Create Academy Arvostelua 446

Troy Scott Smith is an absolute inspiration! I am loving watching his Sissinghurst videos. I've already learned so much and am completely re-thinking my garden.

I bought my subscription when a discount was one and I spend an hour or so every day watching the videos with interior design and the gardening ones being my main reason for subscribing. I really liked this one from Clare Foster. She has such a nice way about her. I have a large garden so wanted to learn how to grow plants from seed as buying plants is very expensive. I don't have a greenhouse and it is a bit of a faff propagating seeds inside but she has inspired me to have another go. Fingers crossed.

I signed up for an annual subscription in January but, due to unforeseen circumstances, haven’t been able to start any courses. I contacted the company to ask if my access could be paused or extended, but was told this wasn’t possible.
I was very disappointed by the lack of flexibility and felt somewhat brushed off, especially as I haven’t used the service at all. While customer service was polite, the response didn’t feel very understanding given the situation.

I took the annual membership option and so far completed one course 'Creating a Romantic English Country Garden' and am just over halfway through 'Botanical painting', which I started first. There's a reason why I breezed through the garden course: it's because it's not really a course, but an interview with the garden designers about their experiences. Even they say, when asked how someone can create what they did, that 'you hire someone like [them]'. As such, I can't say I really learned anything about the planning, process, steps, tools and skills needed to design a garden, so other than some nice imagery and a couple of recommended plants, I don't feel this is really a 'course' of actual 'lessons'. You might hear about the what and the why, but not the how. Conversely, I haven't finished the Botanical painting course because it actually does feel like real lessons, and the tutor does explain what you need and how to do it, not in huge detail (i.e. not enough time is spent on colour mixing) but enough for you to go away and try it for yourself, which I have started doing. So I'd rate the two courses 2 and 4 out of 5, which is why I gave 3 as an average.

Update: Greg has been in touch and we sorted out the payment issue. I am now just waiting to “receive back on my account” two courses I have purchased before becoming a member. Thank you!

I really enjoy the courses on Create Academy, the content is beautiful and genuinely inspiring.

However, I am currently experiencing an urgent issue with billing. A payment of £180 for my annual subscription was declined a week ago, but I have not received any email notification in advance or afterwards, and nothing is in my spam folder.

At the same time, I can see a separate pending charge of £244 for the same subscription, which raises the concern of being charged twice and at an incorrect amount.

There is also no clear way for me to manually complete the correct payment, which is adding to the confusion.

I have contacted customer support and am posting here due to the urgency of the situation. In a previous case, it took around a month to receive a response, so I am concerned about delays given that this involves a payment issue.

I hope this can be addressed promptly.

Thank you.

This course by Nina Campbell is clever, informative, and very approachable. I've learned a great deal, and have already incorporated a few of her directions. Also, Ms. Campbell's dry asides and wit are quite enjoyable. I highly recommend this definitive guide.

I'm an experienced gardener, but I love learning little techniques that simplify the process and bring out the very best from the plants. Troy taught several ideas that I will definitely be using in my Sequim, Washington, USA garden.

So good! So much knowledge and inspiration!

Loving the upbeat can do approach of these Creative Academy courses to learn how to design my garden and gain stronger skillls to better care, what I have already. Creative Academy is a wonderful way to study alone giving a sense of fulfillment and achievement, knowing if you really got stuck, you could always ask for some help

I love CreateAcademy. I came in for the gardening and floristry courses, but am also watching an interior design one at present. And the photography course is an absolute must, best I’ve ever done. I wish there were more.
I would like more for serious gardeners eg how to organically get rid of pests, how to encourage birds and pollinators, no gardener tires of information on how to improve the soil and compost, so maybe a little less of the pretties and talking heads, and a bit more time in the mud.

