While visiting my family over Christmas, mom and I had a chance to get away for some girl time. My sis-in-law wanted to take in some “after Christmas sales” with her mom and we were invited to join them but mom and I were not really interested in doing that kind of shopping. So we went to visit some of the local area pottery places.

My heart nearly skipped a beat when my eyes feasted on this pottery showroom!

The door commanded a picture

The pottery inside didn’t disappoint.

And the ambiance was so nice warm and cozy.

These appear to be 10th year anniversary plates she creates. I love this idea!

This next place we visited held a rustic rugged charm of its own.

The building in the back is one of his many studio work areas.

This gentleman was a soft spoken man with a warm heart. He and his wife make such a great team and I was so impressed with his knowledge. I’m so happy he was willing for me to take his picture while he was getting this beautiful plate ready for display.

I commented on that plate and how beautiful the detail was and that led him to take us out to his studio work areas for a little tour.

He was commissioned to make 500 cups for a mountain run. Each person that crosses the 20 mile finish line receives one of these amazing awards.

There are no two cups alike as he does all the detail by hand.

He proceeded to show us how he carved them out.

And here’s what the finished product looks like.

He’s so talented and I feel blessed that he went out of his way to share his technique.

One of his many beautiful pieces on display.

A wall of art

So long – This kind man inspired me and I feel so blessed to have experiences like this along the way.