WhitmoreStudio

handmade pottery & studio art

Fort Collins, Colorado On Etsy since 2018

340 Sales | 5 out of 5 stars

Top shop for gifts.

Buyers bought gifts from this shop and gave them 5-star reviews!

WhitmoreStudio

handmade pottery & studio art

Fort Collins, Colorado | 340 Sales

5 out of 5 stars

Shop owner

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Announcement    > December 13th is the LAST DAY to order and receive it before CHRISTMAS! Please check the shipping times to be sure you get your order on time!
> Several listings went up last week and sold out super quick. I'll be doing my best to make more (mostly pinch bowls) as I'm able, though pots can take 3-6 weeks to make.

Thanks for dropping by Whitmore Studio!
- Jo & James
...
For those who have asked about sold-out items, unlike most pottery shops on Etsy, we currently only list items that are already made and ready to ship. So while there's no 3-6 week wait for your pottery to arrive, it also means that what is in our online shop is all we have. We also make a lot of one-offs as we experiment with different forms which means that we don't restock everything. Many pieces are truly one of a kind while others will be restocked once a new batch is made, though they will naturally vary a bit from batch to batch.
...

To learn more about how we make the pots, drop by our socials or tag us with a photo of how you're using a piece you've bought. We'd love to hear from you!

Alternately, check out our website:
https://whitmorestudio.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whitmorestudio/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Whitmore-Studio-330289944241095/

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/whitmorestudio/

Announcement

Last updated on Dec 4, 2020

> December 13th is the LAST DAY to order and receive it before CHRISTMAS! Please check the shipping times to be sure you get your order on time!
> Several listings went up last week and sold out super quick. I'll be doing my best to make more (mostly pinch bowls) as I'm able, though pots can take 3-6 weeks to make.

Thanks for dropping by Whitmore Studio!
- Jo & James
...
For those who have asked about sold-out items, unlike most pottery shops on Etsy, we currently only list items that are already made and ready to ship. So while there's no 3-6 week wait for your pottery to arrive, it also means that what is in our online shop is all we have. We also make a lot of one-offs as we experiment with different forms which means that we don't restock everything. Many pieces are truly one of a kind while others will be restocked once a new batch is made, though they will naturally vary a bit from batch to batch.
...

To learn more about how we make the pots, drop by our socials or tag us with a photo of how you're using a piece you've bought. We'd love to hear from you!

Alternately, check out our website:
https://whitmorestudio.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whitmorestudio/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Whitmore-Studio-330289944241095/

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/whitmorestudio/

Items

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340 Sales
226 Admirers
 

All Items

Jo

Contact shop owner

Jo

Reviews

Average item review
5 out of 5 stars
(85)
See reviews that mention:
quality 18 shipping 27 customer service 3

Updates

2 weeks
Drying after having the handles attached

Tagged in this photo

  • Pottery Espresso Mug, Lavender Bronze Stoneware Mug - Handmade Rounded Espresso Mug, Unique Small Mug, Wheel Thrown Mug, Purple Brown Mug

    From shop WhitmoreStudio

    $20.00
    Free shipping eligible

    • 1 month
    And here’s the studio all revamped and ready to go. Probably the cleanest it will ever be ... still looks a little cluttered, actually. At least it’s better than before.

    Tagged in this photo

  • Mottled Brown Purple Blue Pottery Pinch Bowl - Unique Blue Brown Prep Bowl, Small Dip Bowl, Snack Bowl, Small Dish, Stoneware Pinch Bowl

    From shop WhitmoreStudio

    $12.00
    Free shipping eligible

    • 1 month
    Part of this summer’s busyness was getting the studio just a little more user friendly. A few new shelves, a little less old equipment hanging about, and it’s actually kinda pleasant to work in. Now if we only had windows!

    Tagged in this photo

  • Blue Pottery Cup, Midnight Blue Stoneware Bowl -Parfait Dish, Unique Handmade Blue Pottery Tea Cup, Dark Blue Coffee Cup, Small Pottery Bowl

    From shop WhitmoreStudio

    Sold

    • View all 25 updates

    About WhitmoreStudio

    Sales 340
    On Etsy since 2018
    • First, the forms are thrown on a wheel.
    • Alternately, in the case of pendants, the clay is rolled out, stamped or etched, and cut.
    • Finally, the pieces are glazed, fired even hotter, and voila, after a week or so, the pots are born into the world!
    • Once they're leather hard, we can trim them and add handles or designs.
    • The pieces are left out until they become bone dry - which prevents their exploding in the kiln and are bisque fired.

    Two Potters in an Airstream

    Of all the bad places to make pottery, a movable trailer is only slightly better than a rollercoaster. I should mention that our studio is in a trailer.

    The evolution (or de-evolution) leading to this reality began simply enough.

    We (the potter and her potter husband) discovered pottery in the dark recesses of our university's art building a long, long time ago - back when we were even younger. We liked it...a lot.

    But we had to pay for things like food, grad school, and snacks (unreasonable, I know) and so we got jobs although pan-handling probably would've paid more. We got married, life continued, then - in an exciting twist - we moved to China to teach English because as everyone knows, if there's anything that pays more than selling art, it's TEFL. So we partnered with a few local artists in shows to sell off our small inventory, packed our four suitcases, and left the continent.

