By LYNETTE SOWELL
Cove Leader-Press
Something new has come to the heart of Copperas Cove’s downtown, adding to the lineup of shops and restaurants in the area.
Kiln & Cone recently opened its doors at 105 East Avenue E, next door to Refresh Salon & Spa.
When shop owner Ashley Lyons and her family would travel, they enjoyed visiting ceramics shops where they could select a piece, paint it, have it fired, and then have a unique memento of their trip.
Customers at Kiln & Cone can come into the shop, select the pottery they wish to glaze. Kiln & Cone staff are on hand to answer questions about glazing, paintbrushes, and more.
While painting, customers can enjoy a cold drink, and even ice cream or shakes made with Blue Bell Ice Cream.
Customers will receive a call or text to pick up their freshly-fired pieces within about five days after completion.
The shop is located in a section of the historic downtown. One of the more recent businesses at that location was C&H Hawaiian Grill, a thrift shop, and farther back than that, Rhode’s Supermarket.
The space proved to be ideal for the shop.
“I’d talked about a pottery shop for about 10 years,” Lyons reflected. “So, as we travel as a military, and we would travel around, we’d always find a pottery shop to recreate all our memories in every state.”
Lyons, who also owns Refresh Spa & Salon next door, said they had already been renovating the building. And as she considered the space next door.
“I was like, I think this is the one,” she said of the space for Kiln & Cone.
It took about nine months to renovate the space. A portion of the renovation was funded with a matching grant from the Copperas Cove Economic Development Corporation.
“We had to completely remove the awning because it was in bad shape. But when we did it, we had to work with the city and partner with them to get the new awning allowed because it was a variance,” she said.
Lyons is pleased with the community support so far. In fact, she has already booked the “event room” for parties and ladies’ groups who want to gather to paint.
“My goal one is truly that we have a place where people just come and create memories, and so the community is really going to see what that means. We did create the party rooms so that people can come in. We already have some field trips, birthday parties, homeschooling groups, women’s groups, church groups,” she said.
There are also plans for workshops and events Wine Down Wednesday.
“We’ll do some collaborations with other small businesses. Those are the things I’m really excited for,” said Lyons.
Kiln & Cone is open Wednesday and Thursday from 11-7, Friday and Saturday from 10-8, and Sunday from noon-6.
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