Our Story

Tayler Straziuso, of Stray Ceramics, grew up in Long Beach, CA where her love for ceramics began. Today she plays with clay and fire in her home studio located in Wonder Valley, CA. Most of her inspiration comes from vintage objects, the female form, biker culture and the colors of our beautiful desert. She makes things that she loves and that she would use in her everyday life. Her color palette is a true reflection of the environment she creates in. Each piece is created with tons of love and are all one of a kind. 

Why Stray Ceramics? Tayler came up with the name while traveling through Mexico for 3 months in 2017. Stray was inspired by her love for solo travel and from the first four letters in her last name STRAziuso.

Pit-Fired

Pit firing is the oldest known method for firing pottery, which dates back 30,000 years. Typically this is done in a hole in the ground, where pots are placed and burned. Modern day ceramicists use the pit firing method for the unique colors and patterns produced from this atmospheric process. Bisqued pots are placed in the pit and surrounded with combustible materials such as wood, salt, dried manure and metal oxides. The pit is then set ablaze and these items turn to vapor and swirl around the pots in the pit. Once the fire has reached about 1500° the pores in the clay open and accepts the colored vapor, which is what you see in the end result. Due to the relatively low temperatures in this type of firing, pit fired pots are meant to be admired and are not meant for food or water use.

Handmade

in the

Mojave Desert

Glazed

Stray Ceramics glazes are hand mixed and tested by Tayler Straziuso. The carefully selected color palette is inspired by our desert landscape.

All glazes are non-toxic, food safe, microwave safe and dishwasher safe, although we suggest hand-washing for longevity.