Dancing Pig 101

We're very glad you've found us, but we're also much better at making pottery than we are at maintaining social media. So, here's some basic information about who we are and what we do, and some links to places that we keep much more up to date.

Dancing Pig Pottery is a small pottery studio located on the outskirts of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. We focus on making functional stoneware pots. We decorate some of our pots with Celtic and natural motifs. We also make mugs with pithy sayings on them, and yarn bowls and bloody pirates and dragon mugs.

We update our facebook page pretty regularly. And we're happy to respond to emails.

Here's a link to an overview of the pottery we currently have in production: http://dancingpigpots.weebly.com/

We don't have a full time brick and mortar retail outlet. Our pottery is always avaliable online in our Etsy shop: DancingPigPots.etsy.com and at a lovely shop in Gettysburg, A&A Villiage Treasuress. We also have a booth at the Maryland Renaissance Festival. We also attend several smaller events and festivals throughout the year, most reliably the Spoutwood Fairie Festival the first weekend in May and Pennsic, a members only medieval reenactment at the end of July.

So, hope that's a good overview. As mentioned above, please check our facebook or etsy pages to learn more about us. We're looking forward to seeing you soon at a show near you!

Gettysburg Festival Arts Market & Bazaar

Gettysburg Festival : Art Market & Bazaar

Guess what's happening next? 

Dancing Pig Pottery doesn't have to venture far to experience a lovely, large scale event!

We are happily participating in the 7th annual Gettysburg Festival Art Market & Bazaar.

The Art Market is held on Gettysburg College Campus Grounds ( Pennsylvania Hall ) 

Friday June 13th, 3pm-8pm

Saturday June 14th, 10am-8pm

BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE!

Gettysburg Festival is a 5 day event compromising so, so much more than just the facet we're participating in (although you should definitely come see us) The trip to Gettysburg is well worth it to enjoy all this awesome show has to offer! 

live performances, visual arts, stuff for the kids, culinary arts, open houses, and much much more! 

Co-Show! Dancing Pig Pots and Tuatha at the Ragged Edge Coffeehouse

DANCING PIG POTTERY AND TUATHA 

MARCH 2014

RAGGED EDGE COFFEEHOUSE, GETTYSBURG, PA

Have you ever been to the Ragged Edge in Gettysburg, Pa? 

If you ever find yourself in Gettysburg, catching up on history or perhaps visiting your favorite potters, make sure this is one of your stops! It's a local institution, restuarant/coffeeshop/artgallery/garden hang-out spot, and we find ourselves there often, soaking up the wi-fi, drinking chai lattes and experiencing local art and community! 

We were pleased and flattered to have the opportunity to set up a month long showing in conjunction with our good friend Mary Panesis of Tuatha Gallery.

Her Rustic Woodworking, coupled with our Earthy Pottery made a display that was better than the sum of its parts. We are especially excited to share it with you as a peek behind the curtain, as we use Mary's art to display our pottery in our own homes, and she uses our pottery in hers!

We called it "Tea in the Cabin in the Woods", and if you couldn't see it in person, here are some of the highlights. 

Celtic Vine mugs on Live Edge shelving with hand forged iron fixtures

Rustic mugs and Teapot on Barn Board Tea Shelf

Blue Teapot on Barn board tea shelf

Mugs hanging from various wood and antler wall hooks 

Celtic vine teabowls atop a live edge, barn board and rustic wood shelf

Greenman mugs dangling from a large antler wall hook

Arabesque teaset 

Plain mugs with wood wall hooks

Many thanks to the Ragged Edge Coffeehouse for letting us punch a million holes in the walls (I see that you have since spackled them successfully). 

We deeply appreciate the chance to display the art we make, in the town we make it in! 

-Owl and Panda

BONUS DOG! (dogs allowed!)

Spoutwood Farms Fairie Festival 2014

boy it sure is muddy!

business fairies

FAIRIE FEST ADVENTURE! 
Starring : Owl and Panda at their fairy-best! 

isn't this rat-fairy the best!

