The creators’ thought process

How a lump of mud becomes a keeper

Five stages, three makers, and a notebook that travels between them. Here’s what goes through their heads at every step.

01
Stage 01 of 05
Sketch & intention
Every piece begins on paper: the silhouette, where a hand will hold it, what it should feel like empty and full.
“Before I touch clay I ask: what will this pot be doing on a Tuesday?”
Asha Verma
02
Stage 02 of 05
Wedge & throw
Clay is wedged to push out air, then centered and pulled up on the wheel — or coiled by hand for sculptural forms.
“Centering is the whole job. If the clay isn't calm, nothing you do afterwards will be.”
Asha Verma
03
Stage 03 of 05
Trim & refine
At leather-hard, each piece is trimmed, carved and given its foot. Handles are pulled and attached here.
“Trimming is where a pot gets its posture. A good foot makes it stand like it means it.”
Theo Lindqvist
04
Stage 04 of 05
Glaze
Glazes are mixed in-house from raw minerals, tested on tiles, then dipped, poured or brushed by hand.
“I think of glaze as the weather the pot lives in. Some days you want sun, some days fog.”
Daniel Mensah
05
Stage 05 of 05
Fire & reveal
Two firings — bisque then glaze — reaching up to 1,280°C. Opening the kiln is still the best part of the week.
“The kiln always has the last word. My job is to give it a good argument.”
Theo Lindqvist

Meet the makers

since 2014

Wheel thrower · Founder

Asha Verma

“I'm not trying to make a perfect pot. I'm trying to make one that looks like a person was there.”

Asha started mudl in a rented garage with a second-hand kick wheel. She throws every vase and cup in the catalogue and still answers most of the custom-order emails herself.

✎ From the notebook

Mon, 6:40am
Centered ten balls before coffee. The first three are always for my hands, not for the shelf.
Wed, after firing
Moon jar #212 cracked along the seam. Kept it. A crack tells you where the clay was arguing with you.
Sat
Sketched the Blossom pair again but slimmer. Thinking about how two forms talk across a table.

Made by Asha

Moon Jar

Very popular

Clay: Porcelain-stoneware blend
Size: Ø 34 × H 38 cm

$420

MD-001

Hearth Bottle Trio

Very popular

Clay: Speckled stoneware
Size: H 16 / 19 / 22 cm

$148

MD-003

Pebble Bud Vase

Clay: Porcelain
Size: H 14 cm

$58

MD-007

Daybreak Cappuccino Cup

Clay: Stoneware
Size: 200 ml

$42

MD-010

since 2018

Hand-builder · Sculptural forms

Theo Lindqvist

“The wheel gives you symmetry for free. Hand-building makes you earn every curve.”

Theo works without a wheel, coiling, pinching and paddling forms over days. His pieces dry slowly under plastic and fire once, low and smoky.

✎ From the notebook

Tue
Walked the riverbank, collected three stones for their silhouettes. The next Dune set starts from these.
Thu, late
Left the coil walls thicker on the shoulder. It reads heavier in the hand — more honest.
Sun
Smoke-fired the burnished set. The black blooms landed exactly nowhere I planned. Perfect.

Made by Theo

Dune Vessels

Very popular

Clay: Raw buff stoneware with grog
Size: Set of 3 · H 18–26 cm

$380

MD-002

Pinch Cup Stack

Clay: Porcelain
Size: Set of 4 · 180 ml

$86

MD-005

Archive Vessel Series

Clay: Mixed bodies
Size: Series of 7 · H 12–34 cm

$640

MD-009

Grove Planters

Clay: Terracotta & stoneware
Size: Ø 12–16 cm · drainage hole

$74

MD-013

since 2019

Glaze chemist · Tableware

Daniel Mensah

“Every glaze is a recipe and a weather report. Same ingredients, different kiln, different mood.”

Daniel designs every glaze we use, mixing from raw minerals and testing on hundreds of tiles before anything reaches a plate. He also makes our tableware, built for daily use.

✎ From the notebook

Mon
Celadon test 38: too green. Pulled back the iron by half a percent. Tiles 39–41 into the next firing.
Wed
Restaurant order needs 48 plates that match. Matching is harder than it sounds when the kiln has opinions.
Fri
Butter cream came out with a faint pink blush where it pooled. Writing it down before I forget the firing curve.

Made by Daniel