Our favorite photos from 2017.
Read Morekiln opening 2016
A few details about our kiln opening event.
Read More
two potters in print
You can read our recent piece in Edible Green Mountains winter issue here.
new work at the Fair
We're really looking forward to bringing our brand-new wood-fired work to "the Fair", our biggest show of the year. Join us at Mt. Sunapee Resort in Newbury, NH, August 1st - 9th, for the 82nd Annual League of NH Craftsmen's Fair. It's a fantastic - and big! - show, so look for Two Potters in the front of Tent #6. The show runs 10 am to 5pm daily, plus we're open until 8pm on Thursday, August 6th.
Here's a little preview . . .
We'll be posting new pieces to our Etsy shop in mid-August. Stay tuned!
oh, hey, look at that
We were so pleased to return home from a great show to find this piece in the local paper. Thanks to James and Aimee and the folks at the Valley News for the time spent around the kiln this summer!
Read the article here.
Quick note: We hope to have some more updates on our last firing and new work here soon! New pots will be posted to the online shop in mid-August . . . in the meantime, as always, feel free to contact us if you're looking for something you don't see online. Thanks!
these things we make
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We were so happy with our last wood-firing. I'm not sure we've yet shared the results, in photo form, in this space. Here are some of our favorites . . .
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~Becca
two potters photo tour
It was a really special summer for us. Both for our young family, and for our business. (We thank you wholeheartedly for that!) But honestly, where did it go?! Life seems to have only sped up as we do the juggling act of work-at-home + stay-at-home potting + parenting - I often think about that expression "the days are long, but the years are short." So true. Our baby girl is nearly one . . . but I digress! Here are some of our favorite photos from our summer . . .
In the studio . . .
. . . at shows and markets . . .
. . . and always with the camera and our pottery . . .
. . . and on the home front . . .
A memorable one, to be sure . . . <3
We'll be OPEN next weekend for the Vermont Open Studio Tour! There are over 100 studio open around this beautiful state - here is a link to the state wide map, and here is a link to a map of our local region (Bethel/Randolph), including some of our favorite places to grab a bite. Hope to see you. Saturday and Sunday October 4th + 5th, 2014, 10am to 5pm. (current events listed here)
~Becca
our etsy shop :: preview
Back in June, we opened our Etsy shop, TwoPotters.
Birds, bikes, and flowers . . . having fun with the layered, washed look of this white slip. (It also happens to have an incredibly lovely feeling in your hand!)
And the last of the garden veggie pots for summer (and maybe for a while - if you've admired this style, snap 'em up, folks!).
Again, here's our Etsy shop. (You can follow or 'favorite' us there for future updates, or sign up for our newsletter here.)
Thanks!
~Becca
showing our best
This week, we begin setting up for our biggest, best, and longest show of the year, the annual League of New Hampshire Craftsmen's Fair held each August at Mount Sunapee in Newbury, NH. The show runs August 2nd-10th. We'll be there every day with our favorite wood-fired pieces. Here's a little sneak peak the pottery we'll have with us . . .
See you at the Fair!
(Or perhaps at our next show . . . the Norwich VT Farmers Market on August 16th.)
~Becca and Nathan
visiting our studio
{This post features photos from one of our past Open Studio events - join us for the next one listed here}
Vermont Open Studio Weekend Two Potters
We had a wonderful weekend for the Vermont Open Studio Tour. Thank you to all who turned out to see our latest firing and enjoy some great live music (thank you Matt, Adam, and Carrie!) under the tractor shed. It felt great to have family and friends and babies soaking up the bright sun and brilliant green colors of spring.
Out at the kiln, there was much to celebrate. Our firing wrapped up last week, and had been cooling until the day before the event. Happily, it *appears* to be our BEST firing to date. (And I say 'appears' because we haven't finished unloading its vast chambers!) It was really fun to be able to show folks the inside of the kiln with freshly fired pottery still inside.
wood kiln at Two Potters Bethel Vermont
the soda chamber at two potters
unloading the wood kiln at two potters
butter keepers Two Potters
bird mugs
wood fired pottery
bowls by Nathan Webb of Two Potters
canisters, fermenting crocks Two Potters
{You can visit us at our next Open Studio event by checking the dates here.}
join us
save the date : holiday open studio
new pieces in our shop!
