community Archives - Clay Coyote

FAQ: Do you offer pottery classes for different levels?

December 7, 2022 By Morgan

Do you offer pottery classes for different levels? This is one of the most common questions we get.

Throughout the year we do have opportunities to get your hands dirty (MN Pottery Festival in July, ornament making in December). And we are going to bring back our handbuilding workshops in 2023. We also offer educational tours of our studio 5-days a week.

But most of the time when asked about classes, I like to point you to some of our friends that are better set up for teaching programs.

Here’s a few we recommend organized by type of classes available at the time of writing. Please check their links for the most accurate class types, pricing, dates, and more.

Date Nights, Group Events, & Short Term Classes

Dock 6 Pottery in St. Anthony
They’re new space in St. Anthony is larger and they’re offering even more classes from handbuilding, to wheel throwing, open studio, and wine nights. Our friend Kerry Brooks and her team put on great classes.

Caufield Clayworks in St. Paul
Kevin has been doing date night and group wheel throwing classes for years. They crank up the music and get funky, a great setting for couples and friends to relax, have a glass of wine, and get dirty. Pro tip: check Groupon for discounts.

Pig’s Eye Pottery at Great River Gallery in St. Paul
Great for private groups. Reach out to Jason to set up a team-building or family affair. Pro tip: come early to grab donuts next door at Mojo Monkey.

Weeks-Long Programs

Maine Prairie Studio in Kimball
JD & Megan Jorgenson (who are also on the Studio Team at the Clay Coyote) have their own studio and classroom space just 30 minutes North of Hutchinson. They offer 10-week classes to dig in and hone your skills. Their classes also come with open studio access and materials.

Northern Clay Center in Minneapolis
One of the premier clay centers in the USA. Visit their site to see all of the classroom options and

Kiln Space

Fired Up in Golden Valley
They’ve been around for years, take classes, reserve studio stalls, or rent kiln space.

The Workshop MPLS in the Nokomis East neighborhood of Minneapolis
While we don’t personally know the team there, we have heard great things. Check out their site for classes and kiln space rentals.

Community Centers

Hutchinson Center for the Arts
Right here in Hutchinson, the HCA has a variety of classes and programming for all ages. Check out their calendar for upcoming opportunities.

Dassel-Cokato Community Center
Check out their calendar for upcoming opportunities.

Bird Island Culture Centre
Check out their calendar for upcoming opportunities.

Minnetonka Center for the Arts
We love the teaching team at this Western-Metro clay mecca. Take classes, rent studio space, and join a community of clay-loving enthusiasts.

PS: This list is not exhaustive, and sometimes places close or change direction. We didn’t list every class or teacher in the region. If you know of a program that should be listed please email us at [email protected]

Bite-Sized Breakfast Egg Cups at Farmers Market

August 31, 2022 By Morgan

Last weekend, we were invited to our local Farmers Market to do a cooking demonstration. We made bite-sized breakfast egg cups. Everyone wanted the recipe, but there really isn’t one. It’s whatever you have in the fridge plus eggs and cheese.

The Hutchinson Farmers Market is Wednesdays from 2:30-5:30p and Saturdays from 8a-12p and runs through Saturday, October 29th. To learn more visit their website.

Process:

Dice veggies, sauté over medium heat with a little oil (I used Pam spray, I find that with eggs it’s the best for nonstick outcomes, but I prefer olive oil, I have tried other brands than Pam and they just don’t perform as well).
Whisk eggs, cumin, garlic, salt, and pepper on the side (you can add milk, cream, or water to the eggs, but I did not).
Pour egg mixture over sautéd veggies, add a healthy-sized dollop of your favorite salsa, stir everything together.
Once eggs are almost done, sprinkle on cheese. Let melt.
Spoon into tortilla chip cups (we used Tostito Scoops, but there are others out there), don’t assemble too early or they’ll get soggy and cold).
If you’re not serving a crowd, you can put them into regular corn or flour tortillas for breakfast tacos. That’s what I normally do, but that is not ideal in a cooking demo.
Ideas for veggies: peppers, onions, mushrooms, zucchini, broccoli, cauliflower, potatoes, tomatoes, fresh herbs like dill and cilantro … basically anything you’d like in an omelette.

