Back in the mists of time, when I lived with both my parents, I had a pottery mug. It’s this one, it’s the one I still use when I’m at Ma’s.

I’m not sure where it came from, but I know it was something that Dad bought. We didn’t have much hand made anything and most crockery in our house ended up broken, that notwithstanding, Mum and Dad liked pottery and stoneware and we had more of it in our house than my contemporaries did (the whole pottery thing was something that my aunt never got). This is one of the reasons Mum has so many bowls and mugs, because I know that she really likes them, the more handmade the better. I bought her a mug when I was in Cote d’Ivoire because I knew she’d appreciate that more than anything else I could bring back (yes eventually it died because she dropped it but at least it wasn’t thrown at anyone!)

I’m the same, I’m really lucky because Jo often buys me small ceramics on her travels. I’ve been trying this year to think about presents and if I’m buying a object, I’m trying to buy nice handmade things made by people not in factories. I’ve not got it right or perfect but I’m trying.

I was thinking about this when I came across Blue Air Ceramics on Instagram. Sweary handmade mugs, that are tricky to get hold of because they are a lot of work for one person to make. Alice, the person behind the website, took up making mugs with swear words on them in memory of her friend who died of mouth cancer and swore like a sailor. I couldn’t think of anything more delightful (I am a woman who has a ’30 ways to say fuck’ poster on her kitchen wall after all)

I signed up to the email list in the hope of being notified next time there was a drop and didn’t think much else about it. Until one day, in August, I was on a bus on my way to Ma’s and the waitlist for personalised orders opened while I was checking my email. So I ordered two mugs, one for me, one for Ma, paid for them and settled in to wait.

Yesterday, my mugs arrived and I am so absolutely and completely delighted with them. Ma knows that this is one of her birthday presents so I’m not spoiling it at all but look at them, they are just perfect.

They are a delight and I’m so happy I wasn’t working on the day Alice opened that waitlist so I saw the email in time.

I would sign up to waitlist again, if I could, these are just so lovely….