Design

The Ceramics Design Champion

November 15, 2011


Our judges met at Flatbush Farm last week to take a look at the five finalists from the Ceramics Design Challenge.


Alice Goldsmith, known for her handmade flatware series, and Jono Pandolfi known for his iconic Pillow Plate joined Product Designer Sarah Stenseng to look at some very impressive work:

Kathy Gorg’s Calla Lily collection won the customer vote.

Jennifer Fisher’s Pocket Planters charmed everyone with their bright colors and potential to become tiny terrariums or jewelry trays.

Romi Hefetz’s Mini Bowls stacked perfectly in the judges hands and showed off beautiful glaze work.

Kyla Toomey’s Button Series wowed everyone. Nobody could believe how much work and detail went into making each woven mug or button bowl.

But Tasha McKelvey’s Birdie Mini Dish stole the show.

The judges agreed these handmade dishes were great gifts for moms, aunts, grandmas, sisters, daughters and best friends who dye their hair pink and collect kitschy relics of the fifties. (That last idea was from Judge Alice Goldsmith.)

The judges were particularly impressed with the dish’s construction. Each dish is handpressed with a weathered piece of antique barn siding to give it a look of rustic wood. Each hand-sculpted bird is glazed separately and then added to the lip of the dish.

While the judges wished the birdie mini dishes were a bit larger, they all agreed that Tasha McKelvey’s creative work was a perfect fit for UncommonGoods.

Tasha wins $500 plus a chance to sell her dishes at UncommonGoods. Sign up to be notified when her dishes become available!

And let us know– should we bring in Tasha’s mushroom dish as well? Leave a comment to let us know what you think.

9 Comments

  • Reply Rhonda November 15, 2011 at 6:34 pm

    We love Tasha’s work! Last year I gave my sister and mom bird vases so we all had the same ones and it was all special. We would love to see her in UG!

  • Reply Nicole November 16, 2011 at 11:12 am

    Yes, bring in the mushroom dish too. I use it all the time to hold my rings. It’s the perfect size for this!

  • Reply Lori November 18, 2011 at 1:48 am

    Would love to see all three dishes at UG! Adorable!

  • Reply Victoria Salas November 18, 2011 at 9:55 am

    I thought it was to accompany the bird dishes! It looks like a tiny birdbath!

  • Reply Renee November 18, 2011 at 3:15 pm

    I love the birds! And think the mushrooms are super cute too. I vote you sell both 🙂

  • Reply Abby November 18, 2011 at 6:49 pm

    I think it would be incomplete without the mushroom. it really looks great as a set together.

  • Reply Rebecca @ Unexplained X2 November 18, 2011 at 9:15 pm

    You should definitely have these on your site…adorable!

  • Reply Tips for Creating a Winning Portfolio | Tasha McKelvey | UncommonGoods August 14, 2012 at 2:23 pm

    […] fall I entered the UncommonGoods Ceramics Design Challenge on a whim. The holiday rush was already upon me, so I decided to take a few minutes and fill out […]

  • Reply Cornelius Stano July 31, 2013 at 7:35 am

    I respect your work, thankyou for all the good articles.

  • Leave a Reply to Victoria Salas

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.