Everything is moving a little slower around here these days (OK, maybe it's just ME that's moving slower!), but I've finally gotten a nice selection of new wood-fired pottery photographed and posted for sale in our online shop. Here are some photo highlights of what's available (each photo is a direct link to the piece in our shop) . . .
This was a new vase shape this year, styled after the vintage french flower buckets I love so much.
Our new mason jar shapes were a big hit at shows - we made a bunch of sizes and styles, looking like small jelly jars (as in the ones with green glaze) or pint or quart canning jars. While they don't take a screw lid (now that would be a feat of engineering reserved for slip-casting!), they are fun to drink wine or lemonade out of, use as vases, or to hold pencils or some such thing. The shape is so classic and pleasing, I think.
Nathan made this gorgeous pitcher . . . it's one of the best examples of a natural ash glaze, topped only by the piece below . . . designed as a tall handle-less cup for tea, with a nice saucer to boot. This piece is also glazed completely with wood ash in a multi-day firing. The range of colors and textures takes the cake!
My pebble or stones designs have evolved over the years. I love pooling glaze - in this case blue celadon - around the stones, each individually formed of the same clay as the plate itself - and inset in the center and the rim. This plate is otherwise glazed and colored only with ash and flame.
These are what I call my 'flower bowl' design. The narrow vase in the middle of the bowl holds a few flowers nicely, and the little cut-out at the base provides water to the stems. They make a great centerpiece or window sill display. Beyond being great for herbs or flowers in the spring, summer, and fall, we use ours at the holidays for balsam greens and holly berries.
Mugs, mugs galore! There are bunch of new coffee and tea mugs in our shop, as well as some bigger ones that we tend to call 'brew fest' mugs. The orange one below and this one were thrown by Nathan and I did the handles, the slip and the glaze. :) We like mixing it up like that sometimes. I had fun working on a different shape, and even better, we both really liked the final result.
There's also a couple of nice utensil crocks just listed - including this one (above) in a bold orange color, and another one that's sort of peachy with just ash on the outside.
Last but not least, there's a nice butter keeper with a matte pumpkin color outside and deep red glaze inside. If you haven't used one of these, you *might* become a convert. :) You can keep butter fresh out on the counter! Butter gets packed into the 'cup' part of the lid, and water goes in the crock below it. It makes a seal, but keeps the butter fresh and the best part - super soft and spreadable. It's a joy to butter your morning toast! (Every butter keeper now comes with a 'how-to-use-me' card including some little tips we've learned over the years.)
There's quite a bit more to see in the shop, so have a look if you have a minute.
As things sell, we always try to replace them, but please feel free to email us to ask about anything in particular. We almost always have other pieces in the showroom here at the studio, and are happy to send photos.
If pieces sell out entirely (which often happens with things like flower bowls and butter keepers and sometimes mugs), we can put your name on our 'wish list' and we'll hold one from the next firing for you!
Thanks so much for supporting folks like us making handmade craft!
~Becca
after the fair(s) :: thank you
We had a truly wonderful summer of shows, and we thank those of you who came out to see us - and those of you who shouted your support from the sidelines of these virtual spaces, too. :)
Our biggest show of the year, Sunapee, was a huge success. It was fun and exciting to see and hear the responses to our new work, including our fermenting crocks, mason jars, and our new chalkboard glaze prototypes.
(By the by, we're now taking orders and requests for the next firing - we're thinking more of these plus chalkboard glaze on put-away pots and canisters!)
There were plenty of new twists on previous designs, too, and it's very fun to see what folks respond when we get the pots out of the studio and 'under the lights.'
It's hard to believe, but the once full kiln shed shelves are nearly empty now! There were 1018 pieces in that kiln (!) . . . so nice to think of all the kitchens and homes that made space for our new pottery . . .
There are, however, some really nice pieces still here in our home studio shop. We hope you'll give a call or an email if you'd like to visit. We've also listed a great selection of new work in our online shop. Have a look.
