Pottery in motion
We visit firm which has a lot on its plate
Creating plates and cups fit for a king is no mug’s game, that’s why there is a whole area devoted to the skills and craftsmanship of commemorative ceramics.
And ahead of Coronation celebrations, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffs, known as The Potteries, is a hive of ceramic activity. And one of the busiest epicentres is Emma Bridgewater.
The factory creates slip cast, earthenware pottery which is hand decorated with distinctive designs using sponges or lithograph transfers.
It is producing more than 100,000 hand-painted decorated plates, mugs, cake stands, crowns and teapots to mark the King’s Coronation on Saturday. And one of these has been decorated by me.
Under the watchful eye of sponge decorator Sarah Bourne, 39, who has worked at the factory for 16 years, the plate design will have a palette of yellow, red and gold. Dipping the sponges in the paints, being careful not to put too much on, it’s then time to sponge the motif onto the plate.
Because the plate is so absorbent, the paint is absorbed immediately. There is no room for mistakes.
But Sarah thinks I might be a fast learner. “Some patterns are harder than others,” she says. “The Union Jack for example can be fiddly as it needs to be geometrically perfect.”
Getting my gold lion and unicorn – part of the Royal Family’s coat of arms – in symmetry with each other was a struggle, not to mention smudging King Charles, but overall not a bad effort. If I do say so myself.
The plate itself was made earlier, created from liquid clay poured into moulds.
A traditional earthenware, a mixture of clay from Cornwall, Devon and Staffordshire, is left to dry before sponging and fettling – which cleans the rough edges – to make the surface smooth and is then fired in the biscuit kiln before decorating.
The pottery is then dipped in glaze and fired for a final time.
Every piece passes through 30 pairs of hands from the clay coming into the factory until it leaves for the warehouse to be distributed. All the pieces are inspected and checked by hand.
Stephanie Moorhouse, marketing manager, says: “Each piece is then selected to determine if it is a first quality piece or a second as they are handmade pieces. Seconds are usable but if not first quality will be sold in our Seconds Shop.”
As impressed as Sarah is with my first attempt, I fear my plate may not
even be destined to be sold as a second... third or fourth.
The now Princess of Wales, Kate, visited the pottery in 2015 and wasn’t afraid to get her hands dirty as she also tried to create her own plate.
The company’s star plate thrower Wayne Swindale who oversaw the Duchess’s attempt says: “Kate was quite nervous – I don’t think I helped as I pointed out there were lots of cameras around her so she better not mess up.
“Kate told everyone to watch out – but she actually managed to hit target first time.”
King Charles has previously visited the factory, alongside the Queen Consort, in 2010.
Fettler and sponger June Ribbans, 62, recalls she had to stay after working hours to wait for the Prince’s visit. “He was very apologetic,” she says. “Telling every one of us ‘I’m terribly sorry for keeping you here when you should be at home’. I told him I forgave him.”
Upstairs in the art studio the final step is to sign the back of my plate with my initials – as all the firm’s decorators do.
Stephanie says: “We believe all our ware – whether commemorative or not – should be used and not gather dust in a cabinet for years.”
The earliest commemorative ceramics are thought to be those for the Restoration of Charles II in 1660 and for his Coronation in 1661.
Souvenir mania really took off under the reign of Queen Victoria with stamps, coins, teapots, jigsaw puzzles, butter dishes, wallpaper, pipes and socks.
Ceramics will always be top of the mountain of royal merchandise and this has helped keep the industry afloat. In recent months its biggest challenge has been soaring energy costs in a battle to keep the kilns lit.
The factory uses both gas and electric kilns which fire at temperatures of 950C. Each firing takes around seven hours.
David West, head of technological operations, says: “We’re on a fixed tariff so our bills haven’t increased yet, but they will. So many smaller factories have gone. It’s a worry but there are opportunities for our industry to become more energy efficient.”
And all must be done to conserve an industry which has done so much to keep history alive through commemorative ceramics.
The plate I’ve decorated is part of a collection that retails at £19, but the memories each piece of commemorative tableware will evoke of this Coronation will be priceless for some.
We believe all our ware should be used, not gather dust in a cabinet
STEPHANIE MOORHOUSE EMMA BRIDGEWATER