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John Dietrich and Diane McNeil owners of Ellison Bay Pottery in Door County WI

Big corporations get tons of foot traffic, and their CEOs prosper, continuing to make millions upon millions of dollars while smaller businesses struggle under the pressure. By supporting a local business, you’re investing back into the community, and helping individuals.

Ellisonn Bay Pottery Sign and people

No matter what time of year you take a visit up to Door County, stopping at Ellison Bay Pottery Studios is worth the trip. With handcrafted and stoneware pottery pieces for every occasion, you can find the perfect gift for a family member or friend — or simply just shop for yourself!

Our Door County pottery studio is located in Ellison Bay, on Wisconsin’s breathtaking peninsula. Find directions to our studio, and take a leisurely drive to view our pottery, or view a live demonstration of our process. We look forward to seeing you, and in the meantime, feel free to peruse our collection of mugs, baking dishes, ceramic art, and so much more!

We Price Things Fairly
Jan 11, 2022
Written by Diane McNeil

We Price Things Fairly

We price things fairly.

A handmade pottery piece takes time, craftsmanship, and skill to ensure it is not only functional, but durable, beautiful, and can withstand the tests of time. When you pay for a $5.99 mug, you’re paying for what you get — but even more importantly, the people who deserve to get paid fairly for their labor are more than often, not.

john dietrich th potter at the potters wheel

Our pieces are priced accordingly, and you can trust that no one is being exploited or taken advantage of to create these works — rather, the artists are being compensated appropriately when you purchase from Ellison Bay Pottery Studios.

We are committed to eco-friendly practices.
Jan 10, 2022
Written by Diane McNeil

We are committed to eco-friendly practices.

Our pottery studio in Door County implements recycling in many ways. To start, we do not rely on plastic, which is harmful to the environment, and we work with recycled materials whenever we can. We also only print publications on recycled paper! If you've ordered pottery from us you'll know that our packing materials are 90% recycled: newspapers, we re-use boxes, and plastic bags filled up with other plastic bags for soft pillows which surround the pot.

We’re involved in our community, and take action with socially and environmentally conscious matters that come up. Additionally, we work with safe fuels, we have an energy-saving studio, and dispose of materials in a responsible and eco-friendly manner. Every piece of pottery we make is a reflection of our commitment to helping the environment, and your support helps this initiative take action.

Everything we make is easy to use — and clean
Jan 10, 2022
Written by Diane McNeil

Everything we make is easy to use — and clean

One of the downsides that people tend to associate with handcrafted pottery is that it’s fragile. It’s delicate, it’s art, and it’s a hassle to hand wash. At Ellison Bay Pottery Studios, we believe pottery can be art — while still functional. Everything we produce is microwave, oven, and dishwasher safe, making it easier than ever for you to use and enjoy your pottery (and then clean it up, too!).

It's Time for the Annual 'Almost Perfect Pottery Sale'
May 25, 2021
Written by Diane McNeil

It's Time for the Annual 'Almost Perfect Pottery Sale'

A question asked often in our gallery is 'Where are your seconds shelf?

I disappoint many people when I tell them that we have a one day Second Sale in May during the Memorial Day weekend. And so many of our customers would miss it. I heard that so often that three years ago we included Facebook Live. That was fun, stressful and cumbersome. After two years of stumbling around I put all the pots on sale on our website. This was better than I imagined it could be. It was still fun and stressful but also the sale ran smoother and it was more organized. And everyone is a little happier.

Spring 2021, we added another second sale. We needed to boost our winter sales and get those seconds off our hands and into someone else's.

A pottery second isn't always a failure of the process or the potter, but is proof that anything can be more beautiful with a flaw or two.

Those seconds - Just how good are they, or rather, how bad are they??

Not bad at all. Often you won't be able to spot the flaw. Sometimes what we're dissatisfied with seems just fine to you. Minor chipped edges or a glaze fail are not enough to toss the pot on our 40 year old shard pile. Our policy is to never point out the the offending spot(s). If you can't tell then, why should we show it to you!

We've been holding our Almost Perfect Pottery Sale for over 20 years. There are customers who only shop for our pottery at our second sale...so it's also a little re-union at the beginning of our busy season. Some of our pottery lovers bring their own shopping bags to make my job easier. We're happy that our seconds shelves are empty and that so many people brought our pots home with them.

LIVE Online Demonstrations Resume Wednesday Nov. 3, 2021
May 17, 2021
Written by Diane McNeil
Filed under door county pottery, ellison bay pottery, handcrafted pottery, handmade pottery, pottery, pottery production

LIVE Online Demonstrations Resume Wednesday Nov. 3, 2021

In December 2020 we started our Facebook LIVE pottery demonstrations and NOW it's time for those Wednesday mornings to begin again.

Demonstrations are performance art. I learned that quickly. John loves to share information and supports all potters, regardless their proficiency, with encouraging words and even a glaze recipe or two.

