The Mother Earth Collection

The Mother Earth Collection Brenda Van Handel is a Natchez, MS native and part-time resident of Wisconsin, specializing in Native American pottery true to historical methods.

Recently , someone wanted to see the results of this firing to possibly make a purchase. If anyone is interested , you ...
05/26/2019

Recently , someone wanted to see the results of this firing to possibly make a purchase. If anyone is interested , you may pm me for more info.

I recently learned some Native American pottery was made of Loess soil . I haven't found a lot of info on it , but I h...
05/26/2019

I recently learned some Native American pottery was made of Loess soil . I haven't found a lot of info on it , but I have taken what I did find and ran with it. I have made these 4 pots of what I think is Loess soil . They make up with a little difficulty ,and fire very nicely. One of these pots I will use as a test pot and warm up a can of chicken noodle soup in it over the campfire to see what happens .
I have talked with a geologist about this dirt I used and hope to have his visit soon ,as I am very anxious to hear what he has to say about this.

We had a very successful firing Saturday !There were pots made from Wisconsin red ,Columbus Ms yellow orange with lots o...
05/26/2019

We had a very successful firing Saturday !
There were pots made from Wisconsin red ,Columbus Ms yellow orange with lots of mica ,Roxie Ms orange, Monterey La grey , and grey white clay from my own bac woods . There were two pots of a questionable material that did very well. I am expecting a geologist to come visit me and the source of that material soon to educate me on this subject .
All of the pots had a very nice ring to them..I wasnt expecting the black look to them in the tub firing , so that was the element of surprize you can have with every firing 🥰

Just a reminder that I do have a LOT of found clay , and I really DONT HAVE to stop on the road to dig clay ....but I ca...
05/17/2019

Just a reminder that I do have a LOT of found clay , and I really DONT HAVE to stop on the road to dig clay ....but I can't help myself !
And , there's more in barrels out side .....Im just always on the lookout for the" perfect clay that makes the finest pottery as that of France " said the early settlers of some of the early Native Americans pottery...how jealous I am ❤

Clean up day in the work space ..my studio 😁Half of the garage is Jim Van Handel's and the other half is mine !
05/17/2019

Clean up day in the work space ..my studio 😁
Half of the garage is Jim Van Handel's and the other half is mine !

Well..for a blog on early Native American pottery and how it was made ..WHAT is wrong with these pictures 🤔Let me tell y...
05/17/2019

Well..for a blog on early Native American pottery and how it was made ..WHAT is wrong with these pictures 🤔
Let me tell you..I am very impressed at the work done , probably by the women of a tribe . I'm too skeered of rattlesnakes as big as my leg in the cool shady woods to go collecting firewood . So I go glean what I need from the loggers leftovers, wearing my gloves and using my tools if necessary...and then carrying it home in the back of my trusty little CRV !
No toting firewood home on a sled of some kind , the next thing to a wagon or wheelbarrow , for me.
I tell you..it was work , a laborious act of producing useful and beautiful creations from the dust of the earth..for me ,a labor of love and a passion ❤

Its time to gather firewood for the firing next week ...to put under a tarp and keep dry. So...where do I go..into the ...
05/17/2019

Its time to gather firewood for the firing next week ...to put under a tarp and keep dry. So...where do I go..into the cool shady woods to gather what I can and tote it all the way to the garage where I work...or into the hot sun where trees have been cut ?

Here's a study in sawdust as a temper for a clay body :-)It was by accident that a small grained sawdust ended up in a ...
05/17/2019

Here's a study in sawdust as a temper for a clay body :-)
It was by accident that a small grained sawdust ended up in a pile of wet clay , so I went with it as temper. It was hard to polish smooth with a rock ,so I went with a rough finish... Which got rougher as it dried and then was fired. I'm not sure I want this look on anything..but it was interesting to try it.

If anybody out there knows anything about Loess dirt pottery , PLEASEPrivate message me !At a recent trip to Poverty Poi...
05/16/2019

If anybody out there knows anything about Loess dirt pottery , PLEASE
Private message me !
At a recent trip to Poverty Point , I was told that there was not that much pottery made there ,and that clay cooking balls and hot rocks were the main cooking experiences. The exciting part of what was told to me , was that most pottery was made from the Loess soil.
Tightly woven baskets were used for cooking in at one time ,with the hot clay balls or rocks used to heat the food .
While looking for clay on my own property , I came across this yellow dirt mixture which acts much like clay....is this Loess ...does anyone know ? The two small bowls have been fired...the big one will be fired next weekend.
If you know anything about Loess dirt ,then I would love to talk to you !

I'm doing a little more than simple test pots with all these different clays....so I hope I have a good firing day soon ...
05/16/2019

I'm doing a little more than simple test pots with all these different clays....so I hope I have a good firing day soon !

Happy Mothers Day To Me ❤I got 2 Walmart bags of clay on the way bac from Hattisburg😁It is best NOT to go digging clay i...
05/12/2019

Happy Mothers Day To Me ❤
I got 2 Walmart bags of clay on the way bac from Hattisburg😁
It is best NOT to go digging clay in your Sunday dress clothes , just so you know !

Here are our treasures to tell our story of our time together. The fellowship and creativity , the shared thoughts about...
05/06/2019

Here are our treasures to tell our story of our time together. The fellowship and creativity , the shared thoughts about the Native Americans way of doing things were so encouranging to me. I love what Im doing and hope others are being inspired to be creative in this ages old art form ❤

Address

Kingston, MS

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when The Mother Earth Collection posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category