Our Most Frequently Asked Questions Explained
We receive a lot of great questions both from our in-store customers and online. Though we have a thorough FAQ page on our website, here we expand on a few of our most frequently asked questions with more in-depth answers.
Read on if you have ever wondered about our history, products, workshops and more!
Are your products microwave and dishwasher safe?
The short and simple answer: yes! All of our ceramic products are microwave and dishwasher safe. Need to re-heat your coffee after you got distracted with the morning’s tasks? No problem! Pop that handmade ceramic mug right into the microwave! Our food-safe glazes are formulated in-house, and our stoneware clay allows our handmade pottery to be durable and used for years to come.
Furthermore, each piece from Jars of Dust is also oven safe! Simply allow your bowl, platter, plate or crock to preheat with the oven so that there is no temperature shock. Placing a piece of room temperature or cold stoneware pottery into a hot oven will cause it to crack with the shock of the temperature transition. Allowing it to heat up with your oven’s temperature will prevent this from happening.
Now go forth and place your favorite Jars of Dust pieces in the oven or microwave, and right into the dishwasher afterwards for easy cleanup!
How long has Jars of Dust been around?
Jars of Dust was founded in 2015 by owner Mallorie Terranova while she was getting her undergrad at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Studio Art with a concentration in Ceramics + Photography. Four years later, in May of 2019, Mallorie opened the first Jars of Dust Pottery storefront + studio in the Vibe District of Virginia Beach, VA. Before our storefront was born, Mallorie worked out of a friend’s garage which she converted into a temporary makeshift studio. Her team grew to include our ever-faithful shop dog Brown, and Lydia our studio manager, glaze developer, hand-builder and so much more.
Today, Jars of Dust has four employees, two shop dogs, and is expanding even further to a new warehouse location just a few blocks away where all of our production will take place beginning in late 2022. Check out our about us page to learn more about our whole team!
Do you ever come out with new colors?
Yes! Our white Eggshell glaze, creamy Oak glaze, and rusty Copper glaze are available year-round. However, our seasonal color changes twice a year within our spring/summer and fall/winter seasons. If you’ve visited our shop in person, you may have noticed that our Virginia Beach pottery shop changes twice a year as well.
Each time a seasonal glaze is released, we also completely transform our showroom to reflect the vibe of that glaze, and our vision behind it. Check out our Fall + Winter Showroom Transformation blog post for a glimpse into what goes on behind the scenes in order to create each new showroom display, and our thought process going into this past season. Don’t forget! Once a color is out of season, it is retired into our Color Vault and is no longer available for purchase, so get your favorite seasonal color while it’s out!
Q: Do you offer sets?
Yes we do! Almost all of our pieces are sold separately, however if you choose to purchase a set, each one offers a 15% price discount as opposed to purchasing each piece individually to grow your collection. We currently have four different set offerings: A set of four Pasta Bowls, a set of four Dinner Plates, a Three Piece Set (consisting of one Dinner Plate, one Side Plate and one Pasta Bowl) and a Four Piece Set (consisting of one Dinner Plate, one Side Plate, one Entree Bowl and one Side Bowl). You can choose a set in matching colors, or mix-n-match any of our four current glaze color offerings of Agave, Copper, Oak or Eggshell. Let us help you take the guesswork out of starting your own collection of handmade ceramics with our curated sets of stoneware dishes. Easily create a space you are proud of where friends and family want to gather, and where memories will be made for years to come. It has never been more simple to create the tablescape of your dreams with our handmade pottery! Check out our sets page to start building your collection.
Q: Do you offer pottery classes?
For the first time in Jars of Dust history we are thrilled to be able to answer YES to this question! We kicked off workshop experiences June of 2022 with a Virginia Beach pottery class designed to allow students to create their very own Jars of Dust Wall Hangings! We welcomed students into our Virginia Beach studio, and provided all materials and personalized instruction. No prior pottery experience is necessary for these two hour workshop experiences, just excitement to learn and create!
Check out our pottery classes page for a full list of our current offerings. We will be hosting classes working with pre-fired pieces as well as raw slabs of clay to form into your own creations.
Thanks for taking the time to learn more about us on this FAQ journey! Feel free to reach out to us if you have any additional questions that were not answered by this article or our FAQ page.
More about Jars of Dust!
Come visit us in our Virginia Beach pottery shop to check out our new glaze and find more pottery gift ideas for your special someone. We’re located at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront at 607 19th St in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Our shop is open Monday - Friday from 9-5 and Saturdays from 9-1. You can check out our mugs, candles and match strikers, plates, ceramic spoon rests, and ceramic oil dispensers, and let us know which is your favorite on Instagram! Get your hands dirty with our pottery classes in our shop. You can view our schedule to choose from our list of pottery classes in Virginia Beach.