- Home
- visit
- places
- mackintosh at the willow
- Family and adult learning activities
Family and adult learning activities
On this page:
- Adult Art Workshop: Make an embroidery with Lucy Freeman (15 March)
- Scottish Food Heritage Symposium 2025: Tea (28 March)
- Family Baking Session: Bake coconut macaroons with Jaz Spears (29 March)
- Family Activity: Make a willow light catcher (8, 9, 10, 15, 16, 17 April)
- Adult Art Workshop: Make a gesso panel with Alison McIntosh-Prentice (12 April)
- Family Baking Session: Bake empire biscuits with Jaz Spears (26 April)
- Adult Art Workshop: Make a silver beaded necklace with Laura Murray (17 May)
- Public Talk: A talk about the past, present and potential futures of Sauchiehall Street (18 May)
- Family Baking Session: Bake fruit scones with Jaz Spears (31 May)
- Adult Art Workshop: Make stained glass with Matthew Donnelly (7 June)
- Family Baking Session: Bake strawberry tarts with Jaz Spears (28 June)
- Public Talk: A talk about Rossetti’s Willowwood and the Mackintoshes (6 July)
- Adult Art Workshop: Make an embossed copper box with Bryony Knox (19 July)
- Adult Art Workshop: Make a floral watercolour with Kayleigh McCallum (9 August)
- Adult Art Workshop: Make a hand-bound book with Toben Lewis (18 October)
- Adult Art Workshop: Make an embossed copper box with Bryony Knox (15 November)
Family and adult learning activities at Mackintosh at the Willow offer different ways to engage with and discover the stories of Charles Rennie Mackintosh, his wife Margaret Macdonald and their patron, the Edwardian businesswoman Kate Cranston. We run regular adult art workshops, public talks, special seasonal events and a popular family activity programme during the school holidays.
March events
The Glasgow Style – Adult Art Workshop: Make an embroidery with Lucy Freeman
Saturday 15 March, 10.30am–4pm
Tickets: £75
Learn how to create an embroidery with tutor Lucy Freeman, inspired by Glasgow Style artists such as Ann Macbeth and Jessie Newbery. The workshop begins with a tour of our historic building, followed by the embroidery workshop, and a break for soup and a sandwich with tea or coffee. All materials, food and drink are included with the ticket price of £75.
Part of The Glasgow Style: Saturday Art Workshops for Adults in 2025.
Learn techniques associated with the iconic Glasgow Style in our workshops for adults. All workshops include a guided tour of the original Willow Tea Rooms building, professional tuition, and refreshments in our historic tea rooms.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
Scottish Food Heritage Symposium 2025: Tea
Friday 28 March, 10am–5pm
Tickets: free but places are limited
Glasgow is known globally as a city of empire, industry, and the arts, but often overlooked is its invention of a global trend: the Tearoom. Telling this story to local and international audiences has the potential to reignite a fascination with “The Second City” and centre food as part of the Glasgow experience.
In partnership with Mackintosh at the Willow, Scottish Food Heritage: Tea will debut a one-day programme of history talks, live demonstrations, tasting sessions and panel discussions.
The symposium is a collaborative event delivered by the University of Glasgow’s Scottish Food and Drink Histories Partnership Lab (SFDH): a collective of interdisciplinary food researchers and external partners, including Tenement Kitchen and the Glasgow Chambers of Commerce.
The day will delve into how the history of tea in Glasgow was linked to women and feminism, global trade and slavery, class, tourism, Scottish identity and diaspora. Hosting the event at Mackintosh at the Willow will celebrate the rich history of Glaswegian tearooms, champion local producers, and centre food heritage as a tool to bolster education, tourism and placemaking. It will promote the vibrant and diverse food culture of the city today by exploring it in the past.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
The Scots Kitchen – Family Baking Session: Bake coconut macaroons with Jaz Spears
Saturday 29 March, 11.30am–1.30pm
Tickets: £7
Bring your family along to bake and decorate historical Scottish sweet treats to take home!