a vertically framed photograph shows a close up near overhead view of a clay coyote small skillet that is filled with diced vegetables. the skillet takes up almost the entirety of the photograph, yet the handle is still out of frame. the small skillet is sitting on a silver portable gas cooking burner. near the upper left corner of the photograph is part of a green pepper and part of a white onion. there is a part of a dark cutting cutting board and part of a large chefs knife visible. near the upper right corner is a clay coyote large tray, glazed in zappa. the tray is only partially visible with less then half of it in the photograph. the tray, the knife, the cutting board, the pepper and onion are all out of focus. the photograph is well lit with natural light

a vertically framed photograph shows a high angle, near overhead view of 3 pieces of clay coyote pottery being used to prepare an egg and diced vegetable dish. there is a clay coyote mixing bowl half full of beaten raw eggs resting on a black cutting board. the cutting knife is resting next to the mixing bowl and is also on the cutting board. the mixing bowl is near the upper left corner of the photograph. the bottom half of the photograph is taken up by the focal point of the photograph, a clay coyote small skillet filled with diced vegetables. the small skillet is resting on a silver portable cooking burner. near the upper right corner of the photograph a clay coyote large tray glazed in zappa can be partially seen. there isn't really anything in the tray, it appears to have a couple small pieces of diced vegetables in it. in between or near the mixing bowl and large tray are part of an onion, part of a green pepper, a whole green pepper and an out of focus egg carton. there are no eggs visible in the open egg carton.

a vertically framed photograph shows an overhead view of a clay coyote mixing bowl pouring raw scrambled eggs into a clay coyote small skillet that is already partially filled with finely cut up vegetables. there are red, green and yellow peppers, onions, fresh herbs and tomatoes cut to very similar sizes. the egg mixture is in process of being poured into the vegetable mixture. there is a small amount of raw scrambled egg already in the small skillet, with a majority still in the mixing bowl. there is a wooden handled, teal silicone spatula sitting in the egg mixture that is forming in the small skillet. the silicone head of the spatula has some of the vegetable mixture the mixing bowl is only partially visible in the upper left corner of the photograph, with a lot of it cut out of frame. near the top center of the photograph is a clay coyote large tray. the tray is only partially visible, with only the lower right corner and handle visible.

a vertically framed photograph shows a few clay coyote pottery pieces being used to to make and present small tortilla cups filled with a scrambled egg and diced vegetable mixture. near middle left side is a clay coyote small skillet filled with the scrambled egg and dice vegetable mixture. the small skillet is sitting on a gold and silver portable cooking burner. in the small skillet is a wooden handled silicon headed spatula, the spatula head is teal. in the lower right corner of the photograph is the sheath for a chefs knife. behind the small skillet resting on the picnic table is a clay coyote large tray glazed in zappa. the tray is filled with small tortilla chip cups filled with the egg scramble. near the upper left corner on the left side of the photograph, part of a clay coyote mixing bowl can be seen. it is less then half visible, it is resting on a dark cutting board with a chefs knife sitting nearby. the photograph is well lit by natural light.

a vertically framed photograph shows a clay coyote large tray that is being used to serve cup shaped tortilla chips filled with an scrambled egg mixture. The tray is glazed in zappa, with only one handle visible, as one end is out of frame. the scrambled egg mixture has red and green vegetables mixed into the eggs, they are small enough that they are not easily identifiable. further away from the camera is a portable cooking burner. the burner has been used with a clay coyote small skillet to make the egg and vegetable mixture that is filling all the tortilla cups. there is a good amount of the scrambled egg mixture still in the small skillet. the large tray and the burner/small skillet are all sitting on a wooden picnic style table with large planks visible making up the table top. on the very left side of the photograph, mostly cut out of frame is a small stack of white paper napkins. the very corner of a clay coyote little dipper can be seen on top of the napkin pile. only one corner of the square style little dipper can be seen, as the rest is cut out of frame like the napkin pile.

Pottery Used in This Recipe:

Flameware Skillet
Mixing Bowl with Whisk (shown in Joe’s Blues)
Standard Tray (shown in Zappa)
Card holder is our Little Dipper (Shown in Mocha Swirl, and available in the Gallery in every glaze color combo)

All Aboard! A Night for the Arts

January 20, 2018 By Kylie Lawson

Every year, the Hutchinson Center for the Arts holds a charity gala called Night for the Arts. There will be local celebrities, professional artists, entertainment, and plenty of hor d’oeuvres and drinks will be served.

This year it will be held Saturday, February 17th with a “Love Boat” cruise ship theme. Guests are encouraged to wear costumes such as vacation wear, nautical themed, 70/80s attire, or come as star-studded celebrities. This event will take place at the Crow River Country Club with VIP guests boarding the ship at 6:30pm and general passengers boarding at 7pm.

