Designs with the Celtic Motif

I have had some people ask about some of the Celtic Designs I put on my pottery. All of these designs are inspired by the ancient art of the Celts, Picts, and Norse. During their eras, their art was incised or painted on various crafts such as wood work, metal work, and on illuminated manuscripts. I take the basic design and alter it to fit on my ceramic pieces in ways that, although they were not done exactly like mine in history, enhance and beautify the ceramics on which they reside.
Although I don't know for certain, I believe I was the first person in the U.S. to put Celtic Knotwork on my pottery as surface design.

This design of a hunting Celtic Cat has been very popular.


This Celtic Horse was originally part of a manuscript.


This knotted up creature is of a Norse Design.


Leaping Celtic Stag on a mug



Occasionally I also do humans. This Irish Warrior is dressed all in plaid. Plaids were bright, (what we would consider) mismatched, and popular with Ancient Celts.


This is a large platter with a Celtic bird. The bird "may" have been representative of a peacock.


This is a running Celtic Dog, the knotwork is swirling about him.

Some pottery from the Renaissance Fair

The weekend's sunshine helped everything, even when it came to photography of the pottery. The weather was an additional joy to the weekend.

The green ware was popular with people this year. It's the first time in Moscow I've had this glaze style combined with this particular surface decoration on display. I will be making more soon, particularly the decorated mugs on tripod feet which sold out and had people inquiring about more.

Some of the Celtic knotwork I had available. These are time-consuming to create, but of course I love to do them. I go through phases when I become obsessed with a particular Celtic or Viking animal to engrave. This depends on what animal I am thinking of or noticing during my non-pottery hours.

Huckleberry glaze series. I like the glaze with the small coil on the rim, such as the bowl on the top left. It gives the pot a subtle elegance that just seems to work with the purples. Huckleberries are precious things for me and I intend to go hunting for the real things this summer after a long hiatus.

And, of course, my dragon ware, nestled amongst the Celtic knotwork.

My display at Mud & Spirits. This doesn't seem like a lot of space,

but my inventory was quickly replaced when a piece sold.

Mud and Spirits was fun.

Mud and Spirits has a different atmosphere, it's a very nice show. People attend because of an interest in pottery; it's not the casual entertainment wandering-around of most art fairs. Maybe it was just a good day, all around was happiness. Such a stark contrast to my weekly workday.

I picked the pooch up from the 'doggie spa' this morning. His spa is in the country and I took a short cut on roads that were even more back country. The snow had drifted a foot and a half in some places. I plowed through them with the AWD and studded sawdusts. Now that was fun (POW, SWOOSH!!), I still have loads to do in the house here, but for a while considered finding more backroads and spending the day swooshing through them. (That would have had disaster written all over it.)

Eagerly Anticipating

Another purple pitcher, but a different style both in shape and glaze application

The Mud and Spirits Pottery Show this weekend in Post Falls. Twenty potters and ceramic sculptors all with very different work set up in a lovely remodled old church, now community center; with live music, purty decorations, and wine tasting & snacks. This will be my 3rd. year participating with them and did very well those previous times.


Yes, I also love glazes that are not purple and loosly applied.
This is an example of my celtic knotwork pottery. The drawing on these pieces are all done freehand.


Wish I had time for one more firing before the show. I have plenty of work completed, but then do a lot of re-firing if the glazes are on the not-exciting-to-me scale I re-glaze and haven't had a chance to since my last firing. I guess I won't take those with.

I'm looking forward to much talk with other potters since there will be folks from several regional cities selling there.