Ceramic Café!

I went to a ceramics café about two years ago, and painted a really nice big mug with a cartoon dinosaur. It's the perfect size, and a really nice shape to hold. Ever since then, my mum's wanted another mug,  so when she offered to pay for another painting session, it was an offer I couldn't refuse. 

We went to the Cermaic Café in Farnham, but this company also has a few other branches in the South East. You can have a look at all the locations, pirces, and things here.  

It was a really nice, laid back, atmosphere. We went on a weekday, near the start of term, so it wasn't really busy, but there were a few other people painting, and lots of people popping in and out to pick up their work from the weekend. 

We picked a nice table by the window which was  full of natural light, but the rest of the cafe wasn't dark, and I've painted at one of the other tables before without any problems. 

Each table has its own set of paints, brushes and water. A member of staff explained how everything worked at the start, and then we were left to get on with it. They were always around if you needed their help though :) 

I painted another mug, in the same style as before, but this time opted for an elephant design. Rob painted a bowl, with a picture representing each season on a different quarter. This photo shows our 'finished' designs before they had been fired. We went on a Thursday, and they were going to be ready for us to pick up on Sunday afternoon, which I think is a pretty impressive turn around! 

It was a really nice way to spend the afternoon. You could purchase drinks and snacks from them, so it really was a like a café, and it was great to have something to do and the same time.  You pay £2 for a 2 hour session (and then pay for the item you decide to paint), and this flew buy, but equally it was plenty of time to get our designs done. They weren't hassling us to finish, we just happened to finish on time, and I think they would have let us stay longer. 

These are our finished, shinny creations. They also gave us a free canvas bag, which made me far too excited, but it's just perfect for carrying my food shopping! (Help, I feel so old)

It was a really nice way to spend an afternoon, and it's lovely to have my mug to keep and remember it with. It's also just pretty cool to be able to drink from something that you painted, it's a one of it's kind!