Functional handmade pieces from my home to yours.

I began throwing about 6 1/2 years ago, as a desperate attempt to **get out of my comfort zone, challenge myself, and meet new people. I hesitantly signed up for a “Pottery for Beginners” class at the local Community College in Colorado, where I lived at the time. I must admit, I went in with very romantic ideas about what learning this new skill would entail—none of which were accurate. It took me 3 months and countless frustrating sessions in the studio just to learn how to consistently center clay on the wheel. In addition to one evening class a week, learning to throw required a ton of extra wheel time and many relentless hours of practice before I was able to create just ONE piece that resembled a cup and held a somewhat respectable amount of liquid.

It wasn’t long before I was spending any/all free time in the studio…weekends, evenings after teaching 5th graders, and any other small moments of time I could carve out of my busy schedule. I was a teacher by day and a budding potter by night—at the mercy of the ‘hours of operation’ upheld by the community college studio. Outside of the studio when I probably should have been planning lessons and grading papers…I was watching pottery how-to videos, studying the process for throwing different forms and shapes, researching glaze combinations and following potters on Instagram for inspiration. What had started as a lame attempt to get out of the house and expand my horizons, had suddenly become a full blown passion. From there, I continued to get time on the wheel as much as possible. I worked to develop new skills, soaked up knowledge from more experienced potters, and continued to dream of a day when my wheel time didn’t depend on someone else’s “hours of operation.”

Then, in 2020 I met the love of my life, got hitched, and moved my entire existence across the country to settle on Martha’s Vineyard—all within a 4 month window of time and mostly in the midst of a global pandemic. (**refer back to “get out of my comfort zone and challenge myself.”) Since then, my husband and I have worked towards creating not only a beautiful life together, but also a functional small batch pottery studio in our home on the island. Slowly but surely, I have managed to establish a humble and mostly tidy space in the basement of our home where I can throw, trim, glaze, and fire functional handmade ceramic pieces.

Hours of operation—anytime I want.

All this to say, I still teach 4th grade full time on the island. We also stay busy watching and guiding Rocco’s 2 young-adult children as they find their way in this world, spoiling our 2 loyal dogs, catering to our 3 moody cats, and cleaning a chicken coop for 18 noisy hens. To put it lightly, we are busy…but I will always make time for pottery.

Having a designated and accessible space in which to throw and feel inspired has given me the freedom to create a variety of handmade pieces that look nice, but also provide a purpose and a function for any home or busy modern family.

As an amateur potter, I have so much more to learn, understand, and appreciate about this craft. I have adopted the “wabi sabi” philosophy as a means of allowing myself the grace to make mistakes, mess up, and be imperfect — all while creating beautiful pieces of functional pottery full of quirky character and rustic charm. As I continue to grow my practice, my patience, and my respect for the process, it is my hope that the love and passion I have for pottery is translated into each and every functional piece that I create and share with others.