By Kim Tran
Since the pandemic, over 3,000 nightlife venues across London have shut down. Once-bustling clubs that defined the city’s energy are now replaced with quieter, more creative spaces; from pottery studios and crochet circles to boozy painting classes.
In the wake of this cultural shift, London has been crowned the craftiest city in the UK, signalling an unexpected turn in how young people choose to spend their nights out.
Post-COVID nightlife is no longer just about music, crowd, and chaos – it’s about connection. The new wave of twenty-somethings are trading pulsating dance floors for paint-splattered aprons. Workshops like Sip & Paint and After Hours Pottery Painting offer sessions that blend socialising, mindfulness, and creativity, all with a drink in hand.
It’s nightlife with a twist: one where participants leave not with sore feet and a hangover, but with a handmade bowl or canvas to show for it.
It seems like the public are choosing these “grandma hobbies” over traditional nights out. At least that’s what commercial marketer Michelle Lin, 26, did, who chose to celebrate her birthday this year with pottery painting instead of bar hopping.
BYOB Pottery Painting at Social Pottery Club in Kentish Town, London. Credit: Kim Tran
“I wanted to get together with all of my friends and do something creative rather than just get drunk since there’s only so much you can do with drinking. It was also my own personal goal to do more activities this year and to try new things,” she said
“It feels more personal – you get to talk with friends, make something together, and actually remember the night,” she added.
She expands on why people her age say clubbing is becoming less appealing. “People in their mid 20s have done all the partying phase already and are looking for ways to have fun in a different way that also fits around their daily schedule. I think some people become more health conscious too so don’t want to drink as much so looking for ways to enjoy and connect without alcohol.”
Painting, pottery and more
Cindy Qian, 25, is the owner of Meiro Ceramics; a ceramics studio near Caledonian Road that hosts creative workshops that includes pottery throwing, matcha bowl making and BYOB pottery painting.
Cindy Qian, selling and displaying her pottery pieces by her studio. Credit: Kim Tran
Qian grew up in Jingdezhen, a city in China that is known as the “Porcelain Capital” and studied fine art at University of Arts London; ceramics were always part of her practice and background. She found that it would be hard surviving off mixed media installations and decided to open her own studio.
“I felt that ceramics were the only medium that truly spoke to me and I really enjoyed making them,” she explained.
Qian is also another Gen Z who prefers crafts over clubbing: “During university, everyone just likes to drink but after graduating I see it as a nice memory but you don’t really get anything out of it.”
The types of ceramics you can make and paint at Meiro Ceramics. Credit: Kim Tran
She has noticed a shift in more young people doing creative crafts and said: “Not everybody loves partying so they would choose this kind of activity where it’s more intimate and quiet, you can actually get to talk to your friends.
“Most of the customers are couples, like young professionals around their 30s, because our workshop isn’t cheap. However, we try to make it as affordable as possible,” she added.
She does believe London’s nightlife is slightly boring but is still changing. “I think London lacks these activities and when people see the pottery making they get excited.”
Meiro Ceramics sets itself apart by offering more than your average pottery class. Their matcha bowl-making workshops invite guests to handcraft their own personalised bowl, along with a matcha tasting where customers can discover the art of preparing matcha and beginning their own ritual at home.
A handmade bowl a customer made at Meiro Ceramics. Credit: Cindy Qian
Qian saw the incoming hype around matcha, “We started the matcha bowl workshop last year in April but at first we did Chinese tea. But the palette is really delicate and not everyone will like it. China also produces really good matcha, then we saw signs that it was going to be viral.
“Because if you drink matcha and get into it, then you need your own matcha bowl,” she added,
So next time you’re planning to “party it up”, maybe swap the bar queue for a brush and a bowl. A night at a ceramics studio like Meiro might just leave you with more than a sore head – a piece of art, a memory and maybe a new ritual to take home.
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