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sarah monk and jon williams from eastnor pottery
sarah monk and jon williams from eastnor pottery

During the February half term we’re broadcasting a short series of FREE & LIVE how-to-do pottery tutorials on our Facebook page.

Mon 15 Feb 11.00am Monster Monday – how to make a coil pot monster.

Wed 17 Feb 11.00am Wheel Wednesday – the potter’s wheel.

Fri 19 Feb 11.00am Fish on Friday- how to make a clay fish.

See you there! 🎥 xx

ceramic artists jon williams and sarah monk take part in the digital hey clay festival 2020
ceramic artists jon williams and sarah monk take part in the digital hey clay festival 2020
This is the 6th time we’ve been involved with this fabulous FREE event and usually we’re full to the rafters with lovely people having loads of fun on the potter’s wheel. As we’re not re-opening to the public until 1st July, we’ll be celebrating HeyClay by hosting live tutorials, studio tours and insights into our making across our social media. Here’s a timetable of LIVE events here at Eastnor Pottery and the Flying Potter:

Friday 15th May 2020

11am     Studio Tour (Insta) 😍
1pm      Throwing a pot with Jon Williams (Insta)🤩

Saturday 16th May 2020

10am     Studio Tour (Facebook)😍
11am      Throwing a pot with Sarah Monk (Insta)🤩
1pm       How to make a donut with Jon Williams (Facebook) 🍩
2pm       How to make a soap dish with Sarah Monk 🧼

We hope to see you there! 😀🌈

potters wheel fun in herefordshire

have a go on the potter's wheel is hilarious fun at eastnor potteryHurrah! its Hey Clay this weekend – a brilliant 3 day event organised by the Crafts Council and run during the Get Creative Festival to encourage the general public to make pottery.

hey clay participant makes a pot at eastnor pottery as part of free hey clay eventyoung potter proud of her pot at eastnor pottery and the flying potter taking part in hey clay 2019thumbs up from hey clay participant at eastnor pottery and the flying potterIt’s an annual celebration and we’ve taken part in every one since it’s inception in 2015, offering participants the opportunity to make a pot on the potter’s wheel for FREE!

It’s also a well publicised campaign and as you can probably imagine, we are (usually) inundated with punters – making it one of our busiest weekends of the year.

Although COVID-19 has put pay to the participatory aspect here at the studio, Hey Clay 2020 is still going ahead across all the social media platforms. They’ll be how to do videos, online chat and virtual studio tours from participating venues. Rest assured we’ll be contributing live feed and tutorials through-out. Check out:

Twitter – @CraftsCouncilUK

Facebook – @CraftsCouncilUK

Instagram – @CraftsCouncil

Contribute and search for these hashtags: #HeyClay #GetCreativeAtHome

I’m sure HeyClay will be back, stronger than ever, in its traditional format next year. In the meantime and to whet your appetite, here’s a couple of links to the FREE potter’s wheel fun we’ve had in previous years.

Hey Clay 2017

Hey Clay 2019

#getcreativeathome offers a wide range of tutorials and content online so you can get creative in lockdown. We have x3 ‘how to’ videos up there too:

How to make a pottery fish.

How to make a pottery owl.

How to make a pot on the potter’s wheel.

 

young potter proud of her pot at eastnor pottery and the flying potter taking part in hey clay 2019

young potter proud of her pot at eastnor pottery and the flying potter taking part in hey clay 2019

Each year we take part in a FAB free event called Hey Clay.

The initiative is organised by The Crafts Council as part of the BBC’s Get Creative campaign and shines a spotlight on public participation in all things pottery and clay!

Hundreds of organisations across the UK throw open their doors, hosting thousands of free events and workshops. We’ve been involved with Hey Clay ever since it’s inception in 2015 and every year we invite individuals and families the Pottery to make a pot on the potter’s wheel for free.

No less than 120 visitors spread over three days crossed the threshold here at Eastnor Pottery and took a spin on the wheel. Here are just a few of them!

hey clay participant makes a pot at eastnor pottery as part of free hey clay eventfamily photo of family making pottery at hey clay at eastnor pottery in herefordshire west midlandsthumbs up from hey clay participant at eastnor pottery and the flying potter

 

workshop participant at eastnor pottery proud of her pot made on the potter's wheel

 

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Just over a week to go to the amazing FREE HeyClay event and BBCGetCreative (one of the partners) have published an article about creativity and well being carried out by BBCArts. Definitely worth a gander and you can even take a test to see how best to maximise your own well being through creative pursuits.

Here’s the article:

Good news for those juggling time pressures in today’s busy, modern life. According to research commissioned by BBC Arts, even the briefest time spent on a creative pastime such as painting, pottery or playing the piano has an impact on our wellbeing and emotions.

In the largest study of its kind, with almost 50,000 people taking part, last year’s Great British Creativity Test – in partnership with UCL – explored for the first time how creative activities can help us manage our mood and boost wellbeing.

Led by Dr Daisy Fancourt, UCL Senior Research Fellow and former BBC Radio 3 New Generation Thinker, the research shows there are three main ways we use creativity as coping mechanisms to control our emotions:

  1. A distraction tool – using creativity to avoid stress.
  2. A contemplation tool – using creativity to give us the mind space to reassess problems in our lives and make plans.
  3. A means of self-development to face challenges by building up self-esteem and confidence.

Trying new creative activities is particularly good for our emotions and wellbeing. The research found that getting hands-on with something new and creative is important regardless of skill level – it is the taking part that counts.

Constantly learning and trying new creative pursuits is also more beneficial, as the survey revealed that doing an activity for more than ten years means it can become less effective at regulating negative emotions.

and if you want to try making a pot on the potter’s wheel for FREE call us on 01531 633886 and we’ll book you in at some point over the 17-19 May HeyClay extravaganza here at the Pottery.