My name is Erin and I’m a former journalist (most recently for National Public Radio in Washington, D.C.). In 2012, my husband and I packed up with our infant boy and headed West to the California desert so we could soak in the mountains, explore the West coast and take on creative projects. That’s when I fell in love in pottery. I took classes from a local potter in our desert town about an hour from Death Valley. One day, after throwing on the wheel for eight consecutive hours, while I was six months pregnant with my second boy, I came home and breathlessly said to my husband: “I could do this all day every day!”

We moved to Albuquerque, NM and then to Palmdale, Calif., where my business flourished. As of summer of 2022, we moved back to the DC area and we plan to build another studio in the backyard, but it will take time. You can follow our progress on Instagram @ erinkillianpottery .

Most of my pieces are wheel thrown. I work in small batches, mostly with stoneware, and have a simple, functional style inspired by nature — water, mountains, desert. Because each piece is handmade there is often a funky element (whether it’s an imperfection in the glaze or a slightly off-center handle) that makes it one of a kind — and, to me, beautiful.

On some of my pieces, I carve the year on the bottom of the pot. I love the idea of my pottery outliving me in the world -- in my kids' hands and their kids' hands, etc. I also love making things that are used every single day by friends and family and beautiful people who find joy in living and breathing and appreciating. So thank you. For being here, for supporting handmade, and for understanding what handmade pottery can mean in the world.