‘The fantasy is my own pottery shed’
Sally Dawson, 47, combines life as a mother of three and a producer in a photographic studio with a serious – and lucrative – pottery habit, after throwing her first pot three years ago. @sallyfdawsonceramics
I studied textiles at college but hadn’t continued with anything art based and wanted to do something creative. There are other art classes out there – I’d looked into printed textiles but didn’t know quite what I’d be making, what I’d be bringing home and for what purpose. After a pottery class, you get a cup to drink your tea out of or a bowl to eat your cereal from.
I started three years ago with one weekly class and had a bit of a knack for it so when the course ended,
I did another and then another. I then joined Turning Earth and tried to go to the studio twice a week for two or three hours – at the moment, that’s possible because I work a four-day week.
Two years ago, I had my first stall at the Turning Earth Christmas fair – I think I sold about £300 worth of stuff but the fact that anybody I didn’t know wanted to buy something I’d made was astonishing. The last Christmas fair was an extraordinary day. I made enough to cover six months’ studio rental.
It would be lovely to just make things and sell things full-time at my own pace. That’s the fantasy, having my own shed, but it’s not really practical. And although I’ve started to make a bit of money from my pots, it is still an expensive hobby and my house is filling up with pots, which is a problem! But I love the fact that when I’m there, I have to really concentrate; I have to stop thinking about any real-life worries – and I’m always learning. I never think, ‘Oh I can do this now.’ I’ve only scratched the surface.