Alby Crafts & Gardens

Along the main road from Aylsham to Cromer, you will find this lovely art and craft centre, surrounded by over four acres of ponds and gardens. The converted brick and flints farm buildings are home to a collection of working studios, shops and a gallery. You can visit the small workshops and see various crafts-people at work. For those who prefer a more "hands on" approach, a variety of courses are offered for both adults and children, including sculpture, stained glass and wood turning. There is also a tea-room and timbered gallery above. The centre is surrounded by beautiful gardens, planted in 1987, including island beds, borders, ponds, streams and wild areas, with specimen trees set in grass.

We start our tour of Alby Crafts and Gardens in the Gallery and Tea-rooms. This part of the building has undergone significant rennovation and a picture board in the tea-room shows how the buildings looked before and the work in progress. The gallery is situated up a flight of stairs and showcases work from local art and crafts-people, including pottery and pictures.

The lower craft courtyard contains five working craft workshops covering garden sculpture, art, engraving, wood turning and furniture making. You can wander into any of these and just watch, or browse and purchase their work.

In 1987 following damage from a hurricane, the site was redeveloped into over 4 acres of gardens, with island beds, borders, ponds, streams and wild areas with specimen trees set in grass. The garden is the result of a lifetime of collecting by Valerie Alston, and the size of the collection allowed her to plant in groups, for spectacular displays. Colour, size and shape have all been important factors in the design, with the aim to provide interest in all seasons.

Alby Crafts & Gardens summary of what to SEE and DO

North Norfolk

Aylsham

Cromer

Holt

North Walsham

Sheringham