Another snow day...

This is the scene we woke up to this morning! I shot this photo looking out from the kiln shed into the backyard. The heavy wet snow has completely transformed the shape of the cedar tree. Throughout the night we could hear the snow slide off the metal roof of the house, and land onto the porch roof with a loud thud. It's hard to tell just how much snow fell. It looks like just a few inches. At one point during the night it sounded like it was raining. The temperature is hovering around 32 degrees. Next week it is supposed to climb back up into the 50's. I am definitely ready for warmer weather.

While the weather may stop people from driving out to Seagrove for pottery, the Etsy shop is always open. Isn't it great that you can shop for a new mug, wearing your pajamas, and curled up on the sofa?

The Story of the "Briar" Mug

I am sure that many readers here, also follow Gary Rith's blog. If you are a follower, then you may know that a couple of weeks ago I asked Gary if he would a make a mug with a Jack Russell Terrier on the handle. Jeff and I wanted it as a gift for our dear friend Roni in New Hampshire. Roni's Jack Russell, named Briar, has been her companion for 14 years. We knew she would absolutely love a "Briar" mug. Gary even wrote the name "Briar" underneath the cup...

Gary shipped the mug directly to Roni. When it arrived she was in Seattle visiting family. Last night she returned to New Hampshire and opened her box. Roni loves her mug. It came at a very special time. A couple of weeks ago, Briar took a turn for the worse, and Roni had to make the difficult decision to euthanize her. Jeff and I didn't know about her loss when we ordered the mug.
Once again the universe spoke, and I am glad we listened.
A big thank you to Gary Rith, for helping us help a friend through a difficult time.

Photo Credit: Gary Rith

Baby it's hot outside!

It's been a hot week for working, but the show must go on. Two and half days were spent glazing. Typically we would have been done more quickly but we took it slow, stopping for multiple breaks throughout the day. Last night we finished loading the kiln, bricked up the door, and called it done.

Sophie cat woke me up a little after 7:00 am. As soon as I wasn't too blurry eyed to light a torch and turn on the gas, I went out to the kiln and lit the first burner. We might even be done firing before complete darkness. Our little gas kiln takes about 12 hours to fire. Once in awhile we are closer to 13 hours.

Since I was awake and fairly coherent, I decided to photograph some mugs from a couple of firings ago. They should all be in the Etsy shop by the end of the day.

Happy Friday to all... for some reason I still like Friday evenings, even though I work on Saturday!

Put a lid on it

I really don't care to make lidded containers. I stress too much about whether or not the lids will fit. This year I am forcing myself to just do it. Practice makes perfect, right?

 Jeff wanted me to turn the jars into garlic keepers, but I decided they would just be small jars.

I unloaded the gas kiln yesterday morning, which means I have lots of mugs for our shop, the Co-op of Seagrove Potters, and Etsy! 

Replenishing

Our inventory of mugs is at an all time low. I spent the first part of this week remedying that situation. I really like making mugs. They employ all the fun parts of pottery; throwing, pulling handles, and for me, carving designs.

 Jeff took this photo of me working the other night. It gave me a good look at my new hair! I spent the last year growing out my hair color... what an awful thing to go through when your hair is long! I have slowly been having 3-4" cut off at a time to eliminate the two-tone look. Once the color was finally gone, I was left with mousy brown and gray hair. My niece Kayla is a hairstylist. While I was in NH she cut in some more layers and gave me just a few highlight to perk it up. They are subtle, and I won't have to be a slave to them.

Now back to pottery...

The mugs are done. I think I made 28. Now I am on to bowls and platters. The weather has been muggy (no pun intended!), hopefully I can dry them enough to do some trimming today.