Similar to tea, creating functional pottery requires patience. A lot of time, hard work and planning goes into unique, food safe pieces whether they are made for tea or not. Ryan Durbin is the owner and potter behind RD Ceramics. Primarily wheel-thrown, he creates everyday dishes, such as mugs, cups, bowls, plates, pitchers, and vases. A few years ago we connected and I received a lovely mug I use almost daily for my morning cup of tea. At the tea table Ryan shared how tea plays a role during his day-to-day life, his favourite tea mug from his personal collection and he gives us a virtual tour of his studio space.
The kettle is on and I can hear it about to sing. What tea are you going to steep for us today?
Peach Mango Paradise black tea from Bruetta, a tea company local to me in southern Ohio.
Do you recall your first sip that started your tea journey?
I grew up drinking sweetened iced tea as a kid in Kentucky and continue drinking it to the day. It’s a pretty common southern thing living in the United States.
I started drinking hot tea regularly once I started working at my college internship as a web developer. My coworkers were older adults and big coffee drinkers.
As a non-coffee drinker, I tried some Bigelow Peach Green Tea from a Bigelow assorted pack since it’s all they had. I still love it to this day and started my fruit tea obsession.
As a potter and small business owner, what are some of your daily tea rituals?
I work a full-time job from my home on the computer as a website developer. I like to start my morning with a couple cups of hot black tea and may follow it up with another cup of hot white or green tea before lunch. If I have some sweetened iced tea in the fridge, I may have that with my lunch or dinner on occasion.
I absolutely love my RD Ceramics mug! I imagine you must have quite a few favourites of your own.
My favorite mug I own is a handbuilt mug made by David Pinto. I bought it in Jamaica while my wife and I were on our honeymoon. It’s sentimental, is a beautiful peach shino glaze, and is handbuilt (different from all of my wheel thrown work).
We found it at the Montego Bay airport shop before leaving Jamaica and I’ve loved it ever since. Our pottery collection is now probably close to 150 pieces and growing from other ceramic artists all around the world.
We try to buy a piece whenever we visit a new country (Mexico, Iceland, United Kingdom, Canada). We’re getting more particular with the pieces we buy (fewer mugs these days) as our collection grows.
I love seeing how you display your work, especially the mug shelf for your own collection. Take us on a tour of your newly-renovated studio space.
My studio space for RD Ceramics is in my basement/garage, common for many who have a studio in their home. It’s about half of the basement (500 sq. ft.).
Back in the winter of 2019 we decided to build a wall to split up the studio from the rest of the basement/garage. It’s helped massively with our storage, studio organization, and insulating the studio for the colder winter months (especially when the kiln is running).
I have everything I need in the space, from 2 pottery wheels, 2 large kilns, wedging table, assortment of glazes, ample clay storage, tons of shelving, a utility sink, couch and TV. Plenty of room to move around freely without feeling cramped, too! It’s a great space and one of our must haves when we were house hunting back 5 years ago before buying our first home.
Another bonus of the space doubling as the garage is making it easier to pack up the vehicle with bins of work for my in-person art shows. It’s a very short distance from the studio to the back end of the SUV. It saves me lots of time and physical strain!
Speed Round:
Black, Green, Yellow, White, Oolong or Puerh?
Black. I start every day with a couple cups of black tea to get some caffeine and wake me up a bit. I’m not much of a breakfast eater, so tea carries me to lunchtime.
Hot, Iced or Cold?
Hot usually. Being in Kentucky though, I love a ice cold glass of sweet tea.
Teapot, Infuser or Gaiwan?
Teapot. I’m super simple when it comes to making my tea so I’m guilty of using tea bags and hot water from the Keurig for convenience.
Straight, Sweetened or Latte?
Always sweetened, usually 1 packet of Sweet-n-Low. I’ll get a Chai Latte on occasion.
Cheese or Chocolate pairing?
I’ve never paired my tea (hot or iced) with either.
If someone interested in creating functional pottery asked for your best beginners advice, what would be your answer?
Find a local studio to take classes and make lots of pots. The more you make, the better you will get. Looking back at your early pieces is a great reminder how far you’ve come.
Find RD Ceramics:
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Etsy
ABOUT THIS SERIES: Tea tells stories and when connected with humans, more are created. That’s where the idea for this blog series, At the Tea Table, originated. With this series, The Cup of Life asks tea lovers around the world to take us inside their tea lives to share their favourite steeps, spaces, routines and more. Meet some of your fellow tea drinkers here.
Very cool work space and nice work:)
I saw this page when I looked up how to make my favorite tea drink The London Fog. I like mine made with 1/2&1/2 and French Vanilla