We wait all year to go to the Fairie Festival at Spoutwood Farms! http://www.spoutwood.org/fairie-festival

It's one of Dancing Pig's favorite shows, and this year did not disappoint!
We arrived on Thursday to set up the tent and the basic bones of the structure, only to find that the landscape had changed not-insignificantly!
Which is to say there was lots more creek and a little less earth, and our bridge had been washed away! We made it work, and in no time our tent was up. (squishy earth sure makes pounding tent stakes easier!)

We went home to fire the last kilns (We are always waiting on the LAST KILN)
Friday arrived and we hiked on our tutu's and strapped on our wings, ready to fly into a magical fairy land for 3 DAYS!

For this show we focused on BIG and little, so we had a charming array of big giant vases, and perfect petite teacups, we've mixed up our BIG and little idea with sets of mixing bowls that nest together, some sets with as many as 7 bowls!

It's all a blur of glitter and wings and bagpipes and turtles and goblins and ice cream and SPARKLE CHAI now....if you saw us there, we loved seeing you! If you couldn't make it or have *gasp* never been....WHATS THE DEAL ALREADY!???!

We'll be there next year! With wings and bells and Bowls! we sure hope you will too!
(feel free to bring up the fairie fest any-old-time with Owl and/or Panda, but prepare for arm waving and squee-ing)

Panda gets abducted by Azog!

-- Panda and Owl 

Very much missing the Society for Creative Anachronism's Annual Gulf Wars this second week of March. Dancing Pig had been there for ~8 years in a row, I'd been there for the past 7 and @Apprentice Panda & I refer to it as our anniversary, because she and I bonded on our first trip to Gulf Wars 4 years ago.

The reasons we couldn't go this year are many and complicated, but boiled down to not having enough money for gas, not having reliable transportation for the 1100 mile drive (each direction) and not having enough pots because I've been working 40+ hours a week at my winter town job.

But we're going to do our damndest to be back in Mississippi next year, welcoming spring & celebrating our 5th anniversary. In the meantime, all y'all who did manage to make it to the friendliest war of all (really, it is a War With No Enemies) please be sure to pet the dogs, pinch the baker, enjoy the food, drink & friends & have all the fun you can stand, cause they'll surely make more.

Now I'm heading back to the studio to make more pots, because Spoutwood Farm's Fairie Festival is just around the corner....

from left: our friend (& maker of mead kits) Sherry, then Apprentice Panda, then me at Gulf Wars 2011. 

Holiday Shopping Update

We've just managed to relist yarn bowls in our Etsy shop. So, if you can't make it out to see us for the second and last weekend at Art of Fire Contemporary Glass Blowing Studio's Studio Tour THIS Friday, Saturday and Sunday December 13, 14 & 15 from 10 til 5 each day

Go buy them here: www.etsy.com/shop/dancingpigpots

Our Bug Dog, looking in vain for customers last Sunday at the Open House.
There's no snow forecast this weekend!

The Holidays are already upon us?!

And shopping opportunities abound.

You can always come shop at our favorite retail shop: A&A Village Treasures, in downtown Gettysburg. 

Our Steampunk Mugs, lined up in the window at A&A

Or, if that's too far afield, we're going to be at the Art of Fire's Holiday Open House, in Laytonsville MD for the first two weekends of December. This year that's Friday, Saturday & Sunday December 6, 7 & 8 and again December 13, 14 & 15. As always, Tuatha Gallery will be with us with their awesome Celtic Jewelry and Art and rustic wood treasures. And we'll have some new cheeky minion mugs:

A prototype of our newest Minion Mug

Arabesque Teaparty! 

As well as lots of Arabesque Pottery! It's the perfect handmade holiday shopping experience, far from the soul sucking chaos of suburban shopping mall hell. Come out to meet and support local artists. Our passion for our work shines through in our beautifully crafted, carefully curated wares. Wares that you can buy for yourself and everyone on your shopping list! 

And if that's not enough, I solemnly swear we'll have our Etsy store back up and running by the end of this week. That's November 8 for those of you keeping track. I'm doing my best to make it easy for you to give lots of Dancing Pig Pots this holiday season. I gotta go take more pictures and list more pots...

