Today I launch my new website. It sounds rather trivial in these times we live in; There's a new something every day. To me THIS is huge.
Settle has been my full time job now for over four years. It makes my stomach flip a little when I think about that. This is the first time in that four years that I feel like my website will actually reflect where I am at in my business and career.
I look at it as a pivotal point, showing my progress and growth. You may be sitting there wondering why it took me so long or maybe why didn't I do this four years ago when I began my business. Here's my reasoning. I wanted to take my time.
We go through life rushing from point A to point B. When it comes to Settle, I didn't want to rush. It's like going to see a new movie or reading a book for the first time. You will never have those feelings of joy and discovery quite the same way again. I wanted to take my time in first having a line I was truly proud of, pots that I know are tried and true. Glazes that are beautiful as well as reliable. Objects that I really enjoy making.
Then there was finding the right photographer.
That took a minute. I wanted to find someone who could tell my story, in a language I could relate to. I found that person in the lovely and extremely talented Mackenzie Smith Kelly. She was just as excited about shooting my entire line as I was.
Then of course there was actually making the work. That sounds so simple right? WRONG. Through this process I was forced to look at the fact that I make a lot of things, like A LOT. 33 styles in up to 8 colors, resulting in close to 220 different items. It was quite a bit of work, even considering that I typically make 300 pots a week. I made 12 serving bowls, (that's a lot of those).
To shoot the line I had to weave the making the items into time that was also dedicated to orders, since my workflow hadn’t slowed down since New Year’s. Once the items were made and ready for their close up, we had the shoot over two days. First day was dedicated to products, 8 hours of lighting and backgrounds and moving pots around. The second day was dedicated to fun and interesting vignettes, to capture mood and character surrounding my two collections of pots. We were lucky enough to also pull in the culinary talents of Beth and Raph of Le Pera Catering. They came into my crazy cramped workspace-turned-photo-studio and made a makeshift kitchen in our tiny kitchenette, boiling water on my kiln and making tortillas on a hot plate. They are wizards.
All in all it was incredible and thrilling. And four years ago it would have never happened.
So you see this was a massive step for me. And I am so glad to share it with you!