Craft Festival 2026…. amazing!

by Sarah Monk | Jul 24, 2026 | Exhibitions

I had THE MOST wonderful of weekends…

What a fantastic event Craft Festival, Bovey Tracey is! I’ve watched it on the old socials for a while (tbh with a little bit of FOMO ) And I can hand on heart say that this event is everything I had hoped for and more! 😊
I loved all the smiles and chatting with customers. But it’s not only about the sales (although of course they are appreciated) for me it’s about connecting with my Craft Community. At an event like Craft Festival, your neighbouring exhibitors become a little community of their own , so I decided to post a few photos of my neighbours on my Instagram page: @sarah_monk_ceramics

Sarah Monk stood in her display at Craft Festival. She is leaning against a dresser full of her pottery and she is smiling at the camera.

A lady is about to pick up a piece of Sarah Monk pottery from her display shelf as a friend and Sarah Monk look on.

My Number One Seller….

You may not be surprised to hear that my flower bricks did extremly well at Bovey Tracey (thank you to those who purchased). I had a hunch that my mini flower bricks may be having a moment…. and I was correct! I think these little cuties are the equivalent of a potter’s mug. An affordable and easy purchase at £38. They make great gifts too!

So there we go, what a brilliant time I had!

Plus a big shout out to my driver & sales assistant (husband) Jon Williams Pottery.
After, we carried our journey westwards down to Cornwall and treated ourselves to a little holiday! We got back into the studio at Eastnor Pottery on Tuesday 23rd June feeling well rested and inspired!

Next up: h.Art Herefordshire Open Studios from the 5th – 13th September 2026.

See you soon,

Sarah x

Sarah Monk standing in her display laughing with a customer who has her back to the camera

Two pink pottery flower bricks, one large and oval, the other, small and retangular. The are both decorated with sgraffito flowers and fresh elderflowers arranged inside.

Jon Williams stood by the Flying Potter van in the car park with a view of the sea behind him.

Craft Festival, Bovey Tracey 2026

by Sarah Monk | Jun 8, 2026 | News

New designs!

I have been steadily working behind the scenes developing new designs to exhibit at the prestigious and award winning Craft Festival!It takes place from the 12th – 14th June at Mill Marsh Park, Bovey Tracey in Devon. It brings together hundreds of curated makers to showcase high-quality ceramics, jewellery, textiles, and glass, alongside workshops, demonstrations, live music, and local food.

I’m really looking forward to it!

Craft Festival is this week, woohoo! So today I’m selecting pieces for my display!” (see Sarah me arranging my dresser on Instagram here)

A lady with long blond hair and glasses, wearing blue jeans and a brown checked short sleeve top is stood leaning against a painted blue and white dresser filled with pink handmade pottery including a selection of flower bricks.

A pink pottery fruit punnet decorated with drawn flower motifs. It contains fresh strawberries and has a banner at the bottom of the picture saying Craft Festival, Bovey Tracey, 12 - 14 June 2026

A dresser display with 3 shelves full of pink pottery made by Sarah Monk

I have many new pieces to bring (it’s been a productive year!)… so it’s hard to choose! I think I’m going to mix some blue and white pieces together with some pink. The pink is a very recent development… I only started it this year, it’s so new! I’m thrilled with results so far and I hope everyone likes it!
This dresser is coming with me too…. ordinarily it sits here at one end of our main studio. I use it to showcase my latest ideas! So I think it will be lovely to bring a little corner of our Eastnor Pottery studio to Devon!

Come and say ‘hello’, I’m on stand B57.

Hope to see you there!
Sarah x

Craft Festival Bovey Tracey is one of the country’s most respected craft events, welcoming over 10,000 visitors every year from across the UK and beyond

Buy Craft Festival Tickets here!

A wheel thrown handmade pottery set. A matching plate, juicer and jug in white with large blue painted dots all over it.

An oval flower brick with sgraffito flowers etched all over it. The flower brick contains a flower arrangement of pink asters.

Two rectangular pink flower bricks, one large, one smaller. They are decorated with large brown dots.

Christmas Open Studio at Eastnor Pottery

by Sarah Monk | Nov 13, 2025 | Exhibitions, News

Herefordshire Art Week

Having had such a wonderful Herefordshire Art Week here at Eastnor Pottery in September, we’re delighted to be participating in the h.Art Christmas Open Studio Weekends 29 & 30 November and 6 & 7 December 2025.

Three good reasons to visit Eastnor before Christmas!

Not only will myself & (my husband and fellow potter) Jon Williams be opening our festive studio but, our friend and neighbour, blacksmith Andrew Findlay will be opening Eastnor Forge too!

For those of you who haven’t visited Eastnor before, The Pottery and Forge are within 100 metres of each other, occupying independent historic buildings on the Eastnor Castle Estate.

Andrew Findlay – Eastnor Forge

Andrew has 40 years experience as an artist blacksmith and shaper of metal. He has completed a plethora of residential and commercial decorative metalwork projects worldwide. The distinctive style and appearance of his work comes from many years of risk taking, experimentation and learning through doing.

Check out his runner bean bird baths, gingko leaf sculpture and organically inspired garden furniture. Fire-irons, bronze key fobs and letter openers make for wonderful stocking fillers.

Jon Williams – Eastnor Pottery

Jon will be showing his interactive and decorative one offs constructed entirely from sections made on the potter’s wheel. Some pieces are intended to live outside, others are designed to be handled, shaken, tapped or submersed in water – all inspired by nature and natural forms.

