Angels Farm Pottery and B&B

A Pottery Retreat in the Heart of the New Forest

Welcome to Angels Farm Pottery and B&B and the Pottery Slowdown

Not just a pottery course – a place to learn, recharge, and create

A creative sanctuary to slow down, reconnect, and grow your pottery practice.

We welcome you to join us at the Pottery Slowdown. Our potters often say that when they come through the gate they leave the world behind. Our expert-led courses, set in a peaceful creative retreat, are a perfect opportunity for improvers and experienced potters alike. We promise good company, cake, beautiful pots and peace.

Selection of pottery pieces

At Angels Farm Pottery, we believe pottery is more than just a craft – it’s a way to pause, breathe, and find joy in the rhythm of making. Whether you’re refining your throwing skills, exploring new techniques, or simply craving a peaceful place to focus on clay, you’ll find a warm welcome here.

Founded in 1974 and now run by mother and daughter team Jo Osman and Lyndsey Stride, our Pottery Slowdown courses offer gentle, expert guidance, creative space, and time to go deeper into your practice – whether you’ve just started or have a wheel of your own.

Set on the edge of Lyndhurst in the New Forest, surrounded by birdsong, garden views, and forest paths, Angels Farm is a place where clay, creativity and calm come together. There’s no rush, no pressure – just a supportive space to throw, turn, decorate, and rediscover what you love about making.

A personal welcome from Jo and Lyndsey

Welcome to Angels Farm Pottery – a little sanctuary in the New Forest countryside where clay, creativity, and community come together.

I’m Jo Osman, and I’ve been working with clay for over 60 years. What began as a fascination watching a potter at a village fete has turned into a lifelong love of this craft. Pottery isn’t just about making something with your hands – it’s about finding space, expressing yourself, and slowing down.

I created The Pottery Slowdown not just to teach, but to offer a place where people can take a breath, recentre themselves, and connect with their own creativity.

In recent years, I’ve been joined by my daughter Lyndsey Stride, who brings her own energy, teaching experience, and warmth to the pottery. She’s grown up here and now teaches alongside me, supporting potters at every stage of their journey.

People come here for all sorts of reasons – to improve their throwing, to rediscover their creativity, or simply to enjoy a bit of peace and pottery in good company. But again and again, they tell us this place feels like an oasis, a therapy, a sanctuary.

So, whether you’ve just started your pottery journey or you’re looking to deepen your skills, we’d love to welcome you into our peaceful, creative, biscuit-fueled world!

Jo & Lyndsey

Online Shop

Buy Beautiful Handmade Pieces

A few times a year, we fire up the kiln and create a selection of handmade pottery available to buy online. These are unique pieces with limited numbers.

Each piece is thrown, trimmed, and glazed here at Angel’s Farm, made with care, skill, and a deep love of the craft.

Before anything goes live to the public, we always let our mailing list have first choice. It’s our way of saying thank you to the lovely community that supports what we do. If you’d like to be part of that, we’d love to welcome you.

Handmade pottery vase
Handmade teapot
Collage of pottery

Why you'll love it here

A creative sanctuary, not just a studio

Step through the gate and leave the world behind. Our pottery is a space to focus, recharge, and enjoy the rhythm of making.

Warm, small group teaching with 1:1 support

We keep our classes small so there’s time for tailored guidance, hands-on help, and space to work at your own pace.

Beautiful clay made here at the pottery

We make our own clay on-site – soft, forgiving and a pleasure to throw. Many returning potters say it’s the best they’ve used.

Just 10 minutes from the Forest, 20 minutes from the sea

Set in the heart of the New Forest, our studio is surrounded by trees, birdsong, and fresh air—with the coast just a short drive away.

On-site farmhouse accommodation to fully unwind

Stay in our 17th-century family home, with comfortable rooms, garden views, and a relaxed, welcoming feel from the moment you arrive.

Established in 1974 – over 50 years of pottery heritage

Founded by Jo Osman, Angels Farm Pottery has quietly nurtured potters for generations, rooted in skill, experience, and care.

"from basic pots to stunning creations"

Jo and Lyndsey will take you from very basic pots to stunning creations, with patience and skill. The soothing friendly atmosphere of the classes are an oasis in the middle of life’s madness. And there are biscuits.

– Barbara

"happy vibes"

Angels Farm is a sanctuary. A busy pottery run by two amazing women, Jo and Lyndsey. I come here not just to ‘pot’ but to be embraced by the happy vibes and the lovely people and atmosphere.

– Mary

"will inspire anyone"

The warm welcome, expertise and patience that Jo and Lyndsey exude will inspire anyone wishing to learn about pottery.

– Rachel

"get a real buzz"

I can thoroughly recommend Angels Farm Pottery where I have been attending classes for two years. Both jo and Lyndsey are wonderful potters, passionate about their craft. They are also excellent teachers who are always very patient! The classes are a manageable size and mixed ability. Each student is encouraged and inspired at every stage and flows from week to week. Jo and Lyndsey give demonstration of all stages. I love their classes, which are relaxed, friendly, rewarding, therapeutic and full of camaraderie! We all get a real buzz from seeing the results of our labour emerge from the kiln!! Give it a try.

– Phoebe

"deep understanding of the skill"

Exceptional teachers with patience and a deep understanding of the skill. Encouraging and inspiring creativity in us. Therapy and good for the soul.

– Karien

Our Pottery Courses

Our Pottery Slowdown courses are for anyone who’s already fallen in love with clay – whether you’re still getting to grips with the wheel or you’ve got one at home and want to develop your technique. These weekends are an opportunity to step away from the rush, reconnect with your creativity, and spend focused time refining your skills in a working pottery.

You’ll be taught by Jo and Lyndsey in a peaceful, nurturing space, where learning is as much about flow, play and exploration as it is about outcomes. No two courses are ever quite the same – because we tailor them to you. That might mean practising taller forms, working on consistency, tackling handles and lids, or exploring surface decoration with slips.

We use a range of Rhode, Shimpo and Potterycrafts electric wheels, and the clay? That’s something special too. We make our own right here at the pottery, and it’s one of the first things returning potters comment on – soft, forgiving, and a joy to throw with.

Whether you leave with a shelf of pots or one treasured piece, you’ll head home with new skills and a renewed connection to your practice

Collage of Throwing

About Jo

Angel’s Farm Pottery began with a Leach wheel, a kiln, and a quiet determination to share the joy of clay.

Jo Osman founded the pottery in 1974, having trained at West Surrey College of Art and Design after three inspiring years teaching pottery in California. During her studies, she spent time with renowned potter Gwyn Hanssen in France – an experience that shaped her approach to craftsmanship, patience, and the quiet attention to detail that still defines her work today.

Jo has explored many clays and firing techniques over the decades, but her heart lies in reduction-fired stoneware and porcelain – pottery that’s made to be used, touched, and loved. Her forms and decoration reflect the rhythm of rural life and the landscape she grew up in, here at Angel’s Farm, as a farmer’s daughter.

Though she has exhibited her work, Jo prefers something quieter: welcoming people to the pottery to see where the pieces are made, to sit at a wheel themselves, and to experience the place that continues to shape her as a potter.

These days, teaching is her focus – alongside her daughter Lyndsey. Many of their students return again and again, not just to develop their skills, but to step into the calm, creative rhythm that defines this place.

Explore Our Creative Haven

What our Potters Say...