My ceramic collection at home is huge. I haven't ever counted them all – that would take a long time – but there are certainly hundreds. I keep most of them in two big dressers in my kitchen – one is a lovely Victorian dresser. Plates and bowls are stacked. Over there you can see bowls in one place, little cups and dishes in another place and vases at the top. I have some plates attached to the wall so you can "see inside" them in a sense, like an open book. There are also stacks of ceramics in places throughout the house.
I grew up in Lower Hutt. My nana and grandad were potters. I was never really allowed in their workshop because they didn't want kids breaking things but I've always been quite interested in ceramics. I recently joined the Wellington Potters' Association, did a course and have had a little workshop in my shed for about a year. So I'm very "beginnerish".
As a collector, I started about 15 years ago when my daughters were little and I needed to get out of the house. We'd go to the op shops once a week and I started noticing what amazing ceramics you could pick up. So I got the bug.
I've picked up some ceramics through op-shopping, markets and fairs. I've lived and travelled overseas, so picked up some on my trips. I don't buy any online because you don't get that "tactility" or that excitement of seeing something you like in one moment and taking it away.
Initially I worried the kids would break something – so their bowls were on a level in a cupboard that they could just reach. I don't need to worry about it now – Mathilde is 15 and Leonor 14. We don't use the same bowls or plates for meals, because I'm an absolute believer that things need to be used, not just displayed.