Wee Little Piggies

 

My sister asked me to make her a salt pig and she wanted a tiny one. Of course you can't make just one!

I am loving these wee little pigs! Not only do they take up less room on your counter, they are adorable too. I am going to start offering this size as an option to the larger salt pigs. The large ones have been selling like crazy on Etsy. I have been making more salt pigs than piggy banks during the pandemic. I imagine it's because people are spending more time in the kitchen. The other plus for the wee little pigs is that I can tuck them around Jeff's vessel sinks in the kiln. They are a good little kiln filler.

My sister chose the matte black and he looks great on her granite counter top. Something tells me that I might be making a lot of these in the coming months.

Be well and remember the three W's........... Wear a mask, Wash your hands, Wait 6' apart.

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms out there! My sweet girl Danielle sent me this box filled with lot's of comforting goodies...

Today we won't be having our usual family gathering for a chicken barbecue. Instead, Jeff and I will cook and deliver meals to his 92 year old mother and his sister's mother-in-law, who is in her 80's. Yesterday I even baked a cake, which is rare for me. I much prefer baking breads and pizza, but I came across this recipe a couple of years ago and thought it might be a good time to try it.

It's an Italian Lemon Pound Cake. I hope it's good... I will let you know! The lemon cream cheese frosting made way too much. It's pooling around the cake and I didn't even use it all. If I make it again I will cut the frosting recipe in half. It also could have come out of the oven a few minutes early. I checked it 10 minutes before the low end of the baking time and it was already done.

It may not look like it, but I am still making work. It's been all about the pigs here. I have been swamped with orders. We are very thankful for online sales.

North Carolina has entered phase I for re-opening the state. I think it's too early. The county we live in has had an ever-increasing rate of covid-19 cases. We have made the decision to remain closed until we feel it's safer for us and our customers. At this point in time, we can barely attain enough hand sanitizer or disinfecting wipes for our own trips to the grocery store, never mind providing them to customers. We are happy to provide curb-side pick up if you need a special gift, and we are open 24/7 on Etsy.

PS - I have temporarily deactivated my Facebook account. I need a break. If I saw the "Plandemic" conspiracy post one more time I was going to go nuts. You can still find me on Instagram. So far it's still a happy place. :-)

All In A Days Work...

There hasn't been anything too exciting happening around here. Jeff and I have been busy with the usual production.

Sinks and pigs are continuing their popularity into 2018.

Late yesterday I finished this round of salt pigs, piggy banks, and big piggy banks. I think when all was said and done there was around forty. It seemed like it took forever to get them completed. Our studio has been very humid and I did a lot of shuffling them around, covering, and uncovering to get them to, and keep them at, a workable state.

We are enjoying some warm Spring like temps and the daffodils are blooming. No matter how many years I live in North Carolina, flowers in February will continue to amaze me!

Glaze Tricks

 I had an order for a salt pig that was to be un-glazed on the interior and sprayed ash glaze over shino on the outside. I was in a quandary as to how to not get the ash on the inside, without have to meticulously sponge it off.

Of course Jeff came up with a solution!

A piece of sponge cut to fit, and wired with a handle to be able to pull it out after spraying the glaze. It sort of looks like we were torturing the poor piggy. Jeff's idea worked like a charm.

Creativity comes in many forms when you are a potter.