In this session, our Head of Pastry, Jazmine Spears, will teach you and your family how to make coconut macaroons. While your sweet treats are baking, we will take you on a family-friendly tour of the original Willow Tea Rooms building!
Part of The Scots Kitchen: Saturday Morning Baking Sessions for Families in 2025.
Learn to make delicious historic Scottish recipes with our Head of Pastry. While your creations bake in our ovens, enjoy a family-oriented tour of the original Willow Tea Rooms building.
Workshops are suitable for children aged 5–12, but all are welcome. Places are limited and booking is essential. All children must be accompanied by an adult. All children must have a booked paid place, but adults accompanying a child do not need to book paid places.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
April events
Spring Holiday Family Activity: Make a willow light catcher
Tuesday 8 April, 2–3.30pm
Wednesday 9 April, 2–3.30pm
Thursday 10 April, 2–3.30pm
Tuesday 15 April, 2–3.30pm
Wednesday 16 April, 2–3.30pm
Thursday 17 April, 2–3.30pm
Tickets: £7
Celebrate the brighter days and put a sparkle in your window; come along and make a glittering willow light catcher.
Take inspiration from the chandeliers in our Charles Rennie Mackintosh-designed Salon de Luxe and make your mini-chandelier to take home and sparkle in the light of springtime.
Workshops are suitable for children aged 5–12, but all are welcome. Places are limited and booking is essential. All children must be accompanied by an adult. All children must have a booked paid place, but adults accompanying a child do not need to book paid places.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
The Glasgow Style – Adult Art Workshop: Make a gesso panel with Alison McIntosh-Prentice
Saturday 12 April, 10.30am–4pm
Tickets: £77
Learn how to create a gesso panel with tutor Alison McIntosh-Prentice, inspired by Glasgow Style artists such as Margaret Macdonald and Charles Rennie Mackintosh. The workshop begins with a tour of our historic building, followed by the gesso workshop and a break for scones, cream, and jam with tea or coffee. All materials, food and drink are included with the ticket price of £77.
Part of The Glasgow Style: Saturday Art Workshops for Adults in 2025.
In our adult workshops, you can learn techniques associated with the iconic Glasgow Style. All workshops include a guided tour of the original Willow Tea Rooms building, professional tuition, and refreshments in our historic tea rooms.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
The Scots Kitchen – Family Baking Session: Bake empire biscuits with Jaz Spears
Saturday 26 April, 11.30am–1.30pm
Tickets: £7
Bring your family along to bake and decorate historical Scottish sweet treats to take home!
In this session, our Head of Pastry, Jazmine Spears, will teach you and your family how to make Empire Biscuits. While your sweet treats are baking, we will take you on a family-friendly tour of the original Willow Tea Rooms building.
Part of The Scots Kitchen: Saturday Morning Baking Sessions for Families in 2025.
Learn to make delicious historic Scottish recipes with our Head of Pastry. While your creations bake in our ovens, enjoy a family-oriented tour of the original Willow Tea Rooms building.
Workshops are suitable for children aged 5–12, but all are welcome. Places are limited, and booking is essential. All children must be accompanied by an adult. All children must have a booked paid place, but adults accompanying a child do not need to book paid places.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
May events
The Glasgow Style – Adult Art Workshop: Make a silver beaded necklace with Laura Murray
Saturday 17 May, 10.30am–4pm
Tickets: £80
Learn how to create a beaded silver necklace with tutor Laura Murray, inspired by the colour palette of Margaret Macdonald’s Salon de Luxe gesso panel. The workshop begins with a tour of our historic building, followed by the jewellery workshop and a break for scones, cream and jam with tea or coffee. All materials, food and drink are included with the ticket price of £80.
Part of The Glasgow Style: Saturday Art Workshops for Adults in 2025.
