Hana May Makes: Hana has Tea with Jud!

{Jud's handmade breakfast spread}

Many moons ago I embarked on a 6 month adventure and worked in Tignes in France on a ski season. It was there that I met the wonderful Jud Pollock. On a season you have very little time to just do nothing, but for the Skiworld seasonaires of 2011 the down time craze was knitting and the queen of knitting was Miss Pollock. Jud is the founder of Tea with Jud, an online shop for her fabulous pottery and knits.

{Tignes 2011- Me, Jud and the gang on Christmas day!}

Meet Jud!

Jud lives in Scotland on a fruit farm in Blairgowrie, Perthshire and attached to her house is her own pottery workshop, which she and her friends converted with their bare hands! Jud makes and sells knits and pots through her online shop http://teawithjud.com but this Irish chick has her sights set on her very own coffee shop and hot drinks won’t be the only thing on the menu.

Jud’s story

Jud was born in Belfast and grew up in Randalstown, Northern Ireland. She grew up in a creative family and was taught to knit at the age of four by her Mum (cute!) I was very jealous to hear that Jud took needlework classes at school. She laughed and told me: “I just loved making things when I was little. As long as I was making things I was happy!” After leaving school she took an art course at college and then studied 3D design and business at Manchester Met.

How did you learn to make pottery?

She learned how throw (pottery made on a wheel, not smashing up plates) at uni. She saved up the money she made from selling her knitted hats to buy a second hand pottery wheel in 2013. This wheel has made mugs, bowls, butter dishes, plates, teapots, jugs and cutlery dishes *BREATHE* which can all be found and bought on her website.

{Personalised mug for a customer's teacher}

From coffee shops in Belfast to chalets in the Alps

The idea of running her own coffee shop began when Jud worked as a supervisor in an independent coffee shop called Clements for 4 years. To get more business and managerial experience, for 3 years every winter she would work in the Alps as a chalet host and manager.

{Jud on the far left and wearing one of her hats}

Jud’s Scottish travels

Jud hopped from the Alps in the winter to Scotland in the summer were she managed a youth hostel in Tongue, on the north coast of Scotland. It gave her a chance to explore the area and she fell in love. “There was no TV and I was in the middle of nowhere so it gave me a chance to do lots of knitting and exploring!”

{Jud's youth hostel}

She was so inspired by Scotland that she decided to make a permanent move to set up her dream coffee shop, where of course she will be selling her knits and pots.

{The fruit farm!}

{Hard at work creating her workshop}

Her words of wisdom for any crafters wanting to make a living from their crafts: “Just keep going. It doesn’t matter how long it takes you to get there, you’ll get there in the end.”