Craft Festival Cheltenham March 2025

by Sarah Monk | Mar 14, 2025 | Exhibitions, News

A busy start to 2025!

I got straight back to the studio in January, getting new designs underway for Craft Festival Cheltenham! I’ve been making some cups & saucers, juicers, jugs and of course, some of my popular flower bricks! I’m paricularly excited about a new idea I’m going to trial too…. which are kind of flower frog teapots. So I’m interested to trial the response!

Who will be at Craft festival Cheltenham?

100 professional crafts exhibitors selected for quality by Craft Festival. See exhibitors here!

Plus an interesting lineup of speakers:

Kate Humble – Broadcaster and writer
Sarah Bayliss – Registered nutritionist
Katy Bevan – Publisher and editor

These will be engaging discussions that will inspire, inform and celebrate the intersection of creativity and well-being.

Undecorated terracotta clay pots by including some cups and saucers plus a rectangular shaped flower brock on a banding wheel in the studio of Sarah Monk at Eastnor Pottery.

Clay fower frog teapot in the wet cly making stage. It has a lid with holes pierced in to hold flowers. The teapot is on the worktable in Eastnor Pottery, the studio of Sarah Monk Ceramics

Tickets

Craft Festival takes place at Cheltenham Town Hall from Friday 21st March – Sunday 23rd March 2025 and advance tickets can be purchased online for £7 or on the door for £9. Children go free plus there are also some free family activities too!

Opening Times:

Friday and Saturday 10am-5pm
Sunday 10am-4pm

This is the third time I have exhibited at this fabulous event and I hope you can join in the fun!

Come and say ‘hello’, I’m in the main hall, stand no. 73.

See you soon,

Sarah x

Flower frog teapot by Sarah Monk in yellow with sgraffito flower design and polka dot handle, spout and lid.

Yellow sgraffito pottery on the display shelves at Eastnor Pottery made by Sarah Monk Ceramics

Trio of hand thrown pottery coffee cups, teal with brown dots, yellow with sgraffito flowers and white with blue dots made by Sarah Monk Ceramics

Flower Frogs… this Season’s must have!

by Sarah Monk | Feb 6, 2025 | inspiration, News, Uncategorized

Shown by Kelly Hoppen on breakfast TV in February 2024 and declared this season’s must have, my little flower bricks are still proving popular in 2025! Thanks to one of my lovely customers, Jackie for alerting me to this wonderful news. I was able to watch on catch-up! It was most bazaar to see my little flower frog sat alone , on that enormous table with Dermot and Alison.

Anyway, I shall be making some more flower frogs and bringing them to Craft Festival Cheltenham 2025.

March 23rd – 25th at Cheltenham Town Hall.

Hope to See you there!

Sarah x

Teal round flower frog with sgraffito meadow flowers with four round feet displayed with fresh daffodils and yellow primroses made by sarah Monk Ceramics

Ceramic flower frog i yellow with etched sgraffito flowers and four round feet. Displayed with fresh daffodils and primrose. Made by Sarah Monk Ceramics

Flower fog by Sarah Monk Ceramics in white with blue and sgraffito flowers, displayed with fresh michaelmas daisies.

Guest Speaker at Preparing to Sell, Hereford.

by Sarah Monk | Feb 6, 2025 | News

I’ve been invited to Hereford College of Arts, on Thursday 20th February for Preparing to Sell.

This will be a lively and informative day, led by Sarah James MBE, Director of Craft Festival and Find a Maker. It will give makers at all stages of their career, the best possible advice for selling directly to the public.

Suitable for makers at all stages of their career Preparing to Sell is also a great opportunity to network and is also suitable for students who want to get ahead.

Sarah James MBE will be joined by marketing consultant, Susan James, social media specialist, Lou Chudney from Spark_Social and of course, myself!

brown planter and tray with sgraffito daisies made by sarah monk ceramics, corner view

What the day includes:

· How to Apply for Craft Fairs, ideas on stand presentation, sales techniques and tips and the importance of good photography

· How to start your business and how to diversify your practise.

· How to plan and deliver a marketing plan

· Why sell directly to the public? How to Make Your Show a Success

· What are the Do’s and Don’ts when taking part in big events

Price includes tea, coffee, biscuits. Please bring your lunch of choice or alternatively, Hereford College has an on-site café.

The whole day costs just £49. (Hereford College of Arts Students, £29

Venue: Hereford College of Arts
Date: Thursday February 20th 2025
Time: 9.30am till 3pm

Book Preparing to Sell here!

Article for Ceramic Review Jan/Feb 2025

by Sarah Monk | Jan 1, 2025 | News

I have some wonderful news for all pottery enthusiasts! I have written an article for the prestigious bi-monthly magazine, Ceramic Review.

