Background
She obtained a B.Tec National Diploma (Ceramics) and then joined her father"s new business, LJB Ceramics, at the Old Ellgreave Pottery, Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, which produced Toby Jugs and other decorated pottery, where she initially worked as a painter.
Education
After school, Bailey attended Stoke-on-Trent College.
Career
Lorna Bailey was brought up in the Wolstanton area of Newcastle-under-Lyme, England, close to the Potteries area of Stoke-on-Trent. At the same time, Bailey began designing a series of cottage and trees and abstract patterns based on the pottery of Clarice Cliff. These were produced by the Old Ellgreave Pottery in underglaze colours.
In December 1995, when Bailey was 17, her House and Path and Sunburst patterns were put into full production.
They were then sold primarily to trade buyers. In addition to being marked with a factory stamp, Bailey signed almost all of her pieces.
In 1998, Collect it! magazine, featured her Astro Rocket Sugar Sifter on the cover which the magazine had commissioned. This was produced in a limited edition of 250 available for purchase only through the magazine.
The Lorna Bailey Collectors Club was formed in September 1998.
Bailey was named as Midlands Business Woman of the Year for 1998. In March 2002, Bailey married Tim Proctor. This event was marked by the issue of a small ceramic wedding cake which was sent out as a gift to all Collectors Club members.
On July 16, 2002, the couple attended a Garden Party at Buckingham Palace.
In February 2003, LJB Ceramics changed its name to Lorna Bailey Artware. The following month, the factory moved into new premises at Top Bridge Works, Burslem.
In October 2004, it moved again to its site at The Old Post Office, Burslem. In December 2005, Bailey issued the first of a series based on People’s and Rock Legends of the Twentieth Century with a ceramic figure of John Lennon dressed in the outfit pictured in the album Sergeant
Pepper"s Lonely Hearts Club Band.
These were produced in collaboration with The Beatles Story Museum in Liverpool. In January 2008, Bailey announced her decision to retire from the pottery industry to concentrate on her family life and in May 2008 Lorna Bailey Artware went into voluntary liquidation, with the loss of seven jobs.
Membership
Figures of the other Beatles later followed, together with other wares depicting members of the group.