Arts Craft Arts

Wedding Guide Summer 2021: Plays in Mud Pottery Offers Wedding Registry, Classes

Cream and sugar sets. Kelsey Schissel, artist

By Natasha Anderson

Plays in Mud Pottery, in Asheville, offers both experiential gifts and functional and decorative items for couples, wedding parties and guests. Owner and potter Kelsey Schissel creates vessels with art nouveau forms influenced by nature. Shapes may be inspired by the curve of a bird’s wing or the undulation of mountains. She embellishes the surface of her work using handmade stamps placed in concentric circles until she has a completed pattern. The process can take hours, as Schissel strives to place each stamp perfectly, filling in negative space and integrating the design onto the bottom.

“You will find hidden design elements inside the lids of teapots, on the bottoms of vases and running up the handles on every piece,” says Schissel. “I even hide my signature on the bottom of the pots, nestled in with the pattern, and wonder if anyone will notice.”

Couples may register for items including place settings, sugar-and-creamer sets, sake sets, teapots, wine chillers and stemless wine glasses. Other popular gifts include planters, vases, mugs, tumblers and beer steins. Special-order gifts may be inscripted with a message of the purchaser’s choosing.

“I have also made wedding favors that have the couple’s name and wedding date written on the bottom,” says Schissel. “The most popular wedding favors are pint glasses and small place holder bud vases.”

Plays in Mud also offers classes for wedding parties and guests. The classes are two hours long and limited to eight participants. Each participant can expect to make at least four pieces of pottery utilizing four different techniques: hand building, coil building, pinching and extrusion. Students select from six different glaze colors. Schissel fires, glazes and ships the pieces. All materials and tools are included.

Visit PlaysinMud.com to shop or learn more about registry options and classes.

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