In our adult workshops, you can learn techniques associated with the iconic Glasgow Style. All workshops include a guided tour of the original Willow Tea Rooms building, professional tuition, and refreshments in our historic tea rooms.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
The Dug Out – Public Talk: A talk about the past, present, and potential futures of Sauchiehall Street with Norry Wilson of Lost Glasgow
Sunday 18 May, 1–2.30pm
Tickets: £7
In this talk, Norry Wilson of Lost Glasgow will present an illustrated history of Sauchiehall Street, the ‘alley of willows’.
Norry last spoke at our venue in 2019, and this new talk will consider the developments on Sauchiehall Street over the last six years.
Journalist and social historian Norry Wilson has been fascinated with his home city. He first fell down the vintage photography rabbit hole while working on the Evening Times. Think of him as the ‘Raider of the Lost Archives’. Now, after 10 years, and with over 300k online followers on his Lost Glasgow site, he continues to tickle the city’s collective memory muscle, teasing out old stories, forgotten facts, and the lost histories hidden in the photographic record of old Glasgow.
Part of The Dug Out: Sunday afternoon talks for the public in 2025.
Dig deeper into the inspirations and history surrounding the original Willow Tea Rooms building with our series of talks for the public. An expert leads all talks in their field and includes a chance to ask questions in one of our historical tea rooms.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
The Scots Kitchen – Family Baking Session: Bake fruit scones with Jaz Spears
Saturday 31 May, 11.30am–1.30pm
Tickets: £7
Bring your family along to bake and decorate historical Scottish sweet treats to take home!
In this session, our Head of Pastry, Jazmine Spears, will teach you and your family how to make fruit scones. While your sweet treats are baking, we will take you on a family-friendly tour of the original Willow Tea Rooms building!
Part of The Scots Kitchen: Saturday Morning Baking Sessions for Families in 2025.
Workshops are suitable for children aged 5–12, but all are welcome. Places are limited, and booking is essential. All children must be accompanied by an adult. All children must have a booked paid place, but adults accompanying a child do not need to book paid places.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
June events
The Glasgow Style – Adult Art Workshop: Make stained glass with Matthew Donnelly
Saturday 7 June, 10.30am–4pm
Tickets: £120 per person
Learn how to create a stained-glass window hanger with tutor Matthew Donnelly, inspired by Glasgow Style artists such as W G Morton and J & W Guthrie. The workshop begins with a tour of our historic building, followed by the workshop, and a break for scones, cream and jam, with tea or coffee. All materials, food and drink are included in the ticket price of £120.
Part of The Glasgow Style: Saturday Art Workshops for Adults in 2025
Learn techniques associated with the iconic Glasgow Style in our workshops for adults. All workshops include a guided tour of the original Willow Tea Rooms building, professional tuition, and refreshments in our historic tea rooms.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
The Scots Kitchen – Family Baking Session: Bake strawberry tarts with Jaz Spears
Saturday 28 June, 11.30am–1.30pm
Tickets: £7
Bring your family along to bake and decorate historical Scottish sweet treats to take home!
In this session, our Head of Pastry, Jazmine Spears, will teach you and your family how to make strawberry tarts. While your sweet treats are baking, we will take you on a family-friendly tour of the original Willow Tea Rooms building!
Part of The Scots Kitchen: Saturday Morning Baking Sessions for Families in 2025.
Workshops are suitable for children aged 5–12, but all are welcome. Places are limited, and booking is essential. All children must be accompanied by an adult. All children must have a booked paid place, but adults accompanying a child do not need to book paid places.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
July events
The Dug Out – Public Talk: A talk about Rossetti’s Willowwood and the Mackintoshes
Sunday 6 July, 1–2.30pm
Tickets: £7
Are you curious about the decoration of the Salon de Luxe? In this talk Dr Robyne Calvert will discuss the inspiration behind the Salon de Luxe interiors, examining the source of Margaret Macdonald Mackintosh’s gesso panel: Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s Willowwood sonnets. The talk will also reveal how Charles Rennie Mackintosh designed Rossetti’s narrative throughout the room.
