A weekend with Emma Bridgewater
- 6th - 8th Nov 2026
One of Britain’s most talented pottery designers is spending her weekend with us here at Heligan, with three very exciting events across Friday to Sunday.
All attendees of these events will receive a voucher for 25% off all Emma Bridgewater products and 10% off all other products in the Heligan shop.
An evening with Emma
Emma will be joining us on Friday, November 6 for a delicious three-course meal in the Heligan Kitchen, which will feature sumptuous seasonal produce and Heligan’s own grown ingredients, celebrating the incredible season of Harvest.
As well as dinner, guests will be treated to an intimate conversation beside the fire with Emma and an exclusive look around the Heligan shop, with an included 25% off Emma Bridgewater products and 10% off all other products. All diners will also take home an Emma Bridgewater original gift.
SOLD OUT: Wild Sponging workshops
Learn from the master sponger herself and make your very own festive wrapping paper using natural sponges and potatoes.
This hands-on workshop is now sold out – please join the waiting list if you'd like to join.
Cream tea and conversation
Join Emma for a delightful afternoon of cream tea and conversation, featuring a fascinating, behind-the-scenes talk exploring her creative milestones, inspirations and life in the design world.
Emma Bridgewater
Emma Bridgewater grew up in Oxford, the eldest of a large family. After university, she soon realised that she wanted to start her own company. Her ‘eureka moment’ came in 1984, when she was searching for a pretty cup and saucer for her mother’s birthday. Discovering that everything in the shops was either delicate and formal, or heavy and clunky, she realised there was a gap in the market for pottery that was both beautiful and practical, and that reflected the relaxed, colourful, mismatched home she’d grown up in.
Emma sketched out a small collection and found a pottery in Stoke-on-Trent, the home of British ceramics to make them up. She then decorated them using cut-out sponges – a traditional technique that became her signature style. The designs were snapped up by Liberty, Harrods, and The General Trading Co, and Emma Bridgewater Ltd was born.
Emma was determined to keep production of the pottery in Stoke-on-Trent, today the company traditionally crafts and hand decorates over 32,000 pieces of pottery a week. Emma Bridgewater products are sold worldwide and the company is proud to have been awarded B Corp certification.
Emma has written two books: In 2014 Toast & Marmalade and Other Stories, which covers the rollercoaster ride of building the business; and in 2016 Pattern, which formally archives over 30 years of original pattern designs, and offers a behind the scenes look at the inspiration behind the designs.
In February 2026, Emma was invested as a Dame of the British Empire by His Majesty King Charles III for services to pottery manufacturing.
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