You might know Tim Grocott – or more specifically, you might know his mugs, which he makes under his brand Taus from his studio and home in Waipapa, just outside Kerikeri. Made using custom plaster moulds and slipcast porcelain, they feature a cleverly conceived lip that makes for a perfect sip of joe.
Grocott moved to Waipapa a year or so back, to a rural property with a big old workshop featuring a heavy roller door that takes two hands to open. “I’d have to put my coffee down to open the door and there was no flat ground,” he says. “So I built a little ceramic cup holder and I use it every day to hold my cup while I wrestle the door open.”
Elsewhere on the property, he’s built new vege gardens, and he found the cup holder on the workshop door so handy, he thought it would be nice to have one next to the glass house. “So I refined the design a bit and made a new batch.” Crafted by hand from a mixture of red and stoneware clay, the holder can be installed on a fence, retaining wall or shed and comes with hardware for installation.
“Having a coffee or a tea with you in the garden is so nice because it’s like a little mini break,” he says. “Finished digging that hole? Take a moment to reflect with a little coffee, then on to the next hole. Finished weeding that garden bed? Reward yourself with some tea and then on to the next job. You don’t have to go back to the house to make a cup and get distracted with other jobs. It’s right there next to you, ready when you are.”
Taus Ceramic
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