puns<\/a> or other quips, Bellina said. \u201cYou have such limited space to make three words really pop and you get exactly what he\u2019s going for,\u201d he said.<\/p>\nOn top of that, Bellina and Stringer, as graduate students in their early 20s, together taught undergraduate screenwriting classes, \u201cand I guess in a long and roundabout way those terminal degrees came around,\u201d Bellina said.<\/p>\n
![\"Steve](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/1758804501_164_\")
<\/p>\n
Steve Stringer, center, instructs during his Tattoo a Mug workshop.<\/p>\n
(Juliana Yamada \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n
At his September workshop, Stringer shrugged on the art teacher archetype like an old sweater. For the first five minutes, he gave a monologue, working his way through a step-by-step explanation of the \u201ctattoo\u201d process, which he said jokingly, \u201cis not a thing \u2014 I just made it up for TikTok.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe stakes are low. You can\u2019t really mess it up,\u201d he said, assuring his pupils. \u201cAnd if you forget anything, I\u2019m happy to repeat myself. I do it all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n
For the next two hours, Stringer roved the room, pausing to sharpen pencils or praise participants\u2019 designs. When Ellie Alfeld asked whether her underglaze pencil lines were too thick, he assured her they were just right.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you have to say that \u2014 that it\u2019s perfect?\u201d Alfeld\u2019s girlfriend, Sofia Leimer, asked. Stringer quickly answered, \u201cNo,\u201d so earnestly it was impossible not to believe him.<\/p>\n
Stringer\u2019s favorite spot to linger was in the front doorway, where he could watch over the indoor and outdoor crowds. When someone called for him mid-task, he told them, \u201cI\u2019ll come back.\u201d <\/p>\n
But he never hovered, workshop attendee Celine Cormier said. \u201cHe kind of just pops in when you need that support or direction,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
![\"Lucero](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/1758804502_849_\")
<\/p>\n
Lucero Garcia shows her \u201ctattooed\u201d mug that matches her arm tattoo.<\/p>\n
(Juliana Yamada \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n
Cormier has attended several of Stringer\u2019s workshops, including his first Tattoo a Mug class. She said she keeps coming back because, to her, there\u2019s nothing quite like the atmosphere Stringer creates.<\/p>\n
\u201cL.A. and the art scene, it can be a little exclusionary,\u201d Cormier said. <\/p>\n
At Backhouse, where the door is wide open and fresh flowers are on the table, \u201cyou almost feel like you\u2019re going to someone\u2019s house,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
In other words, Stringer might make his money creating and teaching ceramics. But \u201cSteve\u2019s main business is the art of bringing people together,\u201d said Josie Francis, co-founder of creative arts practice Fuzz & Fuzz and a past workshop co-host of Stringer\u2019s.<\/p>\n
![\"Steve](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/1758804502_344_\")
<\/p>\n
Steve Stringer draws several recurring characters on his ceramics, including a trio of dogs that here sit at a dinner table. <\/p>\n
(Juliana Yamada \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n
Stringer\u2019s ceramics practice also orchestrated chance meetings in his own life.<\/p>\n
Bridget Derraugh, Stringer\u2019s girlfriend of nearly two years, was casually scrolling on Hinge in spring 2024 when she stumbled across a ceramicist whose work looked familiar. Eventually, she came to realize she\u2019d used one of the guy\u2019s mugs at a friend\u2019s house a few days before.<\/p>\n
The mug was from the first market Stringer ever sold at \u2014 Derraugh\u2019s friend had been his first customer.<\/p>\n
The two messaged back and forth about the serendipity of it all, and needless to say, \u201cthe date went really well,\u201d Derraugh said, smiling shyly.<\/p>\n
When Stringer told Derraugh about his idea for Backhouse, she wasn\u2019t sure whether it was feasible, financially or otherwise.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut just knowing his personality,\u201d Derraugh said, \u201che has the creative side, but he also is a planner and very diligent and attentive to detail \u2014 and can be a perfectionist sometimes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was just kind of like, \u2018Yeah, if anyone\u2019s gonna do it, it\u2019s you,\u2019\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
![\"Celine](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/1758804503_493_\")
<\/p>\n
Celine Cormier paints a cherry on her mug, which she planned to give a friend as a birthday present. <\/p>\n
(Juliana Yamada \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n
\u201cIn some ways,\u201d Stringer said, \u201cI feel much more like I was meant to be doing this. I loved TV writing when I was doing it, but I like looking back, maybe I never fully fit in.\u201d<\/p>\n
Right now, Stringer is ramping up on wholesale deals and looking to test out a drop-in style model at Backhouse. He\u2019s not sure what\u2019s next for the place, but he\u2019s glad that unlike when he worked in the entertainment industry, he\u2019ll get to make that decision when the time comes.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor good reason, TV has structure and rules,\u201d he said. \u201cBut I get to make up the rules here.\u201d<\/p>\n