Is it Spring yet?

I think this is the coldest March that I have experienced since moving to North Carolina. This weekend we needed to get the kiln loaded for a bisque firing. Saturday was spent outside in the kiln shed shivering, while sanding and loading pots. It wasn't a very pleasant day, but we had the kiln loaded by 5:00 pm and Jeff bricked the door before dark.

We have quite an assortment of pots in the kiln. I had an order for a sheep so I made a few. The smaller, roundy ones are rattles. Lots of ginkgo carved pots, and the usual piggy banks and vessel sinks.

Hey... what happened to my tail? Oops. How did I forget that? I will have to get creative with him. Maybe I will paint a tail on with under-glaze! Luckily he is not an order, but an extra.

Despite the chilly weather there are signs of Spring in the yard. Friday was a sunny day and while hanging out laundry (yes I do that, and actually enjoy it!) I noticed the iris were blooming near the clothesline. I love irises and we only have white ones here at 505. I have to remember to plant a new variety this year. I am not even sure what time of year they are planted I guess I will have to "google" it.

Whirlwind week

What a week it has been! We had a load of pots that needed to be glazed and fired. Despite some horrendous weather, Jeff and I managed to get it done. My other task for the week was creating daily social media posts about the Spring studio tour for our local potters group. Now this should have been an easy task, since I have been on this committee for seven years. Wouldn't you know that my aging MacBook Pro decided to start acting up. It's been slowing down for some time now and this week it became a snail. At one point it took me an hour to create a post, find the photo, and upload it. After spending hours on end making changes to try and speed it up, I came to the conclusion that I needed a new laptop BEFORE it totally crashed and burned (been there done that).

I REALLY wanted another MacBook. My bank account said, "In your Dreams". I searched for a refurbished Mac but they were either just a little newer than my 2009 or still way out of my budget.

Jeff found a good price on an HP, that had what I needed and was within the budget.  So here I am trying to adjust to Windows 10 and a new keyboard layout. It will take some time... but I will survive.

The good news is that my baby ginkgo tree survived the winter and has leafed out. The lawn has been mowed for the first time. We unloaded the kiln and it was great firing!

and now for something completely different...

After two posts about brown pots, I thought you might be ready for some Spring green!

Have a great weekend!

Spring, Sprang, Sprung

I stepped out the door this morning and was surprised at the warm spring air. The house was chilly and I had turned up the heat, not realizing I probably could have opened a window instead.

This is my favorite time of year in North Carolina. Everything is blooming. Most of the daffodils have gone by but the petite white ones are always a little later. 

 The mahonia is looking pretty cool right now. I had never seen this plant until I moved here.

I unloaded the bisque kiln yesterday and started prepping for today's glaze marathon.
Tomorrow is firing day.

Our schedule is a little off (like that's anything new). We had an unexpected change in plans for the upcoming weeks, but I will leave that to another post.

Warm Weather... Finally!

While my family and friends in New Hampshire are anticipating yet another snow storm, I have been busy planting tomatos and herbs, in 80 degree weather...


The garlic is coming up and I planted a couple of tomatos next to them. Our swiss chard survived the winter and is doing quite well now.

We do a lot of garden pots because the soil here has lots of roots and is hard to dig up. When Jeff comes back from S. Korea he may dig up a new area, on the side of the studio, to replant some of the basil, oregano, and rosemary that I put in pots.

While I have been busy in the garden, Jeff has been making teapots and tea bowls...

Tomorrow is a glazing day. We need to fire the gas kiln at the beginning of next week.

Jeff was smoking on Sunday...

Barbecue that is!

As I mentioned in a previous post, Jeff can cook. One of his specialties is barbecue (he is a southern boy after all). The fabulous weather and a really good sale on Boston Butt pork roast (.99 lb.), inspired Jeff to fire up the smoker on Sunday. I know I always brag about his barbecue... I think it's the BEST!

This is truly meat heaven.

Pulled pork sandwiches, slaw, salad, and yes... those are hushpuppies, made by this here Yankee. Confession time; I cheated and used a mix. Yummy just the same. I didn't even know that hushpuppies were anything but a brand of shoe until a few years ago!

pottery identification (because I know you ALL want to know):

cup - Jeff Brown

coaster under cup - Jeff Brown

Plate - David Orser

Bowl - Michael Kline

Spring Blooms

I thought these garden beauties would be more pleasing to the eye than photos of bowls being trimmed and slipped, that was the only thing happening in the studio yesterday. I have decided that I prefer glazing to trimming bowls. I know potters who LOVE to trim, I am not one of them.
The flower arrangements are a combination of daffodils from around the yard and tulips that were purchased at Wally World (GASP!). The rock vases were made by League of NH Craftsmen member, Lee Spiller. I bet Smartcat is familiar with his work, his booth is very popular at the Craftsmen's Fair at Mt. Sunapee. I really love the natural look of the flower and rock combination.

