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lessons & workshops

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  • Pottery lesson

    $120.00 – $180.00     Select options

  • Boob mugs workshop — 7 November

    $100.00     Read more

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*this is now sold out* I’m running another work *this is now sold out* I’m running another workshop here at my studio in Newtown on Sunday 7 November! Same details apply - book in on my website now! Limited to 6 spots so get in quick 😎 And please get in touch if you feel excluded for financial or any other reasons. My aim is to make sure craft is accessible to all 🌈🥳 #bodypositivepottery #lifelonglearning #nzpottery
The morning light in here this time of year is jus The morning light in here this time of year is just 👌 It somehow manages to make the organised chaos of my derelict shed workshop look photogenic. Even my pile of reclaim looks cute! I will really miss this place when we have to leave, despite the leaking roof and falling down walls. I love Newtown and as much as it would be great to stay here, the cost of housing makes it really unlikely. Someone recently shared this appropriate whakataukī with me: Ka mate te kainga tahi, ka ora kainga rua. (When the first home ends, the second home will open) So maybe in our kainga rua I’ll have a huge property and room to build an anagama kiln?! #workshop #shedlife #newtownnz #nzhousingcrisis #gentrification #potterystudio #potterygoals
This was a commission but honestly I had so much f This was a commission but honestly I had so much fun drawing these cheesy flowers I feel like I need to add more cheesy decoration to my repertoire… 🧀🥳 Thanks @kirsty__sutherland for believing in my ability to draw flowers even when I warned her it was not one of my strengths! I love it that this is a gift for someone! If you want a custom mug for someone you love to give a hard time, HMU! Happy to do derogatory terms of endearment surrounded by love hearts of other cringe-worthy drawings for your special someone 😂 #nzpottery #cheesygoodness #fuckwit #wheelthrown #handthrown #handdrawn #botanicalart
Super stoked to confirm 14 November for a studio s Super stoked to confirm 14 November for a studio sale along with garage sale and musical bbq featuring my besties ///////////////////// TERROR OF THE DEEP TIDAL RAVE HOT DRUGS CAVALIER AND BREMORTH + more fun stuff tbd but likely from @rachie_campbell @actionpackedfilms @surgerystudios and maybe more!! If you want to be involved HMU! Looking forward to seeing you all here and hoping for good weather 🙏🥳😎☀️ This is a video from my last open studio featuring TOTD and Birgit dancing 💕 @tidalravebandnz @pantzzzzzz @bekcoogan @terrorofthedeepnz
I’ve just uploaded more soap dishes to the websi I’ve just uploaded more soap dishes to the website! These are using a slightly different more speckled clay than ones I’ve made previously. Ready to ship today! xo Nicole #washyourhandsofcapitalism #stoneware #nzpottery #potteryispolitical
✨Swipe for kiln magic✨ I love how the colours ✨Swipe for kiln magic✨ I love how the colours change! 🌈 1.) freshly made raw clay before firing 2&3.) finished after 2 firings, 1st one at 1000C and 2nd at 1230C #nzpottery #kilnmagic
Occasionally I get asked to work on some really co Occasionally I get asked to work on some really cool projects for other people. I have loved these opportunities to bring @waiapuroad @kohaofaotearoa and @popsshed_ visions to life! But navigating how to work with Māori businesses as a non-Māori artist has been an ongoing learning process for me. So in an effort to be a better ally I have written a very long explanation of my background and kaupapa on my website, and added an explanation of my expectations as a supplier to anyone who does want to commission work from me. I thought this would be a good opportunity to share a bit more about me here too and also introduce myself to new followers 😎 Haere mai! I’m so happy to have you here with me for this journey in pottery which I’m just making up as I go along 🥳. If you ever have any questions or comments for me, just get touch! I love a good deep philosophical/emotional chat 💕 — Originally from Chicago, I began working with clay while studying towards my PhD in Information Studies in Wellington, New Zealand. My PhD focused on how people from non-Western cultures engage with information, and was underpinned by my anti-capitalist, activist and social justice values. I like to think of my pottery as an extension of my professional and academic work — another tool I can use to