“A huge part of pottery is learning to accept the joys and heartbreak of the art blamelessly,” reflects potter Sara Pilchman, “which translates well outside of the studio.” Ceramics started as a hobby Sara learned at camp and then rediscovered at Idyllwild Arts Academy. After continuing her arts education at Juniata College, she moved back to Long Beach and began teaching ceramics. Her business was the result of needing to offload all the pots she was making, and has evolved to include the creation of the much beloved Tiny Pots collection.
Sara and her team Teresita, Dana, Annabelle, and Skylar work on a weekly schedule that culminates in one big firing each week. The process begins with Sara throwing on the wheel and making 100 to 400 pots per session. This is in fact Sara’s favorite part of the process, as she thinks about the Buddhist idea of having a mirror-mind while she works, “Taking in and experiencing the world completely, while being, at the same time, able to let it flow back out unaffected.” The pots spend a day or two drying to a leather-hard state, which is when Sara’s assistants refine them. Once fully dry, the pots are driven to Angels Gate Cultural Center to be fired in an electric kiln where they harden and become less fragile, yet still porous enough to accept glaze. “Glaze chemistry is where I get to be most creative,” Sara shares. “With hundreds of pieces I can test on, I'm able to find and tweak different glaze recipes and see which elements will affect the colors of my pots in different ways.” On Fridays and Saturdays, her team glazes 800-1,000 pots while Sara loads the gas kiln. The big firing takes place Monday morning. Over the course of 10-12 hours the kiln gets to about 2,380 degrees, intermittently cutting off the oxygen to achieve the rich colors in both the glaze and clay. All in all, it takes Sara and her team about 1-1.5 weeks to complete a batch of pots.
Sara’s passion for ceramics shows in each of her Tiny Pots and her ability to create unique glazes and one-of-a-kind pots means every time you come into the shop to check them out, you’ll find a new one to love!