Garden Walk

My favorite part of the day is spending time in the garden in the early evening. I usually bring a basket or bowl and pick vegetables and herbs that will become part of our dinner.

Jeff has built an arbor for our green beans to climb on. It is magical to walk through. We currently have a nest of newly hatched birds, nestled in vines. I am not sure what type of birds they are. The mother flies into a nearby try as soon as we go to the garden. I hear her chirping, but haven't gotten a glimpse of her. I take a quick peek at her babies and then leave them alone.

I planted these sunflowers late in the season. I think it may have been July when the seeds went into the ground. I am impressed with how quickly they grew and bloomed. The ones I planted in May have already gone by. I am going to remember to stagger the planting next season too.

The nasturtiums are growing beneath the sunflowers. These were planted at the same time. I had some in the front of the house but I think that they got too much late afternoon sun, and subsequently died. I was glad I found some extra seeds to plant in this little flower garden. They seem to enjoy the morning sun.

We have lots of poblanos and jalapenos this year. I have done a lot of experimenting with stuffing the poblanos in a variety of ways. I think my favorite is black beans, rice, salsa, and a little cheese. I roast them at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes... yum!

The buchu (Korean chive aka garlic chive) is in full bloom. We have so much of this growing in various locations! I try to incorporate it into every stir fry. My new favorite thing to make is "Egg Roll in a Bowl". I add it to that too. Here is a link to the recipe: Egg Roll In A Bowl

It's good with ground pork, but I usually use ground turkey or chicken.

Our tomatoes are slowing down and the plants are looking rather brown. We will miss them when they are gone. The butternut squash is crazy this year. It's even climbing into the trees. I find it comical to see such a heavy vegetable hanging so high off of the ground!

It's hard to believe that here we are in September already. Nearly six months into the pandemic. Six months of no socializing with family or friends. The life of a potter is often isolated but we do miss having friends and neighbors dropping in to say hello, as well as the occasional dinner guests. I have used this time to enjoy our yard more and also learn some new skills, but there are days when it wears me thin.

I miss taking an afternoon off and heading to Marshall's for retail therapy! The grocery store just doesn't cut it for me.

... and I REALLY need new socks right now.

Be Well, and Remember...

Hot, Hot, Hot!

This heat has been killing me. I feel like work is done at a snail's pace. The window AC in our pottery studio hasn't been able to keep the room cool by late afternoon. I try to get what I need done by 4:00 pm. At that time of day the temperature has reached 85 degrees and it's time to quit. I really don't know how we managed to work without AC when we were in the log cabin. I guess we didn't know any better... and were four years younger.

Some of our flowers and vegetables are struggling with the heat. We have also had very little rain, which means we have had to water. Since we are on town water, that gets expensive. The old well and pump are still here on the property. A few months back we had our electrician update some of the wiring and hopefully we will get it running soon. It would be great to not pay for studio water and watering gardens.

The tomatoes are plentiful and should be ripening soon. Jeff isn't sure what's up with the beans. There is great foliage but not a lot of flowers, and very few beans. The Japanese beetle battle has been a painful one this year.

Last night we had enough okra to fry. It was a delicious treat. Along with a tomato pie and salad, it was the perfect southern summer meal. It seems we have to check the okra twice a day or you end up with a few giants! The big one in the photo will get dried and used for seeds next Spring.

Our resident black snake has been circling the perimeter of the house on a regular basis. It's hard to tell from the glare in this photo, but it is nearly six feet long now. We assume this is the same one that Jeff removed from inside the studio while we were under construction four years ago. It was a small snake then. Last year it managed to find it's way into the basement. Black snakes are good snakes. Hopefully it's keeping our rodent population down. I enjoy watching it through the sliding glass door and definitely prefer snakes to not come in the house.

I hope my readers are able to keep cool during this heat wave. I feel bad for people in the northeast, where air conditioning isn't the norm for many homes. I am so looking forward to Tuesday, when cooler temperatures are predicted.

Re-Cap of the Fair

I have blogged about the fun adventures, and misadventures that we had on our trip to New England, but I haven't said much about our time at the League of NH Craftsmen's Fair.

Overall it was a good event. Our sales were a little ahead of last year. Jeff and I both had family and friends visit us at the fair. They were people that we would not have been able to connect with if it wasn't for them coming to the show.

One of my favorite visitors was my great nephew Weston, who also came along with his mother, my brother's oldest daughter Brooke. He is a very active and expressive 1 1/2 year old! Our booth was across from the upper lodge of the ski area and we were able to have lunch together on the patio.

Jeff and I always laugh that to many in NH, hamburgers and hot dogs are called barbecue. They did at least have a brisket sandwich on the menu. The food is actually quite good. We typically bring our own lunch everyday and treat ourselves to either one breakfast or lunch during our time there.

