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Big Dog Pots Pottery Blog

It's a BIG world out there.....

It's a big world out there and we are so excited to be one stop along the way.

As our first highway attraction sign is now up and "running," we have been seeing LOTS of traffic from EVERYWHERE!!!

Interstate 66 carries approximately 45,000 plus vehicles per day right by our little old Marshall exit 27 and we have been making new friends from near and far.  Our west bound sign has been installed and our east bound sign at the same exit is on the way!

Just since our first sign has gone up we have had visitors from: Montana, Chicago, Ohio, Colorado, Wyoming, Oregon, Washington, California, Nevada, Florida, Rhode Island, Vermont, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kansas, South Dakota, Australia, England, France, Germany, Japan, China, and Mexico!!!!

I think we may need to put up one of those maps of the world with little red pins so that we can keep track.   We love to visit and meet new friends!   

If you are in the area, stop in and say hello we look forward to meeting you!

TEEN Classes ...

Living in rural Virginia is such a wonderful experience for families.

It is a peaceful, easy going way to raise children.  When those kids reach the teen years, it is wonderful to have alternative activities with which they can participate. Pottery is a great outlet for the busy and sometimes complex lives of our teens.  With pottery there are no grades, no exams, no recitals, no special equipment or uniforms to complicate the experience.

Pottery is a wonderful leveling activity.  No matter if you are the quarterback, the math whiz or a shy quiet student, every teen can enjoy the experience of working with clay. Each teen will walk away from their clay experience with new insight the art form, and may find a passion and talent they never knew was there.

At Big Dog Pots Pottery we will begin offering a TEEN CLASS on Friday evenings from 6:30-8:30 pm starting in September. We will go back and forth between both hand building and working with the wheel and will explore all the basics of both forms of working with clay.

Classes will be kept small so that each student can receive personalized instruction in a positive and welcoming environment.

Our first class will begin on Friday, September 5th and will run in four (4) week sessions.  Sign up will be on a first come basis.  Please contact the Studio with any questions (540) 364-2834.

Wedding Planning and Pottery - A Wonderful Combination....

When a bride and groom come into the Studio to order a custom, personalized tray as a Thank You for their parents for their wedding, they leave excited with all the possibilities our Studio can offer. Besides creating one of a kind handmade trays, we create custom pieces for Bridesmaids and Groomsmen. We also offer fabulous alternatives to a ring pillow. Our handmade ring dishes are created with custom text and a place to tie the rings onto the dish with a ribbon during the wedding ceremony. After the ceremony, the bride will have a treasured remembrance which she can use everyday to remind her of that special day.

In addition to creating one of a kind pieces, we also offer one of a kind experiences for the bridal party and friends and family who are in town for the event. We can schedule private events for bridal showers, or a grooms night out, or a session for the extended families to share a new experience and bond with a fun and wholesome activity for adults and children alike. If your group is more interested in a paint and glaze experience, we can create custom pieces for your guests to paint and glaze with personalized text and textural elements.

At Big Dog Pots Pottery we provide a range of services to help make that extraordinary day, exceptional. Contact us at (540) 364-2834 to discuss your ideas!

GREETINGS FRIENDS:

     Well if you have been following along on Facebook, you know that things are really coming together.

     It is an exciting time for sure and lots of things going on behind the scenes.  I am thrilled to announce that Ann D. Masch has come on board as my new Studio Manager.  Ann and I will be at the studio quite a bit this coming week taking inventory and getting things in place to open.  We plan to open by March 1st at the latest, and possibly as early as February 22nd.  We will keep you posted.

    As we have experienced weather delays with the WONDERFUL Virginia winter we have had, our opening date had to be pushed back a bit.  As a result our classes will begin the first week in April.  This is the class schedule as is stands now, there may be some slight changes, but I think it will ultimately be quite similar to this listing:

            POTTERY CLASSES

TUESDAY 9:30 - 11:30 am - Wheel Throwing for the Novice Potter - Adults and Teens, Ages 14 and up  $185, plus $12.50 for tool kit; and $25 for one bag of clay which includes glaze and firings.

TUESDAY 1:00- 2:30 pm- Hand-Building for the Beginning Potter  Ages 9 and up Pottery for Home School Students $ 130; and $25 for one bag of clay which includes glaze and firings.

WEDNESDAY  6:30 - 8:00 pm -Hand-Building for the Beginning Potter - Adults and Teens Ages 14 and up $130; and $25 for one bag of clay which includes glaze and firings.

FRIDAY  9:15 - 10:15 am - Mommy and Me in the Mud - Ages 3-5 (and an adult helper), $120, all materials, and firings, included. (Great class for Moms, Dads, Grandparents, or other adult care-giver to do with that special little one in your life.

