soapdish | Sarah Monk Ceramics

Product Spotlight – Circular Soap Pillow

by Sarah Monk | Nov 19, 2020 | Uncategorized

My latest obsession is soap dishes. After ditching the use of plastic at home, I turned to using solid shampoo and soap bars. Originally making one for my own bathroom, I now make them in all shapes and sizes. Some are mini colanders (for nice chunky soap), some are round dishes, others are boxes with little feet. I’m constantly re-developing them with endless possibilities for design.

circular soap pillow in white and blue slipware with pie crust rim and drainage holes

circular soap pillow by sarah monk ceramics with round soap

This hand made circular soap pillow is slab built and press moulded in terracotta clay. It’s brushed with a thick white slip and splattered with cobalt blue. I’ve added some small raised clay blobs and scewer holes to allow your soap to dry out in between uses. Finished off with a pie crust rim and supported by four dinky little feet.

This Sarah Monk Ceramics original will give a contemporary art feel to any zero waste bathroom.

Available to purchase from my shop (Free postage in the UK). I also have more variations of this design available from Contemporary Ceramics Centre, London until the end of December 2020.

Instagram Giveaway

by Sarah Monk | Nov 5, 2020 | Uncategorized

I’m a big fan of Instagram, it’s so visual. It’s a great platform for all creatives and small artisan businesses to show products and connect with like minded people.

I made such a connection with Chaaboo.com , makers of handmade vegan soaps and solid shampoos. I was enchanted by their Instagram feed and very pleased to see that they are based in Moreton-on-Lugg, Herefordshire, just half an hour from me. Having been obsessed with making ceramic soap dishes for a couple of years, I’m always on the look out for artisan soaps. So I gave them a follow!

I admit, Instagram Giveaways aren’t part of my business strategy but when Chaaboo asked, I couldn’t refuse! Collaborations are great and anyway, I love their products! We arranged to meet at my studio to discuss the strategy and how we would move the idea forward. I invited Chaaboo to choose a soapdish from my studio shop collection and they offered to photograph it with their soap bars, create the Insta post and send the prizes to the lucky winners!

hand made ceramic soap dish by sarah monk and soap by chaaboo

circular slipware soap dish in white and teal by sarah monk ceramics

side view of sarah monk circular soap dish with three soaps by chaaboo

The Giveaway went really well. Some very happy winners and a few new Instagram followers on the way!

I would definitely consider doing another promotion sometime. If you have Instagram you may want to give us a follow, who knows when our next promotion could be!!

@sarah_monk_ceramics & chaaboo_com

Good luck & best wishes,

Sarah

the bottom of a crcular soap dish signed by sarah monk artists signature studio pottery

HeyClay 2020

by Sarah Monk | May 13, 2020 | News, Pottery Studio Life

This is the time of year when Eastnor Pottery is usually gearing up for HeyClay, a natioanal event organised and promoted by the Crafts Council and Get Creative UK. Last year we ran three days worth of FREE potter’s wheel classes, it was really popular and we were full to the rafters! This year is rather different of course. So, as an alternative solution, HeyClay has become an online event #GetCreativeAtHome . Me & Jon are delighted it’s still going ahead, seeing it’s the 6th time we have taken part (so it’s very much part of our yearly calender). We’ll be hosting live tutorials, studio tours and insights into our making across our Eastnor Pottery social media platforms. I’m doing a live stream about how I make a slipware slab built soap dish too! HeyClay 2020 is running from the 15th -17th May

Slipware soap dishes.

by Sarah Monk | Apr 23, 2020 | inspiration, News

I have been obsessed with designing and making soap dishes of all shapes and sizes for quite a while. Originally I made one just for me. A change to soild shampoo to reduce plastic waste was my motivation and I needed a soap dish of some kind.

The little circular ceramic soap dishes in the featured image above are the first designs I produced. These are the perfect size for my favourite shampoo bars and soild conditioners which I purchase from my favourite store, Lush . I have a row of these little dishes on a wooden shelf in my own bathroom and they work fabulously!

My soap dish range has now expanded ….some designs are square, some rectangular, some are circular, others are small colanders. Soap comes in all shapes and sizes as do my soap dishes.

I have also added toothbrush mugs to this range, they look cool as a set.

My ceramic slipware soap dishes are slab built by hand in terracotta clay. I brush the surfaces with a lovely thick white slip and then add extra colours on top by either brushing or splatting (very fun indeed!!!). Some of the pieces have sgraffito, a pottery technique where by you scratch into the painted surface to reveal the clay underneath. I finish off most pieces with pie crust rim.

Every piece is covered in a durable shiny glaze and fired to earthenware.