Meet Donna Agar | Small business owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Donna Agar and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Donna, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Prior to starting Cat Nap Pottery, I was a public high school teacher teaching students ceramics. I taught for five years, including the 2020-2021 school year heavily impacted by the pandemic. I always wanted to start my own small pottery business. When the shelter in place mandate was implemented I found myself using pottery as an outlet to stay sane with my two cats while finding my voice and expression in clay. I had been creating ceramic pieces as samples for students and during the pandemic was re-discovering my love and wonder for pottery. I want to continue to share my love for ceramics with others and hope to teach workshops for adults and youth in the future.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I believe first and foremost I am a teacher. I want to share ceramics as an amazing outlet and a beautiful form of art therapy. I loved seeing my former students zone out and embrace that they did not know what they were doing but thoroughly enjoyed it while being present in the now of my classroom walls. I believe my struggles in the classroom and the very difficult decision to leave the classroom has given me a clear understanding of what I want from my small business. I want to return to teaching but not in the public school system. I want to still give people, young children, youth and/or adults, the confidence to pick up clay and express themselves freely. The opportunity to destress and believe they are capable of beauty with their two hands. I loved seeing that in my students, the hope and the beauty of the unknown that could be made by their fingertips. I want to continue that journey.

As for my own expression in ceramics, I love all things nature. Particularly, cats! Cats are magical creatures and I am enamored by them. I have two wonderful cats and they inspire my pieces with their silly poses, loud demanding meows and their interactions with my husky/cattle mix pup. I have a background in oil painting and will apply my skills to sculpt realistically as well as underglaze realistically. The nature found in Colorado continues to be an inspiration, from the wildlife to the mountains that my husband and I climb. I also like to incorporate our hobby of fly fishing creating brown, rainbow and cutthroat trout sculptures. By creating pieces that reflect my experiences and adventures, I found that it helps me connect with people around me. When I began CNP (Cat Nap Pottery), I was fearful that if I did not make what my customers wanted I would fail miserably and lose confidence and quit starting a business before I even began. I found that people have similar interests in me, hence them wanting to purchase a handmade piece of art with their kind of flare and they had their own sentimental feelings around what I made. I have made custom pieces for many people that share the love of their cats and want to see their cats on a mug, bowl or urn. It is a huge honor to be trusted to create a custom piece of artwork for a fellow cat lover.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
When my husband and I first moved to Colorado two years ago, we called Golden our home the first year. Then we moved to Loveland and will be calling Northern Colorado home for an undetermined amount of time.

Some places we enjoy bringing family is Windy Saddle Cafe for breakfast and coffee, then Sherpa House for lunch. Both are in Golden. For dinner we would enjoy seafood boil at Clawful in Lakewood. We do drive the hour south to enjoy these places with family and friends. If family would prefer some poke bowl and a refreshing drink, we would go to Poke House Denver and explore REI garage sale while in downtown Denver!

We have had many friends visit and climb. We’ve explored and climbed Boulder Canyon and then hungrily stopping by Sherpa’s Adventure Restaurant and Bar exactly when they open since they can have a very long wait if you do not time it right! The climb and hike in both El Dorado Canyon and Table Mountain have been early morning adventures that have breathtaking views.

As we are living longer in Northern Colorado, we have come to enjoy visiting Rocky Mountain National Park for fly fishing adventures.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Shoutout to my patient and loving husband, supportive family, my baby girl that is currently in utero, she inspires me to be better everyday. Lo, fellow Filipina artist, who connected me to wonderful opportunities when I first began in Colorado. Golden Farmers Market, my first ever market as a small business – totally willing to take a chance on a newbie!

Website: Www.catnappottery.com

Instagram: CatNapPottery

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CatNapPottery