A Turtle Farm Family Update!

Greetings good people,

The only constant is change and we have certainly been going through some changes this year and I thought I’d drop in and give you an update on what’s been going on around our beloved homestead, lives, and pottery.

We have been working on expanding the pottery studio! Progress is slow, but when you’re a bootstrapping, creative arts, DIY small business, there’s a lot of things to tackle and a finite amount of time and energy. 

I have a feeling you may know what I mean! Our new kiln room (ahem, ;) shed) has been cranking out the pots after a brief windstorm induced power-pole-through-the-roof-fiasco in February. We even fired 2 kilns at once for the first time recently! That may not seem like a big deal, but we (and by we I mean Casey) have put a lot into upgrading our electricity this year for this to be possible. So, we are feeling pretty good about that. Soon our new onsite glaze lab / office & shipping / gallery space will be complete and it couldn’t be soon enough. This new space will allow us to begin trials of NEW housemade glazes. After testing, failures, and successes you can expect hot, new and exciting colors from TFP! It also allows us to move our shipping operation off of our porch where it’s been for 3 years! No big deal. We’re flexible (please read with hint of sarcasm). And the gallery space?! We plan to invite appointment only studio/gallery visitors to see where the magic happens. ANY MINUTE NOW!

As you may know, our friend from Berea College Ceramics Apprenticeship Program & Turtle Farm’s lead potter for the last 4 years, Noah Broomfield, has recently begun a masters program in ceramics at the University of North Texas in Denton. We are so thrilled for and proud of Noah as he embarks on this next phase of his ceramic journey. At Turtle Farm he made THOUSANDS of pots, developed new forms and designs, created and troubleshot glazes, built and fired kilns, demonstrated and taught, and countless other important tasks. We will miss his absolutely sensational pottery and all the silliness and fun times in the studio. Fun fact: Denton, TX is my (Laura) hometown and her family all lives there so there will be many visits to see his grad school shenanigans first hand! We cannot wait to see what new skills he will acquire and what body of work he will create while at UNT. Hurray for Noah!

I still split my time between Turtle Farm Pottery and my conservation work for the statewide nonprofit, Kentucky Waterways Alliance. I’ve been spending a lot of time in our Shasta ‘66 camper - my Appalachian space station - “saving the world”, as Casey says. Giving back to the community and environment is rewarding and challenging work. And Casey is the best - he is often volunteering on my crazy river cleanups. Rewarding and challenging are also words that I would describe running a small pottery business with your dear, darling, sweetie pie! I love (almost) every minute of it - hehe. The best parts are when we get to be in the studio together creating, of course.

And Casey? He is moving and shaking as usual. He’s leading our studio expansion efforts, he’s fixing the internet, he’s making dinner... He figured out how to shade the studio sky lights and air condition it so it’s a new feeling to be cool-ish in the studio this summer. He got lymes disease this year which has been TERRIBLE but he is doing better. Make sure to check yourself for ticks! What else? He makes pots. He moves pots. He fires pots. He lists pots. He sends pots. He sets pots. He lifts pots. He breaks pots. He knows pots. He lives pots. He loves pots. And all the while, he’s Sparkle Magic!

September begins our holiday making in earnest while simultaneously creating for The Brick because y’all know fall is a beautiful time to visit our neck of the woods. You can follow us on instagram, facebook, or check out our blog to see our behind the scenes creative process from our humble studio in the Red River Gorge of Kentucky.

Thanks for keeping it real and shopping small!