Crafters Anonymous: Ogden woman turns pottery hobby into a business
Sarrah Groves spins a bowl on the pottery wheel in her home studio in Ogden on Monday, Feb. 1, 2016. Groves has been making pottery most of her life, but recently turned it into a business as a way to help pay for her husband's cancer treatment.
Sarrah Groves spines a bowl on the pottery wheel in her home studio in Ogden on Monday, Feb. 1, 2016. Groves has been making pottery most of her life, but recently turned it into a business as a way to help pay for her husband's cancer treatment.
Sarrah Groves shows off the glaze on a finished pot in her home studio in Ogden on Monday, Feb. 1, 2016.
Sarrah Groves shows some of the pieces that she is currently working on in her home studio in Ogden on Monday, Feb. 1, 2016. Groves has been making pottery most of her life, but recently turned it into a business as a way to help pay for her husband's cancer treatment.
Finished pottery sits on the shelves of Sarrah Groves's home studio in Ogden on Monday, Feb. 1, 2016. In addition to making pottery, Groves also teaches pottery classes.
Sarrah Groves spines a bowl on the pottery wheel in her home studio in Ogden on Monday, Feb. 1, 2016. Groves creates jars, bowls and other art pieces that she sells through her company, The Pottery Grove.
OGDEN — I tied the apron covered with dry clay around my waist and donned a worn-out white shirt over my green sweater in preparation for getting my hands really, really dirty.
I was about to throw my first pot on a wheel.
Sarrah Groves of Ogden, a professional potter, had just barely finished demonstrating how to make a pot out of a lump of clay on a potter’s wheel. Of course, she made it look really simple.
I felt like I was learning to crochet again. My left hand wanted to do one thing while the right hand wanted to do something else, and neither hand was following Groves’ instructions. It was stop and go, but toward the end I started seeing what Groves kindly called, “a trinket bowl.”
Groves took her first spin with a potter’s wheel when she was 14 years old. Her father, a physician and a painter, introduced her to pottery. It was love at first spin, and her passion for clay bloomed.
“I love clay,” Groves said as she talked about clay, glazes, temperatures and tools.
For years, pottery was her hobby. She enrolled in classes and joined groups wherever she lived, from California to Oklahoma. She also bought her own potter’s wheels and kilns.
It was not uncommon for her to spend five to eight hours a day creating with clay, but her pieces were always gifts for family or friends. Then three years ago, her husband, Randall Groves, was diagnosed with stage four neck cancer. He is the executive chef for Weber State University’s dining services.
Even though they have good insurance, Groves said they were told by cancer specialists that most people go bankrupt due to hidden costs that are not covered by insurance, such as transportation.
“I woke up in the middle of the night, and the thought came ‘I will pay for cancer with clay,'” Groves said.
With her children’s help, Groves started her business, The Pottery Grove, and created a website, a Facebook account and a Twitter account. She took care of her husband during the day, then at night until the wee hours of the morning, she created pottery in her basement studio, where pottery wheels, shelves and three kilns are stored.
“It was insane,” Groves said. “I was crazy busy and hardly slept.”
People ordered her finished items, but then clients asked for customized pieces.
“Most people would say they are not artists, but they have ideas flowing through their heads telling me what they want,” Groves said.
Lana Garfield of Perry bought a small bowl from Groves.
“When I saw it, it spoke to me, and then (Groves) explained what it meant to her,” Garfield said.
The small bowl looked odd, “a bit unfinished,” Garfield said.
Then Groves told her the pot reminded her that the savior looks at each person as a piece of clay — only with his touch can the rough edges be smoothed out and the person be made shiny and new, Garfield said.
“Sarrah expresses herself and her beliefs through pottery,” Garfield said.
Several other pieces of Groves are on display in the Wildcat Dining Room at Weber State University. Those pieces were commissioned by the dining staff shortly after a fundraiser for Groves’ husband.
Jessica Alford, general manager of the dining services, said the pieces are chocolate brown vases, rustic looking and filled with dry flower arrangements.
Suzanne Chesney, an interior designer in Michigan, saw Groves’ work online and asked her to produce some pots.
“It was beautiful work,” Chesney said. “She’s very creative.”
You can reach reporter Loretta Park at lpark@standard.net or at 801-625-4252. Follow her on Twitter@LorettaParkSE or like her on Facebook.