A chance visit to a paint-it-yourself ceramic studio in Santa Fe three years ago gave Mary Delargy a business idea that would take her home to Ireland.
She went there with her young daughter to allow her to make a present for a friend. "I hadn't planned to paint anything myself, but when I was there, I couldn't resist," she says. "Two nights later, I brought my husband, Fergus, along. He was as impressed as I had been, and we both felt Ireland was ready for this."
The couple had been living in the US, where she was an intensive care nurse and he taught painting in the University of New Mexico. Coming home with a new venture seemed a good idea. They opened Hey! doodle doodle, Ireland's first paint-it-yourself pottery studio, in Galway in March, 1997. A few months ago, their second Hey! doodle doodle opened its doors in Temple Bar, Dublin. Both studios run on the same lines.
The studio has everything you need to design and decorate your own table, giftware or tiles. The large range of unglazed earthenware includes vases, bowls, plates, jugs, wine coolers, bread crocks, pasta jars, cups, mugs, and tiles. Prices range from £2.99 for a Christmas tree pottery ornament up to £25 to £35 for large platters, bowls and vases, with lots of items around the £10 to £15 mark. Studio costs are £5 per person, which includes all materials, glazing and firing.
In the shop, you first pick your piece. Next, you decide how you will decorate it. You can choose from 18 different shades of paint, and apply colour with brush or sponges which give a speckled, mottled effect. Designs are made easy with templates, stencils, decorative stamps and sponges, and carbon paper which allows you trace your design directly on to your pot. There are books of quotations from which you can take a verse or a line, as well as samples and ideas books.
Most people spend between one and two hours in very absorbed creativity. The studio then glaze and fire your piece, which you collect after a few days or have posted to you. The large, airy room is full of finished works, ranging from simple geometric designs in bold or pale colours to ambitious freehand decoration. Even the simplest looks striking: "Glazing and firing is very kind to ceramic paints" says Mary, "and a kind of alchemy takes place which lifts each piece into something special".
The studio is being discovered as a new fun place for children's parties, and group discounts are available. Three generations of a family were happily painting round a large table the day we visited. The three children were creating green monster ornaments and rainbow coloured cats. Mum was slowly and happily producing a pink butter dish while granny was making designs on a small jug she had sponge-painted in yellow. "The family that plays together, stays together," she said, not looking up.
Hey! doodle, doodle, 14 Crown Alley, Temple Bar, Dublin 2. Open daily 11 am-late, Telephone: 01- 6727382 and 2 Eyre Street, Galway. Monday-Saturday: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Telephone: 091-561906.
