horizons...

new and exciting things are on the horizon!
i love beaufort. this place has been so wonderful to me right from the second i got here. when i left the mountains, my life was good, but parts of it were in a funny kind of rut.  driving down 70 east that august day, i had no idea what was ahead of me. bft was like some secret superpower... it was just what i needed it. i  have felt more alive than i have in a long time. 
the last two years have taught me a lot, as a person and as a potter.  i have stumbled, for sure, but i have grown so much on this path. i feel blessed and unworthy of the wonderful life that fell into my hands when i moved here.
BUT...
in the back of my head laid a sweet little mountain town. driving into those mountains is like driving into a hug. climbing that hill, to be closer to the clouds, where the stars shine brighter, it always makes my eyes burn with tears. i push the pedal closer to the floorboard. sweet mountain air curls in through my car window. i reach the top and snuggle into the resting place of my mountain town. i am home.
its beauty, its nature and its wildness is uncomparable. its full of old timers, with their wisdom and tradition that i can only hope to someday understand.  the streets are flooded with the hipsters, in their way too tight jeans, the musicians making songs that sing to my heart. the artists leave a piece of themselves on every place they touch: the store windows, the sidewalks, bridges, cars, whatever. the extreme conservatives, the extreme liberals, the extreme treehuggers, in this town you are free to be exactly who the "eff" you are. its a strange cultural paradox. its beautiful.
i once saw people protesting outside of taco bell to save the tomato farmers. on the other side of the street were protesters, protesting the protesters. i was so moved, i wept. (yeah, whatever, everything makes me cry!except the stuff that should...). iknew this town was part of me forever.
we knew our days in BFT would be numbered.  we have taken time enjoy every single second of it. but now, the call of the hills is so loud, it is starting to hurt my ears. and so we go. back to asheville.
come november, we will settle into our mountain town once again. i have a new studio to move into (more details later!). i am so excited!!!  it will be a community space, a community space!!!!!  hurray. its what i need, right now, what i have needed, for awhile. i cannot wait.....another crazy blessing that i cant even fathom! your first clue: http://www.riverartsdistrict.com/.
for now, dear beaufort you will always, have a giagantically huge piece of my heart (yes there will also be another blog entry about that, at some point in time).  thank you for taking me under your wing. i will be back. the ocean will always call my name.
maybe someday we ll be back to stay....(probably to move back to asheville again. and then back to beaufort again. rinse. and repeat). but in the meantime, please stay close to me...

thank you for reading.
and wishing you well.
trista

rumor has it!

there is a rumor flying around that THR pottery might have some big changes in store...

oh, the mystery! oh, the suspense!

(did i stir your curiosity?)

stay tuned for updates!

as always, wishing you well and thanks for reading

~trista

old homes tour

old homes tour is this weekend and my studio will once again be a stop this year. the studio is TRASHED. oh well...looks like i gotta clean to do today!

night time

life in beaufort is sometimes difficult in ways you might not think....
 
but as i rode my bike home from the studio last night, the smell of jasmine, spiraling softly though the cool evening, i am reminded why i love it here. the moon reached full at 7:09 a.m. yesterday. the tide was so high it was nearly spilling into the streets. and i feel blessed that this is my commute from shutting down the kiln. the man in the moon makes taylor's sparkle and dance and it takes my breath away.

ophelia louise

well, i didnt get in the studio yesterday but for maybe an hour. maybe i spoke a little too soon, maybe ophelia (my little old lady dog) just had one good afternoon, but her progress is only slight and has leveled off. not very mobile and seemingly a bit uncomfortable, she still needs meds every two hours. i still feel a need to be home with my girl. AND we are moving to a new house in beaufort at the end of the week. i hope to get a few hours in the studio monday and tuesday. but should anyone need anything, i am close by and will happy to meet you in the studio. just holler.
for today, if you have some critters of your own, skip the gym, take rover for a walk instead or take a nap and let felix curl up in your lap a little longer...
thanks for reading and wishing yall the best,
~trista

dog days

i haven't made it to the studio at all this week. i have been at home with ophelia, my little old lady dog, all week! she has been temporarily unable to see since last saturday (due to an eye ulcer and an eye infection). i have been administering eye drops every two hours....it makes it hard to be away. good news: we just got home from the vet. she is starting to show signs of improvement!!! yay! her vision seems to be starting to return (no more running into walls).  thank goodness.
pshew. that was close...

see you soon. as always thanks for reading!
~trista

asheville turnaround!

hey yall! just wanted to let everyone know that i will be "out of the office" until thursday.  i am headed home to asheville for a few days. please call or send an email if you need anything before the weekend.

wishing you the best!

thanks ~trista

Happy New Year!

the year finished up in a flurry. the new year has begun!

i wanted to give a huge huge HUGE thanks to the people in this funky little town called beaufort. i cannot ever go on about how amazing it has been to have been so easily embraced by this community. as the year came to a close, it became even more obvious how lucky i am. a few people i didnt know came in, but a ton of people i did know did. this is so cool on so many levels. because hello? thank you so much for supporting local craft and local art. but even more, thanks for supporting me! <3

after a long holiday season of working my rear end off...i m taken some time to be home with my family. friday, we are finally heading to asheville to spend time with my folks, my little brother, my big brother, his wife and his kids. i am so excited for some fresh mountain air and some good old fashioned hudzik family fun!

see you soon!

happy new year and as always, thanks for reading!

finally!!!

yep! that IS my kiln in the kiln shed.

tuesday was a huge day for THR pottery! its been an uphill battle the last few weeks.the studio progress came to a screeching halt when some really weird bumps came up in the road. but patience and perserverence payed off tuesday. we finally passed the fire inspection!

when i started this whole process i remember  the town hall telling me this process would take awhile.  i would have to have a building inspection and a fire inspection in order to obtain a business license in BFT.  i had no idea what i was getting into!!!!  or what i needed to do. luckily, we passed the building inspection realtively easily, only having a few minor things to adjust.  we were then ready to move onto the fire inspection..... 

unfortunately, before we were able to move forward with the fire inspection, some issues came up with having a kiln in town. apparently, no one has had one in BFT, atleast not in a long time. folks around here had no idea what to make of my little  r2d2 (thats my kiln's name)!  my studio is in a residential area of BFT.  in order to address the possible concerns of neighbors or other people who may question an electric kiln, we worked with the city helping folks to understand the nature of r2d2. let me also take this oppurtunity to say, i am so excited, and thankful, for the support i have received from the city of BFT throughout this process!!!  anyway, once all of that was done we had to pass the fire inspection.  tuesday was the day! i was as nervous as i could be! but things went smoothly. what relief!

now i have shelves and shelves and shelves of pots waiting to be bisque fired and glazed.  i am so ready to get r2d2 workin!

update!

 

my studio!

Studio Rehab