible for the admin, marketing and photography, and writing about life on a smallholding. She is a trained Natural Change Facilitator and runs workshops to enable others to experience themselves as part of nature and to live more sustainably.
Our Philosophy
What we do at The Lint Mill is about relationships; relationships with our guests, relationships with the animals we share our lives with and fundamentally, relationship with our land, with every microbe and every blade of grass. The relationship between us and the land we inhabit is so inextricably connected that we ‘know’ more deeply every day that we and the land are in fact the very same thing. We are not part of nature; we are nature and that understanding affects everything we do.
This means:
-we think holistically about the smallholding, trying to understand & work with the entire ecosystem -we focus on building and regenerating fertile, organic soil using use only sunshine and water
-we increase biodiversity in the land to benefit soil, insects, animals and ourselves
-we contribute to increasing resilience to climate change
-we understand that our rewards are measured not just financially but in our physical health, our mental well-being and the welfare of the animals we share our lives with
-we value our ability to share what we do with others to make a difference to our world.
About The Lint Mill
The Lint Mill is delightful, traditional organic smallholding farm located between Edinburgh & Glasgow in the rolling countryside of Scotland’s Southern Uplands. We aim to be self-sufficient, eco-friendly & sustainable. We are certified organic with the Soil Association and we have a Green Tourism Gold Award. We also offer 4* Gold B&B accommodation.
Booking a Place
To book your place, please email us for availability at courses@thelintmill.co.uk, then you can make your payment of £325 in the following way:
By Bank Transfer
The bank details (UK) are:
Account holder: Deborah Richardson-Webb trading as The Lint Mill
Account number: 54814606
UK sort code: 04-00-03
Bank: Monzo Business
By PayPal
The PayPal details are: paypal.me/thelintmill
When using Paypal please click on ‘I‘m sending money to family or friends’ to avoid charges when you use your PayPal account, bank account or your debit card to send money.
By Cheque
Please make your cheque payable to Ms D Richardson-Webb and post it to The Lint Mill, Carnwath, South Lanarkshire, ML11 8LY
Please email us on info@thelintmill.co.uk providing the following information: Name, contact number, email address and dietary requirements.
Cancellation Policy
We would only cancel your booking for reasons beyond our control. We would however attempt to offer you an alternative future date. If this was not possible, or unacceptable to you, then we would refund all monies paid by you. Our liability would not extend beyond this refund. Due to our small business, we reserve the right to make a full charge for cancellations made within 7 days of the course date.