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.

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

Shelves at Eastnor Pottery filled with the work of Sarah Monk Ceramics. A pottery mug hangs on a hook in the forefront, it's teal with drawn flower motifs, green handle and cream and brown inside. Set behind the mug there's an oval flower brick thats cream with flowers etched on the outside. It contains a display of small fresh flowers. There's a shelf above which contains from left to right, a large teal plant pot with big brown dots, a small green cereal bowl with small brown dots, next to this there's 2 cereal bowls; 1 yellow with etched flowers and the other white with etched flowers. on the edge of the picture there's a corner of a teal flower brick withy etched flowers.

A distant view of Eastnor Pottery as seen from Eastnor Triangle, in the centre of the village.

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 her very 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.

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

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 Sarah I’ve 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.

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

Sarah Monk holding a board of freshly thrown terracotta pouring bowls.

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

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!

work in progress studio shot of slipware bt Sarah Monk Ceramics

flower brick work in progress ata eastnor pottery by sarah monk

#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!

New designs at Contemporary Ceramics Centre

by Sarah Monk | Nov 10, 2020 | Uncategorized

My new designs are on display at Contemporary Ceramics Centre, the only retail Gallery in London specialising exclusively in British Studio Ceramics.

I have two new collections on show until the end of December 2020:

Breakfast Ware consisting of querky espresso cups, wobbly looking egg cups and an interesting collection of cereal bowls. The image above is a slipware cheesedish most definitely the biggest pinch pot item I have made!!

Bathroom Ware consisting of hand built ceramic soap dishes of varying shapes and sizes, including my popular soap pillows and a selection of hand thrown toothbrush mugs.

4 egg cups with real eggs and two espresso coffee cups in slipwarte by sarah monk ceramics

a selection of ceramic bathroom ware by sarah monk ceramics

C

The Gallery is run by the Craft Potters Association, of which I have been a selected professional member for over 25 years. They set it up as a ‘benchmark for current practice in studio ceramics and with regularly changing display’ It’s always possible to purchase a wide range of work from functional tableware to individual collectors pieces.

My new designs can be purchased from their own online shop here!

I was invited by Contemporary Ceramics Centre to write about my design process on their blogspot which can be viewed here!! It’s titled ‘In Conversation with Sarah Monk’.

I hope you like my new designs…. I shall be adding some to my own shop soon!

espresso coffee cup by sarah monk ceramics

contemporary ceramics centre website blogspot about sarah monk ceramics

brushed green soap dish with fever few flowers stuck in the top

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

New designs!

I’m really looking forward to it!

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