Shrewsbury's Claytime celebrates 25 years of business

Shrewsbury, MASS — For Laurel Knox, another booking means there are more memories to be made. Her paint-your-own pottery studio in Shrewsbury is celebrating 25 years of those memories.

“It’s not like your grandma’s ceramics,” Knox said. “You come in and it’s all ready to roll.”

Knox gave up hairdressing and opened Claytime’s first studio in 1999 on Worcester’s Pleasant Street. She said at the time there wasn’t a lot for families to do than the movies, roller skating or bowling.  

“There was nothing like this at the time. This was pretty much the first. This was the first studio in Worcester,” Knox said. “It was adorable, it was a house. It was all hardwood, but we outgrew it.”

Since then, Claytime has more than doubled in size, now serving as a short getaway for adults and a fun time for kids.

“It still surprises me because I’m like 'oh my gosh, it just keeps going and going and going,'” she said. 

After 25 years, Knox is most proud of how much Claytime has impacted customers outside of the studio.

“It’s a generational thing. They may not come in every day. They may not come in every month, they might come in once a year, but they come in because it brings up something,” Knox said. “They come in and say I have plates I made as a kid that I still use.”

Knox has watched customers grow up, gone to their houses for the holidays and even played matchmaker for a couple who went on to get married.  

“They were at two different tables and they started talking. He left and said 'give her my phone number' and I did. She said 'what do I do?' and I was like, 'he was nice right?' She said 'yes,'” Knox said. “They came in a year later and he proposed here.”

Whether you’re a painting pro or just searching for some down time, Knox said Claytime has something to offer everyone.

“This is just for people to have fun. They always say, 'oh well, I don’t paint well.' I say 'don’t worry, we don’t judge.'”