Again, many thanks for a great summer!
~Nathan and Becca
making it nice
Every once in a while, I'm reminded to actually enjoy the pieces we've made for a few moments before they disappear into the hands and homes of others. (It happens so quickly, the unloading of the kiln to the goodbyes!) One of my favorite ways to spend some time with what we've made is to 'make it nice' in the kitchen of our farmhouse, and have a little photo shoot. Here are some shots of pieces that were included in our summer firing, as they were meant to be seen and used . . .
{dinner plate, bread plate and bowl in green celadon for a wedding registry}
{unglazed wood-fired plates and tumblers, soup bowl and flower bowl in green celadon for a dinnerware order}
{Becca's stones design in her flower bowl}
{unglazed wood-fired bowl, basket, and mason jar - with new chalkboard glaze}
{vintage flower bucket with garlic scapes}
{unglazed wood-fired pitcher and tumbler set ; mason jars and cups}
We have some of this new work available in our shop, and we'll be adding more pieces in the coming weeks!
~Becca
third firing : the results
Just a quick note here to say that our third firing was a success! Of course, there are always hard lessons learned in wood-firing (more on that later) but overall, we were very pleased with the pottery. Here are a few snapshots from the unloading.
{when you're ninety years young, you deserve the first peek at the kiln. :) Becca's grandmother approves . . .}
Find us + our new pots in Yarmouth, Maine this weekend for Clam Festival Craft Show!
And we'll have new work on our website a little later in the summer . . . stay tuned.
coming up for air : third firing done!
The last few weeks here have been very full indeed. While the kiln is slowly cooling, we finally have some time to tell you about it! Since moving in to our new studio in early May, we've had about eight weeks to fill the two large chambers (about 350 cubic feet) that make up our wood-fired kiln. Thankfully, the work in our new space flowed beautifully, and the storage racks we built there and in the kiln shed enabled us to throw as fast as we could keep up with the drying pots.
Scenes from Becca's studio . . . peony-scented pottery making. :) Lots of mugs and cups were in the works here . . .
mugs in process
Becca's baskets
And bowl/baskets and plates galore!
Over on Nathan's side of the studio . . .
There is sometimes (okay, rarely, but it's fun) an audience above to watch things get made from above. (Eventually, the showroom of finished work will be upstairs, so if you're shopping for pots, you might see them being made below!)
The glazes get stirred and the raw pottery lined or dipped into glaze.
Almost all of our pottery gets glazed without being fired first - we skip the bisque firing - so it's raw or 'green.' Although this took some getting used to, this simplifies the process for us in many ways, and the piece is completed in one breath, so to speak. We do, however, have to fire the kiln much more slowly as a result, ensuring that we don't 'shock' and crack the pots.
Once glazed, the pieces dry on the racks . . . and then get carried out to the kiln shed, board by board. (When it's not raining - which has been rare these days!)
We closed in the west wall of the kiln shed last fall to accommodate nearly 100 boards of pottery and keep it dry and easily accessible for loading the kiln. This was our first time using this system, and it worked out really well. In fact, as it turns out, a full kiln load is MORE than a full wall's worth - 100 ware boards of pottery were set and ready to go.
After about two months of studio work, we had around 900 pieces. Included in this firing were also pieces from potter friends and neighbors - put some pots in, take a stoking shift!
From the kiln shed, we can see the new studio. We still can't quite believe that we built this between firings . . . it sure is nice to look out at our accomplishment.
The view in the other direction is also great . . . pottery headed into the first chamber! We begin by stacking the front, closest to the firebox where the wood burns. This area will get the most natural fly ash and bear the brunt of the heat. It's almost seven feet tall here, so a lot of pottery goes into this area.
A little farther back, in the middle of the big chamber, we loaded a lot of glazed pieces (there's not as much natural ash to do the glazing here), including Nathan's bowls which are designed to be stacked rim to rim to maximize height. The little wads of clay between them - and on the bottom of every piece in the kiln, are to prevent the pieces from fusing together or to the shelf they sit on.
