Fandoms are for everyone.

 April and May were busy months. We vended at a local Garden Market and two cons: Thy Geekdom Con and Philly FanExpo, where about 50,000 fans converge on the Pennsylvania Convention Center for three days. We had a wonderful time meeting pop culture fans, cosplayers (so many hobbits!), and connecting with other vendors. Ruth's LOTR Prancing Pony mugs and my D&D monster mugs were big hits. Lower cost, smaller items were also popular at the FanExpo. Now it's time to make more pieces and stock up for future events.

St. Mary Anne's Garden Market in North East, MD.

Philly FanExpo, Pennsylvania Convention Center, Philadelphia

Fire & Ice Along the Susquehanna

 Our latest show was only 5 minutes from home in downtown Port Deposit. With only 631 residents, the Fire & Ice Festival essentially quadruples this tiny riverside town's population. It's the busiest evening in the winter for the few local taverns, coffee house, and pizza joint. There are fire pits and tiny decorated tents where visitors can mingle with friends. This year, they doubled the vendor spaces! We had plenty of time to set up and walk around to visit with other vendors and grab a drink before the streets filled. 

This festival is in the evening, and it is dark an hour after it starts, but our tent was well lit. Lighting is important any time of the day, but string lights won't cut it at night. You need spot lights. We just use two inexpensive LED flash lights from Harbor Freight and zip tie them at the front of the tent, aiming down toward our tables. 

This is a relatively small event compared to most shows that we do, but it is totally worth it. It's in our hometown, and we always get to catch up with friends and support other local businesses.

Casts from Nature and French Artists

 One of my favorite ceramicists is 16th Century artist Bernard Palissy. He created maximalist pieces brimming with casts of real animals and plants. Forever captured in clay, these salamanders, fish, and frogs, are three dimensional snapshots of the natural world from 400 years ago! This platter, from the Louvre Museum, shows a variety of animals and plants.

Welcome to this new blog for Muddy's Wood Pottery! My sister and I are the faces behind the work. Ruth does a lot of wheel throwing, while I, Amelia, often hand build. The slower months of December and January are over, and we are back to making and vending at arts and craft shows, festivals, and cons. Our next event is the Fire & Ice Festival on February 28th in Port Deposit, Maryland.