Since last year, it is now possible to buy handmade pottery made in Bora Bora. Why not get souvenirs before your departure ? Bye Bye from Bora Bora offers you beautiful creations inspired by the island of Bora Bora. From pretty plates to the famous Tiki glasses, you’ll have everything you need to bring a little piece of Bora Bora back with you. Love Bora Bora went to meet its talented founders…
The beginning of a beautiful story
Bye Bye from Bora Bora is the story of two passionate people who fell under the spell of Polynesia and particularly of Bora Bora. Fanny and Guillaume created Bye Bye from Bora Bora in March 2020. It is a ceramics workshop that offers utilitarian and decorative pottery. They started a small collection during the months of March and April 2020. Since then, they have been very successful with the inhabitants and visitors of Bora Bora.
Fanny is a ceramist and Guillaume, a former bartender in one of Bora Bora’s luxury hotels, has learned to master the clay and brings a real addition to the collection with his creations of glasses and Tiki shooters.
A know-how that has proven itself
Being a potter is not something you can improvise. Fanny has been working in ceramics for about 20 years. She passed her potter’s training certificate in 2004 after a professional retraining and created her small collection in Marseille, in the South of France. She then taught pottery classes, which she continued to do for about ten years. In 2015, she arrived in Bora Bora and joined a small workshop that existed on the island. She taught pottery classes there for adults and children for a year and a half. It worked well. Then the workshop closed. Fanny was already thinking about opening her own workshop because there was a lack of pottery artisans. There are very few in Tahiti. She was inspired by the lagoon of Bora Bora and wanted to start her own creation made in Bora Bora!
A work of patience
To measure the work behind each pottery, it is good to know the process.
Starting with a block of clay (either white or red), the potter will shape the object with tools and sculpt it into the desired form. Once the clay is dry, the potter will apply color or leave it red. The clay will then be fired a first time in a kiln up to 1 868 °F. These kilns last about 30 hours between the time the temperature rises and falls. Once the object is out of the kiln, it will be cleaned, reworked if necessary and then glazed.
Then, it must be put in the kiln a second time at 1 832°F for about 30 hours to obtain a finished ceramic object.
Another method, used for the creation of Tiki glasses, consists in making a prototype which will be molded directly. Once molded, it will be removed from the mold. This is a delicate step. When the mold is finished, it will have the shape of the Tiki glass. From there, casting clay (liquid) will be poured inside the mold to make glasses similar to the prototype.
Tiki glasses require a lot of time because each piece has to be reworked after removal from the mold. Guillaume, who is in charge of the realization of the Tikis glasses, must spend at least half an hour on each piece. “Sometimes he spends an hour, but he has no choice because there can be many defects after demoulding” says Fanny.
Behind each creation lies a long, meticulous and demanding work.
“Having the lagoon in front of you every day is inspiring“
Bora Bora : the inspiration
Bora Bora and its lagoon with its multiple shades of blue have inspired Fanny a lot. The collections are influenced by the colors of the lagoon. Blue is Fanny’s favorite color and “it’s true that having the lagoon in front of you every day is inspiring”.
She also drew the mountain of Bora Bora on her creations: “I think the photo seen from the sea with the lagoon and the mountain is beautiful. The landscape even if it is simple and the island is small is really inspiring“.
The creations
The best-seller of Bye Bye from Bora Bora is undoubtedly the Tiki shooter with its small, angry Tikis. The Tikis produced are Hawaiian style with teeth. The Tiki glasses are very successful with Polynesians but also with tourists because it became a fashionable object around the world.
Bye Bye from Bora Bora also offers beautiful creations with the mountain of Bora Bora. You can find cups, plates, dishes and other objects with the colors of the lagoon and the mountain of Bora Bora with its palm trees. Small decorative animals such as whales, rays, starfish are also very popular and are nice souvenirs to bring back in your suitcase.
Where to buy Bye Bye from Bora Bora pottery?
You can buy Bye Bye from Bora Bora pottery directly at the workshop (see map).
It is open every day from 9:30 am to 5 pm. Nowadays, it is better to call before your visit : (+689) 89 693 674 or (+689) 87 300 081. In addition, Fanny and Guillaume will give you the directions to find the workshop from the road.
A few stores on Bora Bora sell some Bye Bye from Bora Bora items: Tiare Market Shop (in front of the Fare Manuia in Matira), Tevanui shop in Vaitape and also the gift shop of a luxury hotel in Bora Bora.
A few Tikis glasses are on display at the St James’ pastry shop. A good excuse to treat yourself to a little French pastry.
If you are not in Bora Bora, it is possible to be delivered anywhere in the world.
And if you are on Bora Bora between May 25th and 28th 2021 Guillaume will represent Bye Bye from Bora Bora at the Mother’s Day handicraft market in Vaitape. A market gathering the creations of several local artists.
Don’t hesitate to come and have a look!
How to contact Bye Bye from Bora Bora?
To contact Bye Bye from Bora Bora, it is best to call (+689) 89 693 674 or (+689) 87 300 081. You can contact them directly on Messenger via their Facebook page : Bye Bye From Bora Bora
You can also find them on Instagram: byebyefromborabora
La Orana!
We visited Bora Bora last week and had a beautiful time. We stayed in the Terramoana villa and loved having our morning coffee in your handmade pottery. One of the staff from the IC came over to get some pieces for me however one broke on the travel home. I would like to reorder some pieces if possible.
Māuruuru!