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.

The Reluctant Potter

I have really struggled with clay during the pandemic. I am not really sure why but I have been drawn to working with paper, paint, and ink. That being said, I have been making pigs. Lots of pigs. The orders are still coming in. There have been a couple orders that excited me. Requests that made me think a little outside the box.

A woman that lives on the coast of North Carolina contacted me and asked if I could do a piggy bank with salt glaze. Since we don't have a salt kiln, I suggested a pig made with STARwork's East Fork clay and finished with a sprayed ash glaze. I sent her examples of mugs and bowls, she loved the look and placed her order. I ended up making three and firing two last week. She decided she wanted both of them!

I had one piggy bank that wasn't spoken for when we fired the gas kiln last week. I decided to give him a dip in the matte black glaze.

I really like this glaze and I am curious to see if it becomes popular with the piggy bank buying public.

The other fun order I had was to make a salt pig to look like the buyers pug dog!

The shino glaze got lots of reduction in this firing and the caramel color is perfect. I also dipped the opening in temnoku to mimic the shading on her dog's face. He is now on his way to Australia. I hope that she loves it as much as I do!

Our gallery is still closed during the pandemic. We probably won't even think about opening until July. Even then it's iffy. There is a studio tour in Seagrove the weekend of July 11th. We plan to participate but will set up our pots outside, on tables, and under our canopy. We will require masks. If there is rain, we will probably cancel. If numbers continue to climb, who knows if this tour will even happen. I am really concerned about this event moving forward. It's not worth risking our health for a few extra bucks.

Fall Splendor

We are having fabulous fall weather here in Seagrove, NC. Cool nights with warm days in the low 70's. Perfect temperatures for working and sleeping. Yesterday the door came down from the kiln. We took a few pots out that were cool enough to handle. Today we will unload the rest. Jeff and I did a couple of collaborative pots that came out really awesome. One is the ginkgo vase in the photo above. You'll also notice that my pink geraniums with the trailing white and blue flowers is looking great... better than it did all summer! And it wouldn't be fall without mums.

There were lots of salt pigs in this firing. Lately they have been outselling the piggy banks on Etsy. I have a few extra in this firing so that I can have some in stock and ready to ship. Today it's back to piggy bank assembly. I have had a break from them for a couple of weeks and I am looking forward to getting back at it.

Giving it Away...

As I rolled out of bed this morning, I heard my phone make that little sound that means I have a message on Etsy. Yay, maybe someone wants to order a piggy bank and has some questions. I clicked on the link only to find a message from someone wanting me to donate a salt pig to her pig rescue charity auction... it will be great exposure (yes she said that) and it's tax deductible (artist's can write very little off when they donate work).

Really? You want me to pack up a salt pig, pay for the postage, and ship it off. I don't even know you. You live in another state. How do I know that you aren't looking for free stuff for yourself?

This isn't the first charity request I have received via Etsy and I am sure it won't be the last.

I am getting REALLY good at saying NO.

As artists, we are often living hand to mouth. Some months I wish there was a charity that benefits me. Don't get me wrong... Jeff and I make donations. We have a few groups that we give to every year. Causes that have meaning to us. We don't do it for the exposure, because despite what many beggars, I mean solicitors, will tell you... the exposure is miniscule. I also don't give donations to groups that tend to get less than the real value of the work.

That's my rant for the day. Onward to more productive and positive thoughts.
Thanks for listening. Comments welcome.

Green and White Salt Pig - STILL available in the Etsy shop - clicking the photo will take you there

I would love for someone to rescue him ;-)

TGIF

I don't usually use that term, since my work week doesn't revolve around the Monday through Friday grind, but this sure has been a tough week. As if the big pot theft and crappy show weren't enough, I woke up on Tuesday morning with a very sore left shoulder. This in of itself is not unusual. It has bothered me off and on for many years. I had some testing done some years back, to eliminate a pinched nerve as the cause. The doc determined it was just a overuse. Tuesday it felt like someone had punched me in the arm, Wednesday I could hardly lift it without yelping. Thursday I spent the day trying to get comfortable in between icing it and taking Aleve. I can't even lift my arm to brush my hair or put on a shirt. This morning doesn't seem much better. I really need to be making pots right now, but they are going to have to wait. I am hoping it's tendonitis of my rotator cuff and not a tear. I will give it the weekend and if it isn't better go to the doctors. I am pretty sure hanging and taking down the sidewalls on the tent last weekend are what did me in.

My good arm has been able to help my bad arm take some new photos for etsy...

Salt Pigs or Sugar Jars, you decide.

Here is one of the carved rim bowls that came out of the kiln last Thursday. I decided to go all green.

I almost forgot to mention that yesterday we woke up to a gurgling hot water heater with a puddle under it, geesh, what more could go wrong! Thankfully the plumber was here in the afternoon and by 3:00pm we had hot water.
Have a great weekend, I know I am going to try to!

Hogs, Pigs, and Etsy

Our 4th of July guest has returned home so our photo set up is back out on the dining room table. It would be so great to someday have a spare room to keep it set up permanently... but we are resourceful and make do with what we've got.

One of the big piggy banks is done. The other lost an ear in the bisque kiln but luckily I had back up and number two will go in the next firing. That seems to be the way it goes with special orders.

Salt Pig, Sugar Pig, or whatever you want to store in it Pig. The nice thing is, there is a cork to keep everything inside clean and dry. I am not a fan of leaving food related stuff out without a lid on it, even when I lived up north where it isn't as humid or buggy. Check these guys out in my Etsy shop. 

I will be adding new work from this firing to my Etsy shop over the next couple of weeks. Speaking of Etsy, someone on FB posted a link to an article online that said Etsy is dying. I read the article and then noticed that it was written in 2010... if it's dying, it sure is taking it's sweet time. I have no complaints. Etsy has been a good venue for Jeff and me. We aren't getting rich off of it, but it's been paying some bills each month. It's a hell of a lot easier than packing up and doing a show.

Working Weekend

This is what I did this weekend...

I assembled "salt pigs", that also make nice piggy sugar jars. They come with a cork to keep whatever you put inside, clean and dry. I have these listed on Etsy, and you can choose your glaze color. I have an order for two, one in tenmoku, the other Temple white... they buyer plans to use one for salt and the other for pepper! If you click on the photo it will take you to the Etsy listing.

The weather since Friday has been amazingly conducive to finishing work. The low humidity allowed me to throw, trim, and carve, these 1 quart casseroles in three days.

I have five of these completed and now I guess I should move on to two quart casseroles. The humidity has returned, so it may take a week to get them finished. I guess that means I should turn this computer off and get out to the studio.

settling in

When we unloaded the kiln on Saturday morning I had to leave to work at the Co-Op of Seagrove Potters as soon as we were done. I didn't really get a good look at the pots until the next day. 

When I first saw these shino and ash glazed mugs coming out of the kiln I wasn't crazy about them. After handling them, and taking pictures, I have decided that I REALLY  like them! Sometimes you need to spend some time with your pots to appreciate their beauty.

The sugar jar pigs are fun and can also double as "salt pigs"... the woman who placed the custom order was very happy.

I like this shot from behind!

These are listed on Etsy, it may be too late for Christmas shipping but isn't it always nice to shop for yourself?!