explore and communicate my thoughts on equity, power and society, always with the aim of working toward decolonisation. I identify as someone of Ashkenazi Jewish and mixed European ancestry, raised in the midwest of the USA. But don’t forget ethnicity is a construct! I have lived and worked in West Africa, the Caribbean, Southeast Asia, Europe, Canada, the USA, and for the last 12 years in New Zealand Aotearoa. I prefer to self-identify as tauiwi rather than pākehā. My pronouns are she/her. I acknowledge my privilege as a cis-white woman and actively work to amplify the voices of those with less societal privilege than me. My experiences living and working in diverse communities and with people from many different cultural backgrounds have informed every aspect of my life. I am on a lifelong journey to continue learning and unlearning. (continued in comments)
I rarely make the same thing twice but I happened I rarely make the same thing twice but I happened to make 2 sets of matching mugs - there are 7 of the plain ones and 5 of the speckle ones. If you are in the market for a matchy-matchy (but not too matchy b/c they are handmade) set of mugs hmu! 👯‍♀️ #nzpottery #wheelthrown #handmade #stoneware
I had fun working on this cute colander commission I had fun working on this cute colander commission for @girl.with.basket.of.fruit 💕 Especially making these little donut feet 🍩 I might just start sticking them on everything… #nzpottery #functionalart #ceramiccolander
Yay another boob mug workshop!! 17 October!! At m Yay another boob mug workshop!! 17 October!! At my workshop in Newtown! It’s finally warmed up enough to be able to invite people into my workshop without worrying they will freeze to death ☀️🥶 Limited to 6 people so get in quick 😎 Head to my shop to book your spot & find out more. 💕 Swipe for some photos of mugs made in previous workshops. I have been assured these become favourites and have been well used, and especially featured during rāhui Zoom meetings! ( @caitlingggggg 😂) My aim in doing these workshop is to enable others to have body positive creative experiences! All bodies welcome 🥳 if for financial or other reasons you feel excluded please contact me and we can discuss options ✨ #boobmugs #potteryworkshop #potteryispolitical #bodypositivepottery #bodypositive #inclusivecraft #inclusivepottery
That’s a wrap folks! Love seeing those red dot That’s a wrap folks! Love seeing those red dots 🥳 Thanks everybody who came out to @thistlehall_community_venue for the awesome KINK exhibition curated by @rachie_campbell 💕 It was very humbling being part of such a talented group of women! And also feeling super stoked that most of my pieces sold which I was not expecting ! 🥳🍾💰 thanks everybody who came out and bought work or just stopped by to say hi! It was so nice seeing so many lovely faces yesterday! And happy to have been able to a giveaway and make somebody happy with a vulva pedestal bowl 😎 I have another one of those vulva pedestal bowls with some imperfections that I may offer as a giveaway here soon (I need to glaze & fire it) - watch this space! I really enjoyed demo-ing my vulva-sculpting process yesterday and am excited to fire the vulvas we made when they are dry! If you made a vulva with me yesterday and want to organise collection just get in touch 😎 Thanks again to @thistlehall_community_venue for having us and all the amazing artists - despite alert level restrictions and not being able to have an opening night it was still a huge success! @rachie_campbell @iza.za.za @falcongreyceramics @restless_infectious @mikip.art @mottoarts @broken.nz #nzcontemporaryart #wellingtonart #nzpottery #bodypositiveart #eroticsculpture
It’s pretty cool that you can now get oat milk m It’s pretty cool that you can now get oat milk made in NewZealand from New Zealand oats! But actually it’s so easy to make your own plant milk and that cuts down even further on packaging and waste. I experimented with making a bunch of plant milks when I went dairy free last year, and settled on cashew as my favourite. I started eating dairy again recently, but I’m still making and drinking only cashew milk! I just really like it. I buy a 3kg bag of cashew pieces for about $30 at Moore Wilson’s and that lasts me about 3 months. I put 2 handfuls of cashews in the blender along with a couple of dates, top it up with water to the 1L mark, and then let it soak overnight. Then I wazz it up in the blender the next morning, and don’t even strain it or use a nut milk bag or anything, I just pour it right into a glass bottle and it lasts me about a week. I must admit