The Kiln House is our unique studio building. It is the central, communal space at Dod Mill and is available to groups hiring the venue on an exclusive use basis. It can also be rented on a per day or half day basis for other groups – e.g. for meetings or craft sessions.

The Kiln House layout is really flexible and can be set up with comfy seating (up to 10 guests), with dining / meeting tables (up to 12 guests), or a combination of the two.

For guests hiring Dod Mill for group accommodation or as a yoga retreat venue, the Kiln House works really well as a central space for meals or as a chill-out room.

It’s a gorgeous space, with windows of three sides of the room each with views out to the surrounding countryside. The stone entrance area has plenty of space for coats and bags if needed.

We can provide tea and coffee making facilities as well as all the glasses, crockery and cutlery you may need.

DOD MILL GROUNDS

Guests are welcome to make full use of the outside space at Dod Mill. We have a 5 acre site on the edge of the Lammermuir Hills. The beautiful Boondreigh River runs right down the middle of the site. You can wander through woodland, past the mill pond (home to wild ducks), along the mill lade, through our little orchard, and through fields of rare breed sheep.

In 2020 we opened a new bridge allowing easy walks on both sides of the river. You can also walk beyond our site directly into the neighbouring farms, to forests, and up into the hills.

You are welcome to roam as you like. Please also ask us about how you can use the grounds and fields for small marquees or outside dining including picnics, bbqs and parties.

Dod Mill works really well as a Group Accommodation venue for parties of up to 10-12 guests. Your group will stay in our two gorgeous cottages, Old Mill and The Bothy, as well as in our two quirky cabins, Stilt House and Fishing Hut.

We are also happy to consider slightly larger numbers if some guests are willing to camp (e.g. we can provide bell tents!). Groups love that they can stay together while also having plenty of private space for each of the singles, couples, families and small groups in the party.

Guests joining us as groups of up to 10 or 12 will be able to make use of our cool studio, the Kiln House, as a dining space or chill-out area. We can set it up to suit your needs. Larger groups (e.g. with some staying in tents) would be able to pitch a canvas dining room or small marquee, yurt or teepee on the site if needed.

The outside space is perfect for chilling out – pootling by the river, picnics, BBQs, games of rounders, walks in the hills. The Scottish Borders also has absolutely loads to do!

Dod Mill is a unique venue for hosting retreats. We love to welcome yoga, meditation, art, craft, reading, writing or education groups to our site. Our unique accommodation and studio are all beautifully and individually interior-designed. They are peaceful and soul-lifting spaces!

Groups can easily self-cater, making use of fully-equipped kitchens in Old Mill and The Bothy, plus a choice of outdoor cooking facilities. It’s also possible to arrange for sumptuous and wholesome catering if required (vegetarian available).

We feel that outside space is as important as inside space when it comes to retreats. Dod Mill is a 5 acre dell with a river running through the middle (with foot bridge!). You’ll also be treated to woodland, orchard, friendly and rare-breed sheep, fields and a mill pond.

Day retreats, weekend retreats and week-long retreats are all available. Our rural location is just 40 minutes from Edinburgh and 90 minutes from each of Glasgow, Dundee and Newcastle. There is absolutely loads to do and see around here if your timetable allows guests free time.

Old Mill and The Bothy can both be set up as yoga studios with capacity for 12 and 7 mats respectively (plus an instructor mat). Similarly, these spaces can be used for other activities. Both have woodburning stoves, and Old Mill also has underfloor heating.

Dod Mill has hosted quite a number of yoga and meditation retreats in recent years and in the past. If you are a retreat leader, Ruth is very happy to have a chat with you about what we offer and to arrange a site visit. In the first instance, simply get in touch.

We are delighted for groups to come to Dod Mill for all sorts of meetings and events. You might be looking for somewhere to host a candle making workshop, art class, a meeting or a small social event including a boutique wedding.

Tea, herbal tea, coffee, water and homebaking can be provided to suit. We have loads of lovely artisan crockery, glasses and cutlery too. Please ask us about outside catering as we can organise delicious soups, bread, salads and cakes for lunches.

The Kiln House is a studio which is perfect to hire for a half day, whole day, weekend or evening. The seating and table arrangements are very flexible. For example, we can set comfy sofa seating around the edge of the room (up to 10 guests). Instead, you might need meeting or dining tables (12 guests, 16 at a real push!). We can also provide a combination of two sofas and one table (up to 8 guests).

The other option is to pitch a small marquee, canvas tent, yurt or teepee for your event. We have a lovely flat space in the field by the river, near the Fishing Hut.

Dod Mill has had a very creative history with various artists living here in the last 40 years. That includes photographers, a stained glass artist and at least two painters that we know of. Creatives and artists have also come here for temporary studio space and for inspiration.

Anyone is welcome to book our cottages or cabins for their own artist residency, research residency, writing residency or creative residency.

This is a great place to completely immerse yourself in a particular project or master a new style. You’ll find tonnes of natural inspiration as well as vernacular buildings at Dod Mill and in the area.

Look out for our artist residency opportunities. The first residency will run once Scotland has resumed normal activity following the Coronavirus lockdown. We will be offering a free artist residency to a Scottish artist. The residency will be a Monday-Friday stay in one of our unique cabins: Fishing Hut or Stilt House. It will be an opportunity to have an immersive, focused period of work whilst living a “simple life” in the cabin.

Artists coming to Dod Mill on a free residency will be asked to write a blog about the experience, including photos of their work and their temporary “studio”.

The Residency is one way we can support the arts and creative sectors “on the other side” of the crisis.