Care & use

Everything I make for the table is meant to be used every day. Here is how to keep it that way.

• Food safe, with lead-free glazes
• Dishwasher safe
• Microwave safe
• Freezer friendly
• Not for the oven, stovetop or open flame

Food and drink

My tableware is food safe, and all of my glazes are lead free. Most of my work is stoneware and porcelain fired to cone 10, with some pieces fired to cone 6. Both are fired hot enough to make the clay dense and durable. If you like the technical side, the ceramic terms page explains cones.

Washing

Pots are dishwasher safe. Decorative pieces with heavy texture or a soda-fired surface (or both) are best washed by hand, which keeps those surfaces looking the way they came out of the kiln.

Microwave and freezer

Microwave safe, and fine in the freezer.

Keep away from direct heat

Please keep my pots out of the oven, off the stovetop and away from open flame. They are not made for direct heat.

Sudden temperature changes

Clay can crack when its temperature changes quickly, which is called thermal shock. Going from cold to hot all at once is what to avoid. Let a piece from the freezer or fridge warm up for a bit before you fill it with something boiling hot or put it in the microwave, and don't set a hot pot down on a cold, wet surface.

Living with handmade pots

No two pieces are exactly alike, especially from the soda kiln, where the flashing is different on every pot. Metal utensils can leave grey marks on some glazes over time; a paste of baking soda and water lifts them.