this method doesn’t work for everyone. I do have quite a fancy commercial Blendtec blender which I think is like $1200 new 😂 I got it on TradeMe for $100 and i definitely love it. I tried making cashew milk at my in-laws in their food processor and it didn’t work at all. The pigs seemed to enjoy the weird cashew slop I made though😂 I guess I’m going to have to start travelling with my blender. So this helps me reduce waste and save money. Is that another life hack?! If you do have to buy milk, just make sure you don’t get stuff in a Tetrapak. That shit is so bad for the planet! There is a great new blog about it from @uyo.nz - read it and never buy Tetrapak again! These cashews come from Vietnam. I tried to find out how cashew farming stacks up against other plant milk options. Almond and soy seem like the worst, but I could t find out much about cashews. I’m going to look into other options when this bag runs out. Maybe I can find fair trade cashews, or maybe I’ll switch to NZ oat milk? And my carrot cake is not vegan but it is delicious! #sustainability #plantmilk #lifehacks
I thought I would share some photos of my finished I thought I would share some photos of my finished @novitaknits free pattern for the #hellicardigan since I have been wearing it heaps. I’m super proud of this since it’s the first hand knit garment I’ve actually finished in about 15 years. Also quite proud of my intarsia which was completely random with no pattern followed and turned out pretty cool! I was inspired by this Barrosu cardigan by @yanislaisi who was kind enough to even give me some advice about trying to knit my own. I used @crucciltd Rhythm NZ chunky wool yarn which was on sale at Knit World and I think I know why - after just a few weeks this thing is already looking hella raggedy! I tried to clean it up for these photos but the wool is piling everywhere 😢 Anyway I’ve already started knitting another #hellicardigan - I really like this pattern. However I am going with a different yarn and stripes instead of intarsia this time. Wow maybe I’m going to become a knitwear designer next? I’ve got a noho marae this weekend all on Zoom so looking forward to making lots of progress on this bb 😎🧶 xo Nicole #knitting #handknit #rainbowknitting #rainbowcardigan #knittingrainbows #intarsiarainbow #handmadewardobe #nzwool
Just reposting this because it annoyed me big time Just reposting this because it annoyed me big time how the image was cropped on the grid and I just couldn’t take it anymore! Also those weren’t my hands it was just a stock image so it felt a bit lazy 😂 so here we go again!
I’ve been enjoying making keep cups recently 🌈 I like the challenge of getting the rim width exactly 10.3 cms when throwing so it will fit the lids after firing. The clay shrinks about 15% so it has taken quite a bit of trial and error to consistently get the right size, but I’m happy to report that every cup in my last firing fit the lids perfectly! I know a lot of people drink coffee but I am an herbal tea drinker and I just found all the keep cups I had were too small for the size beverage I enjoy! So I made some extra-large keep cups. These hold between 300 and a whopping 500 mls of liquid! That’s my kind of beverage 🥳 It’s great to have a lovely handmade keep cup rather than some single use rubbish that ends up in the sea choking a penguin. Make sure you bring your own cup and insist on using it when visiting cafes! The bonus of handmade is you can get a custom size that suits your beverage style perfectly 😎 if none of these meet your needs just get in touch! What colour lid do you like best? I’m thinking of putting these and others on my website soon. Hopefully I will be able to do that this week! xo Nicole #keepcup #useyourown @uyo.nz #nzpottery #wheelthrown
Before I went away in June I finally motivated mys Before I went away in June I finally motivated myself to try a mother-of-Pearl lustre firing. These are the results! The lustre gives an iridescent rainbow effect on top of glossy glazes and is extremely hard to photograph! Lustres are actually metal particles suspended in a solution that you apply to your glaze-fired pieces and then fire a 3rd time to a lower temperature. These are called ‘on-glaze lustres’ (or ‘luster if you’re American 😂) These turned out ok - the rainbows are actually more vivid irl than these photos capture. However, the iridescence is a bit patchy rather than uniform. So I am going to call this not a failure for a first attempt but I have some more experimentation to do. Many thanks to @alisonthyraceramics for her inspiration and helpful hints! She is the iridescent rainbow queen and I hope with practice one day I can achieve some results like hers 🌈✨ #rainbowsparkles #ceramics #lustreceramics #onglazeluster #motherofpearlluster #wheelthrown
