Name: Fall Firing Festival at The Village Potters Clay Center
Start: 2026-11-14T10:00:00.000-05:00
End: 2026-11-14T16:00:00.000-05:00
Location: The Village Potters Clay Center

Fall Firing Festival at The Village Potters Clay Center

Spend Saturday with Asheville's clay community at The Village Potters Clay Center. The Fall Firing Festival brings pottery fresh from the kiln, live demonstrations, hands-on ceramics activities and holiday shopping to the center's Westgate home.

Stop by November 14 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 44 Westgate Parkway. The festival is free and open to everyone.

Meet the artists, watch a demonstration and shop for handmade gifts. Check the festival page for the day's schedule before heading over.

The Village Potters Clay Center is a nonprofit clay studio, gallery and pottery supply shop at 44 Westgate Parkway in West Asheville. After Hurricane Helene destroyed its River Arts District building in 2024, it reopened at Westgate in April 2026. The gallery sells ceramics made on site by six resident potters and studio tenants, and the supply shop stocks Laguna, Standard and KYMudworks clays, AMACO glazes and Brent wheels. Eight-week pottery classes and workshops serve beginners and experienced makers. It's open daily from 10 AM to 5 PM.

Local potters and regulars buy clay and glaze here, and the classes give beginners a place to learn the wheel.

The Village Potters Clay Center

Looking for shopping in Asheville? These local stores, galleries and boutiques are worth the trip, downtown and across town. [Instant Karma](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1501-instant-karma-asheville) sells hippie gifts at two shops, one on Lexington Avenue downtown and one on Haywood Road in West Asheville. Downtown, [Static Age Records](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/4065-static-age-records) sells records and hosts shows on Lexington, [Blue Spiral 1](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1479-blue-spiral-1) fills three floors with contemporary art on Biltmore Avenue, and [VaVaVooom](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/974-vavavooom) is a woman-owned lingerie boutique on Broadway. In Biltmore Village, [New Morning Gallery](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1480-new-morning-gallery) shows more than 500 American craft artists. North Asheville's Merrimon Avenue has [Jus' Running](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1014-jus-running), [Asheville Raven & Crone](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1253-asheville-raven-crone) and [Asheville Pet Supply](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1016-asheville-pet-supply). [Orbit DVD](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/969-orbit-dvd) is an independent movie and game store in West Asheville. Out east, the [Antique Tobacco Barn](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1391-antique-tobacco-barn) packs more than 75 vendors into 77,000 square feet, and the [Southern Highland Craft Guild](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/656-southern-highland-craft-guild) sells Appalachian handcraft at its Blue Ridge Parkway shop. South of town, [Boutique Royale](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/2644-boutique-royale-lingerie-gifts) carries lingerie and gifts on Sweeten Creek Road, and [Signs for Hope Marketplace](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/2487-signs-for-hope-marketplace) in Fairview gives every dollar to a local nonprofit. Black Mountain's [Old Town District](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/4063-old-town-district) is a walkable afternoon of shops and galleries. Every shop below has hours, photos and directions.

Shopping in Asheville, NC: Local Shops, Boutiques and Gifts

Asheville Made is your guide to products made right here in the mountains, from hot sauce and craft sodas to farm-raised meat, handmade crafts and small-batch spirits. [FIREWALKER Hot Sauce Company](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/991-firewalker-hot-sauce-company) has made small-batch, vegan sauces with locally grown produce since 2012. [Devil's Foot Beverage](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1409-devils-foot-beverage-the-mule) brews ginger beer and craft sodas with organic ginger and fruit from local farms, and pours them at The Mule, its taproom on Sweeten Creek Road near Biltmore Village. [Hickory Nut Gap Farm](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/743-hickory-nut-gap-farms) in Fairview has been farmed by the same family since 1916 and sells its grassfed beef and pasture-raised pork and chicken at the farm store. The [Southern Highland Craft Guild](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/656-southern-highland-craft-guild) shows the work of hundreds of juried Appalachian craftspeople in pottery, fiber, glass, wood and jewelry. For local spirits, visit [Eda Rhyne Distilling](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1467-eda-rhyne-distilling-company-and-tasting-room) in Biltmore Village, [Oak and Grist](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1301-oak-and-grist-distilling-company) in Black Mountain and [Two Trees](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/2530-two-trees-distilling) in Fletcher. These are good stops for gifts and souvenirs that are actually made in Asheville. Every listing below has hours, photos and directions.