Back to John's demonstrations: Each day is a day in the life of a Studio Potter, which he proudly represents. That means that sometimes we can predict or plan for our Wednesday mornings and sometimes we can't The is an ebb and flow to our pottery/studio lives. This week we may be glazing. Whatever we do, we're so glad you're with us.

If you've got a question (about clay and pottery only :) let us know.

https://fb.me/e/2gYjZxkTc

First Kiln Opening of 2021 is Saturday April 24 at 1:00pm
Apr 14, 2021
Written by Diane McNeil
Filed under firing, gas firing, kiln, pottery, stoneware

First Kiln Opening of 2021 is Saturday April 24 at 1:00pm

We're excited to share that we will have our first firing of 2021 this Thursday! John will load the kiln and brick in (close) the door Wednesday He'll get in almost 200 pieces of pottery of varying sizes.

This firing will take the better part of the day and then the cooling period lasts about 36 hours. This means that we'll have our first Kiln Opening in 2021. And you're invited to watch this rare moment (we have 10-11 firings a year).

The actual Kiln Opening will be on Saturday April 24 at noon. Masks are required. The kiln room is small, so we'll allow up to 4 people. Families can all enter together. The kiln is in a shed, next to the studio, which has open doors and good ventilation.

We hope you can come and experience this special moment in our pottery lives.

#pottery #gasfiring #kiln #handthrownmug #potterymug #potterybowl

What I've Learned From Doing Facebook LIVE For Three Months
Mar 24, 2021
Written by Diane McNeil

What I've Learned From Doing Facebook LIVE For Three Months

Thanks for opening this email newsletter --
John and I started doing Facebook LIVE pottery demos in December, just before Christmas, as a way to reach out to our friends/customers. We're familiar with the many questions people have asked over the years (this is our 47the year!) and we wanted to address our pottery practice, share the ups and downs of being a studio potter like John, and get back to interacting online like we do here in our gallery. We do miss having people in our gallery.

We've had fun, actually. Both if us were nervous and awkward at first. John slid into his demo mode easily after all. He drew on the years and years of public demos and teaching pottery and finally both pit firing and raku. I'm lucky to be learning more on the video side and sometimes making rookie mistakes. It's been fun.

As I mentioned, this is our 47th year here as Ellison Bay Pottery. John really started something beautiful. His drive to master all aspects of the process of making pottery made all this: the barn, the orchard, the studio/gallery, teaching pottery and our home possible.
I'll be posting more EBP and John Dietrich stories. I'm guessing that some of you may have a story or two from your visits here. I'd love to read and share them.

Bye for now---------
Diane and the sleeping Cleo and Bo and Odin.

PS.- Our special Easter Flower Vase sale starts on Friday (3/26) and ends next Saturday (4/3). I'll be posting the vases I love the most for the next week.

PPS. Pottery Emergency??? Call or text 920-740-5859.

Online Pottery Demonstrations Continue
Mar 15, 2021
Written by Diane McNeil

Online Pottery Demonstrations Continue

Once a week, on Wednesdays, John sits at the wheel to demonstrate how he makes a variety of pottery items.... on Facebook LIVE!! This is a great demonstration for every one but especially people interested in art, pottery, and creativity. Whether you want to make pottery or you want understand how it's made, John will answer your questions.

There's a new item each week and Diane will take you to their gallery to show you a different pottery items, such as Japanese Tea Bowls (cups) or Ikebana (Japanese flower vase).

Each week is a little different, based on where/when John is in his pottery making cycle. . As they get closer to a bisque firing and then glaze firing you'll see what most folks don't get to see: the whole glazing process.

LINKS take you to the FaceBook Event Page.

See you! John & Diane, Ellison Bay Pottery Studios, Ellison Bay Door County WI

Have you read our BLOG?

PS Having a Pottery Emergency? Call or text Diane at 920-740-5859

It's Still Soup Weather
Mar 11, 2021
Written by Diane McNeil

It's Still Soup Weather

GOT SOUP?

It's not warming up enough to take soup off our dinner and lunch rotation. We've found a few Gluten free websites which has really upped our cooking game. Just like everyone else, we get caught in a food rut. These two sites saved our minds during this pandemic. Best thing about these recipes is that they are so tasty that the whole family will enjoy them. And the exotic ingredients are usually found in your grocery. Or Amazon-no joke.

The Dizzy Cook Then there are the moments when the world is dizzy...but it's me instead! We both suffer from vestibular migraines and and this is better than meds! After all it tastes better.

Jump In--The Flavor is Great Soy Free Mushroom Ramen I crave Ramen, the really god Ramen. This is checks all the boxes for me. I can also control the salt! I'm still getting used to that.

A reminder: Our soup mugs are food safe. This includes dishwasher, microwave and oven safe. There are rules to follow: Avoid extremes in temperature. Don't put hot pottery on a cold surface like stone, some tiles, marble..you get the picture. Soup from the refrigerator and heated in a microwave isn't cold enough to hurt the mug unless you put it on a cold surface. Any other questions or comments? You know what to do.

HANDMADE POTTERY SINCE 1974

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