When I was a very young child we vacationed at my grandmother's house, in Nanaimo, where she had a small pottery studio in a ramshackle shed in her back yard.

Pottery became synonymous with all the love my grandmother gave me.

Years later, every August, I would take my 3 children on vacation to Powell River's Blackberry Festival where I fell in love with Blackberry pottery from Cranberry Pottery studio (sadly closed in 2014). As I was a single mom, my budget was limited so I would have to choose just a few treasures each year.

So, perhaps those vacations and my pottery joy was what inspired my daughter, when in 2021, she showed up for my 71st birthday with a 20 lb. box of Plainsman clay and all the basic tools needed to begin creating my own pottery joy.

This was right in the middle of COVID lockdown and I had no idea of how to turn that huge lump of clay into anything useful. That lovely clay sat on my porch for a whole year before I was able to take my first pottery hand-building class at Arrowsmith Potters in Parksville.  Monty Clay was born.

Where I work

Today, I am so fortunate to create my pieces in the Nanaimo Ceramic Arts Studio in Nanaimo (full circle hey)  Bronwyn, the owner of NCAS provides everything an aspiring potter might wish for. https://www.nanaimoceramicarts.com/

Get in touch if you’d like to order any of my pieces.  I also sell at occasional markets locally on Vancouver Island. I will keep you posted on markets where you can find me.

Life happens, pottery helps.