Dr Robyne Calvert, a cultural historian, teaches across the University of Glasgow’s College of Arts & Humanities. A Mackintosh expert, her book The Mack: Charles Rennie Mackintosh and the Glasgow School of Art (Yale University Press) won the 2024 Alice Davis Hitchcock Medallion for Architecture, sponsored by the Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain.
Part of The Dug Out: Sunday afternoon talks for the public in 2025.
Dig deeper into the inspirations and history surrounding the original Willow Tea Rooms building with our series of talks for the public. An expert leads all talks in their field and includes a chance to ask questions in one of our historical tea rooms.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
The Glasgow Style – Adult Art Workshop: Make an embossed copper box with Bryony Knox
Saturday 19 July, 10.30am–4pm
Tickets: £80 per person
Learn how to create an embossed copper box with tutor Bryony Knox, inspired by Glasgow Style artists such as Margaret Gilmour or Frances Macdonald. The workshop begins with a tour of our historic building, followed by the embossing workshop, and a break for scones, cream, and jam with tea or coffee. All materials, food and drink are included with the ticket price of £80.
Part of The Glasgow Style: Saturday Art Workshops for Adults in 2025
Learn techniques associated with the iconic Glasgow Style in our workshops for adults. All workshops include a guided tour of the original Willow Tea Rooms building, professional tuition, and refreshments in our historic tea rooms.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
August events
The Glasgow Style – Adult Art Workshop: Make a floral watercolour with Kayleigh McCallum
Saturday 9 August, 10.30am–4pm
Tickets: £85 per person
Learn how to create a floral painting in watercolours with tutor Kayleigh McCallum, inspired by Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s botanical paintings. The workshop begins with a tour of our historic building, followed by the watercolour workshop, and a break for soup and a sandwich with tea or coffee. All materials, food and drink are included with the ticket price of £85.
Part of The Glasgow Style: Saturday Art Workshops for Adults in 2025
Learn techniques associated with the iconic Glasgow Style in our workshops for adults. All workshops include a guided tour of the original Willow Tea Rooms building, professional tuition, and refreshments in our historic tea rooms.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
October events
The Glasgow Style – Adult Art Workshop: Make a hand-bound book with Toben Lewis
Saturday 18 October, 10.30am–4pm
Tickets: £95 per person
Learn how to create a hand-bound book with tutor Toben Lewis, inspired by Glasgow Style artists such as Talwin Morris and Ethel Larcombe. The workshop begins with a tour of our historic building, followed by the bookbinding workshop, and a break for soup and a sandwich with tea or coffee. All materials, food and drink are included in the ticket price of £95.
Part of The Glasgow Style: Saturday Art Workshops for Adults in 2025
Learn techniques associated with the iconic Glasgow Style in our workshops for adults. All workshops include a guided tour of the original Willow Tea Rooms building, professional tuition, and refreshments in our historic tea rooms.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
November events
The Glasgow Style – Adult Art Workshop: Make an embossed copper box with Bryony Knox
Saturday 15 November, 10.30am–4pm
Tickets: £80 per person
An extra date due to popular demand! Learn how to create an embossed copper box with tutor Bryony Knox, inspired by Glasgow Style artists such as Margaret Gilmour or Frances Macdonald. The workshop begins with a tour of our historic building, followed by the embossing workshop, and a break for scones, cream, and jam with tea or coffee. All materials, food and drink are included with the ticket price of £80.
Part of The Glasgow Style: Saturday Art Workshops for Adults in 2025
Learn techniques associated with the iconic Glasgow Style in our workshops for adults. All workshops include a guided tour of the original Willow Tea Rooms building, professional tuition, and refreshments in our historic tea rooms.
To enquire further, please contact obraid@nts.org.uk on 0141 204 1903.