I know that it is only April 5th but it I think this month is going to scream by us. Celebration of Spring Studio Tour in Seagrove is only two weeks away. We will fire at least once more before the event. Two days after the tour Jeff flies to South Korea.
Next thing you know... It's May.

Happy Easter Weekend

The weather is getting warmer and my grumpy fog has lifted. I haven't gotten back to work in the studio but I did spend some time photographing pots and adding new items to the Etsy shop.

I made this little wall pillow tile/thing or whatever from porcelain. After it was bisqued, I brushed it with black underglaze, wiped it off and glazed it in gloss green.

There is a little hole for hanging on the back. Of course the back is nicer than the front, isn't that always the way?! I am going to start using the underglaze on some larger porcelain pieces, now that I know what it looks like. Jeff asked me the other day if I was going all black and white on him. Maybe black and white with a little green mixed in!

If you are celebrating Easter, I wish you a happy one. Jeff and I are taking it easy today and moving slowly. I may get my hands in some clay this afternoon, I think it's about time.

Spring is in the air...

The weather was beautiful today. 

Things are starting to bloom around the studio.

I finished glazing all the pots that didn't make it into yesterday's firing, which means we will be ahead of the game for the next firing.
Jeff and I peeked into the kiln this evening. The shinos we can see look good, both top and bottom. They are our marker of good reduction.
I am still keeping my fingers crossed.

"Shyard" sale!

Out with the old, in with the new. That's what we have been saying this week. Jeff and I are doing some spring cleaning and unpacking boxes that we hadn't opened since the move nearly two years ago. These pots needed to find new homes and we had entertained the idea of a "shyard" sale for some time. At the last minute we decided that it needed to happen THIS week.

The 20% off sign went up

...along with the EZ up

The sun came out after a night of heavy rain and we have had a steady stream of customers. Nearly everyone who drove in today has gone home with a pot or two. The "shyard" sale will last through next Saturday, April 7th. 

It will be nice to have fewer boxes taking up space, cash in our pockets, and room on the shelves for new pots! Celebration of Spring in Seagrove will be here before you know it... April 21st and 22nd. 

Visit Gypsy Potters event page for details of what we are scheming up for that weekend.

one year ago

it was this time last year that jeff and i spent  a week here at the log cabin to see if we thought a move to seagrove would be the right thing to do.  we had a terrific week that culminated with jeff's 50th birthday celebrated at jane braswell's home in asheboro.  the weather last year was much the same as it has been this week, warm and sunny with flowers blooming everywhere.

a year has past, jeff has reconnected with old friends, we've made lots of new ones... we have no regrets about the move... 

tune in tomorrow and i will let you know how yesterday's firing went.

Large Pots

the newest big guy is done!  jeff has plans to salt glaze this one... eventually we will get the front window position in the new co-op gallery and won't this look great there?

it's been a weird week, jeff's been knocked down by a doozy of cold and which means he hasn't slept much at night and my sleep pattern is now a little off... our days have not been too productive.  we were supposed to be firing the gas kiln today, but that has been put off until tomorrow.  my glazing is done, jeff is working on his now.  shortly i will start loading.
on the bright side... traffic is picking up here in Seagrove and people have been buying pots!  we also have both had some good etsy sales in the last few weeks.
i am feeling upbeat about spring and the weather at the end of the week is supposed to be in the 70's!

germs, germs, go AWAY!

i am way behind in clay work. and i mean WAY behind. shortly after the seagrove trip i came down with a horrible cold... actually both jeff and i have the horrible cold. i went to the studio once but was too wiped out to do much of anything. we are having summertime weather here in new hampshire and i am hoping the sunshine will chase away the germs that have taken residence inside my body.
i need to get back to work.

still too early for daffodils in new hampshire... this one was outside the log cabin in seagrove.

back in the studio!

the snow is FINALLY gone here in new hampshire...there are still a few lingering dirty snowbanks but for the most part it is GONE! for the past week we have had some days that the temps have crept up to the mid 70's. i opened the windows in the studio to the let the warm air in and threw pots for the first time since november. i was really afraid i had forgotten how to throw ;-)...but alas...it all came back to me. i got to work making the parts for some new basket pots that i have been thinking about. i covered them well and hope that they will be the right consistency to assemble when i can get back in there tomorrow. perhaps i will take my camera along and get some pics of work in progress.
after the long snowy winter the warm spring air brings the promise of long relaxing summer days

and we will savour every moment of it.