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| Greetings! | |
Welcome to the latest issue of News & Notes, our email newsletter. It has been a busy spring at Ephraim Pottery. While the process of developing and introducing a new collection of pottery and tiles has been the main focus, much has been going on behind the scenes. We have been working to secure a new retail space for our Lake Mills gallery and planning the build-out and move; see Our Wisconsin gallery is expanding, below. This project is underway and should be completed by the end of June. We're excited about the new possibilities this will open up to us.
Big changes have also taken place in our office. Three weeks ago we bid farewell to Kris Hein as she embarked on the adventure of a lifetime: motherhood. Kris had been with us for
 | | Laura Taylor |
almost three years in various capacities, but most recently had played a critically important role in customer service and work scheduling for the studio. With Kris's help, we selected a new person to work full-time in this area. Laura Taylor has been with us since mid-April and is a great addition to our team. If you call our office, you most likely will talk to Laura, so please introduce yourself to her and welcome her to the Ephraim family.
We've got plenty more news to share with you, so please read on! |
| New pottery and tiles now available |
 Our latest Studio Collection is now available. These new pottery and tile designs were released online in April, and printed catalogs were mailed in May.
Our artists have been working hard getting the new pieces ready to present to you. Highlights include pieces in our new Cranberry faience glaze and two handpainted vases in a matte vellum glaze - one in the style of Rookwood and the other in Newcomb College style. Many months of hard work went into developing this new painting and glazing process. We're very excited about it and we hope you are, too.
Several new tiles are also being offered. In addition to designs in our matte faience and glossy glazes, we now have two designs available in "Antique" style crackled/curdled glazes. The rich color pallette gives "Long Shadows" and "Autumn Path" the feel of Arts-and-Crafts era woodcut prints.
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| NEW! Reserve Editions |
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"Bothered Bear"
first Reserve Edition ($138) |
As you've probably noticed by now, we like to try new things at Ephraim Pottery. In April, we introduced Reserve Editions. Reserve Edition pieces will be numbered and will be offered for a limited time, in a pre-determined quantity, or both. Pieces will have a limited ordering "window" and the number of pieces ordered will determine the edition size. Since we don't know the total number of pieces to be made until the edition closes, these pieces have a 4-6 week lead time. We will also include some pieces for our Lake Mills and Cambria galleries in the edition for people who missed the deadline and for those just discovering our pottery.
Bothered Bear was our first Reserve Edition piece. The ordering window closed at noon on May 3rd with a total of 40 pieces in the edition. All of the customer orders for that piece have been filled and our galleries have their pieces in stock.
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"Froggy Went A Courtin"
new Reserve Edition ($328) |
Our current Reserve Edition offering is Froggy Went A Courtin' (photo shown above). We are also offering a large version of this piece ($650) in a extremely limited edition of 3 that will be sold by buyer's drawing. Learn more about this Reserve Edition or order the regular-sized piece online here. The ordering/entry deadline for this edition is noon (CDT) on Wednesday, June 12.
Future Reserve Editions will be announced by email and posted on our Facebook page. Our next planned Reserve Edition is a ceramic plaque with a landscape hand-painted by Leah Purisch and framed in quartersawn white oak by John Raymond. We don't have a release date for that yet, so watch your inbox and our Facebook page for an announcement. |
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| Identity Crisis |
Brian Smith writes on our Facebook page, "Hey guys, what's your take about the exact term for the 'Arts & Crafts' movement? Our modern culture doesn't seem to know what the term means. If you search on Tumblr, it will come up with kindergarten projects. What would be the 'modern' term..craftsman?"
Kristin replies, "That's a great question, and it's a subject we discuss fairly often here at the studio. 'Craft' is a loaded term; one that's evolved over the centuries and is constantly changing and morphing. There are debates over what is 'art' and what
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| Contact us | |
Ephraim Pottery Office & Studio
203 W. Lake St., Lake Mills, WI
Website & Online Store
Orders & Customer Service
Mon-Fri 9:00-5:00 CDT
Toll free 1-888-704-POTS (7687)
920-648-5269
Ephraim Pottery Gallery
Currently at 203 West Lake St., Lake Mills; moving to 130 East Lake St. at the end of June.
Tel. 920-648-3534
Hours: Tues-Sat 10-5, Sun 11-4
Ephraim Pottery West
728 Main Street, Cambria, CA 93428
Tel. 805-924-1275
Hours: Mon-Sat 10-5, Sun 11-4
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| Woodshop update |  John has been busy in the woodshop developing a line of frames and stands (easels) to go with our line of tiles. He has created several prototypes, some of which are now available in our Lake Mills and Cambria galleries. He is now tweaking the prototypes. When the designs are finalized, he will begin to make "runs" of frames and stands. Once he has some stock built, we will be able to offer them to customers by order as well as in our galleries. We will make an announcement by email and on our Facebook page when they are ready to order.
 The frames that John is developing will be simpler in style than those he has been creating for our handpainted plaques. We will begin by offering frames to fit our 5x5 and 5x7 tiles. The stands (shown at left) will accommodate any size tile and can be set to incline at two different angles for optimal viewing. Each frame and stand will be made by hand by John of quarter-sawn white oak. John has also been working on speciality frame designs to complement the hand-painted ceramic plaques we've been working on. Look for a Reserve Edition offering of these soon (see Reserve Editions, above). On top of all his work on frames and stands, John is also working on display tables for our Lake Mills gallery (see below) and a unique floor-standing shelving unit to display pottery, tiles, or books. This is an exciting time for John as well as for the rest of us Ephraim Pottery. We're looking forward to sharing these new products with you as they develop. |
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Our Wisconsin gallery is expanding |
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Shawn and Rae Rediske of Water House with Ephraim's Kevin Hicks in front of the new store |
Our gallery in Lake Mills, Wisconsin, will be moving to a new, larger location on East Lake Street this summer. Currently located on the floor above our studio and offices at 203 West Lake Street, our gallery will move to the now-empty storefront at 130 East Lake Street, adjacent to Water House Bistro. The space is being renovated and is expected to be ready by the end of June.
"While we've enjoyed sharing retail space with Sweet Lips, this move will give both our businesses room for growth," said Kevin Hicks, owner of Ephraim. "Lake Mills has been great to us. We are looking forward to working more closely with Water House and to the additional opportunities this move will provide." Rae and Shawn Rediske, owners of Water House, look forward to welcoming their new neighbors. "We are so excited to work side by side with Ephraim. We look forward to many ways to make it a shared space."
Ephraim Pottery's gallery will remain open in its current location next to Sweet Lips Art and Gift Gallery on West Lake Street until the move. Current hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Watch for updates on the move and plans for a grand re-opening celebration in future newsletters. |
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As Kevin said in his introduction to our new studio collection, "We are better together is a motto that is in evidence every day at EFP." Creativity, collaboration, and committment to our art, our customers, and to each other is what we're all about at Ephraim. Thanks for traveling along with us on our creative journey.
Sincerely,
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Kristin Cramer
Ephraim Faience Pottery
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