Old school teaparty

Old school teaparty, a photo by mudcelt on Flickr.

A snapshot from last December's Open House!

Forsooth! It's Faire Season Already?!

Yup. We're at the Virginia Renaissance Festival for their entire five weekend season this year, and it's already the second weekend. (Time flies when you're having fun!)

This weekend (May 18/19) has a Shakespeare theme! And this is the ideal Faire to go to if you enjoy interacting with the cast: so friendly, entertaining & just well done.


So, forsooth y'all. Come on out and play before the crowds figure out that Faire has started. And don't forget to buy pots. If you use the secret phrase of the week, um... "forsooth y'all" at our booth, we'll give you a 25% discount. Get out your garb, grab your friends and come on out to play. And buy pots!

See you at Faire!

Come Play with the Fairies!

Hey! Hey! Listen! We're busy busy busy getting ready for Spoutwood Fairie Festival THIS WEEKEND, May 3, 4 & 5. Spoutwood is the Grandmother of Fairie Festivals and a highlight of our spring and all y'all need to tell your friends, put on your fairie finest and come out to play in the woods & fields and welcome spring with a loud KUBIANDO!!!!

This year we're going to be in a new to us location: instead of up on the hill we're going to be down in the bog on Glimmer Place. Much closer to the parking lot! Which will make it much easier for you to get all of your wonderful pottery purchases home, right? RIGHT!

Can't wait to see you there!

Meet Obelix!

Say hello to Obelix! 

He's a new-to-me box truck: 92 E-350 w/ 50K miles on the rebult transmission. Bought him for $2,200 thinking only needed ~$250 repair on injectors. Turned out it was a bent crank shaft. (insert wHON Wha sound effect)

Ended up w/ newish engine (45K miles) for $1,600. Throw in $700 for title, tags & insurance & here we are: empty savings account & awesome box truck!

Now we need to add a ramp and build in storage shelves & we'll have a mobile storage shed. May never have to unload between shows again! That alone might be worth the money!

And here's a picture of Obelix's namesake, from the Asterix and Obelix comic books:

I think the similarity is striking. Don't you agree?!

We're currently taking suggestion for how to paint/decorate/wrap Obelix. The two current front runners are either a turn of the last century playbill, mostly words style thing: "Dancing Pig Pottery, featuring the amazing napping Owl" or a landscape with  the Uffington Horse, some standing stones and maybe Obelix in the corner. Carrying a pig and some cargo, of course...

Love this image of Obelix, well laden & off on an adventure! 

Our Spring Tour Calendar is up & it's still January!

Go Us!

Hello Celts, Pigheads & others with great taste in Pottery.
 Our up to date, current calendar can always be found here: Pig Futures, Dancing Pig's Show & Event Calendar but while it's all fresh and updated I thought I'd save you the trouble of clicking through...

Here's what we'll be up to in the next few months:

Friday February 1 First Friday Opening at A & A Village Treasures in Gettysburg PA 5pm til 8pm
We're finally selling our wares in our hometown; in an awesome store that you need to explore! First Friday is very fun, lots of activity in downtown Gettysburg. Come support us and check out this very fun store, you'll definitely find the perfect gift for your Valentine or yourself!

Mary & me at Gulf Wars 2012

March 10 thru March 17 Gulf Wars in Lumberton Mississippi
Our favorite Spring show, a week long camping event in Mississippi. We love driving down into spring and catching up with our fellow merchants after our long winter's nap. If you are into the SCA and friendly folks in a relaxed, fun filled enviroment, then this is the War for you! ***Please note- this is a participant only camping event! You must be in garb to be on site & you must pay for the entire event, regardless of how long you stay***


March 29-31 Steampunk@Gettysburg Film, Art & Music Festival
Wyndham Gettysburg Hotel Gettysburg PA
This is a new event but it's happening right in our backyard, so we're going to give it a try. You should too! Put on your goggles and bowler hats & come explore all things steampunk with us!