Lego knew the best place to stay cool was inside the "cave" of the kiln on the cool bricks (cool for now, anyway!) . . . but pretty soon, there wasn't a whole lot of room left for him. And it does get a little dicey when he throws his 90 pounds around the fragile pots. :)
The loading took us about four days of very long hours. We often worked well into the evening with lights to keep us going . . .
Nathan got the very last pieces in with some crazy yoga moves . . . it's a really full load!
As for how things were looking elsewhere in the shed, we had prepped a lot of wood. We hoped it would be more than we needed, and it was. We had a good mix of hard and soft woods - the hardwood being small log lengths we hauled out of our woods, left over from a recent logging project. The softwoods, mostly in the form of slab offcuts, come to us from a neighbor and a local mill in the next valley over. We cut them into four foot lengths, and stack them under the shed. (This was our first firing with wood under the shed - boy were we glad! It's been SO rainy here . . .)
Once we had finished loading all the pottery in, we bricked up the doors- with their handy numbers as place markers - and made fire!
Minutes after starting the firing, we were treated to this in the field near the kiln, which we took as a good omen . . .
The firing proceeded smoothly, and we stoked wood into the front of the kiln 'round the clock for the next four days. We were grateful to have lots of friends take shifts this time - Nathan still did about twelve hours a day, while Becca did six on the kiln plus a 'second shift' in the kitchen feeding hungry stokers!
By the fourth day, we were ready to begin side stoking - where the wood goes in between the pots in the back of the first chamber and the soda/second chamber. This brings up the temperature more evenly overall and provides a little more ash on the pottery farther from the main firebox.
As we near the end (gauged for us by the melt of cones and the pyrometer reading), we begin to pull small rings of clay from the view ports. Once cooled in water, they give us an idea of whether the surface of the clay is smooth and glassy. If the rings are rough, we need to keep raising the temperature. Fortunately, they were lovely and we finished stoking just before the 96 hour mark.
Matt and Nathan 'mudded' the air ports in the front. This prevents cold air from leaking into the kiln while it cools slowly over a week's time. Yes, we wait a whole week - it's hard, but we don't want to crack the pieces by opening it when it's too hot! When you're waiting on about 1000 pieces, it's worth the wait. :)
We hadn't been finished for long - maybe an hour or so - when we were treated to another rainbow, this time with an end in each of our fields. A magical way to culminate months of work . . .
We'll be back next week with photos of the new pottery! You can see our pieces at one of our upcoming shows. We'll also have new things in our shop a little later in the summer.
~Becca
pottery in progress
We're pretty excited about what's happening in our new studio these days. Not only is it simply a gorgeous place to be, but it's been quite a while since we had some regular creative time with clay, and we had both forgotten how HAPPY it makes us . . .
Our new studio got its first delivery of clay a couple of weeks back from Vermont Ceramic Supply. We use primarily cone 10 bMix from Laguna, but we custom order a ton (yes, 2000 lbs) to have a lower pentrometer reading. That just means the clay has a higher water content which makes it softer . . . it's easier on our hands when we're throwing a lot.
Lego is loving the new building, too . . . he spends his days 'guarding' both us and the chickens . . . half in, half out.
Becca's been working on filling some orders, including a wedding registry and a dinnerware order, so there are lots of plates and bowls in the works.
Also making an appearance are collaborative batter bowls, tumblers, quite a few pieces with Becca's signature pebble designs, and some new twists on past designs, too . . .
And a happy potter with some very large fermenting crocks by special request . . . can't wait to see how these all turn out!
Our firing is scheduled for early July, so we're still going strong in order to fill all 350+ cubic feet. It's nothing if not satisfying work . . .
~Nathan and Becca
upcoming . . . this summer's events
We've got some great events coming up in the next three months! Hope you can join us at one of them.
We'll have a table of our pottery at the 3rd Annual BALE fest in South Royalton, VT, on Thursday June 13th, from 3pm to 7pm (although the festival runs 'till 9). It's a celebration of the growing strength of our local economy, including a farmers' market, educational workshops, live music, all kinds of food, stuff for kids, even a place to get your bicycle tuned up! more info
We're also open at our home studio on *some* Fridays and Saturdays this month and next. We'd love to show you, your friends, and family, around our new studio, showroom, and wood-kiln. Find us open on the following Fridays, 2-6pm : June 14 & 21, July 12; and the following Saturdays, 12-4pm : June 15 & 22, July 13. Stay tuned for updates on late summer + fall hours, and please call ahead if you're coming from a distance!
