What a Lark!: Best visit ever.

David went off cycling from here in the centre of Stoke early this morning, he went to the Cauldon Canal.

We had an appointment about which I was very excited about.

It was half and hours walk, uphill, so we took extra time hoping there was a café there, well there are cafes everywhere aren't there?

So we actually arrived before the staff to here.

We waited patiently. No cafe and none nearby in what seems a little like a back street.

The Moorcroft Factory, photographed here in 1930 but when it was built in 1913 the factory was surrounded by farmland.

The factory today.

Wonderful mosaic of the factory on the shop wall as it was, with the five Bottle kilns originally but today just the one remains.

We had a guided tour booked and very sadly no photos allowed on the factory floor.

We were introduced to the almost completely handmade process, we met a "Turner" who had been in the role for 38 years and a lady with a vital role of smoothing out the joins in the pots from the moulds by hand of course, she in her role for 38 years too but a week less than Steve the "Turner"

On we went to see vases the size of small children and others the size of a whiskey tumbler and everything in between.

This is a photo of the Painting room taken in 1933, it looked pretty much the same today.

This was a mock up of the tools still used today, some very small vases with their thin edges from the designers drawings transferred onto the vases, when the outlines are dried then the painting goes on.

The interior of the bottle kiln, unused today.

These kiln would have had 9 tonnes of coal put in to get the kiln up to temperature to fire the pottery overnight.

A mock up of a lounge with Moorcroft plaques, vases and today mugs and cushion covers.

Moonlit Forest design, I loved this. When I get my pension pay out I may well buy this....

I believe this design is called Queens Choice, one of their most popular designs through the decades.I love this one too.

This pattern dates from the 1920's, I have a vintage piece of this at home. Called Pomegranate.

Well I can't tell you how much I enjoyed this visit, they are only open for guided tours two days a week now Thursday and Fridays. It was absolutely fascinating watching the painters in action, many of which have worked there for decades, quite a testament to the happy environment in which they find themselves.

They recently celebrated the youngest member of the painting room, she was 50. The youngest. They are actively looking for new recruits.

Some of you may remember that I have been wanting to visit the Moorcroft factory for years, well ever since we had WaL so that is 2012 when we first came through Stoke. We always seemed to be here when it was a Monday (They used to be closed to visits on Mondays), or we were here during the annual Pottery Holidays, that was when all the pottery factories closed in unison, the kilns let out, the associated trades on holiday too. Moorcroft still adhere to this now, so I was HEARTBROKEN last year when we came through Stoke, I looked it up to book to be told that the business had gone into receivership something like six weeks previously.

I cried bitter tears.

But the factory was taken over by a successful businessman, who just happens to be the Grandson of the Moorcroft family and it reopened for business again last autumn.

Today I even brought a wee vase for my collection. Thank you Mum for my birthday and Christmas money.

Just a note to say that prior to the Iranian war, their energy costs were £70,000. a year, today we were told £350,000. a year. When you see the artistry of every one of the workers you can understand the prices the pieces of art command, for these are not pottery vases but indeed works of art.

We almost ran down the hill to the marina, David fired up WaL, I ran with the key around to the lift bridge, another hire boat had been left right opposite WaL but he edged out and the reversed to the lift bridge and out forwards, I ran back to the office, paid the £10 fee, gave her the key and ran back to WaL where D was hovering, Right Go Go Go all speed to the Harecastle Tunnel where we had a 3pm passage booked.

As we approached the CART man said can you go straight in?

Yes but can I do the rubbish? says I

Yes give it to me,

So I tossed him the bin liner, the two glass bottles and the cardboard, he was laughing but doing the safety instructions as he walked alongside us and with my cycling helmet upon David's head, in we went.