A Week with a Pottery Artist in Indianapolis, Indiana

After a rough patch post-COVID, I didn’t have a job or home. I’m an only child and estranged from my parents so didn’t have anyone to turn to. A friend of an acquaintance heard about my situation and told me to talk to some friends of his—they were three brothers (B, M, and H) who owned a roofing company and lived together in a quiet neighborhood in the suburbs of Indianapolis. They were looking to let out their basement; but we worked out an arrangement where instead of paying rent, I prepare all their meals, run errands, and do housekeeping for the common areas of the house.

It’s definitely a unique living experience and before you ask—no, there’s no hanky-panky, we all keep pretty much to ourselves and the arrangement has given me the stability to focus on my passion for pottery. Now my main source of income is selling my handmade ceramics at craft fairs and through my Etsy shop.

Day 1

5 a.m. — My alarm drags me out of a dreamless sleep; I am not a morning person but I need to get breakfast and lunch going before the brothers head out for the day. I roll up burritos with scrambled eggs, crispy bacon, leftover potato salad, and shredded cheddar cheese. For their lunch, I pack beef and cheese sandwiches, the rest of the potato salad, and freshly-baked chocolate chip cookies. By 6:30 a.m., the brothers have grabbed their breakfasts and lunches and headed out for the day.

7 a.m. — I clean up the kitchen while eating my breakfast of oatmeal and fruit then head to my basement studio. Today, I’m working on a new batch of ceramic mugs for an upcoming craft fair. They’ve gone through their first fire already so I’m focused on glazing them then take them to my local pottery studio to kiln them.

12 p.m. — I take a break for lunch while eating a beef and cheese sandwich, same ones I packed for the brothers. I scroll through my Etsy messages and reviews. A glowing review about a mug from someone named Cheryl makes me smile.

3 p.m. — After some light housekeeping of the main floor, I stop by my local pottery studio to drop off the mugs to final fire. They charge me a very reasonable amount to use their kiln so I’m really lucky to have them. I also head to the local craft store to pick up supplies. I buy clay, glazes, and a new set of brushes. $175

6 p.m. — Dinner is beef stroganoff with a side of garlic bread. I plate all the dinners buffet-style on warming trays since I never know when the brothers will get home. Today, I’ve eaten, cleaned the kitchen, and am downstairs before any of them get home.

Daily Total: $75

Day 2

5 a.m. — Breakfast sandwiches today: sausage patties, scrambled egg, and American cheese on plain bagels. I wrap them in foil and brew an extra pot of coffee. Packed lunch is beef chili with ground beef, beans, and tomatoes packed in their thermoses. I also pack some leftover garlic bread. The brothers are bickering when they come downstairs so I exit the kitchen quickly to give them privacy. Seems like its B vs. M and H about taking a big job with a shady general contractor that they’ve heard negative reviews on.

7 a.m. — After the brothers have left the house, I go back up and clean the kitchen from making last night’s dinner and breakfast this morning. Last night, before I had gone to sleep I had come up and Tupperwared the leftover stroganoff but had just left a stack of dirty plates in the sink.

9 a.m. — I log into my online business class, I’m getting my Associate’s in Business Administration through a local community college and most of the classes are online. They have a track specifically for small business makers which has been helpful in figuring out the boring stuff like sales taxes and how to build a website. Right now I only sell through Etsy but I’m starting to make enough money every month that their 10%+ cut is starting to really hurt so I’m hoping to figure out how to switch to Shopify soon.

12 p.m. — Lunch is leftover beef stroganoff while sitting on the porch enjoying the nice weather we’re currently having.

2 p.m. — I sit down at my wheel and promptly mess up three mugs in a row, so badly I have to start from scratch on all three. I toss them into the scrap pile to re-use the clay and start feeling a little anxious about not having enough inventory for the craft fair in a few days.

4 p.m. — Without enough time to re-make the mugs and drive them over to my local pottery studio to fire them, I decided I can pivot with making clay ring dishes and bubble glaze them in a variety of colors since those are small enough I can fire them in the kitchen oven.

6 p.m. — I race to make a quick dinner of one-pan chicken Alfredo pasta and rip open a Caesar salad kit just as the brothers are home. They dirtier than average today so I make them eat outside on the porch otherwise I’ll be cleaning mud off of the dining room chairs tonight.

9 p.m. — I’ve made 10 ring dishes. Tomorrow I’ll fire them, but for now I hop in the shower and my I’m asleep before my head hits the pillow.

