Ephraim Faience Pottery: Featured Collector

Featured Collector: *Linda Clerkin of Milwaukee, Wisconsin* Thank you, Linda, for sharing your story and your collection with us.
I discovered Ephraim Pottery when I saw their ad in American Bungalow magazine in very early 2001. My husband and I at the time were looking for a house, and we knew we liked the Arts and Crafts style of bungalows that are common to Milwaukee. I saw this pottery, decorated with the flowers, plants and critters of my childhood in Fontana, Wisconsin, and made a note to track down their website. When I did that and discovered that Dovetail Antiques, their company store, was only 70 miles west of us, I took a drive out and just fell in love with their work.
One of Linda's photos of her collection graced the cover of Catalog #7 in 2002.	We later bought a 1928 bungalow duplex where the pottery looks just lovely on shelves, end tables or on the fireplace mantle. Those potters make it difficult to pick a favorite vase or theme, as we all know, but some of my favorites are the old Saturday Evening Girls collection (together, they look like a bouquet of spring flowers), the simple, unadorned pieces or ones with leaves, and the very rare pieces that have female forms. I think my favorite glaze color is their classic Leaf Green.
I try not to miss the Holiday Pottery Fest each December at Dovetail Antiques— it’s good cheer and good company, good food and coffee and of course, all the special pieces. I've slowed down dramatically on my collecting, as I have a little over 100 individual pieces, including tiles. Their new collection is lovely, and I especially like the Blue Skies and Outside the Garden Gate collections from this year's catalogue. I hope you stay in business for a long, long time!
*Editor’s note:* Linda fails to mention that she is also an excellent photographer. She has had winning entries in five of our six photo contests, and one of her photos graced the cover of Catalog #7 in 2002.
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