Day 11 : Reducing waste

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#marchmeetthemaker REDUCING WASTE Last year I got a garden compost bin for my birthday. I love it and cannot wait to use what comes out of it on my tomatoes this year. I hope it makes them extra tasty 🍅 Pictured is a prototype kitchen compost bin. What do you think? Would you use one? I try to reduce waste as much as possible at work and at home. In the workshop I recycle all my scraps of clay by hand. I think every potter I know absolutely hates this job! Me incldued! It’s time consuming and messy, but definitely worth it as it results in you not wasting any clay at all, unless you break it after firing! I am very conscious about all the packaging I use to wrap up my pots so they arrive safely at their destinations. I get a lot of donations from friends and local businesses – boxes, newspaper and bubble wrap – which is great. When my current roll of bubble wrap is finished I am hoping to change to an eco friendly cardboard wrap. I hope the packaging I use gets re-used or recycled by my customers. #teawithjud #potter #pottery #ceramics #ceramicdesign #prototype #compostbin #reducingwaste #reuse #recycle #growyourown #greenhouse #herbgarden #smallbusiness #handmade #rattray #blairgowrie #perthshire #scotland

A post shared by Jud Pollock (@teawithjud) on Mar 11, 2019 at 3:41am PDT

Day 12 : Hands at work

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#marchmeetthemaker HANDS AT WORK Sometimes I forget how amazing my hands are. Obviously my eyes and brain help too, but it’s my hands that do all the work. Being a full time potter is really hard on your hands, especially in winter. Working with cold clay, being immersed in water for so much of the time means my hands get really dry. Sometimes I get bad hacks in my thumbs, which makes throwing difficult and painful, and sometimes my knuckles crack and bleed 😞 Glaze is not a nice feeling on your skin either. It’s so dusty and SO dry! It makes me itchy. I use a lot of sharp tools as well so I usually prod or slice myself at least once a week! I have yet to find a REALLY good hand cream, and I’ve tried a lot of them. Can you recommend any? It’s always good to have a few days out of the workshop to let my hands recover, but I still cant keep them still as theres always a knitting project on the go! #teawithjud #potter #pottery #maker #knitter #ceramics #ceramicist #throwing #potterswheel #actionshot #myhands #handsatwork #handmade #handcrafted #madeinscotland #workshop #rattray #blairgowrie #perthshire #scotland

A post shared by Jud Pollock (@teawithjud) on Mar 12, 2019 at 12:29am PDT

Day 13 : Photography

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#marchmeetthemaker PHOTOGRAPHY For every image you see there are at least 30 other blurry ones! Photography is not my strong point but it is such an important part of my business. I take most of my pictures on a real camera as my phone doesn’t give good enough quality (and I am slightly behind the times). It’s a bit of a faff as I upload the pictures to my computer, edit, resize and then put them on to my phone. I like each image to be different and always aim to capture the enjoyment me pottery can bring. When photographing I usually struggle with lighting, its either too dark or too bright, backgrounds, shadows, flash, set up… so many things that can affect the outcome but taking a lot of pictures guarentees at least one half decent one! If I bake I always use the opportunity for a photo session, and if you’re wondering, yes this zesty lemon cake is as tasty as it looks! YUM! #teawithjud #potter #pottery #ceramics #ceramicdesign #wheelthrown #handmade #handmadeinscotland #homemade #maker #baker #cake #lemoncake #meetthemaker #afternoontea #photography #smallbusiness #independent #rattray #blairgowrie #perthshire #scotland

A post shared by Jud Pollock (@teawithjud) on Mar 13, 2019 at 1:22am PDT

Day 14 : How I learnt

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#marchmeetthemaker HOW I LEARNT I studided 3D Design at Manchester Metropolitan University. It was a brilliant course consisting of glass, metal, wood & ceramic design. Over the first year we had to do a project in each subject and then specialise. We were taught slab building, mould making, coil pots, slip casting and throwing. When I first started throwing I remember the frustration of not being able to centre the clay, but I was hooked so I practised and practised and practised until one day it finally clicked. I was so happy! I practised some more and as my technique improved my desire to throw larger pieces grew. My tutor, Alex McErlain, was amazing and so encouraging. Pictured are some pots I made for my degree show. They were thrown in sections and joined together. They range from 45cm to 120cm tall. My love of colour and pattern inspired my glaze decoration and stripes were a recurring theme in my work. After I graduated I rented a shared studio for a short time but soon realised I did not have the time, money or drive to continue. Fast forward 9 years to 2013 and it was time to reignite my passion. I was a bit rusty but started practising again and designing new work for my business, Tea with Jud. Ceramics is such a huge subject so I am still learning every day. #teawithjud #potter #pottery #ceramics #ceramicdesign #ceramicart #design #3ddesign #wheelthrown #handmade #sculpture #tallstripypots #stripes #stripy #pattern #learningtothrow #cylinders #university #meetthemaker #maker #howilearnt #madeinmanchester #independent #smallbusiness

A post shared by Jud Pollock (@teawithjud) on Mar 14, 2019 at 2:01am PDT

Day 15 : Motivation/goals

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#marchmeetthemaker MOTIVATION/GOALS Everyone who knows me knows how much I want my own coffee shop. It has been the goal for my business before it even existed. I have 15 years work experience in the catering & hospitality sector and have done every job from waitress to barista, supervisor & manager. This work experience has been invaluable and I am under no illusion that running a coffee shop is easy. I’ve had so much fun over the years working with amazing people and meeting so many lovely customers and I really cannot wait to have my own coffee shop one day! My plan to expand Tea with Jud to a Summer Seasonal Coffee Shop is constantly on my mind and I am starting to take small (very small) steps to make it happen 😁 #teawithjud #potter #pottery #ceramics #ceramicdesign #tableware #madeinscotland #meetthemaker #coffeeshopgoals #smallbusiness #independent #goals #dreams #selfemployed #rattray #blairgowrie #perthshire #scotland

A post shared by Jud Pollock (@teawithjud) on Mar 15, 2019 at 12:19am PDT