FRIDAY  10:30 - 12:00 pm -Hand-Building for the Beginning Potter - Adults and Teens Ages 14 and up, $130; and $25 for one bag of clay which includes glaze and firings.

SATURDAY 9:30 - 11:30 am - Wheel Throwing for the Novice Potter - Adults and Teens Ages 14 and up, $185, plus $12.50 for tool kit; and $25 for one bag of clay which includes glaze and firings.

  

Pottery Open Studio, Available Monthly - Includes use of Studio and all equipment. $130.00 per month; tools and tool kits available for purchase; $25 for one bag of clay which includes glaze and firings.  Big Dog Pots only fires pieces which are created from our clay.  Contact the Studio if you need a specific clay manufacturer, type, color and we will do our best to obtain it for your use.

Additional classes will be coming in May!!!

SIGN UP ON LINE to be on our class mailing list.  Classes will be small so you will want to keep up on class information.

Provenance....

Websters defines "provenance" as "the place of origin or earliest known history of something." It is a wonderful concept when applied to all sorts of things, a name, a recipe, a picture, an idea....but for me it seemed to come home in a simple concept of creating a logo for my new Studio. 

New Logo For Big Dog Pots Pottery

I want my logo to elicit an immediate response from people who see it.  I want them to actually feel a warm, happy, relaxed feeling when they look at it.  For me, it made sense to share what makes me feel the same way when I look at it - or in my case - them.  I decided to include Daisy and Max in my logo, and I am just thrilled with the outcome.

It started with a photograph that I took of Max a year or so ago.  We went on a family outing to a local orchard and took the dogs with us. They LOVE being at the orchard. They love the smells, the wide open spaces, visiting with kids who have come there with their families, and of course trying to figure out what we are doing climbing up those trees!

I took this picture of Max.  He was sitting in front of me watching my husband up in a tree, handing apples down to the kids.  I absolutely LOVE this picture.  Even though it is a picture of his back, you can just SEE him smiling!  He was SO happy and excited, and even from behind you can tell.  

Max at the Orchard

Daisy

When I printed this out later and looked at it, it made me realize that Max's "expression" was universal to dogs everywhere.  It is an expression of love, an expression of anticipation, an expression of joyful waiting. All of these things I attribute not only to Max, but to the many wonderful animals who have shared their lives with me.  I guess, if I had to describe it in a few words, it would be "quintessential unconditional love and joy."

Daisy and Max

I thought what better than to share that "feeling" with everyone who comes into contact with Big Dog Pots Pottery Studio.  And so, in addition to our Max, I have also included Daisy as a part of our logo.  We added a little heart to her hindquarter because after she had her open heart surgery and her port was healing, the hair in that spot grew back in brown.  We look at that spot as her "badge of courage" and wanted to show it in our logo.  These two souls have brought tremendous joy into our lives, and we are thrilled to share their joyful antics with everyone who visits Big Dog Pots.

Finding Balance.....

Well, here we are in the home stretch of renovations on our new Studio/Gallery.  It has been a LOT of work, a lot of fun, and an interesting journey for sure. As my thoughts for the Studio are coming more and more into focus, the realization that I cannot do everything is certainly sinking in.  I do, after all, only have 2 hands!

I have read over the years in various ceramic journals about "finding balance" and over the past 7 years, I have tried to find a balance between home, life, passion, and pots.  Now "balance" is going to take on a new dimension as it relates to custom work.
My ETSY store has been quite successful, and many customers have been thrilled with my custom pieces. While it has been a fun adventure, working with customers and gaining insight into how others view pottery creation, it has also be quite time consuming and stressful.  All those wedding trays!  When my Thank You trays are given to the parents at the rehearsal night dinner, they have to be there on time and in perfect condition.  All of my brides and grooms to date have been a true joy to work with, but mother nature intervenes, or my LIFE intervenes (think 2 kids, 4 cats, 2 dogs - one with a serious cardiac condition), and hard deadlines have on occasion become stressful all day/all night events in the Studio.
I am proud to say that with almost 350 online orders, I don't think I have missed many dates, if any at all, and certainly, I have not missed a rehearsal dinner - even one that took place in Paris, France!!!

For a one person potter, working out of an unheated space with no running water, I am pretty proud of this accomplishment!!!
As I look to my new Studio and Gift Gallery, I see a different type of work, and a different type of work pattern in my future.  I will still create custom pieces, but now they will only be available through the Studio.   By offering ready to ship pieces via ETSY, I see myself actually having more time to create the pieces I would like to create, and growing in my journey as a potter.
While I realize that I will be making a shift in my work, I think it will actually be more of a return to what my life as a potter had been like before the "Custom Frenzy!"
So, in the end, I believe this decision will offer me a less stressful life, with more time to enjoy life, and enjoy creating pottery...and in the end, for me - that is what it is all about....living a peaceful life and making pots!