Laurène Elliott-Deyris: The Five Question Interview

October 12, 2022October 14, 2022Leave a comment

Laurène Elliott-Deyris is the owner of Terre Noire (French for Black Land) in Taylor, Texas. She is a clinically trained herbalist and her loose-leaf herbal tea blends, herbal extracts, and body care products are all made with the finest organic ingredients, she often grows or wildcrafts many of her herbs, including beeswax from her own hives.

Her ceramic art is botanically inspired, offering useful small dishes, spoons, and small bowls made from porcelain, black clay, and Taku-fired objects.

1. Why did you move to Taylor?

My husband and I moved from France to the Austin area to be closer to family in 2015. Not wanting to be in Austin proper, we found Taylor to be a good size for us with a lot of potential and knew it was going to be up and coming in the next few years. We were right! It’s a fun and quirky little town with good vibes and great people. We love being part of a community and supporting local businesses.

2. What compels you to spend time creating?

For me, nature is an essential part of my creative process. Spending time with plants, swimming in natural bodies of water, walking in deep forests are all ways for me to resource myself, meditate and connect with the botanical world. I’ve worked in a few different mediums from photography to ceramics and the common theme in my work has always been nature inspired.

3. Tell me three things you’ve learned in the past five years.

1. To have patience and grace with myself… the artistic journey is a long one.

2. Currently learning more about processing wild Texas clays and cannot wait to bring that to Terre Noire.

3. That I’ve become quite intolerant to heat.

4. What are you currently making, reading, watching, or listening to?

I’m currently reading Asia Suler’s book Mirrors in the Earth and it is divine.

5. Cake or Pie?

Always pie. 🙂

Follow Laurène on Instagram and Etsy

Instagram @terre.noire
Etsy TerreNoireCreations

Let’s Keep in Touch!

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Taylor Christian: The Five Question Interview

July 12, 2022July 13, 2022Leave a comment

Taylor Christian is owner and creator at Log Ceramics in Elgin, Texas. She fires her funky + functional ceramics with 100% renewable energy.

She started doing ceramics during the pandemic and have a full workshop in my garage here in Elgin. Her work includes a mix of wheel thrown and slip cast goods using vintage molds, with the occasional extra weird item. Lots of planters and fun plant accessories too.

1. Why did you move to Elgin?

I had a few friends who moved out to Elgin and I fell in love with the small town vibe when I would come to visit. I grew up in a similar small town about 20 minutes from Dallas, and after 15 years living in Austin, Elgin felt nostalgic in the best way. Since moving I feel so lucky to have found a great group of friends and creative community. I really love it here.

2. What compels you to spend time creating?

I have always had a creative side since I was a kid always making things. I started college as a photography major but changed to geography and geology and really fell in love with physical science. I work as a water data scientist in my day job, which can be fast paced and highly analytical. So at the end of the day to only focus on what I am doing in that moment is meditative. I took a ceramics class at Austin Community College and just fell in love and kind of abandoned all my other crafts from that point on. I love how I am able to use my knowledge of minerals and geology to help inform the clay bodies I use. How utterly messy ceramics is. How there is always more to learn.

3. Tell me three things you’ve learned in the past five years.

Wow in the last 5 years I have learned so much—but I want to specifically focus on what ceramics has taught me:

1. Let it go. This applies to ceramics and life. There are a million missteps you can make and ruin what you have been working on, and a million missteps you can make in life. Let it go, learn from it and move on.

2. Be patient. let the kiln cool, the best things come to those who are patient. I am mostly reminding myself this one, I have never once waiting for a kiln to fully cool.

3. Put yourself out there! Starting to do markets and show people my work was scary, but I have grown so much, found so much support, made so many friends and only been inspired more. Only good things come from trying new things.

4. What are you currently making, reading, watching, or listening to?

I just finished reading tiny beautiful things by Cheryl Strayed- I laughed and cried at almost every story. Cant recommend it more. The songs of thsummer for me right now are Byoncé you can’t break my soul…..trying to be patient waiting for the new album.

5. Cake or Pie?

Cake, unless its chocolate then I want both.

Links:

Instagram @log.ceramics
Etsy Log Ceramics

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Tessa McDonald: The Five Question Interview

May 4, 2022May 4, 2022Leave a comment

Tessa McDonald hails from the great state of Alaska. After serving in the U.S. Army she relocated to Texas. She owns and lives on Green Woman Farm amid an edible forest she is cultivating with her husband. With the aid of their sheep, goats, chickens, ducks, guineas, and turkeys they are regenerating the land without pesticides. Tessa’s interest in studying best practices in harvesting and preserving herbs led her to create hand rolled Incense, blended herbal teas, herbal extracts, and dried herbs grown on the farm.

1. Why did you move to Elgin?

I found my love for gardening quickly outgrew my backyard and wanted to start a farm with an lots of animals and an edible forest. I fell in love with Elgin’s downtown and how close knit everyone was like back home. After we settled, we quickly noticed we made the right choice with our community and don’t plan on ever leaving.

2. What compels you to spend time creating?

The need to discover is what got me on my journey of gardening, herbal remedies, & tea brewing. Many people don’t know how much one herb can help with so many problems, so I started to explore this and the many methods of preservation. I wanted to be able to take a small seed, and make that plant into natural cleaning supplies, dried herbs, soaps, extracts, anything my imagination could make. I take time to study, fertilize, and grow my plants. I put them to good use, and surprise myself a lot with the things I make and what can survive here.

3. Tell me three things you’ve learned in the past five years.

I think my biggest lesson is learning when to stop. Farming is a nonstop job, but the need to slow down and rest is also just as important.

My second thing would be stuff doesn’t happen on my time. Mother nature will send us winter storms, spring hail, and sometimes drought and we have to move with it, not against it.

My third would be to let go, sometimes a plant or project cant be saved and you just need to yeet it & start from scratch and that’s just the circle of life.

4. What are you currently making, reading, watching, or listening to?

So my current thing to do is binge watch tv at night while I roll incense. I just watched Ink Master and I’ve moved on to watching Greys Anatomy. I’m harvesting my collection of culinary and medicinal herbs to dry out and putting them to use in incense, oils, vinegars, teas, & extracts. As for music, I constantly have some blasting on the farm while I work, so mostly Electronic Dance music so my goats get a mini rave. My current favorite songs are My Best Life by KSHMR and Legacy by the Sidh. As for what I’m nose deep in reading, I got this new book the Lost Book of Herbal Remedies that’s inspiring me to expand the herb garden once again.