April 26-28 The Twisted World: Divine Decadence in Somerset NJ
from their website: "The Twisted World: Divine Decadence is a multi-cultural, multi-genre 18+ year old event where this year we celebrate the Decadence of decades and world visions." This is a first year show. Come check it out with us!

also that same weekend:
Saturday April 27 Southern Maryland Celtic Festival 
St Leonards Maryland
This was the first Celtic Festival Dancing Pig ever participated in. Our first time here was in the mid 1990s. We've missed a few years but we're planning on coming back strong this spring. It's a loverly day out on a beautiful site, and a classic Celtic festival that you should really come check out if you haven't already.

Friday, Saturday & Sunday May 3, 4 & 5  Spoutwood Farm Fairie Festival noon til 6 Friday, 10 til 5 Sat & Sun Glen Rock PA

Budgth, our studio dog, getting her faerie on!

We love this Grandmother of Fairie Festivals & enthusiastically anticipate participating again this year. Come celebrate the arrival of spring and play with the fairies & their kin!







Also: Saturday & Sunday May 4 & 5 our pots will be at Tuatha's booth at the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival Howard County Fairgrounds Maryland
Sadly, we won't be there (see above, we're going to be playing with the fairies!) but our yarn bowls will. This is the perfect show for fiber addicts. If you're not coming to Spoutwood, go here and be sure to stop by Mary's booth to get a yarn bowl or two!

Saturdays & Sundays, May 11 through June 9  five weekends! 
Virginia Renaissance Festival Spotsylvania VA

Panda at VaRF 2012

A loverly, spirited and growing festival. Come on down and enjoy a refreshing sojourn in a charming Renaissance Village in the woods & meadows of central Virginia.


Saturday & Sunday June 22 & 23 Celtic Fling & Highland Games at the Mount Hope Estate & Winery, Manheim PA
We had a loverly shady spot at this classic celtic festival last summer & are looking forward to being a part of the "Largest Celtic Event on the East Coast" again this year.

Saturday June 22 (this is our best guess about a date)
Avalon Faerie Festival in Paw Paw WV
We had a great time at this unique Faerie Festival last year, and if it happens again this season, we'll participate! It's being held at a family friendly, clothing optional resort. The tag line is "where you can wear your wings ~ and nothing else" Worth checking out, don't you think?! We'll be there. With probably more than our wings on. And definitely with lots of pottery!

Saturday July 13 10 til 5 (date is a best guess, will update as soon as it is confirmed)
Adams County Irish Festival Gettysburg PA

Our booth at Adams County Irish Festival 2012

Our favorite local show! Come on out for a rare week-before-War appearance of your favorite frantic potter. Remember: anything you buy here you won't have to haul home from Pennsic (and we won't have to take there either!)



Friday July 19 thru Saturday August 3

Pennsic War 42
Cooper's Lake Campground Slippery Rock PA

War is happening a week and a day earlier this year! Please make a note of it! We had a great War last year, though i think we sold too many pots! (is that even possible?) Anyway, we're planning on coming back for my 29th consecutive War (relax, i've only been selling pots there for 19 or so of those) (& yes, thank you, i know i don't look that old!) What was i talking about? Oh yeah, Pennsic. We'll be there, with lots of pottery. Hopefully enough this time! ***Please note- this is a participant only camping event! You must be in garb to be on site & you must pay for the entire event, regardless of how long you stay***





August 24 thru October 20 Weekends and Labor Day Monday 10am to 7 pm each day

Maryland Renaissance Festival Crownsville MD

It will be our 14th season at Maryland & we're still having a great time! Come on out to play in the woods. There's great pottery, wenches in bodices, men in tights, pottery, turkey legs, beer, cider, improv & oh yeah, great pottery! We're still in our wonderful space, third booth in on the right from the front gate. So be sure to stop in early and often for lots of-- say it with me-- great pots!





Phew! So, that's it for now. Maybe i should have titled this post "a modest proposal"
I'm getting worn out just thinking about all this. What am i doing here typing?! I gotta go make me some more pots!
See ya soon!

It's not too late!

Four more days left of standard *should* get-there-in-time-for-Xmess-domestic-shipping. 

