A Year of Frugal Living

Jeff and I really underestimated how much our move would affect our business. Who would have thought that moving one mile up the road, on the same road, could be that painful? It wasn't just the new location, but also the expense of renovating studio space, along with the cost of rebuilding our gas kiln. We did most of the work ourselves which saved a ton of money. There is still more to do but since last April, we feel we are up and running at full speed again. 

Jeff and I have never lived extravagantly but for the last eighteen months we have tried to cut our expenses anyway that we could.

We switched propane companies when the one we were using  increased our rate to $2.39 per gallon. Quick math will tell you how much a 500 gallon tank costs to fill at that price. I made a few calls and found a company that offered $1.15! Now if I could only get the old company to remove their tank from our yard... it's been sitting there since September. I wonder if I can start charging them rent?

Next on the "things to cut" list was XM radio. We have it in the car and the studio. After some discussion we decided to cancel the car and just have it in the studio. Our radio stations here are awful and we often need a break from NPR. When I called to cancel they offered to cut my bill in half and keep both radios. I accepted, thinking... why didn't I call months ago to cancel?!

I have been shopping at Aldi's and the dreaded Walmart, more than I used to. We rarely eat out and there are no take out joints around here, so there was no adjustment needed in that department.

The traffic to our studio isn't quite what it used to be. I think we might be dealing with that until a new area map of the potters comes out.  Thanks to a couple of really good shows and excellent Etsy sales, we are now able to breath a little. The struggle has been well worth the pain and effort. We own our own place (along with the bank) and in the long run will have more control of our future. I think we have turned the corner and I am looking forward to 2017.

We loaded the last bisque firing for holiday orders. We are working right down to the last minute. Check out that HUGE chicken cooker that Jeff created! It's a special order for a couple in Lexington. I think they might be able to cook a turkey in it.

A Little Excitement to Kick off 2015

 Did you ever wonder what would happen when the propane company tops your tank off to nearly 100%?

 There's a darn good reason they are only supposed to fill it to 80%

Jeff and I were discussing something in the house when all of a sudden we both said, "I smell gas!". It was going to reach 55 degrees today in Seagrove, NC, so we let the wood stove burn down and turned on the Rinnai gas heater instead. We quickly went out to see if the vent was clogged. It wasn't, so we hurried out the back door to the kiln shed to find our 500 gal. tank, in the backyard, spewing propane from it's overflow valve. My first thought was call 911, because I was scare sh#$2tless that it would blow... Jeff (being more reasonable) called the propane company. We had propane delivered on the 31st and they thought it was over-filled. They said don't call 911 and they would send someone out to blow it off.

 It took about an hour for the service guys to arrive. The valve started to freeze from the gas releasing, which eventually slowed the spew. I liken this valve to the pressure release valve on my pressure cooker. I imagine it's basically the same thing... on a much bigger scale.

It took what seemed like forever to bring the level down to the normal fill of 80%. The gas smell was horrendous. They aren't sure exactly how many gallons they had to blow off, but they will credit our account for 50 gallons, which translates to about $79 at $1.59 gallon. The comical thing about this event (and you always have to find something funny in a scary situation) is that the service guy said, "Why don't you turn on the kiln and fire some pots with this fuel we have to get rid of?"

If he only knew.