Stone, Wood and Fibre

Ceramics by Caitlin O'Reilly, Cylinder Studio

It's surprising how much puppetry and ceramics have in common. Caitlin O'Reilly has drawn, sewn, sculpted, molded and painted puppets and props for beloved children's shows for Kids' CBC, PBS Kids and Playhouse Disney for more than a decade. She's also been working with clay since she was nine years old.

While attending high school, O'Reilly seemed destined to pursue academics at university until she went to her brother's woodworking open house at Sheridan College. There, she was surprised to discover students displaying work in textiles, clay and other mediums she loved, but had never considered studying at a post-secondary level. "I remember thinking, 'these are adults and they look like they're having so much fun,'" she says. And that was all she needed to see. Immediately after high school, O'Reilly attended Sheridan's bachelor of craft and design program, specializing in ceramics and textiles, then at Kootenay School of Art and Design, in Nelson, B.C.

In the summer months, she'd work in television in puppets and props while continuing to study and work in clay on the side, kiln surfing at various clay co-operatives in Toronto. "The skills are strangely similar," O'Reilly says, "both [ceramics and puppetry] require a good sense of 3D form and sculpture." Plus her ability to work with fabric — bringing the puppets' character to life — suited the job.

But three years ago, O'Reilly and her husband, fellow puppeteer, actor and filmmaker, Todd Doldersum, left Toronto and moved to Prince Edward County. A move to the county allowed them to escape the 14-hour days of show business and continue to do creative work they enjoy while spending more time with their son, Emmett, who was little more than four years old at the time.

O'Reilly knew she wanted to start her own business after the move, but making a living in ceramics was not a given. Not until studio space became available at the recently restored House of Falconer, presenting the chance to sell directly to customers, online and in studio, saving O'Reilly the hassle of hitting the road for countless gift shows and craft fairs.

Although she's been practising for years, now that O'Reilly has her own space and can fully control the practice, she can explore and experiment with glazes, slab and wheel-thrown tableware and pottery, a line of jewelry and wall-hangings that blend her love of textiles and ceramics. She can play more — adapting quickly to the feedback of customers and other artists working in the space. Her esthetic is clean and contemporary with a few rustic details, such as the raw-stone edges that trim some of her designs. "I try to take away as many design choices as possible to get to the function of the piece," she says. "In school, I felt like art has to have meaning, but now I think it's just as beautiful and important to make a well-crafted functional piece — it is art."

Cylinder Studio (at House of Falconer)
1 Walton St., Picton, Ont.
cylinderceramics.ca | @cylinderstudio

Woodwork by Bram D'Hoest, Merrickville Wood & Glass Co.

When you come from a long line of woodworkers — a shop teacher, a cobbler, a carpenter and one of Belgium's last wooden-wagon makers, you'd think your fate was sealed. But Bram D'Hoest decided to buck the family trend to become a computer programmer instead.

After graduation, D'Hoest came to Canada on a working holiday visa, starting at the Wild Oat Bakery in the Glebe, then wwoofing (worldwide opportunities on organic farms) on an organic farm on Victoria Island and a cattle ranch in Saskatchewan. But back for one more run at the Wild Oat before he was to return home to Belgium, he went out for a beer with his replacement on the pizza line, Angelina Dunn — fell in love and never left the country.

D'Hoest answered a posting for a job working with an uncommon German software system he specialized in and quickly found work in Ottawa. He worked as a programmer by day and started to pick up wood-working at home. He'd wheel his small lathe onto the balcony of the apartment he and Dunn shared on Preston Street to turn smaller pieces, such as bowls and kitchen utensils. "I love working with my hands," he says. "When you're a programmer, everything you do is in the virtual world, so it's amazing to be able to make something from a concept with your hands, using natural, locally sourced materials, that will be enjoyed by someone for years to come."

As friends became increasingly interested in buying and commissioning pieces, D'Hoest's woodworking hobby turned into a business. For years, he's been selling at large trade and gift shows and online.

Then this year, D’Hoest’s business took a few big leaps. He and Dunn moved to Smiths Falls where he’s converting a storage shed into a new workshop. And D’Hoest’s friend and blownglass artist, Michael Gray asked him to share a retail space in downtown Merrickville. They opened the doors of Merrickville Wood & Glass Co. in March 2018 — Gray’s colourful glass orbs, vases and bowls complement the warm wood and sharp edges of D’Hoest’s furniture and boards.

Having a larger workshop and retail space, D’Hoest can experiment with larger pieces. He displays his mid-century designs — credenzas, tables and shelves — in the shop with his smaller pieces — bowls, muddlers, spoons and serving boards. Customers see the dovetailed joinery that keeps the solid, hardwood furniture together without the use of nails or screws, and often come back with their own dimensions and ideas for a custom design.

