FINDING JOY IN THE CLAY: A Conversation with Bookworm Pottery Owner Ashley Merklinger

In an age where our lives are increasingly lived through screens, Bookworm Pottery offers something refreshingly simple: the chance to slow down, get your hands dirty, and create something meaningful. Tucked inside Wilmington's vibrant Cargo District, the cozy studio has become much more than a place to learn pottery—it has grown into a welcoming community where creativity, connection, and self-expression flourish. For owner Ashley Merklinger, pottery isn't just an art form; it's a lifeline.

Photographs By Lightbloom Photography

What began as a college passion project eventually helped her navigate one of the most difficult periods of her life, inspiring her to build a space where others could discover the same sense of peace, purpose, and belonging through clay. Today, Bookworm Pottery invites beginners and experienced makers alike to unplug from the demands of everyday life, embrace the beauty of imperfection, and rediscover the joy of creating something with their own hands. We spoke to Ashley about the journey behind Bookworm Pottery, the therapeutic power of working with clay, and why the studio has become one of the Cargo District's most beloved creative spaces.

Can you share the story behind Bookworm Pottery and what inspired you to create a space where people can come together, slow down, and express themselves through pottery?

"Bookworm Pottery" was informally started during my time at UNCW. My peers and I decided to create Instagram accounts to document our pottery journeys as we learned and to stay connected after we graduated. Since I was an English major and an avid book lover, "Bookworm" just made sense. I graduated at the end of 2019 after spending two years learning about clay. I took a job at a bank, which was antithetical to everything I wanted out of life, but it felt like something I needed to do out of necessity. Then the pandemic hit, and I became one of the many people who lost their jobs and struggled with their mental health. After months of stumbling through the darkness, I remembered how much joy pottery had brought me during a stressful time in college, so I picked it back up again. I found a gently used wheel on Facebook Marketplace, drove hours to pick it up, and started making pottery out of the closet on my tiny apartment balcony. My sister-in-law had a kiln an hour away, so I made the drive back and forth just so I could keep creating.

Making pottery brought me such a sense of peace and helped pull me out of a dark place, and I knew I wanted to share that joy with others. After the isolation of the pandemic, I also deeply wanted to reconnect with and give back to my community in a meaningful way. In 2021, I found my studio in the DesignWorx building in The Cargo District. It was small and needed a lot of work—we didn't even have things like air conditioning or doors when we first opened—but with a lot of elbow grease, countless late nights, and plenty of passion, it's grown into what it is today. I wanted to create a cozy space where people could get a little messy, find their community, and begin their clay journey without judgment. I'd say we've been able to achieve that.

For someone walking into Bookworm Pottery for the first time, what can they expect from the experience—from choosing a piece and getting creative to seeing their finished creation come to life?

We offer a wide variety of short-form sculpting and wheel-throwing classes at our Cargo District studio to help people learn the ins and outs of creating ceramic forms from scratch. Most classes are two hours or less to keep them affordable and the time commitment manageable. As much as we'd love everyone to disconnect from the hustle and bustle and create with us all day, we know life has its demands.

Every session starts with a willingness to be creatively vulnerable. Our passionate, patient instructors guide participants through every stage of taking a simple ball of clay and transforming it into a functional work of art they can enjoy every day.

Working with stoneware clay can be challenging to learn, but if you let yourself embrace the process, it can also be incredibly fun and rewarding.

There's something wonderfully nostalgic and therapeutic about making something with your hands. What do you think draws people to pottery, particularly in a world where so much of our time is spent on screens?

I truly believe that everyone is creative deep down. Pottery is the perfect blend of functionality and art. Everyone uses cups, bowls, plates, and other ceramics in their daily lives, and learning to work with clay allows people to put their own creative spin on objects they're already familiar with. Modern life can also be incredibly overstimulating. There are constant emails, texts, bills, chores, and endless distractions competing for our attention. Working with clay is inherently messy and requires focus, allowing artists to completely unplug and reconnect with themselves for a few hours. That's such a rare gift these days, and I think there's a part of everyone that craves it. Many of the people we meet have also had some kind of pottery experience as children, whether they were sculpting little figures in art class or painting pottery with their grandparents. Having the opportunity to work with clay as an adult allows people to nurture their inner child and revisit a time when life felt a little safer, a little calmer, and a little more fun.

The Cargo District has become one of Wilmington's most distinctive hubs for independent businesses, makers, and creatives. What does being part of this community mean to you, and how does its creative energy complement the Bookworm Pottery experience?

The Cargo District gave me the opportunity to bring my studio to life. It's far from perfect, and it's evolved a lot over the years, but I'll always be grateful for what being part of this community has allowed me to build and for all the incredible people I've had the privilege of connecting with along the way. The people in the District are naturally collaborative, and it's inspiring to work alongside others who are equally passionate about bringing their dreams to life.

Your "Clay Creates Community" initiative has raised more than $10,000 for local nonprofits through your pottery workshops. What inspired you to turn clay into a way of giving back?

From the beginning, I wanted Bookworm Pottery to be about more than just making ceramics—I wanted it to be a place where people could connect, create, and make a positive impact. That's how our Clay Creates Community initiative was born. Every month, we donate a portion of the proceeds from our beginner-friendly hand-building workshops to a local nonprofit, giving our customers the opportunity to support important causes simply by spending time creating together. Since 2021, we've raised more than $10,000 for organizations like All4Cats Rescue, WARM NC, Paws Place Dog Rescue, Cape Fear Literacy Council, and the Alliance of Cape Fear Trees, along with helping community members in need. It's incredibly rewarding to see people come together, have fun, learn something new, and know that their experience is making a real difference. Together, we're proving that creativity really can strengthen a community.

Of all the pieces created and memories made at Bookworm Pottery, what do you hope people take away from the experience—and what makes creating something by hand so much more meaningful than simply buying something off a shelf?

My biggest hope is that people leave believing they're worth investing in. Everyone deserves happiness, a creative outlet that speaks to their soul, and a place where they can relax and feel like they belong. While we sincerely hope that place is with us, I'm simply thrilled whenever someone falls in love with clay. There's something magical about using pottery that you've carefully and lovingly crafted with your own hands. Even our earliest, wonkiest pieces become treasured reminders of the courage it took to try something new and the love we showed ourselves by making time to create.