lots of little bottles

I decided to cork most of these "Papa Bear" (former) soap dispensers wannabes. I'm wanting to post them on Etsy but I'm not sure what to call them or how to tag them. My brain feels like the Halloween pumpkin mush. I'm looking forward to next week when things will calm down a bit - hopefully.

tricky

Here are some close ups of the lettering on the celebration plates. I'm thinking of trying something new with the celebration plates that will be more consistent and fits into the techniques I like to use. I'm happy with the lettering. The glazing of these has been tricky to get it even. I've got to do some more testing with this.

Clay on the Brain

It's been a really crazy couple of weeks with my Mom job the past two weeks. I've been clocking some serious volunteer hours at the kids' school and it's put me behind with my ceramics job. I spent the entire day yesterday (and most of the late night/early morning) catching up on glazing. I've got two celebration plates in the kiln that I'm hoping will turn out well. Here is a photo of one of the plates as I painted the text on the bisqued pot.

I also glazed up a big batch of tiles for a holiday project. I took over the kitchen yesterday glazing up my pots and tiles. I also glazed up a bunch of test tiles for the kids' school Art Docent program. I've been working on getting all the ceramics supplies straightened out and ordered there. We're holding a clay training class for the Art Docents this week. Yes, I've got clay on the brain.

Display

I've signed up to do two craft sales this December. I'm working on my display - it's got to be a tabletop set up. I e-mailed my Mom and in true form she has things I can use - like old wooden crates that will hopefully make for an interesting display. Thanks Mom! I'm having to pull out some tricks from my retail days of yesteryear. Hopefully it will look decent. I'll post some pictures from the shows.

Glazefest

I unloaded the bisque fire load last night and I'm ready to glaze up a storm. I bought some new glazes last Friday from Clay Art Center in Tacoma that I'm looking forward to trying. I'm also switching to a new clay body - Sea Mix from Seattle Pottery Supply. The clay I've been using before has a lot of grog in it. It also hasn't fired up as white in color as I'd like, so I made the jump to Sea Mix based on a recommendation from a fellow potter. So far I'm liking it.

If you look closely at the photo above you'll see the glaze sample tiles (small rectangles with a swirl stamped on top, grouped in stacks and holes cut in the top for stringing) you'll see the difference between the colors. The old clay body looks a lot more pink in contrast.

I've got to get to work to get some of these pieces out the door and delivered this weekend.

Waiting on the kiln...

I finally fired up the kiln for a bisque firing. It took the pots a lot longer to dry with the wetter, cooler weather. The kiln is packed tight and I'm waiting for it to cool. I'm excited to glaze up a lot of the pieces that are in there. There are some custom items that I need to get shipped out which will feel good to finish up.

I've had a couple of inivitations to show in November and December for the holidays. I haven't felt like I've had enough inventory to do that yet, but I'm getting there. This big load that I'm working on will help. I'm going to do the indoor show that's in Bellevue and then set a goal to do the outdoor post Thanksgiving show in Oregon next year. Showing outdoors requires more gear that I need to aquire - like a canopy tent, signage, shelving, etc... I'm going to see if my sister in law, Milagra, wants to share a tent with me to show. She makes amazing hand stamped pendants. Check out her shop on Etsy at http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=7677218 We wear her pieces all the time and gets lots of compliments. They make great gifts! She made me a beautiful "secret message" pendant that I just love. Mine message says "Do you... dream, create, wish, make, love, make"

Feeling Blue - Navy Blue

I am featured in another Etsy Treasury. It's always fun to see what the pots are grouped with. I like this Navy Blue Treasury theme. You can see it at http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=87077 until the Treasury expires on 10/12/09.

Jake's kiln god

I've been missing a little kiln god to watch over my kiln when it fires. This afternoon my youngest was wanting to make something with clay. I just discovered that he made me a perfect little kiln god without even knowing it. It's very sweet with it's wings. I'm sure he intended it to be an alien of some sort as he's been building Star Wars characters lately. It may take some convincing to get him to let me have it.

I made another group of mugs to help finish off the filling the kiln. Now it may be too full. I kind of got on a roll and didn't stop. That's never a bad thing.

Toolin'

Over the years I've bought lots of tools. I've found that I turn to the same few over and over - and the rest just sit. Here are my favorites.

Favorites?

Do you have a favorite piece of pottery? If so, why is it your favorite? Is it because someone special gave it to you? Or is does it bring back a special memory? Do you like the way it feels in your hand? Or does it just look cool? I'm curious.

One of my favorite pieces is a little vase my friend, teacher and mentor - Linnell - gave me. It's sweet, simple and makes me think of her. It has a really smooth glaze that feels so good in my hand. I love to fill it with small flowers from the yard. I miss seeing Linnell every week in her studio. It was a place that kept me sane when I had three little toddlers/babies at home.

New Things

Last night I sat down to throw after all the kiddos had gone to bed. I'm experimenting with some "hugging pots". I threw a small creamer pitcher and a sugar bowl. This morning I pressed them together like they were hugging - altering the shapes. I did this with a couple of small vases too. I will fire and glaze them separately, but they will fit together when they will be used. It should be interesting. The creamer/sugar set it the trickiest. I still need to put the handle on the creamer and complete the lid for the sugar bowl.

My husband looked at them with a curiosity and remarked, "So you took time to get them thrown all centered and symmetrical... and then you smooshed them together?!? I don't get it." I do. He's an engineer. ;-)