What a great investment, I have learned such a lot from the first three courses. I started with Jo Thompson and followed that with Butter Wakefield. Both very different but such a breadth of knowledge and usable ideas. The one I have just finished is Rita Konig's second course, I have been an Interior Designer for twenty years, but found it so very interesting to see how she approached different projects and aspects of her build.
I cant wait to dive into other courses. My evenings have gone from not being able to find anything that captured my imagination on TV to learning and expanding my knowledge on a whole host of creative based subjects. I can truly say this is the best money I have spent in years.

Company responded very quickly to a complaint I
made and solved the problem.
The few courses I have looked at seem to be of extremely high quality

For the money, some of the courses are quite light on practical advice.

So much useful advice. Love Rita!

I loved this course with Amanda Lindroth! Her approach to decorating is so relaxed and she makes it feel attainable. She explains the reasons behind her decisions and ,being on an island ,has become very resourceful and I appreciate that!
One suggestion I would make is for the cameramen to show more of the spaces she spoke about - I feel that in the other courses we were shown more of the design. Otherwise, it was excellent. I downloaded the workbook which is very helpful and has a lot of the photographs so that IS helpful!
Thank you, Creat Academy!

this course is just what I was looking for- inspiring and answering many of my open questions. I especially appreciate the online access, as from Switzerland it would be quite a journey to the UK. Thank you so much for sharing your exprience
Claudia from Switzerland

I have long admired Mrs. Smith Hilditch's work. I find her designs highly inspiring and her take on design very professional.

Maria Speake is a pioneer in the U.K. ~ bringing an educated, artistic, and inspiring eye of a great architect to all of her projects. I did a major remodel of a Grade II listed 1926 house in Hampstead Garden Suburb in the mid-eighties. I couldn't GIVE AWAY the Oregon Pine floorboards, porcelain fittings, or handmade brick from a falling-down garden wall. Never mind selling it on to recycling or salvage yards. The common response was... "too expensive to transport, a hassle to pull out of the building, or we already have too much in that category." As an American, I was shocked that the state of play in London was seemingly no better than in Seattle.

I had lived through the MCM era [which has much to recommend itself] but the tsunami of Formica, exposed plywood, concrete breeze block, plastic, and shag carpeting [the type that required a wooden rake to keep looking good!] flowing into the homes of post-war America meant that Grandma's perfectly functional & fabulous Hoosier cabinet was yanked out of the kitchen and thrown on the scrapheap.

What a difference one generation of homeowners makes in the grand scheme. Maria and Adam are pioneers who should not be taken for granted... what a contribution they have made to the buildings in England and beyond --from starter homes to grand edifices -- Thank you!

Create Academy online courses are a great way to learn new skills and get inspiration to craft, design and gardening projects. The videos are beautifully edited and visually compelling, and I find myself referring back to my favourite courses and episodes regularly whilst working on my own projects. There are some really good and practical teachers, Rita Konig, The Land Gardeners, Troy Scott Smith, Sarah Raven, Julius Arthur, Micaela Sharp, to name a few. The only disappointing ‘course’ for me has been the one by Reena Simon, which felt more like interviewing a blogger who had renovated their own home than learning from someone who understands what design is and how it gets applied in different environments. My hope for the future is that the content would remain down-to-earth and practical enough for people who actually love doing their own gardening, making things and fixing stuff around the house. Of course there are jobs that require hiring a professional, but I still find that the teachers that put their hands in the clay leave me most inspired and ready to implement my learnings in real life, which for me is the point of learning. Before the annual subscription was available, I purchased a few individual courses. However, now that the content bank is so substantial, I would recommend the annual subscription to anyone. That leaves less pressure on a single course to deliver exactly what one was hoping for, while also introducing teachers and courses one was not particularly interested in – until starting the first lesson.

My experience in interior design is zero. My knowledge is zero. I am able to be introduced to this new focus with a wide variety of instructors with varied backgrounds. I look forward to learning new skills and new perspectives for decorating and design. My next area to explore will be gardening and floral arrangements,