Kia ora e hoa mā! Hooray for Level 2! That means Kia ora e hoa mā! Hooray for Level 2! That means this exhibition is going to go ahead - and I am going to have some work in it! //////////////////////////////////////////// KINK 21-26 September @thistlehall_community_venue KINK group exhibition plays with erotica in a variety of mediums from clay to ink and the in-between. An artists collective all expressing an unrestrained perspective on the human form, sensuality, kink, humour, love & sex. Saturday 21st will be a pop up art market with more KINK pieces from @broken.nz including art prints and more. Artists: @rachie_campbell @falcongreyceramics @mikip.art @restless_infectious @coulstonroadstudio @iza.za.za @nice.assets @broken.nz Opening Night: Tuesday September 21 6-10pm Opening hours: Tuesday - Friday 10.00am - 5.00pm Saturday 10.00am- 7.00pm Sunday 10.00am - 5.00pm 293 Cuba Street, Wellington ////////////////////////////////////////////
Well it looks like I will have to wait a while for Well it looks like I will have to wait a while for the big ‘reveal’ of that top secret project I was working on for @wellyonaplate as the event has been postponed until the current rāhui is over. So in the meantime enjoy some photos of less-exciting work out of my most recent firing. 1 & 2.) a vulva planter made with Keane ‘Chris light speckle’ from @nelsonpotterysupplies with a clear glaze. A few people were looking for examples of this clay body fired - here it is in oxidation at cone 7. 3 & 4.) some samples for wholesale orders - ‘mana wāhine’ for @hetohunz and ‘go away I’m reading’ for a local Newtown bookshop. Both of these are Keane’s ‘33’ stoneware. I like this clay though it’s a bit sad to be using Aussie clay, but NZ clay is just in such high demand atm and hard to get I thought I would try some others. This one is also from @nelsonpotterysupplies which W and I picked up in person when we went to the Sounds for a very rainy holiday in June. For the ‘mana wāhine’ mugs I had been asked to use an opal glaze and leave the text unglazed; but I think I like the black lettering with clear glaze of the ‘go away…’ mugs better. I think it’s a bit hard to read the text otherwise? But maybe some people like the subtle look? I’m curious to know what you prefer! The same clay with different decoration/glaze can give quite a different look. 5.) is a teapot that I am surprised survived the kiln as the handle had a big crack when it came out of the kiln… And 6.) is another example of 1 clay with 2 different glazes. This time it’s buff stoneware with coarse grog from @botpots that I’ve had in my clay stash a few years. I think their clay comes from Korea? I am trying to clear out some of the old clays I have been hoarding for whatever reason. I had cracking issues with this clay when I first tried to use it but I think I’ve got the hang of it now! I quite like rough textures like this. And 7.) this is my new photography set up that I got on TradeMe! Good to have some decent lights finally, the the table isn’t quite big enough for my biggest pieces. I still don’t have a good way of photographing larger pieces…if anyone has any suggestions! xo Nicole
After a long pause I thought I would share some of After a long pause I thought I would share some of my rāhui sewing 1.) a self-drafted tie-dyed linen (Pete’s Emporium) kaftan. I feel like Sun Ra or something in this. 2.) a lime green @itokri cotton @fridaypatterncompany #wildergown 3.) an @_diydaisy #mayadress in cotton @itokri ikat I have done a lot more little sewing projects but these are the ones worth photographing as much as I hate being a clothes model maybe some people will find this useful… I might save a highlight of my tie-dyeing techniques but there is a great YouTube video - search ‘Jacquard spiral tie dye’ and you’ll find it. I use Procion MX dyes from Terri Dyes in Palmerston North. I soaked the linen in a soda ash solution first. Not sure if that’s strictly necessary for linen but it can’t hurt! #sewing #tiedye
Turquoise vulva teapot For an upcoming group exhi Turquoise vulva teapot For an upcoming group exhibition… details tba! #putavulvaonit #nzpottery #potteryispolitical #feministart #functionalpottery #functionalart
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Functional ceramics handmade by Nicole Gaston in Newtown, Wellington, New Zealand.

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