Residents at a Chester care home recently hosted a crafts-themed 'Friendship Café' to promote upcycling old items.

Residents at Care UK's Deewater Grange on Chester Road have been getting stuck into some hands-on DIY with the community.

As part of Care UK's 'Fixer Uppers' programme, residents Marjorie Benson and Prudence Shepheard-Walwyn have been encouraging the community to upcycle old items into handmade art, rather than throwing them away.

During the crafts-themed Friendship Café, residents welcomed the community to Deewater Grange for a special upcycling craft workshop.

Marjorie and Prudence shared their techniques and top-tips for transforming everyday items into unique pieces of art.

"Since a young age, I've always enjoyed reusing and upcycling items as it's better for the environment," said Prudence.

"It was lovely to share my skills and knowledge with others during the activity session.''  

The initiative aims to revive traditional repair skills such as fixing furniture, mending clothes and tackling small maintenance jobs, whilst celebrating the invaluable knowledge passed on from older generations.

Donna Howard, home manager at Deewater Grange, added: "Residents have so much life experience to share, and taking part in the 'Fixer Uppers' project has been an excellent way for them to inspire people to get creative. 

"Many residents, Marjorie and Prudence included, learned to take old items and create something new in their younger years, so having the chance to revisit those skills has been incredibly rewarding.

"It was such a great afternoon, and it was wonderful to see everyone fully engaged and residents swapping stories, learning from one another, and genuinely enjoying the process of creating something by hand.''

You can find out more about Fixer Uppers here.