Hillbilly Porcelain: From Mud to Message
A flood. Muddy hands. A whisper of possibility beneath our feet.
That’s how Hillbilly Porcelain began — with necessity, memory, and a deep respect for the earth.
It’s part of what I call my Resolve Project — a personal commitment to reclaim, repurpose, revive, and restore what’s around me. Not just to make life more sustainable, but to make it more meaningful.
Trust the process — God knows what He’s doing.
Over the years, I’ve held close to the promises of Jeremiah 29:11–13 and Jeremiah 31:3:
“God’s got a plan — good and steady — shaping hope and a future right here in this mess. Drawn by everlasting love, shaped by His kindness, held by His hands.”
Those words have become the foundation of how I live, work, and create. This story — like clay itself — has been shaped by mud, fire, and faith.
What Is Hillbilly Porcelain?
Hillbilly Porcelain is our signature clay body — a unique blend of reclaimed studio scrap clay and locally dug North Georgia clay. Each batch is cleaned, blended, and tested in our studio to create a durable, porcelain-like finish with a story all its own.
Every piece tagged “Made with Hillbilly Porcelain” has been shaped from this special mix — part recycled, part wild, all Appalachian.
By choosing Hillbilly Porcelain, you’re supporting local craftsmanship, creative sustainability, and the story of turning humble clay into lasting beauty.
1990s – The First Clay
My story with clay began in the 1990s, when a flood uncovered a vein of soft gray earth along the Young Cane in North Georgia. From that moment on, clay became my language — a way of listening to and expressing with the earth itself.
Back then there was no Google, no YouTube tutorials — just me, a shovel, and curiosity. My research was simple: dig, listen, and learn.
Those hours spent digging and shaping didn’t just leave fingerprints on the clay — they left fingerprints on my heart.
2000 – A Door Reopens
Life moved on, and clay waited patiently. Then around 2000, my father brought home a box of discarded art materials from a school that had closed. That unexpected gift reopened a creative door I didn’t know was waiting.
TJ — my husband — started making ugly face jugs and fell in love with the clay. Not long after, Moses and I joined in, and Muddy Moses and Mom was born.
2000 – 2010 : The Messy Middle — Muddy Moses and Mom Soap Dishes
Making soap dishes became a kind of therapy — something to keep my hands busy while my body and brain healed after surgery. Moses, my shadow and little helper, was always close by.
We had been making soap since 1997, but I could never find the right dish to pair with it. So in 2010, we launched Muddy Moses and Mom Soap Dishes — functional, heartfelt, and handmade pieces that completed the story our soap began.
2021 – A New Place, A Familiar Gift
In 2021, we moved off the farm to a home with a spacious basement — perfect for a new studio. As if by divine timing, our neighbor offered us raw clay from a vein that ran beneath both our properties. Once again, we were digging, cleaning, testing, and dreaming.
The Ancient Meets the Appalachian
While working with this new clay, we discovered an ancient Persian technique called stone paste — a method from the 9th–12th centuries that combined crushed quartz, clay, and glass to mimic fine porcelain.
Our Appalachian clay had similar traits — pale and quartz-rich, not the typical Georgia red. So we started blending reclaimed materials with this white clay, curious to see what would happen.
The results surprised us — durable, beautiful, and honest. We named it Hillbilly Porcelain — a playful nod to our roots and a proud mix of Persian innovation, Chinese elegance, and Appalachian grit.
When the Flood Returns
Then came Hurricane Helene in 2024, washing away our go-to clay supplier, Highwater Clay. Once again, a flood changed everything — and once again, we went back to what we had.
We asked ourselves, Could we make our own clay for soap dishes? The answer was yes — and we did.
From Mud to Mugs – The Dream
My lifelong dream has been to hold a mug made from the mud beneath my feet — to wrap my hands around it each morning in a Mug Hug with my favorite brew.
Today, that dream is becoming real. We’re making mugs, soap dishes, and magnets — all crafted from local clay we’ve harvested, refined, and shaped ourselves. Each piece is a lesson in patience and persistence, bringing us closer to the dream:
Mugs made from local mud.
Why White and Sepia?
Hillbilly Porcelain starts with quartz-rich white clay — naturally free of the iron that gives Georgia clay its red hue. We didn’t try to change it; we celebrated its purity.
We glaze each piece in clean white, then bring iron back in a different way — through sepia-toned decals made with iron-rich laser toner. When fired, the black ink transforms into warm, earthy sepia — a gentle nod to the soil that started it all.
From the Ground Up
Every piece we make tells a story written in stone and fire. The message is simple:
Trust the process — even when it’s messy.
Hillbilly Porcelain reminds us that even the most overlooked things — the wild, the worn, the discarded — can hold beauty and purpose. It teaches us to trust our Creator, honor our hands, and let tradition and innovation walk side by side.
Our signature look is clean white clay paired with soulful sepia imagery — not stark black-and-white, but something more refined. A contrast born of fire, found only here in the North Georgia Mountains.
P.S. A Personal Note
Hillbilly Porcelain is more than clay. It’s purpose, provision, and persistence — the courage to meet challenge with creativity and to give back more than we take.
It’s how I live out my Resolve Project — using what I’ve been given to make life better. Even as I navigate life with a rare brain tumor and invisible challenges, this work keeps me grounded and grateful.
It’s a way to build a sustainable living — to literally build a life from the ground up.
It’s not just mud. It’s a message — a testimony of grit, grace, and going on anyway.
Trust the Process — with God.
If You’ve Connected with This Story…
I’d love for you to share it, leave a comment, or support the journey by visiting Miss Jenny’s Soap & Pottery.
Every piece carries part of this story — and part of me.
What’s something you’ve reclaimed or revived in your own life?
Share your story in the comments — I’d love to hear it.
With love,
Ms. Jenny
JACS – Jenny Anna Carlton Stevens