I'm a working mom to a feisty toddler with #2 on the way. When I'm not at work or at the studio, I'm spending time with my husband, our three year old and our two cats and two dogs. 

I took pottery classes in high school and ever since then have always been drawn to various artistic hobbies over the years that allow me to flex my creativity. I started taking pottery lessons again at Potter's place in 2022 and found that it is a great creative outlet for the minimal free time I have available.

At this point in my pottery journey, I'm mostly inspired by other potters - both at the studio and online through social media. I see what is possible by so many amazingly talented artists and it makes me want to try new techniques and new forms to see if I can create something equally as detailed or beautiful.

I go back and forth between throwing on the wheel and hand building. I find hand building more forgiving than throwing on the wheel but I prefer the level of precision and symmetry that you can get with a piece on the wheel. 

I always find surface decoration to be the most rewarding part of creating a piece. I'm not usually one to just glaze a piece and be done. I want it to be carved or have a sgraffito design. I sometimes paint floral patterns or other nature-inspired scenes on my pieces with underglaze. I feel that the surface decoration is what makes a piece beautiful and unique.

I think the most useful thing pottery has taught me is to accept imperfection. I have a high stress job where there is no room for mistakes. Pottery allows me the freedom in my downtime to just experiment without placing any expectations on myself. I love that it's a process of trial and error. It doesn't always work out perfectly and that's ok because the process of attempting to create something beautiful is so rewarding, even if it doesn't always work out as expected.

my greatest challenge was also learning how to accept when things don't work out perfectly. I generally am a bit of a perfectionist and the creation process forces you to learn how to be more laid back about your pieces and your process. There are plenty of pieces I've spent hours creating and decorating, only to throw them away when they break or don't come out of the kiln as expected. I'm much more fulfilled by the process now than I am by the finished product.

I'm part of a romance bookclub that meets once a month. As part of this fascination, I have an addiction to audiobooks and listened to 166 books last year. I always have an audiobook playing while I'm at the pottery studio, doing laundry, cleaning the house, driving to work, etc.  

I think I am most proud of this teapot that I made in one of my earlier classes with Gay Calo. It was a goal of mine to make a teapot and took probably around 8-10 weeks to finish. I had to remake the lid after the first one cracked. The entire process was incredibly difficult and frustrating but I learned so much through the process of making it. It's the only teapot I've ever made and I can't say I'll be attempting another one anytime soon!