sugar buzz...

Danielle brought Anita and me wickedly delicious cupcakes from Sugar in E. Haven, CT. 

and brother Paul and sister-in-law Harris, finally get their wedding gift just shy of their 2nd anniversary...

Better late than never!

fall travels

This sweet little teapot came out of the kiln yesterday. Jeff made the pot and I did the carving. It is a commission for my sister who is giving it as a wedding gift. There are also two cups to go along with it. I like how the ash glaze works with the carving and the best part is that there is no slip involved, so no risk of the dastardly peeling thing that has been going on.
Today we are heading to New Hampshire for our annual October trek. On Friday we will teach a raku workshop at Hillsboro-Deering High School and then it's off to my sister Anita's in Wolfeboro, where Jeff will teach another raku workshop on Sunday. Danielle will drive up from Connecticut on Saturday, to join us all for a family dinner. Anita and I share a birthday, four years apart, so it's a tradition that we celebrate together. I am glad that my move to North Carolina hasn't changed that. The workshop gigs are what makes the traveling possible.
Catch up with y'all later... it's time to pack my suitcase.

blogger brain freeze

I have had nothing to blog about these days. I guess I haven't wanted to bore you with the mundane. The CCM Pottery Festival in Charlotte was good... easy set up, short day (10am-4pm), and fabulous customers who love to buy pottery. When you figure in the time and dollars we put into this show we make more money per hour than any other show we do. This show also attracts a smart crowd that understands art and handmade. We sold lots of sponge holders and coasters (as usual) and things in the $50 to $95 range were selling as well.

The sponge holders are about gone and the good thing is, I can throw those forms without putting too much stress on my shoulder. They are a good exercise in getting back to work!

I think I have the warping issue pretty much solved. They need to be thrown fairly hefty. A few still warp slightly, but not enough to be called a second or get the hammer.

I am having some issues with peeling slip on these flared rim bowls. The slip peeled off the rim on a few of these. I have two thoughts on the issue. The first is that I should keep the slip off of the edge of the rim and second, I am at the bottom of my slip bucket and I think it's beyond it's shelf life. I have heard other potters say that slip doesn't keep. The last batch I made was large so it's been around a few months. I also had a couple of vases with some slip that popped off the sides. It's time to mix a new batch and I think I will make half as much. If anyone else has had this experience, I would be happy to hear your thoughts.

Back to work...

Saturday is the Carolina Claymatters Pottery Festival (info on the right sidebar) and I was worried that we wouldn't have a good selection of pots to bring to the show. After all, I lost more than a week nursing this painful shoulder. Once we started to glaze I realized I was worrying for nothing. That seems to be how it goes with most worries. Loading the kiln was a little slower than usual. I couldn't reach in and set the back stack of shelves. I placed the pots on the shef and called on Jeff to set the shelf. The front stack wasn't a problem. No reaching to stack those, and could manage it on my own. By 6:30 pm my shoulder told me to quit and I made the 12+ mile trip to the grocery store. When I returned and went out to take a photo of the kiln, Jeff had the door bricked half way. I think he moves a lot quicker than me these days!

If you are in the Charlotte, NC area, come on out to the CCM Pottery Festival. The weather is looking good, the location is great, and there will be 60 potters at this year's festival.

The Art Journal Project

The art journal project has gotten a little off track. It started the first month when one of the journals was lost in the mail. Luckily the USPS pulled through, and it was returned to it's owner. Somehow a few of the other journals have been mixed up, I think that Lori Buff received two this month! For some strange reason I wasn't my usual last minute getting it done. If I had, it would still be sitting on my art table, since my shoulder decided to call it quits last week.

I snapped a few photos of the book before it went off in the mail. The theme is "Nature's Song".

 Lori, is this yours? It wasn't signed.

 This my entry. When we first moved to Seagrove we had an anole climbing up the plated glass window in front of Jeff's wheel. He looked cool stuck to the glass that was splattered with clay.

Linda Fletcher, the owner of this journal, also included an additional project at the back of her book; Artist Trading Cards. She invited us to create a card based on our journal theme and take one of hers that was based on "Songs of Nature".

Shoulder update:
I am doing much better! No more constant pain and slowly gaining more range of motion. I even went back to work on Tuesday, putting together some piggy banks. I am taking it slow... it took me two days to assemble eleven. I doubt I will even attempt the wheel for at least another week.
Thank you all once again for sending me good healing energy and sound advice.