Our stop at C.A.F.F. in Gubbio was all kinds of fun.
In order to make sure I wasn’t forking out $20k for such a huge procedure, I needed to maintain my full-time student status to be covered by my father’s medical insurance. At the time, I was but a few credits away from graduating, so I managed to take my final University of Illinois required courses online (not enough to be full-time), and then sign up for a full 12 hours at the local community college courses on top of those for the fall semester.
With those I had fun. Art, art, and more art was on the agenda, and I had a blast being creative every day of the week. One of my favorite classes was pottery.
Yes, we all put on our best Demi Moore impressions for that.
So, when our TBU post-conference blog trip dropped my group off at a Gubbio ceramics studio — C.A.F.F. — and said we would have the chance to try out the wheel, I was floored. It had been years since I last got to work pottery magic, and honestly… I just wanted to show off a bit to the Italian professionals.
But first, we had a presentation from the Master himself.
Yeah, yeah, not bad, old man. I could tell this was not his first rodeo.
Finally, it was my turn to hit the wheel.
Yeah, yeah, I got this.
I prepared myself for the applause and approval of my watching audience. Surely I was just as good as I was 8 years ago when I crafted a vase, a bowl, a mug, and a giraffe ashtray. Surely.
OK, definitely not…
But still that doesn’t call for the Master interfering with what I could get done. I mean, he was all up in my art. He does know I once made a freaking awesome giraffe ashtray, right?
It was a giraffe ashtray with a smiling giraffe head that had a hole in the mouth to hold your burning cigarette.
Psh. Whatever. Now this, it’s not even mine…
Seriously, dude…
Well, I guess I’ll just wash my hands since we’re clearly done here.
Or, you can get preoccupied by an interesting pottery app on the iPad…
While I turn this work into a little something with a Brooke touch…
Oh yeah. I once made a giraffe ashtray. I rock at ceramics… clearly.
After I left this creation on the wheel, Master took the time to splice it off, hold it in his hand as if inspecting for a minute — is this good or not… — before smashing it down on the table right in front of my face into a ball of clay. Ouch, haha.
American girl left to travel the world in 2007. Studied languages, slept in a yurt, taught English, met Aussie guy and fell in love. Moved to Australia. Calls Sydney home. Wants a puppy. Still loves to travel. Read more 
You are really an amazing creator. What an enrich site you developed!!
Your vase is also nice!!
Haha, thank you
I think the vase was lopsided and not very good.
hahaha!!! That is such a funny story Brooke.
Oh the little travel moments we remember…
You should have seen the way the dude smashed down my lopsided vase at the end. It was so harsh! haha
Hi Brooke,
At least yours came out a lot better than mine. The one I did looked like he smashed it before he did actually smash it.
Cheers,
Larissa