NM Vignettes -- Visiting the Pottery Pueblos

You can go to a boutique in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and buy a three-inch Santa Clara black pot for $200, or you can go to the Santa Clara Pueblo and get it for $100. Or, you can do what David, my fiance, and I did, and buy nothing at all! We still enjoyed the hunt though, especially since the Pueblo was only a ten-minute drive from our Airbnb. Here's how to do it.

First go to the Santa Clara Pueblo and locate the Catholic Church, all the while being respectful of the many roadside shrines you will see.

Park across the road from the church and start looking for signs that tell you this artist sells pottery from his home.

Toni Roller, an award-winning potter, has a studio a short distance from the Pueblo, just off the highway. She showed David and me how mixes the clay with her feet. You can see the clay in the picture between the two chairs. She says it's easier to use her feet now that she's older than it is to bend over and use her hands!

Ms. Roller prepares the clay, it's on the floor between the two chairs, with her feet.

She also showed us the stones that she uses to polish the piece before it is fired. The black color is achieved because manure is added to the final firing which changes the color to the rich black that is so desired by collectors.

Even if you don't purchase a piece of pottery, you will enjoy meeting the friendly potters.

Practicalities -
Note that most of the pueblos welcome visitors, but the Idelfonso Pueblo asks you to stop at their information center where you're asked to pay $10 for driving in the Pueblo and $10 more if you want to take photos.