For as long as we can remember, imagination and making has been part of who we are.
Thirty years ago, two teenagers from very different worlds met on an Outward Bound course in Maine and became best friends. Our first real conversation was about fantasy, dragons, and imagination. What followed was a life built side by side, with hands busy, and curiosity leading the way.
Anne’s earliest memories are of shaping small clay pots from mud. Albert was sketching, tinkering, and reimagining objects into something new. Over the years, that shared instinct to make took many forms: shaping wood and tile, restoring antiques, treasure hunting at flea markets, crafting steampunk pieces from forgotten parts, and raising two children surrounded by music, art, and community.
As our children grew and began their own journeys, we returned more fully to ours.
Anne found her way back to clay through classes at Railyard Arts Studio. What began as a return quickly became a deep, grounding practice. Hands in the earth, learning the quiet discipline of centering, shaping, and listening to the material itself.
Pottery grew into a space of exploration and calm, where form, glaze, and kiln come together through patience and intuition. Each piece reflects a respect for process and a willingness to let the work evolve, shaped as much by touch and time as by intention.
After 30 years in the creative field, Albert followed new creative paths in steampunk, jewelry, and design, working with wood, leather, stone, metal, and found objects to tell small, imaginative stories. Over time, that instinct for story moved from object to page, becoming The Chronicles of Durajan, an epic fantasy novel published under Alania Press.
Alania Press is simply the place where that world lives. What began as years of sketching, notes, maps, and quiet imagining grew into a setting shaped by history, culture, belief, and consequence. It is less concerned with spectacle than with what endures, what is remembered, what is carried forward, and how choices echo over time.
Together, we continue to explore woodworking and handcrafts, drawn to materials that carry history and character. Every piece we make reflects years of learning, experimenting, and collaborating—of finding beauty in what’s overlooked and joy in the process itself.
Alania Crafts is a home for all of this. Clay, wood, metal, earth, and imagination come together here, shaped by a life of making and shared curiosity.
Welcome to Alania Crafts. We’re so glad you’re here.
