Expert: Leisha Hiester - 6/21/2010

Question
Hi,
My grandma just passed and she had a ceramic shop in her garage for about 35 years. She has molds that no one makes any longer. I have no idea on how ot get started on selling these items for her estate. We would like to keep them, but just can't. She lived in Milpitas California. Please help.

Answer
Dear Crystal,

I am so sorry for your loss. Sounds like the community of Milpitas lost a valuable member too. There's been so many changes in the ceramics hobby business. Many ceramic shops now just purchase already fired bisque versus owning molds and pouring them. The molds too are difficult to dispose of. You cannot just dump them because they're made of plaster. They're heavy and the costs to pay for disposal is generally by weight.

If they're still in good shape, there are interested parties out there. Finding them is the challenge. I would first find someone knowledgeable about which molds are desirable. Ads on Craigslist can be effective. You might try contacting the local supplier of clay. I know there's one in Santa Clara;

The Clay Planet
1775 Russell Ave.
Santa Clara, Ca 95054

(408# 295-3352
#800)443-CLAY
E-mail:info@clay-planet.com
www.clay-planet.com

There's also an expert I've found regarding molds whose a proven valuable source;

Petro Mold Co.
12775 Donation Rd.
Waterford, PA 16441
888-811-6653
Email: petro@velocity.net
www.petromolds.com

Hope this helps. Leisha