MELANIE RICHARDSON Co-Owner, Mossy Creek Pottery, Lincoln City For 52 years, Mossy Creek Pottery has passed from one set of devoted hands to another — “the dream kept alive, as we like to say,” explains Melanie Richardson, who purchased the business in 2014 with Lorie DePaolo. Both Richardson and DePaolo are working potters, with Richardson hand-building with slab and DePaolo specializing in fantastical sculptural creatures. The coincidence that Richardson shares a last name with founders Bob and Julia Richardson? Pure serendipity. Located on a scenic 6-acre (2.4-ha) property, this pottery shop in the woods, as Richardson likes to say, showcases work from 50 Northwest potters, which Richardson believes makes it the largest collection in the country devoted exclusively to pottery. While mugs reign supreme as the bestseller, visitors find everything from affordable necklace pendants to museum-quality art pieces. The exterior spaces and gardens are spectacular, too. They “get as much social media play as our pottery does,” Richardson says. Families appreciate that kids can play outdoor games while parents browse. Visit MossyCreekPottery.com for more information. CULTURE MAKER CENTRAL OREGON COAST 49 VISITTHEOREGONCOAST.COM Fleet of Flowers in Depoe Bay Yaquina Head Lighthouse FROM TOP: JEREMY BURKE (2); JORDAN & DANI / TRAVEL OREGON Blue heron in Lincoln City
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