We're returning to the Lebanon (NH) Farmers' Market! It's a wonderful, family-oriented market on the Town Green with live music, and local food galore. You can almost always find tasty food for dinner, and enjoy the open-air concerts to follow at 7:30 in July and August. more concert info The market runs Thursdays 4-7pm, from now until Sept 26th, but we'll be there on June 20, 27; July 11, 25; August 15, 22, 29 (Please call us to confirm that we'll be there if you're coming from a distance!) more market info
And we wouldn't want to miss the Yarmouth Clam Festival Craft Show! Look for our booth:
Becca is celebrating 10 years (!) showing at this juried event, which takes place on the lawn of the North Yarmouth Academy, in Yarmouth, Maine. The show runs July 19th- 21nd, from 10am to 9pm (Fri & Sat), 10am to 5pm (Sun). more info
And last, but definitely not least, is the 80th Annual League of New Hampshire Craftsmen's Fair, referred to by some as "Sunapee." It takes place at Mount Sunapee Resort in Newbury, NH (near New London/Dartmouth-Sunapee Region), from August 3- 11th this year. It's the oldest craft fair in the country, running for nine whole days, with literally hundreds of handmade exhibitors, performances, and demonstrations. The fair is open from 10am to 5pm daily, and open until 7pm on Friday the 9th! We'll be in the same spot as the past few years - the very front of Tent #6, Booth 628.
If our July firing goes well, we'll have lots of brand-new wood-fired pottery at the Clam Festival and Sunapee Fair . . .
Hope you can join us!
Questions? Need directions? Want to schedule another time to see our work? Reach us at (802) 234-1320, or nathanandbecca@gmail.com.
at work in our new studio
We are at work in our new studio: making pottery, being potters. Our wood kiln is just a short walk across the yard.
It sounds so simple. And it is, beautifully simple- at last.
Yet it's taken us four years to get to this point. Four years of hard physical labor, four years of juggling and planning and moving and sweating and spending and keeping 'the dream' alive through it all.
You could say it's been a lifetime in the making . . . Nathan bought our homestead nearly fifteen years ago, with the idea of setting up a studio in the old dairy barn. For better or worse, that barn collapsed.
Nathan finally has a studio of his own. He has worked for half a dozen potteries, and still teaches at a variety of educational institutions. It's been a long time coming to have a place where he could create his own layout, set out all of his tools and not have to pick them up and carry them away at the end of the day. With all of the dust-creating potential of working with clay, he has placed a floor drain in the center of the space and another in the glaze lab (funny things to be excited about, but hey . . .) and his own damp room for storing the pottery he's working on. No more constant monitoring of works in progress with a myriad of sheets of dry-cleaning plastic. These things make him very, very happy.
While I have known the joy of a studio of my own, I have never built one from scratch. Never have I started with a clean slate, with intention, or designed a space that works well for me and what I do as my full-time job.
It's clean and new and bright and I get to share it with the ones I love - man and canine. Our days are flooded in natural light and surrounded by earthly beauty.
The building is still far from finished; we will complete it as we're able. For now, we're happy bringing buckets of water from the house, and going without light fixtures. (The long daylight hours and ambient light from windows above mean we don't even need them.) We built a few adjustable pottery storage racks to get us started, but are still looking forward to figuring out more of the layout as we get a feel for the space.
We're still researching options for heating the radiant floor beneath us come chilly fall weather. The upstairs is still sub-floor and eventually we'll build some walls to separate future gallery, office, and storage. (For now, though, it's a great bunk room for visiting friends and kiln stokers.)
Despite the many things still to do - and there will always be more to do- we are happy as clams in our hard-won new work space.
We're working diligently towards a firing in early July, all the while tackling slab wood cutting and stacking, as well as a few kiln details and readying kiln shelves.
Now that the building is 'done', it's time to get to work!
~Becca