We were excited to launch our Nellsar Crafty Creature Competition in June – a creative and eco-conscious initiative designed to champion sustainability, artistic expression, and resident participation throughout our Homes. Rooted in our group-wide commitment to environmental sustainability, the competition challenged teams to craft a one-of-a-kind creature using only reused or repurposed materials available within their Home environments.
This vibrant activity was all about collaboration and inventiveness! Residents joined forces with team members to bring their ‘Crafty Creature’ to life, working with items such as bubble wrap, cardboard, plastic tubs, and fabric offcuts – transforming everyday waste into imaginative art. Paint and decorations were encouraged to add those magical final touches.
The process itself was just as important as the final result. Our residents were actively involved in the creation, and team members were encouraged to document the journey with photos. Each creature was also given its own backstory, capturing both its personality and the unique essence of its Home.
Our teams truly rose to the challenge! We were delighted to receive eleven incredible entries from across our Homes – each one a brilliant example of resourcefulness and team spirit.
Our Crafty Creatures were judged by Viv Stead, Nellsar’s Head of Recreation and Well-Being, and Lumi Mandache, Quality Development and Innovation Manager. The judging criteria focused on creativity, originality, use of sustainable materials, and the involvement of our residents.
After much discussion, they came to their final decision, with Lumi commenting: “We had some great creations and stories – so heartfelt, all of them! It’s amazing to see everyone’s dedication and smiles! It shows just how fun, and at the same time meaningful, sustainability can be.”
Prizes
We will be delighted to present our first, second and third place winners with a garden-related prize and garden centre vouchers. All runner up Homes will receive an eco-friendly prize for taking part, designed to benefit their gardens – in the form of wildflower bee bombs. Enjoy!
A huge well done to everyone who took part, and congratulations to our deserving winners and all our wonderful runners up, detailed below…
Our winners
First place with Robin Redbreast – The Old Downs Residential Care Home
Prize: A solar powered water feature worth £250
When the team at The Old Downs were thinking of their Crafty Creature, they were reminded of a very special visitor who brings comfort to many each day. Rain or shine their robin visits every day. He hops along the garden paths, approaches the residents and team members, but most importantly he reminds them that robins appear when loved ones are near. After choosing the robin as their Crafty Creature, they set about collecting recycled items from around their Home, including old beach balls, cardboard, scraps of paper left over from bonfire night, and buttons. The most special feature was the robin’s iconic chest which was made from handprints made by their residents and colleagues in red, in the shape of a heart – this definitely gave the robin its soul. To complete their display, they made a sign out of recycled paper and handprints again. The robin was placed in pride of place in a wonderful nest made of disused packing paper and feathers. We loved the concept, the heart, and the attention to detail of this touching entry. Well done Team! A very worthy first place!
Second place with Rowena the Horse – Hengist Field Care Home
Prize: £200 garden centre voucher for eco-friendly purchases
Hengist Field residents chose a horse for their Crafty Creature, from the history of Hengist Field and their Viking ancestry. They had great fun in finding disused equipment, and recycled items for their life-sized project including a broken clothes rail, toilet rolls and cola bottles. They even gave ‘Rowena’ some old false eyelashes – what a beauty she is! The story of Rowena was written affectionately by David, a resident at Hengist Field, who described ‘A young mare who was found wandering the Kent countryside. Rowena was a little dishevelled, but generally in pretty good shape. Rowena had a note written on her old saddle, it said: This is Rowena, she stands 14 hands high, she is strong and has a pedigree running back to The Vikings in the 5th century. Rowena is a brown mare, with sandy coloured mane and tail, white socks on all four legs, running from the knee to the pastern. Rowena also has a white flash down the front of her face.’ We loved the inventiveness of the idea and how the Home linked back to its heritage. Congratulations Team Hengist Field!
Third place with ‘Spread your wings and fly‘ – Sonya Lodge Residential Care Home
Prize: £100 garden centre voucher for eco-friendly purchases
The team at Sonya Lodge fell in love with the idea of creating giant colourful wings from recycled objects that people could stand in front of and become their own Crafty Creature! They encourage independence, exploration and the pursuit of dreams at Sonya Lodge and the team and their residents agreed that this creation would sum up their ethos. They asked families, team members and their kitchen team to collect any items that they could use and ended up with a wonderful selection including cardboard boxes, buttons, fabric cuttings and lolly sticks. They also enlisted the help of some students from their local school, making it a truly intergenerational project. They created a slogan to go with their beautiful wings, voted for by residents – “ Spread your wings and fly”. We thought this was a very unique take on a Crafty Creature and loved the colourful design. Fantastic entry Team Sonya Lodge!