Sarah Monk – Eastnor Pottery

I will be exhibiting a wide range of slipware pieces, from small buttons to the largest of flower bricks! I’m very excited to be turning our lovely studio into a grotto of ceramic delights. This is a perfect opportunity to find that one of a kind Christmas gift or simply soak up the festive atmosphere around our studios.

A portrait photo of Jon Williams sat at a potters wheel, hands clasped together resting on the wheel, he is smiling at the camera. He is wearing a black t-shirt, he has curly hair.

Sarah Monk wearing a blue cardigan, sat at her workspace table turning around to look at the camera, she is holding a pottery tool and smiling.

A portrait photo of Andrew Findlay, wearing his blacksmiths apron and wearing a black cap. He is looking at the camera with a slight smile. He is stood and both arms are leaning on an anvil and hammer set in front of him.

The Forge and Pottery will be open 10am – 4pm with festive refreshment on offer in both settings. If you can’t make one of the h.Art weekends, Eastnor Pottery Studio shop is open all year round 10am – 4pm Tuesday – Saturday…right up until and including Saturday 20^th December.

h.Art map reference: 107

Eastnor Pottery, Home Farm, Eastnor, Near Ledbury , Herefordshire, HR8 1EW

What 3 Words:

clubbing.glitz.revolting

Directions:

Eastnor is located 2 miles East of Ledbury on the A438. Ledbury – Tewkesbury road. Once in the village follow the pink Herefordshire Art Week signs.

I look forward to seeing you

Sarah x

A bowl and spoon set. The bowl is green on the outside with painted black spots, inside the bowl is cream and brown. The spoon is matching.

Three iron blacksmith poppy heads on metal sticks.

A ceramic sculpture of a light green pear and it's core.

‘The Printed Garden’ at Waterperry Gardens.

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

The Gallery at Waterperry Gardens

What I’m up to next…. ‘The Printed Garden’ at Waterperry opens on the 20th September and I’m making floral sgraffito pieces for The Gallery at Waterperry to compliment the gorgeous prints. 🌼🌸🌻🌺 It was great to meeting gallery curator Kate when I was exhibiting at Craft Festival Cheltenham back in March where I got hear of her plans… sounds rather wonderful! 😊
I’ll be sending a colourful collection of espresso cups with saucers, bowls & spoons, cream jugs, tea mugs and of course, a few of my popular flower bricks in various sizes.
Thank you for the invitation Kate!

A slab built butter dish made by Sarah Monk. It's rectangular in shape with a lid and tray. It's cream in colour with brown sgraffito flowers etched on to the sides for decoration.

Freshly thrown cereal bowls made by Sarah Monk Ceramics

A yellow slab built flower brick decorated with etched flowers. It contains fresh flowers; daisies and pink cyclamen.

What I’ve been making.

I made a little reel on my Instagram page making one of my slab built butter dishes for the exhibition. Please take a look here!

The Gallery is housed in a restored 18th Century barn, the Gallery at Waterperry Gardens near Oxford offers affordable, contemporary art and craft.

Opening Times

The Gallery is open every day and free to enter.

Easter – October 10:00am – 5.30pm
November – Easter 10:00am – 5.00pm

A white flower brick with etched terracotta flowers and displayed with real forget-me-not blue flowers. This piece is on display on a white table in the studio of sarah monk.

A cereal sized bowl held in the palm of a hand there's a spoon held in the other hand. Both pieces are white and terracotta with green splatters. The bowl has etched flowers a bit like daisies.

A white plate made by Sarah Monk. It has a pie crust rim and sgraffito etched daisies with wiggley stems.

Herefordshire Art Week: h.Art

by Sarah Monk | Aug 28, 2025 | Exhibitions, News, Pottery Studio Life

Eastnor Pottery Open Studios

It’s not to go until artists and makers all over the county open their doors for Herefordshire Art Week 2025. This marvellous Open Studios event takes place 6 – 14 September and involves 428 artists exhibiting in 138 venues and Eastnor Pottery is proud to be taking part once more!

What will I be exhibiting?

I’m making lots of slipware pieces inspired by nature, ceramic history and the softness of clay.

Wheel thrown cups, plates and bowls. Large flower bricks, aswell as some miniature ones too! They are constructed from soft slabs of terracotta clay.

Slips and colourful underglazes are brushed and splattered on my surfaces, building layers of decoration and colour. Sgraffito flowers are freely etched into the clay, making pieces pleasingly tactile.

In a nutshell – I make little pieces of art for the home, to use and cherish.

Who else will be exhibiting?

Jon Williams (aka my husband and fellow potter) will also be showing his interactive and decorative one offs constructed entirely from sections made on the potter’s wheel. Some pieces are intended to live outside, others are designed to be handled, shaken, tapped or submersed in water.

If there was a common thread through both of our work it would be the notion of playfulness, both in creation and fired outcome.

Inside the studio at Eastnor Pottery. To the front of the photo there are some freshly thrown cups and saucers made by Sarah Monk.

Large fresh pink peonies diplayed in an oval flower brick made by Sarah Monk. The flower brick is cream with bold painted blue flowers.

h.Art Opening times at Eastnor Pottery

We’re open 11am – 5pm throughout – come join us for a complementary cuppa and peruse our pots.

Introduction to the Potter’s Wheel Classes

Each morning at 11am, we’ll be running one of our very popular and entertaining Introduction to the Potter’s Wheel Classes. If you are interested in booking please tap the link!

We look forward to seeing you!

Sarah x