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About Us

Cascadia Stoneware is a high fire pottery company located at the foot of the Cascade Mountains, and the edge of the Puget Sound near Deming, Washington.  Jeff McDougall, potter, his wife Natalie, and parents Alec & Sandy McDougall all work to bring this unique and beautiful pottery to a larger market.

 

 

 

  Jeff McDougall

                                                        Artist statement by Jeff McDougall:

 

       Raised on a small farm in the rainy Pacific Northwest, I spent a great deal of time playing in the mud.  However, it wasn't until I was an undergrad at Western Washington University that I discovered the potters' wheel and that I could make beautiful yet practical things with clay.  I started my first pottery business in my parent's barn, and began making a living as a potter while finishing my degree in ceramics.  I then became the primary potter at Mud In Your Eye Pottery in Bellingham, WA.  The Mud In Your Eye  store is closed however we are still making many of the same  pieces along with our own unique work at Cascadia Stoneware.

       I love the rich and ancient history of pottery and am inspired by the connection I feel to the earth while working with clay.  My goal is to combine traditional, functional shapes with vibrant glazes, to create pottery that is both useful and beautiful. 

       With 10 years of experience as a studio potter, I'm happy to be working now with my wife, Natalie and friend Dominic Santangelo.  Both have brought fresh artistic talent to Cascadia and together we make awesome pottery!  We start from scratch using raw clay and finish with our own unique hand-mixed glazes.  Our stoneware is fired to cone 12, (2,400 degrees), making it durable and more resistant to chipping and scratching than low-fire earthenware pottery. 

       We derive a great deal of pleasure knowing we are making  pottery for you to enjoy and use. 

 
Natalie - wife, office manager, glazer, finisher Alec - bookkeeper, handyman, sales

Sandy - web design, photographer, sales, odd jobs

Mom & Dad

       People are the most important aspect of any business.  As you can see by the photos here, all of us at Cascadia love what we do.

    Our goal is to create works of art that are handcrafted and functional for everyday use. Not only are our items unique, they are all dishwasher, microwave and oven safe. Cascadia Stoneware is looking for quality retailers to present our pottery to the public, if you are interested please contact us for more information.
 

How  our pottery is made.

       At Cascadia Stoneware we produce our work using a number of production methods.  We throw pots on the wheel, extrude handles, and soap dishes, slab build platters and some bowls, slip cast and press other items. 

       After a piece is formed it is partially dried and then trimmed and cleaned with a damp sponge.  Once completely dry it is bisque fired to 1,860 degrees, then cooled.  Every piece must then be washed off and stamped and is either dipped in hot paraffin or has to have wax painted on the bottom to resist the glaze.  Once the wax has cured, each piece is dipped in a base glaze, and then it is dried again before it is dipped in a second over glaze.  (Jeff creates all his own glazes.)  After drying yet again, decoration is applied using brushes, slip bottles or both.  Because each piece is glazed by hand no two are ever exactly alike. 

       The bottoms of the pots are then sponged off completely so they won't stick to the kiln shelves.  The kiln is strategically loaded to accommodate air flow and the hot and cold spots.  The kiln is 'candled' over night to cook off extra moisture and then fired all the next day (10 hours) to cone 12 (2,400 degrees). At that temperature the clay itself becomes vitrified into a very hard and dense stone like material, 17% smaller than the original piece.  The kiln cools down and the next afternoon can be unloaded.

       Finally we sand the bottoms of each piece and they are done.  Quite often it can take more than a month for an individual piece to make it all the way through the process.  Our studio is always full of pottery in all stages of production.  

Clay is cut into weight-size pieces to then be formed into balls.

Balls are formed.

The clay that's left over is then recycled by running it through a pugmill.

Out of the pugmill the clay is then reformed into balls & used again.

Some balls are thrown on the wheel.                         Some balls are ram pressed.
Some shapes are slip-cast. Jeff creating a ram press mold. This is a freshly made ram press mold which has compressed steaming air coming out of it.

Stirring the slip clay for casting. Jeff creates his slip cast mold Lifting a mug from a cast mold.
Each piece now called greenware must then be, trimmed, and cleaned. Various stages of the process all occur at the same time. The greenware is loaded then fired in a bisque kiln.  It is now somewhat hardened.

The bisque ware must now be cleaned and sanded before glazing. Our stamp is placed on the bottom and wax is applied  as well so it won't stick to the kiln shelf. We are now ready to glaze.

 Jeff hand mixes all our  glazes. We remix the glaze after we have dipped each boards' pottery pieces, to prevent settling. Test for specific gravity to assure we have the  correct amount of water so  the glaze is the right thickness.

Then the glazes are ready to use The pieces are dipped in the base glaze for the  underlying color. We paint on some designs in a contrasting glaze.
We squirt on another color. Then the decorative glazes have been added. These pieces will be Midnight Blue. These pieces will be Lavender Sunset.

They are now ready to be loaded in the kiln. The shelves are prepared.        The inside of the kiln is made of ceramic fiber.  The Jeff makes the clay pegs.
The high fire kiln is ready. The loading process begins. Half way there.

Cones are placed strategically as temperature gages for Jeff. The shelves are loaded and ready. Time to fire the kiln.

 

The kiln is fired at 2,400 degrees. Jeff checks the cones to determine the temperature. The firing is done, the kiln cooled to about 400 degrees. the door is opened and the cart pulled out.

Another successful load with the help of our two dogs Bubby & Lea. After cooling for a few more hours the kiln is unloaded, and the bottom of each piece is sanded.

The pottery is finally ready to be sold.

 

Special orders are also created and sold. Stretching the skin on a special order for a drum. Cutting the Drum top free.
Creating new packaging material from old.

We work at being as environmentally friendly as possible; by foraging we recycle over 50% of our packaging from other businesses packing materials. 

About our product:

       Our primary focus is on function, but we try to emphasize the fun in function with our bright energetic glazes.  We are well known for our glassy baking glaze combinations that are rich in color and depth.  Each piece we make is 100% lead free and can be used in the oven, microwave, dishwasher and freezer.

       We make a complete line of kitchen wares, everything from dinnerware, bread bakers, and colanders to utensil jars and turkey platters.  We also carry other household items such as lotion and soap bottles to vases.  Some of our best sellers are: baking dishes, mugs, soup mugs, chip-n-dip trays, sushi trays, platters and bowls of all sizes and shapes.

       Our personal standard for quality craftsmanship is very high and our customers appreciate the attention to detail.  Because of this we have been in business for 11 years and sell our pottery in over 120 galleries and shops across the country.

    

Shows

    

 Keiko - Morale Officer

      

Lea - Entertainment Officer

Shows

Cascadia's new Shop and Gallery

(click on the pictures to enlarge them.)

This is the 40' by 60' shop where we create our stoneware.

 

 

Beautiful, Unique and Functional
Handcrafted in Deming, Washington