My fascination with ceramics began at a very young age and one of my first memories is visiting our neighbour’s pottery studio. I joined the pottery club at school as soon as I could and won a prize for creating a secret garden on a tile. During my school years, music and art were equally important to me but I ended up studying music at Manchester University and latterly a postgraduate degree at the Royal Northern College of Music. Whilst preparing for final recitals I found a local pottery class that was a much needed release from the intensity of studies and practice.

My career in music took me to Cambridge and London and I signed up to numerous ceramics classes along the way. For a number of years I took part in summer courses at Ridge Pottery in Queen Camel, Somerset, under the expert and inspiring tutelage of Douglas Phillips. Here I was also introduced to the wonders of wood-firing which definitely appealed to the pyromaniac in me!

When I relocated Hertfordshire ten years ago, I joined the Dacorum and Chiltern Potters Guild and have benefitted greatly from the numerous workshops, firings, exhibitions and demonstrations that the Guild offers on a regular basis. I few years ago I was able to set up a small garden studio at home and I haven’t looked back. Having had a change of career direction after the birth of my second daughter, I am greatly enjoying any spare time that I have at my potter’s wheel or in the garden. I am at my happiest with mud or clay on my hands!

At the moment, the ceramic ware that I make is rather dictated by the size of my kiln and shed, i.e. small! I focus on making practical items for the home, often inspired by what we need ourselves. The patterns and decoration techniques that I am drawn to are often taken from a seed of an idea planted by the natural environment that surrounds us, which we can so easily take for granted.

At present I mostly work with earthenware clay and slips and when I can, I once-fire my pieces. I am evermore conscious of the environmental impact of ceramics production, which is why I have chosen to fire at lower temperatures in an electric kiln.

Shop

I do have an Etsy shop, but the shelves are empty at the moment. Once restocked, I will update followers on my blog.

Other useful links

My fundraising story for The Listening Place – an incredible charity providing face to face support for those with suicidal thoughts.

My gallery page on the Dacorum and Chiltern Potters Guild website