Sneak Peek > Mushroom Mugs In Progress

These mushroom mugs are still a work in progress, but I'm too excited not to share. There's something so fun about seeing and sharing them at this stage, when the ideas are starting to take shape and the pieces are still so breakable, raw and full of possibilities. Mushrooms have always felt a little magical to me. I love their earthy, whimsical look and the way they seem to belong in their own quiet little woodland world. They're strange in the best way — delicate, unique, and full of personality. That's a big part of why I wanted to paint them onto mugs. I thought it would be such a cozy, fun way to bring a bit of that foresty feeling into everyday life. I'm all about bringing the outside, inside.

Right now, these mugs haven't even gone through their bisque or first firing yet, so this is very much the in-between stage. They still have the pencil lines I used to sketch out the designs, which is one of my favourite little parts of the process. It feels a bit messy and chaotic, but also really special because you can still see the planning and hand-drawn details behind everything. After the glazing and second firing is when the colours really pop and come out in their full beauty. Right now the colours are a bit muted and matte, but with the shiny glaze on top, I hope they'll be miraculous. One of the coolest parts is that those pencil lines will actually burn right off in the kiln during firing. It always feels a little bit like magic. The bisque kiln gets incredibly hot — usually around 1000°C— and transforms the clay from this incredibly fragile, unfinished stage into something solid and ready for glazing. I love that part of ceramics so much, where a piece evolves and starts becoming what it was meant to be.

That transformation feels especially fitting for mushrooms somehow. They already carry that mysterious, earthy kind of magic, and these mugs feel the same way to me right now — like they're slowly becoming something beautiful. Even before they're finished, they're already full of character. I love making nature-inspired pottery that tells a story, and these mugs are definitely part of that. They're a little whimsical, a little woodland-inspired, and very much made with love. This stage may not be the final look, but I think there's something really beautiful about sharing the process too. So this is a little sneak peek before the kiln works its magic. Pencil lines, raw clay, and all.