Daily Total: $0

Day 3

5 a.m. — Breakfast burritos for the brothers today and I make them as a I prepare the oven for my ring dishes. I use the rest of the chicken and Caesar salad to make them chicken Caesar wraps for lunch and pack bags of chips and chocolate chip cookies. Before they walk out the door, I ask the brothers if they need me to pick anything up at the store. As I eat my breakfast of yogurt and fruit, I make my grocery list, pack up Etsy orders, and rotate my ring dishes in and out of the oven. I’m a master multi-tasker.

12 p.m. — I’ve spent all morning running errands; picking up the next week of groceries and household supplies, dropping off Etsy orders at the UPS store, and picking up my completed mugs from the pottery studio. I chow down on some snacks I bought from the grocery store while I glaze all my ring dishes. $325 (Venmoed from brothers)

5 p.m. — Dinner tonight is spaghetti with homemade sauce and meatballs and the leftover garlic bread. The sauce is little effort but is best to simmer for hours so I get an early start on it. I set it up buffet-style again so the brothers can help themselves when they get home. I eat my plate while doing some admin work on Etsy and filling out paperwork for upcoming craft fairs including paying the application fees. $100

7 p.m. — Ok, so there was an ulterior motive for making their favorite meal, my usual helper at craft fairs is my best friend, A, but she’s been ordered to be on bed rest since she’s 8 months pregnant with twins. I emerge from the basement just as the brothers are finishing dinner; they all complement me on the spaghetti and meatballs so I launch right into asking if one of them can help me out this Saturday with running the booth. They play rock-paper-scissors and M, being the loser, volunteers himself as tribute.

9 p.m. — I clean up after dinner and then spend the rest of the night finishing glazing my ring dishes while I listen to a small business podcast to pick up some ideas.

Daily Total: $100

Day 4

7 a.m. — Thank goodness it’s Friday meaning I can sleep in. I make a giant breakfast casserole with tater tots, diced ham, eggs, bell peppers, green onions, and shredded cheese. I serve half for breakfast today, and then the brothers can warm it up in the oven for tomorrow’s breakfast as well. I pack the leftover spaghetti and meatballs in thermoses as well as grocery store snacks.

10 a.m. — A super productive morning of doing the second-fire on all 10 ring dishes. I let them cool as I organize the rest of the inventory and proactively load my car up with my booth, banners, display stands, etc.

1 p.m. — I stick a piece of salmon in the air-fryer and heat up some instant rice for a quick lunch. Usually whenever I cook, I’ll make a big batch to re-use in lunches for the brothers but I haven’t had much luck getting them to like salmon, even my favorite which is a honey teriyaki glaze. So I just use the air-fryer. Plus I’m so tired of this oven and sweating in the kitchen.

4 p.m. — Friday night means the brothers are on their own! I head out early and pick up boba tea and takeout Chinese and bring over to A (the friend who’s on bed rest). For her—taro milk tea and General Tso’s. For me—full caffeinated brown sugar black tea boba and chicken lo mein. We chill on her couch while watching whatever bad reality show Bravo is showing and chat all night. We end up getting Skittles and KitKats from the local 7-11 delivered as we were craving a little sweet treat. $35

9 p.m. — I get home and double-check my checklist of all the things to prepare for the craft fair tomorrow before taking a shower and crashing.

Daily Total: $35

Day 5

4 a.m. — Early morning! I make a big pot of coffee then pre-heat the oven for the brothers. M is awake but not totally conscious yet, so we load the rest of materials into my car in total silence.

9 a.m. — The booth is set up and the first customers have trickled in! I lucked out with a good booth spot right by the entrance and next to a popular french fries stand (which mans a lot of customers standing around waiting for their fries).

12 p.m. — Business is pretty consistent, with the whole time spent chatting with customers and making quite a few sales. Even if someone doesn’t purchase, I hand them my card with the link to my Etsy shop. M is doing his best; I’ve only had to save him a few times when customers probed him with specific questions about the pottery or colors.

2 p.m. — The other two brothers stopped by! They brought us sandwiches and soda for lunch and took over for a bit so we could take a break and eat. Interestedly, two burly construction men running a pottery stand did seem to attract more attention, especially from the women. I might have to bribe the brothers to help me at more craft fairs…

4 p.m. — I’ve sold out of everything except a few mugs and bowls! It’s one of my best days and I’m ecstatic. There was even one couple who wanted my contact information to inquire about getting a custom set of plates and bowls. The brothers help me break down and load my car up; we decide to stop at their favorite bar for pizza and wings and more than a few celebratory brews. They refuse to let me pay.

8 p.m. — I’m showered, in my comfy pajamas, tucked in my flannel sheets and pretty ecstatic about how the day went. I post on my Instagram account some pictures of the days then turn the TV on to watch Meet Me in St. Louis and fall asleep to the sounds of Judy Garland singing.

Daily Total: $0

Weekly Total: $210