    Hundreds of students, eight countries, and two years later we returned to the States rich in experience... but less rich in the means to acquire snacks.

    When we first moved back to the States I had grand ideas and a plan to make those grand ideas come to pass. Team Whitmore was going to work hard and get a leg up. We weren’t going to be some washed up TEFL teachers working as grocery store clerks. We were going to make it.

    The whole story is too much for this page so I will sum up. It exists, though, and if you’re really curious you can read the tale of high hopes, misfortune, and The System on my blog - jowhit.com.

    To sum up:

    Circumstances forced us to think more creatively about housing which is why we’re making pots in a trailer …two trailers actually... because a modest salary can buy a few trailers even if it can't buy a mailbox.

    We bought an old 1977 Airstream to live in and remodeled it from the bones up. That was our escape pod. After renovating the camper, James even decided to move from the grocery store to the Trades while I slowly worked my way up from the factory floor to the IT office.

    But the idea of being potters kept gnawing at us. It was there at every meal because all our dinnerware we had made ourselves. It was there whenever we glanced at the photos of our travels through Asia - through Shogi Hamada's rustic house and giant kiln in Mashinko, Japan, for an example.

    And then, there was this other thing gnawing at us too: the abundance of bad pottery - both garish, lifeless industrial forms and garish, chunky handmade forms.

    “At some point art went from ‘Wow, I wish I could that!’ to ‘Ug, my toddler could that.’"
    For the life of me I can’t remember who said that but I thank him for being brave enough to challenge the challengers.

    There is still lots of good pottery out there too, thankfully, and those potters deserve some patronage. That’s a guild we’d join, where virtues like subtlety, strength, liveliness, warmth, and form are still the goal rather than merely newness, shock, and individuality for individuality’s sake.

    And that’s our aim: good pottery because good things matter. We want each piece we make to be a joy to use and hold as well as a joy to look at.

    There is no perfect time to start a business, as many people have noted. This is unfortunate but we figured that if we didn’t do it now, well, we probably wouldn’t do it later.

    So we hitched up another trailer and searched Craig’s List for equipment.

    Whitmore Studio, a 24' trailer, sits about five feet away from the USS Whitmore, our 1977 Airstream.
    So even if we’re not exactly living on our own dirt, we’re grateful to be out of the rain because making pottery in the rain is really hard.

    Perhaps someday, if we can find enough bubble wrap, we'll roll into a city near you. Until then, thanks for supporting the craft. Really, we couldn't do it without patrons like you!

    - Jo & James Whitmore

    Shop members

    • James

      Maker, Owner

      Maker of pots, equal member in the business, and husband of Jo.

    • Jo

      Maker, Owner

      Maker of fewer pots but maker of more pendants and sundry.

    • the USS Whitmore

      Shipper

      The USS Whitmore is our full time home / escape pod. Without its help we probably wouldn't be in a position to make pots right now.

    • Studio Trailer

      Assistant

      Studio Trailer retired from a previous life hauling around a jr drag racer to join our team. With a little remodel, ST became a truly essential part of our business because it's hard making pots outside in 9 degree weather.

    Shop policies

    More information

    Last updated on Dec 28, 2018
    Frequently asked questions
    Care instructions

    All of our dinnerware (mugs, bowls, etc.) is completely food safe and non-toxic. That means it's lead-free so we won't end up like those unfortunate Medieval European nobles with their lead-pewter goblets that we all learned about in history class.

    As for care, they are also 100% dishwasher and microwave safe.

    Please be aware, though, that they are breakable so we wouldn't recommend tossing them from the kitchen to the diners. They are also subject to thermal shock. So avoid filling them with something piping hot and directly putting them into the fridge.

    Stoneware can take a lot of heat or cold and insulate remarkably well. It will easily hold even your hottest coffee but avoid putting it on open flame.

    Packaging

    We try to reuse and recycle where possible.

    No surprise, but pottery can be fragile so we also have to use quite a bit of cushioning to ensure that each item gets to you safely.

    To avoid needless waste, we put packaging that was used but is still perfectly good (boxes, bubblewrap, etc.) back into the mail cycle.

    Don't be surprised if your order comes in a pre-used box. The inside will be tidy and well packed so that the really important stuff, namely your order, arrives safely with the least amount of waste.

    Are your items really handmade - by you?

    Yep, my husband and I make every piece in our shop with our own hands. Most of them are wheel thrown but some items, such as pendants, are slab rolled and hand built.

    The only exception is the chain and wire on the necklaces (though the wire is hand wound) as we are potters rather than metal smiths. Maybe someday but for now we purchase those.

    On that, unless otherwise noted, all the metal we use is 100% solid (usually copper or brass), nickel-free, and lead-free as opposed to plated so that you get the real deal that will age well and last a lifetime.

    How long does it take for an item to ship once it's ordered?

    Not long. We're a really small business so once we get that Etsy notification that an order has been placed - we pause to high five - and then we're off and running!

    Unless otherwise noted (example: if we're out of town for a holiday), your order will ship within 1 business day and if you order early enough in the day, it will often ship the same day.

    Once we hand it off to the postman, it depends on what type of shipping method was chosen. But generally, packages arrive in 1-3 business days via Priority Mail.