Made in Vermont: Deep Woods Pottery

WOLCOTT, Vt. (WCAX) – Cal Spinelli and Kyle Schlosser are a crafty couple who met at the University of Vermont. Nowadays, though, their roots are in Wolcott.

“After moving away for a few years and coming back into this particular space, it really feels like home,” said Schlosser, who was born and raised on Wolcott’s Sandiwood Farm. The family business grows and sells organic vegetables, wood-boiled maple syrup and hosts events.

Now, Schlosser and his long-term partner are starting a new venture for the next generation.

“It started with taking a pottery class together and then, you know, as our interest grew, it’s kind of grown into what it is now,” Schlosser said.

Nestled in a new studio, Deep Woods Pottery is the latest addition to the working landscape. Using intentionally sourced clay and glazes, Spinelli says these pieces boast a slightly higher price point, but for good reason.

“We try to cater toward people that really care about where their products are coming from, supporting small artists that they’ve met before,” said Spinelli.

She worked as a food photographer before this venture but says the dinnerware market left something to be desired.

“Not being able to find those really simple, minimalist but organic-looking pieces that you kind of see in magazines and blogs and things like that,” she explained. That, and the couple’s mutual love of handmade ceramics led them to the freshly minted studio, making pieces to reflect the aesthetic of Vermont’s landscape.

“Minimalist, it’s simple, it’s elegant, it’s clean and organic,” says Spinelli. But more than just the look, Spinelli says the goal is practicality. “Mainly, we want to be making pieces that can be like multifunctional, that people can use for many different uses, that they’ll reach for every day.”

What’s more, Schlosser is a talented woodworker. While they’re focusing on production and working through custom orders, which come with a six-week turnaround time, they’re hoping to expand their offerings down the road.

“I get a lot of reward out of working with my hands, to be able to produce something and make something is really rewarding in itself,” Schlosser said.

With their feet now under them, Spinelli and Schlosser are excited to bridge the land’s agritourism potential with their products, taking farm-to-table quite literally. They dream of hosting community dinners with their plates on the table and welcoming more people into the studio for pottery classes.

“We are hoping to just be able to kind of bring this full circle with growing organic vegetables, having local food and being able to eat that food that we grew off of our own plate or dinnerware,” said Spinelli.

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