post thanksgiving post

jeff's potter friend rob is visiting from virginia...thursday night we went to the dolphin striker in portsmouth for music and drinks... of course the place was packed. we had a fun evening and there was even a bar brawl! this is really unusual for the striker...it's a rather tame sorta upscale place. luckily no one was hurt and it was over quickly...the only casualty was robs drink...one the brawlers landed on OUR table.

we didn't get back to northwood until 1:30 then stayed up until 3:45 (yikes) enjoying good sake and talking about pots (of course).

jeff, rob and i went to my sisters in wolfeboro, nh for turkey day dinner. it was a nice gathering of family and friends...with waaaay too much delicious food. that's jeff and rob in the pic above. rob's a fun, friendly talented potter and i am happy to be getting to know him.

tomorrow the three of us will work in my studio together...i think rob is going to throw us some minis!!! i will have my camera close by.

a lesson in glaze mixing

i had never mixed glazes on my own before...it was something that john always took care of. i often helped, but that meant doing the screening, not the measuring/weighing/calculating part. yesterday i realized i was running out of my Temple white glaze...it was time to take the plunge and mix up a new batch! jeff was there to help my with the math (i admit to being a math dummy) and show me how to use the scale. it was a good glaze recipe to start with because it is very simple...in no time at all i had a 5 gallon pail mixed and screened. i have one porcelain bowl that i will use as a test in this firing

...back to the studio today to get more glazing done. jeff's friend rob from virginia (also a potter) is visiting...so tonight we are taking a break and heading to the dolphin striker in portsmouth for drinks and music....Truffle is playing!!!

pretty pepper

when you have nothing to say on your blog...

...post a picture of your pepper.

building a wood kiln!

the new hampshire potters guild has been working on rebuilding the community wood kiln for some time now. the kiln, as some of you already know, is located at Al Jaeger's beautiful property in deerfield, NH. jeff is the "foreman" of the kiln rebuilding and we spent yesterday out there with a handful of volunteers. i don't know much about kiln building but with a little instruction i was soon cutting and laying bricks (under close supervision!). it was a gorgeous november day to spend working hard outside. when it was too dark to work outside we headed back to the pottery in northwood and finished loading the bisque kiln...all in all a very productive day.

pictured above is the kiln shed...a rather impressive structure that houses not only the NHPG kiln but one recently built by Al, Maureen Mills and students from NHIA

one of many brick piles...but they are getting smaller!

mugs recently fired in Al's kiln

progress!

Al delivering some bricks in a basket

ETSY!!!!

you can now purchase my pottery through ETSY. i have been talking about doing this for over a year. i uploaded my first item this morning and will add more over the next few days. to go to my shop simply click on the gallery to your right. i am anticipating a lot of changes in how i work over the next few months and this is the first step in that direction...can't tell you all my secrets yet...but they will slowly unfold.

I AM EXCITED ABOUT THE CHANGES!!!! (and scared)

leftovers

on a whim i decided to turn this vase into a jeff brown knock-off...i told him i was going to start selling these knock-offs at flea markets :o)

i put in a full 8 hours at the studio today... i need to get a bisque kiln fired and then a gas firing really soon. i have a special order that has to be completed and shipped before christmas.

i was feeling a little scattered in the studio today...jumping from one thing to another and not staying on task but looking back on the day i think i made some progress.

...and dinner tonight is leftover lasagna (with wine...of course!)

just tuesday...

...today was rather mundane. drove to the city (if you live in NH going to Nashua is going to the city!) got my hair trimmed and some other stuff done...stopped at the studio to cover some things up and pulled a spout on a pitcher before it was too late. guess my big news of the day is that i made lasagna AND scored another bottle of 1/2 price wine at the local grocer. every few months they have a half price sale of odds and ends. it is always fun to go through the basket of goodies...and not so goodies.

...and you know what...i liked having a "just tuesday"

it came right on time. i hope your day was "just tuesday" too.

art journal update...

i haven't posted art journal updates because i have gotten way behind in the project. at least it isn't only me... we had a couple of participants drop out and the whole group got behind. now i find myself in possession of TWO journals. i will try my best to complete them by the end of november. the themes are: "concrete jungle" and "rebuilding after the apocalypse"

i spent this evening pouring over the contents added thus far... some amazing stuff. i have my work cut out for me...

oval bakers

while we were setting up for open doors jeff took pictures of my latest body of work. the baker in the front was fired twice, first in the gas kiln then in the wood kiln, the one in the back was fired in my gas kiln.

...thanksgiving is coming and wouldn't your butternut squash look great in one of these?

a fabulous weekend!

thanks to all who came out for the NH Open Doors studio tour... met new people, networked with others in the art community and generally had a great time!

swirly-girl plate ~ porcelain, temple white glaze with sprayed blue ash glaze~

don't you need one of these on your table?

we are ready for you!

i even mopped the gallery floor!

lovely pots waiting for new homes...

Pottery Demonstrations!

we got the studio all nice and clean for your visit this weekend... come see this dynamic duo throw pots on the wheel. i will be doing demos on saturday and jeff will take over on sunday...

... we will have some yummy snacks and if you come in the afternoon there may even be some wine to sip from beautiful handmade vessels...

bring the kids along and they can make a pinch pot and there will be apple cider for them to sip in those handmade vessels.

i am in northwood - 162 first nh tpke (rte 4) - located within Sassafras Tree Artisans -

flannel shirts optional :-)

NH Open Doors - November 7th & 8th 2009

NH Open Doors is a cooperative event with NH League of Craftsmen & NH Made. Throughout the state studios and shops will be open to the public offering craft demonstrations, NH made crafts and products, food, and music. Sassafras Tree Artisans is a participant and my studio will be open featuring my work along with pottery by Jeff Brown. On Saturday I will be doing potter demos and on Sunday Jeff will take over. We will be there from 10 am till 6 pm or later...

looking forward to seeing you all there!

my studio is located in the back of Sassafras Tree Artisans

162 first NH turnpike (rte 4), Northwood NH

the mystery's we leave behind...

john's brother joe and his wife cindy visited nh this week...on monday we went through some boxes of framed art that john had been moving around with him for over 30 years. when i moved in with him it was all wrapped up and stored away...i wasn't sure what any of it was. when i moved last spring i put them in boxes and stored them in the basement of my new home. the three of us spent monday morning unwrapping the artwork and deciding what we each wanted to keep... there were a few things that i knew i couldn't part with... this particular piece really spoke to me. i wish john had had the time to tell me the story behind it...

slipped into a clear pocket behind the the photograph was a quote by french jouranalist regis debray:

what

gives

humans

access

to the

symbolic

domain

of value

and

meaning

is the

fact that

we die.