Meet the Maker
Hey, thanks for stopping by. My name is Jody and I am the owner and maker behind Good Wheel Ceramics.
Born and raised in Alabama/Tennessee, I'm a transplant to Canada. There's a bit of a long story there, involving my favorite Canadian and convincing her to marry me. She, in turn, convinced me to trade in good southern cooking for the Canadian mountains and a cute pup, and here we are living out west life on Vancouver Island.
I guess you could say I stumbled into ceramics. I have a bachelors in biology and master's in public health, and I never knew I had a single creative bone in my body. After a friend showed me all the cool pottery she made in a pottery class I knew I had to give it a shot. I thought it was the coolest thing to essentially turn mud into things you could use around the house!
I took a ten-week course and became obsessed. I spent almost as much time in the community studio as I did writing my thesis. The first time I drank from a mug I made I felt what a first-time parent must feel when holding their newborn baby. I know this is a ridiculous analogy, but I still get giddy every time I open the kiln! And now I love making clay babies for other people to enjoy.
In the beginning, gifting pottery that I'd made was exciting and a bit scary to think the person might wonder if it was supposed to be a mug or a bowl with a handle. Thanks to Covid-19 (that's weird to say, I know), I decided to take the plunge and turn this passion into a small business venture. GWC began in Winnipeg (shoutout to our WPG fam for the ongoing love and support!), and now I work out of my home studio in Qualicum Beach.
As a detailed-oriented person, I enjoy the effort of making pieces within batches as similar as possible. However, with every piece being hand thrown on the wheel, shrinkage calculations, and chemistry of glazes during firing, no two pieces will be the exact same.
When I'm not throwing, glazing or doing other business related things, you can find me mountain biking, camping or out on an adventure with my partner in crime and our pup in the Canadian back-country.