“It’s a nice mix of work — the meticulous detailed work of designing and creating a larger custom piece that I can work on in the shop for a couple of weeks and the faster, smaller pieces I make on the lathe,” D’Hoest says.

Using local and sustainable materials is important to D’Hoest and local farmers know to call him when they need a diseased or damaged tree removed. He harvests the tree himself and uses the lumber to turn one-of-kind bowls and live-edge boards.

But when it comes to the baby rattle, one of D’Hoest most popular pieces, he uses a solid piece of sugar maple, finished with organic flax seed oil. It’s a piece to be passed on for generations. The same can be said of his larger pieces. “If it takes me two months to make something that lasts 200 years, it’s worth it," he says.

Bram D'Hoest Wood Work (at Merrickville Wood & Glass Co.) 
218 St. Lawrence St., Merrickville, Ont.
bramdhoestwoodwork.com | @woodglassco

Linens by Jenna Fenwick, Jenna Rose

Jenna Fenwick silkscreens yards and yards of fabric in her light-filled loft studio above Back Forty Artisan Cheese's creamery and shop. She draws the root vegetables in her garden, hummingbirds, seed pods, the moon and the stars that adorn her textiles by hand. "It's the part of my process I enjoy the most," she says. "My illustrations are heavily nature-inspired — it's a reflection of my surroundings."

She transfers her drawings directly onto a silkscreen and prints them as repeating patterns on natural fabrics — organic cotton, linen and hemp — with water-based pigments that she enjoys mixing herself, experimenting with colour. Using her textile designs, she creates tea towels, scarves, storage bins, pouches and weekender bags, sometimes adding touches of waxed canvas and leather.

Her studio has always been mobile, she says. The Nova Scotia School of Art and Design grad first opened her textile studio, Jenna Rose, in 2006 above her mother's quilt shop in Guelph. She printed her own fabrics then, too, producing hats and a product line similar to her current lineup. When her husband, Jeff, took a full-time position as the director of admissions at an independent college in Hamilton, she moved her studio to an open space downtown. They lived in Hamilton for years, but as more of their family moved to eastern Ontario, the pair took a chance and purchased Back Forty Artisan Cheese in 2011, after Jenna's parents saw its for-sale ad in a local paper in Perth. They were realizing their dream of living in the country.

The purchase of the farm and the 11-year-old business in the Lanark Highlands was the start of a new career for Jeff. With no experience making cheese, let alone farming, he apprenticed briefly with the original owner and cheesemaker, James Keith. It was a steep learning curve, but Jeff quickly started to produce the same high-quality cheeses Back Forty was known for, using raw ewe's milk and old-world methods, naturally aging them for up to nine months.

Locals and chefs alike have always flocked to Back Forty's four original cheeses, named for towns, rivers and caves in the Ottawa Valley — Flower Station, Madawaska, Bonnechere and the award-winning Highland Blue. As business grew, the Fenwicks started to outgrow the capacity of their commercial kitchen.

Once again Jenna was packing up her studio to head to a new farm the couple found in Mississippi Station, along the banks of the Mississippi River. They set to work converting an old drive shed on the property, adding a second floor to house her new studio above the creamery and a new cheese shop. But Jenna doesn't mind moving, in fact she's grateful.

"I feel very fortunate because [my business] has always allowed me to work where we live," she says. Beyond the bucolic scenery that inspires Jenna's graphics, the life she's built on the farm with Jeff, and the risks they've taken to build their businesses, have been worth it. It affords them a lifestyle they cherish.

In the warmer months, from spring to fall, the cheese shop and studio are open. People can peer through a window to see how the cheese is made or tour the studio. They can also see how they live. Jeff and Jenna work hard, but being in business for themselves allows them to adjust their work schedules to spend time with their 15-month old daughter, Beatrix, and enjoy agrarian life.

Since moving, Jeff has added new cheeses to Back Forty's lineup — Queso Almonte, a Mexican-style cheese, Shanklish, a traditional Middle-Eastern cheese and Calabogie Blue — which they couldn't keep in stock this summer — a stronger and creamier blue cheese compared to Back Forty's lauded Highland Blue.

These days, Jenna's feverishly printing and sewing new pieces as she gears up for the One of A Kind Show in Toronto, Nov. 22 to Dec. 2, and for the couple's holiday open house on Dec. 15 on the farm.

"For me, being a maker is a lifestyle," she says. "It encompasses every aspect of my life — not just my work in the studio, but also things like growing and making our food and creating clothes for our daughter."

Jenna Rose (at Back Forty Artisan Cheese) 
1406 Gulley Rd, Mississippi Station, Ont.
jennarose.ca | @jenna_rose_

Back Forty Artisan Cheese 
artisancheese.ca | 613.287.7011 | @back40artisancheese