‘Potter’s Secrets’ is a regular feature designed to shed light on selected artist’s making processes. I’m always open to sharing my pottery techniques, so this came easily. We’re all about de-mystifying all things pottery during our classes here at Eastnor Pottery. Me and Jon Williams have been sharing our pottery secrets with our visitors for the past 30 years!

work in progress studio shot of slipware bt Sarah Monk Ceramics

A hand made ceramic flower brick in sun yellow decorated with brown sgraffito flowers flowers. Made by Sarah Monk Ceramics displayed holding fresh white daisies, white chrysanthemum and pink cyclamen.

terracotta clay pots waiting to be decorated with slip in the studio of sarah monk ceramics

I decided to share with the readers, how I make one of my favourite objects, a yellow flower brick. I make these using a method called ‘soft slabbing’, using terracotta clay. The article goes into great detail about my slip decoration, sgraffito and glazing techniques.

The January/February 2025 edition, issue number 331 can be purchased via the Ceramic Review website.

Sarah x

Find a Maker May 2024

by Sarah Monk | May 2, 2024 | News

From the 29th April – 3rd May it’s Find a Maker Week!

Find a Maker is a crafts directory curated by the talented Craft Festival team.

Sarah Monk standing in her studio at eastnor pottery holding a yellow box egg cup holder

Dotty yellow flower brick side view by Sarah Monk Ceramics

#findamakerweek heralds an exciting week of live chats and demos. There’s over 400 members, so please check out their social media platforms.

I had a wonderful interview on Instagram LIVE with Sarah James MBE, on the 2nd May take a look here!

I shall be posting daily on Instagram @sarah_monk_ceramics too!

Find a Maker Week, December 2023

by Sarah Monk | Feb 15, 2023 | Exhibitions, News

Hello everyone. This week I been celebrating #findamakerweek on Instagram! Here I am in my studio at Eastnor Pottery, which I share with my husband and fellow potter Jon Williams (behind the camera).

Find a Maker is an online directory and community of professional crafts people & galleries. It’s run by the famous and well established Craft Festival team.

On Monday 4th December 2023, I chatted LIVE on Instagram with founder, Sarah James MBE. It can be found on the CraftFestival Instagram page here!

Yellow slab built vase by Sarah Monk Ceramics with oxe eye daisies.

flower brick work in progress ata eastnor pottery by sarah monk

Talking of Craft Festival….. I shall be exhibiting with them again at Cheltenham from the 8th – 10th March 2024 Tickets can be purchased online nearer the time.

It takes place in the iconic Cheltenham Town Hall, Imperial Square, GL50 1QA

If you are coming to Cheltenham do come and say hello, I would love to meet you! 🙂

Sarah x

Herefordshire Open Studios: H.Art

by Sarah Monk | Sep 11, 2022 | News, Uncategorized

From the 3rd ’till the 11th September 2022 it’s Herefordshire Art Week, or H.Art as it is fondly known!

#herefordshireartweek heralds an exciting 9 days of open studios. There’s over 130 artistans taking part. Here at Eastnor Pottery, myself and my husband/ fellow potter Jon Williams are venue at 121.

All welcome, please come and browse our studio shop, take a look at our pottery experiences teaching space and talk all things pottery!

Find a Maker Week!

by Sarah Monk | May 16, 2022 | News, Pottery Studio Life

From the 16th- 20th May it’s Find a Maker Week!

Find a Maker is a crafts directory curated by the talented Craft Festival team.

#findamakerweek heralds an exciting week of live chats and demos. There’s over 300 members, so please check out their social media platforms.

I shall be posting daily on Instagram @sarah_monk_ceramics too!

slab built butterdish work in progress in the studio of sarah monk ceramics

slab built olive plate work in progress with cobalt splatters

Flower Bricks & Vases at Blue Ginger Gallery

by Sarah Monk | Jul 4, 2021 | News

Midsummer’s day saw the start of Blue Ginger Gallery’s online summer exhibition entitled ‘Where the Wild Thyme Blows’. I created some slab-built vases and flower bricks inspired by the theme. It runs it until the 31^st July.

Rectangular slab vase with a single sgraffito daisy and scribbles by Sarah Monk

Flower brick with removable lid with real meadow grass

Thrown vase with four little feet by Sarah Monk in cream with sgraffito daisies

Kitchen herb planter and tray by Sarah Monk with fresh parsley in the top

Rectangular slab vase with sgraffito flowers by Sarah Monk in cream with fresh white flowers displayed (aerial view)

Flower brick with cobalt dots by Sarah Monk (corner view)

Ceramic Birds Installation at Hellens Manor

by Sarah Monk | Jul 3, 2021 | Exhibitions

In June I exhibited some slipware ceramic birds for a site-specific installation created in the beautiful grounds of Hellens Manor in Herefordshire. I named it ‘The Birch Perch’ ! It consisted of 10 humorous hand modelled birds (some sitting in nests) sitting along a real birch tree! Something to discover in the woods and make you smile! 🙂