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    • Feb 7, 2021
    • 1 min read

11 October 2020 Isca Wood Crafts Tredegar House

Every day, come rain or shine, I, or we, walk our dogs Sadie and Macallan in The grounds of Tradegar House, a National Trust property on the edge of Newport. There are a few small craft enterprises in the grounds, one of which is a most interesting woodcraft shop, owned by a lovely husband and wife team; a bespoke furniture maker by trade and a wood crafter and burnisher. They are really talented people and we have got to know them over the weeks and months we have been in Newport.


The workshop side of the business boasts what I would describe as the most extensive selection of tree slices – oak, ash, beech, holly, plane, tree of heaven, cherry…..there must be a hundred, many of which I hadn’t heard of, all beautiful, showing off the individual grain characteristics of each species.


I’ve fallen for wood. Every time I go into the shop I am drawn to browse, touch and admire the beauties which are otherwise hidden and locked inside the trees which grace our countryside.


Isn’t Pinterest marvellous!!


Inspired by this beautiful wood, I started to research how we could have something of this in our own garden. Pinterest has provided us with lots of ideas. Paul, the furniture woodcrafter at Isca, embraced the project with enthusiasm and prepared the wood for me to inset resin panels into the bark slices. He also created wooden platforms to enable the pieces to be erected in the garden.


This is the result. Hopefully over the next week or so they will be constructed in situ, and I can enjoy them through the window of my studio during the winter months.

woman holding a book, next to a coffee mug



Comments

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Realising a Dream..

This is me. Setting out on my journey as a hobbyist potter.

Pottery was an ‘add on’ O level course when I was at school, only offered in the sixth form. In to studying Music and RE to A level, I embarked on pottery ‘O’ level as a bit of light relief. I loved it although I was never particularly good at it. I made a few pots, mainly handbuilding using slabbing and coiling but didn’t really learn much.

What I wanted to do more than anything was throw on the wheel – the school did have a wheel but no one was allowed near it unless they knew what they were doing… an interesting approach to the process of acquiring skill methinks. I do have one of my very first pots – rather crude really, but its mine, with my initials ‘scrauped’ on the base. Over the intervening years, of which there were many, I watched the art of throwing from a distance, always hoping that one day it would happen.


We had bought our little cottage in Halifax in 2009. Six years later the adjoining house became available so we set about creating a home by combining the two halves. The ‘under-dwelling’, a feature of a number of houses in that area of West Yorkshire was a real gem; we converted into a pottery studio for me and there began my journey. I enrolled on a course in Springhead. Oldham and my amazingly talented pottery teacher, Sue Devine gave me one-to-one tuition in throwing. I bought a pottery wheel and was given a small kiln. My journey had begun – 40 years later!

Twelve month ago, my partner and I moved to Newport in South Wales. I am most fortunate have a pottery studio here. Why Andante Ceramics? Well, I work slowly, I go with the flow, I create no deadlines for my self. My world of clay is completely self-asbsorbing and tomorrow, if I am fortunate to have one, is another day.

My media pages give a flavour of what I do and my blog documents my thoughts as I journey through the wonderful world of pottery and ceramics. I wont sell any of my work but I delight in making pieces specifically for friends; I love the challenge that creating bespoke pieces bring. If you would like me to make something special do please ask.

Wendy Diamond

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