How do you want to remember a loved one? For me personally, I would like to remember their spirit, the love we shared, and memories that make me smile. I don’t necessarily need to have my loved one’s ashes… but I do need something tangible, that I can see and touch. Something that reminds me that their spirit is always with me.

My pottery studio changes here in summer. One large work table at the south facing window is designated to making biodegradable urns. It's quite a different process from my regular pottery making process. The table is cluttered with large sheets of colorful papers that I have painted. These papers get cut into various shapes and soon become the patterns on my biodegradable urns. 

Echoing Nature... leaves, greens, repetition.

I walk in the New England woods daily with my two dogs. This time of year I see every shade of green imaginable. The American Beech tree is plentiful in these woods... their simple, elliptical leaf repeated in rows along the thin outstretched branches. Each leaf with a diagonal, downward nod to the earth. This succinct simplicity is something I try to capture in the Green Leaves Urn.

I have never met a person that doesn't like to see a piece of pottery being made at the potters wheel. It's magical watching a lump of clay transform into a beautiful form in a short period of time. To see the clay spin and rise, taking shape. To watch the potters fingers dance delicately upon the soft clay, knowing where to put pressure and when to ease up. It all seems to flow with ease.

As a potter I use quite a bit of electricity to fire my kilns, and that bothers me.  I've always wished I could fire my kilns from the power of the sun using photovoltaics... but thought it was impossible since a kiln fires for about 15 hours using a great deal of electricity during that time period.

Each urn takes about 40 minutes to carve the leaves... the perfect time to listen to podcasts or to sit outside on a warm sunny porch. (The latter isn’t happening anytime soon.) Over the weekend I carved three urns while watching the opening ceremonies of the Olympics. A big smile came to my face when I saw the huge moon jar holding the Olympic flame! 

Sitting with the sun deliciously at my back all day while throwing large urns, I caught a glimpse of sunlight on my red rubber rib tool. 
Sometimes magic happens.
Is it me, or some creative force beyond my realm of comprehension. It's like the red rib touched the pot like a wand... and poof... the pot became.

I didn't get my hands in clay until noon today. I was busy with paper work then packing and shipping urns from website orders. Once I got into the studio I made lids for the small size urns that I made yesterday. Tomorrow I will trim these lids and make sure they fit proportionately to the body of the urns.