ST. MARYS – Sister Augustine sits in her yellow and brown apron,
her black veil flowing around her frail shoulders. She is
surrounded by ceramics of all shapes, sizes and in various stages
of completion.

She picks up a poinsettia dish and gingerly, yet swiftly, paints
a rose-colored glaze on the top and underside. An ever-present grin
is on her face.

The Benedictine sister, who entered the convent on Oct. 2, 1932,
has been doing ceramics for about four decades. But ceramics wasn’t
always her calling.

“A lady here in town was doing it and I was invited to a couple
classes … I liked the way it was done,” Sister Augustine said, as
she continued to work on the poinsettia.

Sister Augustine has a lot to do before an open house set for 9
a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at St. Joseph Monastery here.

After taking the ceramics class, Sister Augustine told the
Mother Superior that she thought it would be nice to have a hobby
shop at the monastery. The studio that is now the ceramic shop was
once a carpenter shop.

Sister Augustine is hands-on with her ceramics, although,
sometimes, people come in for an hour or two to help.

“I do it from the very beginning,” she said. “I do the whole
process, from beginning to finish … I am the only one I can depend
on.”

That process begins with molds that are too numerous to count,
she said. She pours the liquid into the molds and waits for it to
set up, a couple of hours, she said.

She then removes the seams and puts the items in a kiln for 24
hours or until they are cool enough to be touched. Now, the stain
or paint is brushed on, depending on what finish she wants. If a
glaze is added, the piece is fired again. The entire process could
take more than a week.

Sister Augustine does do a lot of holiday pieces – like the
Nativity set that will be at the open house – but her favorite are
birds and animals. The sister, who turned 90 earlier this month,
was raised on a farm in Knox.

But Sister Augustine’s hand-crafted work extends far beyond the
boundaries of St. Marys. Many people from around the world own
ceramic pieces crafted by Sister Augustine, including Tipper Gore,
who owns one of her Gussie’s Special pieces.

Sister Augustine developed the piece as a way to conserve paint.
She uses whatever color is on the brush. She, however, won’t reveal
the origin of the name.

“It’s my own private story,” she said timidly. “I have to keep
some secrets.”

Sister Augustine also works hard to make the piece just
right.

“I work on it for a long time until I get the right shade,” she
said.

She paints flowers by free hand, like forget-me-nots, on such
things as plates, pitchers and mugs.

Sister Augustine also noted that while the prices are
reasonable, people can always give more.

“It’s amazing how many people don’t give more.”

There is one item that people can pick up pretty cheap – that’s
a tiny lady bug for one Hail Mary.

Sister Augustine explained that a friend of hers did ceramics.
When the friend died, her husband brought her ceramic items to
Sister Augustine.

“I figured she would appreciate the Hail Marys,” she said.

Otherwise, the proceeds from her hand-painted items are donated
to the convent, the oldest Benedictine convent in the United
States.

Her day starts with Mass in the morning. She then gets to the
ceramic shop no later than 10 a.m.

Prayer time is 20 minutes to noon. After lunch, she goes back
into the shop from 1 to 4:45 p.m. every day but Sunday.

“Keeps me off the streets,” the nonagenarian said with a
smile.