Individual tickets are $75/ticket and Corporate Table VIP Tickets are $800/table.

Corporate sponsors this year include Citizens Bank and Trust Co., Melchert, Hubert, and Sjodin, New Era Financial Group, Inc., Vivid Image, Welcome Home Management, Factory Direct Furniture, Pride Solutions, Stearnswood, MITGI, American Family Insurance, and Hutchinson Manufacturing.

In the past, “celebrity artists” from the community have come to the Clay Coyote to make a piece to be auctioned off at the end of the night during the live auction. Past artists have included Jim Fahey, Dr. David Mach, Anthony Hanson, Dr. Cris Remucal, Dr. Chuck Neufield, and many others.

This year, the Clay Coyote welcomed County Commissioner Joe Nagel to the studio. Joe has been an active member in the community since he moved here almost two decades ago. His passion for community service is something very close to his heart. He was the board chair for the McLeod County Alliance for Domestic Violence, vice chair for the Hutchinson Center of Commerce and Tourism, involved in the Hutchinson Youth Basketball Association, and countless other organizations. Joe also works for the Hutchinson Police Department.

Joe spent the afternoon with Betsy learning about pottery and glazes, and how to put the two together.

A few practice trials of glazing were needed before the real deal. Nerves are high, but after some time and Betsy’s help, comfortability set in and his masterpiece was made.

No spoilers on how it turned out! You’ll have to attend the gala to see the piece for yourself!

To buy tickets please visit the Hutchinson Center for the Arts website or call them at 320-587-7278.

All aboard!

Empty Bowls Event

January 3, 2018 By Kylie Lawson

New Journey UCC will be holding their much anticipated Empty Bowls Soup Luncheon on Saturday, January 20th from 11-2pm. This event will be located at New Journey UCC at 31 4th Ave SW, Hutchinson, MN 55350.

What is Empty Bowls? It’s a community event started back in 1990 by a group of art teachers from Michigan. The teamed up with local potters and community members to make bowls and glaze them. Then the bowls are purchased at a later event, along with a meal, to raise money to reduce hunger in the community.

We’ve been saving up many of the bowls made during the Coyote After Dark events in 2017 and we’re donating them to this event! You never know, maybe one of the bowls you made will be available for purchase at the event.

$15 is a suggested donation and all proceeds will be going to agencies that work to alleviate hunger in McLeod County.

Come buy a bowl, enjoy a warm meal, make new friends, and help the community!

What We’re Thankful For This Year

November 19, 2017 By Kylie Lawson

It’s that time of year where we like to look back on the year and highlight the many things we are thankful for here at the Clay Coyote. It’s been a super busy and eventful one!

1.Our number one thing we are most thankful for this year is our many supporters, which means you! We are incredibly thankful for the endless support you have poured onto us, whether it be from lending a helping hand, driving hundreds of miles to come visit us, attending our events, or sharing our work with your friends and family, we could not do it without you. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

2. We are very thankful for all the new team members we have added to our Clay Coyote family. There have been many throughout the year, some who have come and gone and some who are still with us, and we just want to say thank you for all the hard work you have done. Without you, we wouldn’t be here. You have helped us in various ways and poured your heart into this family business. We appreciate what you have done here and hope you keep up the good work. We are happy to have you as a part of our Coyote family.

3.The Minnesota Pottery Festival this summer was a huge success and we are so thankful to the potters and attendees that made this event possible. We are so thankful that we had beautiful weather that weekend, which contributed to us having almost 2,000 people total come to the event. Thank you to all the potters and guests who came from far and wide to be here. We enjoyed having you here and we can’t wait for next year!

4. This year our one-of-a-kind handmade clay grill basket was selected by the MN Super Bowl Host Committee to be potential gifts to VIP attendees. This was a huge honor for us to partake in and we are so blessed to be chosen for this opportunity.

5. We’ve had an excellent turnout at the events we have hosted this year! We are thankful they were a success and that we were able to see so many new faces in the gallery. We enjoy meeting new people as well as catching up with others we see often. We hope all of you support us again at our upcoming events this next year.

We could go on and on about all the things we are thankful for this year, but we want to make sure you know how thankful we are for you!

Continue to show your support and we will provide that support right back. Thank you all for an amazing year and we can’t wait for the next one.

Happy Thanksgiving!