Everything listed in our Etsy shop (with the obvious exception of custom orders) is in stock and ready to ship! As long as you order by midnight Thursday Dec 20 we should* be able to get your pots to you via our standard USPS Priority Mail shipping. 
*subject to USPS cooperation!

Surely someone you know deserves a She Who Must Be Obeyed mug! 

We also have, in stock and ready to go: Disgruntled Minion, Insolent Minion, Supreme Commander, Evil Overlord and I Knit So I Don't Kill People mugs! 

All this and more at our Etsy Store: DancingPigPots 

So get shopping!

Last retail weekend of the year!

Pottery & Amber: two great gifts!

Just a quick reminder that this weekend is your last chance to buy Dancing Pig Pottery in a retail setting this Holiday shopping season. 

We're at Art of Fire Contemporary Glass Blowing Studio's Holiday Open House and Studio Tour w/ our great good friends Tuatha

It's warm & cozy in our little barn, we've got pots aplenty, many fresh from the kiln & lots of great Celtic Loot and Art, so come get your shop on & give your friends & family & even yourself a wonderful Handmade Holiday.
The Art of Fire is located at 7901 Hawkins Creamery Road in Laytonsville MD and we're there from 10 til 5 this Saturday & Sunday.

Tell your friends! Or better still, organize a raiding party... err, shopping expedition & come on out to see us! Can't hardly wait to see you!

Our friendly staff is always happy to help!

Buy Handmade on Cyber Monday!

Here's an idea that's not at all self serving: buy Handmade on Cyber Monday. And get 10% off in our Etsy shop with the coupon code THANKS. Like, say, this loverly pair of Arabesque mugs....

Or, an even better idea: Come shop in person at this weekend and next at Art of Fire's Studio in Laytonsville Maryland. Pottery makes great gifts for everyone you know. Including yourself! We're on the Countryside Artisans Studio Tour. It's taking place the first two weekends in December. This year that means Nov 30, Dec 1 & 2 and again Dec 7, 8 & 9 from 10 til 5 each day. It's a great way to have a Handmade Holiday!

Our pottery goes well with Tuatha's amber, doesn't it?! Come see it in person!

Share the Love

We're putting the finishing touches on our preparations for our first ever show IN Gettysburg. It's happening THIS SATURDAY, November 10 at the St Francis Xavier Church, from 8 am til 4 pm. Details and directions here. (http://www.sfxpccw.org/newsandevents.html)

There's even a coupon for free hot chocolate from the cafe! You can print out your own copy from here (http://goo.gl/7PqZd), but we're also going to print out a bunch of the coupons ourselves... come to the booth & ask and we'll gladly give you one!

PS: there's also a wonderful Ten Thousand Villages event in Fairfield, the next town over. That's two, two fair trade events you could shop in one trip! Just be sure to come see us FIRST! We wants all your monies (not to put too fine a point on it). (http://rugs.tenthousandvillages.com/fairfield_rugevent)

Endings and Beginnings or: As the Wheel Turns

Remember that song "Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end?!"

Well, our sales season at Maryland Renn Fest ended last night (as it does every year around this time). 

And serendipitously, our clay for the next years production was delivered this morning. So, as this year at Faire ends, our production for next year begins.

This is what 4,750 pounds of clay looks like. It's about 2/3rds of what we expect to use this year. And the money that we made at Faire is what paid for it. So thanks to everyone who bought from us, you help us keep the wheel turning.

Oh, and we're not done yet. We're doing a local show here in Gettysburg November 10th. It's a holiday themed craft show, all about locally produced or Fair Trade goods. Very hipster, or at least, hipster by Gettysburg standards. Come check it out! http://www.sfxpccw.org/newsandevents.html

Hope to see all y'all (and sell you plenty of pots) very soon!

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go stack boxes of clay.

Maryland Renaissance Festival

Just in case you didn't hear, we've got at booth Maryland Renaissance Festival! There are four more fun filled weekends. Tell your friends, get the band together & come on out and play with us.  Additionally, here are but a few of the wonderous mugs you can purchase from us this weekend!

MDRF booth 2012

Mugs @ MDRF