For Nora

I am deeply sad that Nora Ephron is no longer with us. She was a client and then she became a friend.

Before we had even met, Nora selected a sweater that I had designed for Meryl Streep to wear in the movie Falling in Love. Our connection had already begun.

Next, she was given a cake plate by one of her friends and she became a customer. She drove out to Connecticut with her sister Delia for one of my early pot sales and especially collected the cake plates.Her vote of confidence meant so much to me as I was starting out. When she ordered a hand made piece as a gift for a wedding or birthday, I was thrilled and honored.

In 2006, when the Pearl Collection opened at Barneys New York, she was the first to support the collection and purchase a dinner service.

Nora was an amazing artist. My five favorite movies are It Happened One Night, The Philadelphia Story, Notorious, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and Sleepless in Seattle. Perhaps these seem sappy. I told Nora this and that I can quote Sleepless verbatim. I love that Meg Ryan believed that she was right for Tom Hanks, and in the face of reason, persevered to meet him. I love that Meg watched An Affair to Remember over and over. I do this endlessly, because, like throwing pots, I learn something new every time I see a film or sit at the wheel.

"It isn't personal. It's just business." In You've Got Mail, Tom Hanks puts Meg Ryan's children's book store out of business. When he says to her later that it wasn't personal, just business, she retorts that this comment is false. The book store was personal to her, and he had wounded her irreparably. I feel this way every day - the business, my business, is immensely personal on every level. My work and my clients are the ultimate concern, which is why I valued my relationship with Nora. She understood it all. When I watched You've Got Mail a few weeks ago, I wanted to email her that I loved that scene in the movie. I did not and now I truly wished I had.

But I will watch Nora's movies again and again. I am grateful for my acquaintance with her and send my best thoughts and condolences to her friends and family. She will be greatly missed.

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