Asheville Made: Local Artisans, Makers and Handmade Gifts

Asheville has a long list of women-owned businesses, and this guide rounds them up. Downtown, one stretch of Broadway has [Old Europe Pastries](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1716-old-europe-pastries) for Hungarian cakes, the honey tasting bar at [Asheville Bee Charmer](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1377-asheville-bee-charmer) and [VaVaVooom](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/974-vavavooom)'s lingerie boutique. On Patton Avenue, [Hazel Twenty](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/676-hazel-twenty-boutique) and its menswear sister [Lex Twenty](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/2262-lex-twenty-menswear) carry Free People, Filson and Barbour. [Instant Karma](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1501-instant-karma-asheville) sells crystals on Lexington Avenue and Haywood Road, and [Good Hot Fish](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/3667-good-hot-fish) fries Carolina seafood on Buxton Avenue. In the River Arts District, [ButterPunk](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/4129-butterpunk) bakes biscuits on Depot Street. West Asheville has [The Odd](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1413-the-odd-eclectic-dive-bar-music-venue-oddities-museum) on Haywood Road for drag and punk nights, plus the fried chicken sandwich at [Sand Hill Kitchen](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1307-sand-hill-kitchen) on Sardis Road. [Asheville Raven & Crone](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1253-asheville-raven-crone) stocks tarot decks and candles on Merrimon Avenue, and [Hemp 4 Victory](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/2074-hemp-4-victory) is in Woodfin. Head south for [Retro Coffee](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/2305-retro-coffee) on Sweeten Creek Road, the Pie Flight at [Baked Pie Company](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1362-baked-pie-company) in Arden and the antique dealers at [Altamont Vintage](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/2578-altamont-vintage-collectibles-antiques) near Biltmore Village. [Asheville Charcuterie Co](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/3304-asheville-charcuterie-co). builds boards and grazing tables, and [SweetPeas Photo Camper](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/3106-sweetpeas-photo-camper) brings a photo booth to parties. For branding and illustration, there's [Flori Pate Designs](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/51-flori-pate-designs). Every business below has hours, photos and directions.

Woman Owned Businesses in Asheville, NC: Shops, Food and Services

Looking for things to do with kids in Asheville? Find wildlife, hands-on museums, farm days, arcades, bowling and outdoor theater. In East Asheville, the [WNC Nature Center](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1066-wnc-nature-center) has black bears, red wolves, river otters and red pandas on Gashes Creek Road. Near downtown, the [Asheville Tourists](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1418-asheville-tourists-baseball) play minor league baseball at HomeTrust Park, long known as McCormick Field. Downtown, the [Asheville Art Museum](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/2071-asheville-art-museum) on Pack Square has a makerspace where kids and grown-ups make art together, and [Asheville Community Theatre](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/997-asheville-community-theatre) on Walnut Street stages youth productions. In West Asheville, [Sky Lanes](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1044-sky-lanes-bar-grill-bowling) has been bowling on Patton Avenue since 1963, with bumpers and an arcade, and [Asheville Retrocade](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1217-asheville-retrocade) on Haywood Road is packed with vintage arcade games and pinball. South of town, [Claying Around](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1106-claying-around) on Hendersonville Road is a paint-your-own pottery studio, and [Sweeten Creek Brewing](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/1329-sweeten-creek-brewing) has a big creekside lawn with cornhole and barbecue. Out in Fairview, [Hickory Nut Gap Farms](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/743-hickory-nut-gap-farms) runs hay rides and pony rides on fall weekends. Each summer, [Montford Park Players](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/2252-montford-park-players) stage free outdoor Shakespeare in Montford. [Asheville Parks & Recreation](/asheville-nc/explore-places-to-go/3370-asheville-parks-recreation) runs more than 50 parks with playgrounds, swimming, trails and community centers.

Fall Firing Festival at The Village Potters Clay Center

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