Bread and Roses
At Fforest Barn, NP7 7LL
Slow down with sourdough, song and plant connection.
Are you in need of community, good food, singing and nature connection? Join Jo and Hannah on this retreat in the Welsh mountains and be guided on your journey with sourdough, song, storytelling and plants as your guides.
Overview
Price: From £475 to £800 (room choice dependent)
Date: Friday 7th November 2025 - Sunday 9th November 2025
Time: Arrival from 4pm on Friday. Ending at 3pm on Sunday
Location: Fforest Barn, NP7 7LL
For more information, click below to expand.
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This weekend is an opportunity to slow down, take a breath and recalibrate. Our days will be shaped by the sourdough-making process. We will be exploring singing together, as well as making sourdough; it’s less about teaching though and more about communal endeavour and slowing down to the speed of the microbes.
What’s included?
Sourdough-making.
Singing.
Storytelling around the fire.
Delicious, locally-prepared food for the duration.
Ferments and fermenting.
Herbal medicine in the form of tea ceremonies and herb walks.There will be time to relax, be by yourself in nature and to enjoy the beautiful venue.
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Food is a central part of our lives and a key element of Bread and Roses retreat. Gill Fothergill, a local and skilled caterer, will be providing us with delicious, nourishing home-made food using carefully sourced organic produce. She uses local reputable farms to provide ingredients where at all possible.
Through careful collaboration between Jo, Hannah and Gill, you will be fed with care and consideration at breakfast, lunch and dinner, as well as being provided with home made cake at break times on Saturday and Sunday.
Of course, since both Jo and Hannah are keen fermenters, you will get to savour a range of fermented foods in different forms throughout the weekend.
It goes without saying that there will be good sourdough bread!
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Please look at this link for images and more details on the rooms
ECOPOD
Simple, but delightful Eco pod, twin beds and accessed after a short walk. The nearest bathroom is the downstairs steam shower room in the main house. For night time, ceramic “potties” are provided.
£475 per personBUNK HOUSE
Three single beds (one of which is an upper bunk bed (with good wide sturdy steps to it) and one double (constitutes the lower bunk bed). Maximum occupancy of 4 people. Shared bathroom (with the pink bath) with one other bedroom.
£475 per personTWIN PEAKS
2 single beds (can be shared as a double) with a shared bathroom (with the pink bath).
£575 per personPIG STYLE
Two single beds with its own ensuite bath and shower room.
£575 per personOWL’S NEST
King size bed (not convertible into a twin). Shared bathroom is a steam shower room located on the ground floor.
£650 for single occupancy
£800 for double occupancy -
Fforest barn fuses a 17th century oak beamed stone barn with an eco-friendly Dutch barn, giving the feel of ancient Wales, with all mod cons, total privacy, stunning views and walks in every direction. It has been thoughtfully and carefully renovated, decorated and equipped with comfort and wellbeing very much in mind.
With nature on the doorstep, a hot tub on the patio and a central cone open fire, as well as an outdoor fire pit, there are so many places available for exploration and relaxation.
Fforest barn is a perfect location for connecting to ourselves, each other and nature.
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You can find information about how to get to the venue here.
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You will need all the usual things you need when going away for a weekend, but here are a few suggestions of additional things that may be nice to bring:
Appropriate and comfortable clothes for all weathers, as well as footwear.
A note book/journal and pen.
Your favourite poem or folk song to share round the fire one evening.
Your favourite blanket, jumper, onesie or pyjamas, anything that makes you feel more comfortable.
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Jo is an AFN registered associate nutritionist, a medical herbalist (with a special interest in gut health) and a fermentologist. Sourdough baking is a much-loved part of her fermentation practice. She is currently working on her PhD, focussing on a particular form of fermented food. Jo is a proponent of being the change we want to see in the world.
Hannah is a herbalist, singer and storyteller. She thrives in creating warm, welcoming spaces to explore our creativity and imagination both as individuals and in community. She runs a business called Rekindling Abundance and this phrase is at the heart of each of her offerings - how do we uncover, rediscover and rekindle our abundance? Come and find out at our retreat…
We met several years ago when we both embarked on the training to become medical herbalists and we have been close friends ever since.
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What have people said about Jo’s courses?
"I loved the tone and atmosphere, exploring herbs with Jo, crying to the sound of horseradish grating, and the truthful loveliness of it all". James Kemp
Thank you for such a wonderful time over the past few days. Thanks for being so generous and open with your knowledge and for the great atmosphere you created. I left inspired by your beautiful energy and the many conversations we had. - Lyson Marchessault
What have people said about Hannah’s courses?
“This is way more than an incredible learning about herbs and song; I’ve found it to be a whole new practice with existential implications; what wonders unfold when we are fully present and open to the awesome gifts of the universe as their energies and properties flow through us.”
Tristram Stuart, 2024“I return home with so many gifts. Very practical ones, but also others not so obvious. I have come closer to being in tune with my heart”
Marina, 2023
“Rekindling Abundance is really the perfect name for this course - that is exactly what happened to me. I feel honestly quite surprised at the way from which my capacity to understand plants has grown. I feel more connected to nature in ways that I have never before. I am very grateful to Hannah for holding this space so well and for helping me reconnect to my abundance.”
Makenzie, 2023 -
Terms and conditions will apply to your booking. They contain important information, including about cancellation and refunds. Please read them.