Our runners up
Abbotsleigh Care Home – Tortoise and the Hare
Abbotsleigh’s Crafty Creature was a true work of art being based on the Aesop’s Fable of the Tortoise and the Hare. Their ethos is ‘Slow and Steady wins the race’ meaning they encourage everyone to always stay positive and have fun along the way. They used an array of recycled materials including plastic bottles, bubble wrap and old weekly planners to create a beautiful entry, full of colour and vibrance. We loved the colourful and happy display, their residents’ involvement, and the look of happiness on the face of Mr Tortoise as he reaches the finishing line. Well done Team Abbotsleigh!
Loose Valley Care Home – Dude the Iguanodon Dinosaur
The folks at Loose Valley decided to go BIG on their Crafty Creature with a dinosaur skeleton. Their residents chose the dinosaur as fossil remains were found in 1834 in Maidstone and forms part of the Maidstone Town Coat of Arms. They did extremely well with their collection of recycled items including egg boxes and lolly sticks, and Dude was so big he had to be assembled by teams of residents, taking a body part at a time. Once assembled, he took pride of place in their reception. We loved the Maidstone Town connection, the skills to put such a creature together in its enormity, and the creative use of their recycled items. Congratulations Loose Valley!
Lukestone Care Home – A Phoenix
After experimenting with a few creatures (a butterfly and a jellyfish), the residents and team at Lukestone decided that their Crafty Creature would rise from the residents’ creation as a Phoenix. The Phoenix was chosen for many reasons – it presents with many bright colours, promotes diversity, and was symbolic of a unified team. Their creature was created using recycled items from across the Home including biscuit boxes, old newspapers, and old plastic pom-poms from their summer fete. We loved the diversity in the team, the experimenting with ideas, and the memory of a dear resident to bring their story real meaning. A fantastic entry Team Lukestone!
Lulworth House Residential Care Home – Troy the Triceratops
Some research was undertaken in advance of residents deciding on their Crafty Creature and they entered a poll of what creature they would like to make. It turns out that the name Lulworth House comes from Lulworth Cove in Dorset, which is along the Jurassic coast, so of course they went with a dinosaur to represent their Home. The structure of Troy was made from recycled timber from old furniture and they used items from the kitchen including plastic bottles, plastic cups and yoghurt pots. We loved that residents had a poll to decide on their creature, the connection to the name of Lulworth House, the great use of recycled food containers, and the care for his environment. Well done Team Lulworth!
Princess Christian Care Home – Animal friends
Princess Christian’s Crafty Creatures come in the shape if their beloved Pet Therapy Corner furry friends – Rosemary and Pepper the chickens, Truffle and Pumpkin the rabbits, Banana the tortoise, Buttons the cat and guinea pigs Rhubarb, Custard, Uggy and Candy. These beloved animals have truly found their forever home at Princess Christian and in return they have brought comfort, companionship and joy. Residents created imaginative replicas of each animal using recycled materials like cardboard, egg cartons and wool. We loved that their residents chose to use their own furry friends as their inspiration for the competition, and that they are displayed as a recycled project around their Home for all to enjoy. Great effort Team Princess Christian!
Silverpoint Court Residential Care Home – Sheldon the Sea Turtle
When the residents and team at Silverpoint Court sat down with a cuppa to choose their Crafty Creature, they knew it had to be something meaningful; something that truly reflected the heart of their Home and their location by the seaside – hence Sheldon the Sea Turtle was born! He lives for many years, carries stories and wisdom from the past, and moves through life with calm strength and quiet resilience, just like their wonderful residents. Sheldon was made with lots of recycled materials including cardboard, foam and bottle tops from around the Home. We loved how their residents and team members chose the creature over a chat and a cuppa (very sociable!), the seaside connection too, and Sheldon’s eyes made from bottle tops! Congratulations Team Silverpoint Court!
St Winifreds Care Home – Fred the Dragon
Fred the Dragon is the Crafty Creature chosen by the residents and team at St Winifreds; their two communities are St Davids and St Andrews, so it is quite apt they should choose Fred as their entry! Fred was created from a biscuit box and lots of lovingly painted egg boxes. His glasses were made from plastic cups and he even had an hearing aide made from an old fob watch to help him listen to his favourite music. Fred’s touching story details him finding love and comfort at a special Home after being lonely and turned away. He now enjoys good food, music, Namaste and more! We loved the story of Fred finding happiness, and that he loves all of the activities he’s discovered. Well done Team St Winifreds!
Woodstock Residential Care Home – Woody the Woodpecker
Woodstock’s residents and team had a lovely time discussing their choice of Crafty Creature and somebody suggested a woody woodpecker; this sparked some wonderful conversations and memories. One of the residents even mentioned hearing a woodpecker in their garden. To bring Woody to life, children from a local school were invited in to help create him, his wings were made from recycled pop bottles painted in vibrant colours. Woody now has pride of place on their art wall in the garden, visible from the lounges, enabling all residents to enjoy him – a symbol of community, creativity and a little bit of woodland magic. We loved the reminiscing fun, and the different generations coming together. Fantastic creativity Team Woodstock!
