NEWS FROM EPHRAIM
	Vol. 2, Issue No. 1R, February 2000

News From Ephraim, our newsletter, is reproduced here. If you'd like to receive a paper copy in the mail, please e-mail Kristin Zanetti.

In this issue:

Ready for the Biggest Arts & Crafts Conference of the Year?
Did you know? 
Collectors’ Corner
Calendar
Catalog #5 Soon to be Released
Seven More Vases Discontinued
Going, Going, Gone!
Down on the Farm

Ready for the Biggest Arts & Crafts Conference of the Year?

Imagine an imposing stone lodge perched on the side of a mountain. Imagine that the lodge is overflowing with contemporary and antique Arts & Crafts items. Now picture yourself there, surrounded by Arts & Crafts experts and enthusiasts. You can actually live out this dream, if only for a few days, by attending the Grove Park Inn Arts & Crafts Conference. 

This year’s conference will be held from February 18^th to the 20th. The Grove Park Inn is a historic Arts & Crafts style building located on Sunset Mountain in Asheville, North Carolina. The volume, array, and quality of Arts & Crafts items at this event, not to mention the friendliness of the vendors and attendees, are second to none.  You’ve got to experience it to believe it!

 EFP will be in the Hoover Room of the Inn, taking part in the Contemporary Craftspersons’ exhibit. In addition to the vases and tiles that can be found in our catalog, we will be showing new, experimental, and one-of-a kind pieces in exciting new styles and glazes. This may be your only chance to see and purchase these pieces, because not all of them will be included in our next catalog (see Catalog #5 Soon to be Released, below).

 We will also be offering a limited number of unique lamps with exceptional Tiffany-style shades hand made by the talented artists at Century Studios. We are also hoping to feature some lamps with hand-made mica shades by Gordon Wolske.

For more information about the Grove Park Inn Arts & Crafts Conference, call Bruce Johnson, Conference Director, at 828-628-1915. To contact the Grove Park Inn, call 800-438-5800, or see their web site, www.groveparkinn.com.  EFP also has a limited number of conference brochures available. Call us at 888-704-POTS or e-mail  info@ephraimpottery.com to request a copy.

 We hope to see you in Asheville!

Collectors’ Corner

Each year, EFP changes the mark it uses on the bottom, or foot, of each piece of pottery. Collectors can determine when a piece was made by the mark used.

This year, EFP is using two different marks: one for vases and lamps, and another one for tile. The tile mark is a simplified version of the pottery mark, which hopefully will allow for better sharpness and readability.

Here are the marks that will appear on our pottery and tile in the year 2000.

Vases & Lamps
Tile

Calendar

February 18-20
Grove Park Inn Arts & Crafts Conference
Asheville, North Carolina (see story above)

March 31-April 2
SOHO 4^th Annual Arts & Crafts Weekend
San Diego, California

SOHO is the Save Our Heritage Organization of San Diego. This year’s theme is “Living the Bungalow Lifestyle.” The weekend’s events will include a home tour, lectures, workshops, and an exhibition and sale. This will be EFP’s first sale in San Diego, and we are looking forward to meeting our customers who live in the area. Please consider attending even if you don’t live in Southern California. What better place for a mid-winter getaway than warm and sunny San Diego?!

For more information, contact SOHO at 619-297-9327 or  SOHOSD@aol.com.

May 4-7
American Art Pottery Association  (AAPA) Convention
Minneapolis, Minnesota

AAPA’s annual convention includes a banquet,  lectures, a pottery show and sale, and an auction. EFP will be participating in the show and sale on Saturday and Sunday afternoons (May 6-7). To learn more about AAPA, or to become a member, please see their web site, www.amartpot.org. For general convention information, contact AAPA members Gordon Hoppe (tel 612-546-7461; e-mail Ghoppepots@aol.com) or Les Cochran (tel 612-890-2759; e-mail Lescochran@aol.com).

Catalog #5 Soon to be Released

EFP’s new catalog, our fifth, will be available in late May. If you purchased pottery from us in the past, you will automatically receive a catalog as soon as it’s ready. We will announce  the new catalog in our next newsletter and on our web site, www.ephraimpottery.com.

 Catalog #5 will include some new glazes, as well as several new vases and tile designs. For the curious and/or impatient among you, here’s a sneak preview of one new piece…

The Three-Handled Crystal Vase boasts a new, multi-colored crystalline glaze on a classic form. Cost: $125 plus shipping & handling.

 

Seven More Vases Discontinued

We regret to inform our customers that we have discontinued the following vases. We apologize for any disappointment this may cause.

#723 Impatiens Planter

#820 Sm. Jargo Vase

#821 Med. Jargo Vase

#822 Lg. Jargo Vase

#931 Summer Dragonfly Vase

#932 Scott’s Winter Vase

#933 Sun Prairie Vase

View a complete list of discontinued pieces

Going, Going, Gone!

EFP is retiring 7 more pieces of our fine, collectible pottery. Orders for these pieces may be placed through March 15, 2000. Each piece ordered will be custom-made. After March 15, no more orders for these pieces will be taken, and these designs will no longer be available.

If you’re interested in any of these pieces, please mark March 15 on your calendar. Better yet, call us to place your order as soon as you decide which pieces you want. We had several disappointed customers who missed the deadline for the last pieces we retired. We hope to avoid that this time!

	#704 Apple Leaf Vase Height: 5.25” Colors: LG (shown), SY, CN,            CP, SB Retail price: $78.00	139 made to date*
	#706 Dwarf Calabash Tree Vase Height: 10.25” h Colors: LG (shown), SY, CN,            CP, SB Retail price: $340.00	12 made to date*
	#722 Wall Pocket Height: 10”h Color: LG with SY buds (as shown only) Retail price: $148.00	54 made to date*
	#725 Low Bowl Dimensions: 2.50”h x 7.75” w Colors: LG, SY, CN,            CP (shown), SB Retail price: $48.00	75 made to date*
	#808 Small Four-Handled Vase Height: 9” Colors: LG (shown), SY, CN,            CP, SB Retail price: $168.00	32 made to date*
	#810 Woodland Arrowroot Vase Height: 8” Color: Marbled Matte Green (as shown only) Retail price: $278.00	62 made to date*
	#930 Craftsman Rose Vase Height: 9” Color: Sage (as shown only) Price: $88.00	57 made to date*

* Number made as of 2/01/00

Please note:  All dimensions are approximate.
                    Prices do not include shipping and handling. Call for charges.

Color codes
Please note that all colors are close approximations.
Exact colors cannot be reproduced digitally or in print.
Variations within a color do occur due to a certain level
of unpredictability in the glazing and firing processes.

	LG	Leaf Green
	SY	Satin Yellow
	CN	Chestnut Green
	CP	Crystalline Purple
	SB	Seaspray Blue

 

Down on the Farm
- Kristin Zanetti

It’s winter on the farm, and the land lays silent. It can wait. Spring will arrive soon enough.

It’s been January-cold lately, the kind of cold that numbs your legs and freezes your nostrils when you take a breath. Walking even short distances in these frigid temperatures is invigorating. There’s no way you can forget you’re truly alive when you’re that cold.

What I like best about this time of year are the colors. Not the grays and browns of overcast days, but the intense blues, pinks, oranges, and purples of the winter sky at dawn and dusk. There is a certain quality of light in February that is unmatched at any other time of year.

We wish all of our customers a restful and pleasant winter.