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HOME DÉCOR 2 8 KITCHENWARE NEWS & HOUSEWARES REVIEW n MARCH 2014 n www.kitchenwarenews.com their names on their plates, creating a personalized plate for each child. When friends came over, Laura says, "they saw the plates and had to have them." So Laura started making—and selling—personalized plates for friends. Almost 20 years later, two of Laura's daughters—Kyle and Sara Kate—are no longer just inspiration for her designs. They're design collaborators. Kyle, in fact, is the Design Manager. She also handles marketing, and she's taken the lead in product design. Laura, who spends most of her time on the business end of things, says, "It 's really lightened my load." Sara Kate is still in college, but that doesn't stop her from getting involved. "She's really found her niche in photo editing," Laura says. She's very involved with the graphic team providing support to Coton Colors retailers, and her artistic side really shows through because of her background as a painter. "She's more an artist than all of us combined," Laura says. "Always has been. She likes nothing more than to sit in the studio and draw all day." But Laura has a firm background in the arts, too. In fact, she earned a degree in studio art from Florida State University in Tallahassee, where Coton Colors is based. She was inspired to pursue the degree (and to found Coton Colors) by her youth in Miami. She was in love with the flora, the fauna and the clear water. Moreover, she was inspired by the casual atmosphere. Her parents entertained regularly, inviting people over on a whim: the bigger the gathering the better. That's why there's so much emphasis on gatherings in the Coton Colors catalog, which offers pottery for every occasion and every holiday. In addition to benefiting from the air of celebration and the easy-going attitude her family had toward entertaining, Laura benefited from her father, John Blank's, background in business. "He's my feet on the ground," Laura says, and he's helped her handle the company 's finances from the beginning. He currently acts as the CFO. Laura's mother offered a different kind of support, urging her to follow her dreams, and take risks. Between the two of them, Laura feels very fortunate. "The joy" of working with family, she says, "is that there's nobody like family to support you, and who you can trust." Recently, Laura has taken an interest in art therapy, in part, she says, because, "When I was growing up, whenever I was upset or sad, I always relied on art to get me through." When her sister, Marcie, would notice that Laura was spending an unusual amount of time with her art, she would say, "She must be working through something." So about two years ago, Laura traveled south to volunteer to work with pediatric patients at St. Joseph's Children's Hospital in Tampa. "We asked them to draw what makes them happy," she recalls. What came next? She saw two-year-olds clutching paint brushes and 19-year-olds who would sit in class for hours and draw and paint. "All of were so moved by that," she says. One boy, age 10, seemed reluctant to draw anything. He had a blank piece of paper in front of him for the longest time. Finally, he drew a striped heart and told Laura, "I'm painting this for my mom because she makes me happy." As a painter and a mother, Laura was sold. Since then, she's conducted art workshops on the Tallahassee Hospital's Pediatric floor. In the second week of March, she' ll conduct one at St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital in Tampa. To match Laura's passion for art therapy, Coton Colors has launched the "Attached to a Cause" initiative. Limited edition "Art With a Heart" ceramics and "Color Me Happy" coloring books designed by Laura are now available, with a portion of the proceeds going to art therapy programs all over the country. Coton Colors will also donate one coloring book for ever y coloring book sold. For more information on Coton Colors products and charitable activities, visit the company online at coton-colors.com. Coton Colors (Cont. from Page 1)