Getting to the show this year was a struggle. We had so much going on at home that we hated to leave. The day before we left we unloaded a kiln and had to pack and ship most of it's contents. We also knew that leaving was going to put us a little behind in production for the next round of orders that are due at the beginning of September.

Then there was the garden. Jeff worked so hard all Spring and Summer, and we knew that a lot of the veggies would  be ripe for picking while we were gone.

All of these things, along with some changes to the show and management, helped us make the decision that we are definitely not doing the show next year. We need a break... and it might be permanent. We actually sold our booth rug to another booth holder that was moving into the show on the night we were packing up! There had been a lot of rain and their space was muddy and they didn't have a rug. Problem solved... they were happy and we didn't have to pack it up.

This year the attendance at the fair was down most every day. Could it be because the gate fee was increased to $15? I think it definitely had an affect. At $15 you don't even get to come for two days. A second day is an additional $5. This is a big show and it really takes two days if you want to see and do everything. There also were some "guest" craftsmen that were not juried members. That totally blew my mind since I lost my juried member status when we moved. Jeff was grandfathered in. I am no longer eligible to participate as a booth holder. We take Jeff's work to the show. I am allowed to help with a percentage of it's creation. There were also rumors that the booth fees will increase next year. Our booth fee is around $800 for four days. A nine day booth, I believe is close to $1600. This is for a 10' space. Corners and large booths are more.

It's a little scary to stop doing a show that has become part of your life for so many years. We have had good sales the last three years, but many years of poor to mediocre sales as well. I guess I would rather go out on a high note. Next year we will take some time, perhaps in the Fall, and take a road trip to visit our family and friends... and we won't have to pull a trailer, YAY!

August Pictorial

Where has the month gone? Just a week left of August. It sure has been a busy one...

Heat Work

 Yesterday was spent prepping pots and loading the kiln to fire a bisque. The weather was no different from any other day this summer... hot and muggy. Our kiln is in the sun, great for winter loading, lousy during the heat of summer.

There are several "out of control" California Jasmine bushes at that end of the house. They are in full bloom and their scent wafted over us as we worked. At first it was pleasant, then it almost became too much. We spent a day last fall cutting these back. It looks like we will be doing the same again in a few weeks. Everything in North Carolina grows like crazy.
Our outside work ended at 4:30 pm with a thunderstorm and a good dose of much needed rain. The rain brought cooler temperatures, but the humidity is still here. Today we will finish loading the kiln and fire a long slow bisque. Next week we will load her up again to glaze fire.

It' Hot, Hot, Hot!!!

The heat has been relentless here in North Carolina. By late afternoon my New Guinea Impatiens is looking rather droopy. 

Luckily with a good watering, it bounces right back. We really haven't had any rain to speak of in a few weeks. Wherever we have bare earth in our yard, it is beginning to crack. There have been many afternoons with the threat of a thunderstorm, but it all we get are a few rumbles of thunder and a little sprinkle of rain.

Most of my plants are thriving, thanks to a nightly hand watering. The butterflies are enjoying the zinnias.

Despite the heat, we have been sanding bisque ware outdoors, and loading the kiln. We manage to get it done with lots of water and A/C breaks. Everything seems to take longer than usual.

The last two days were spent glazing. Tomorrow we will fire the gas kiln one last time before we head to New Hampshire for the League of NH Craftsmen's Fair. We are hoping for cooler temperatures when we head north! We are in a new space at the fair this year... tent 6, booth 611. It's a corner booth, which should give us some good visibility. I am looking forward to seeing family and friends. Just not looking forward to packing.

Welcome Summer!

The weekend brought us fabulous weather. Comfortably warm, low humidity. Cool nights. It was a nice break after the hot and muggy week. Great weather for getting outside and doing the yard work. We didn't put in a big garden, like we planned to. There was just to much "catch-up" work to do in the studio. A kiln-less winter put us behind and studio work takes precedence over everything else. The one thing we did do was plant some flowers and herbs in the front of house. This was an area that was pretty much ready to go, after a little weeding.

Most of our little garden are plants that we either moved from the log cabin, or were given to us. I did buy a couple of flower and herbs. Some I bought on clearance at Lowe's. On the right, still in it's pot, is buchu. It's a Korean chive. We were gifted with two of these and are so excited to have them. Jeff and I use them a lot in Korean cooking and we like them snipped on top of a salad as well. They have a  similar, but stronger flavor than traditional chives.

I splurged on the cone flowers last week. I have always wanted some and can't believe that I never had them in past gardens!

I planted zinnias from seeds. They are doing ok. I am hoping they well re-seed themselves so that eventually, in the future,  I will have a nice bed of them.

Can anyone identify this? At the log cabin, I thought it was a weed because it was growing in the lawn. I always mowed it over. Jeff said it wasn't a weed and brought a piece of it to 505 E Main. It took off like crazy and the purple flowers are quite pretty. Please comment if you know what it is.

My days in the studio have been spent assembling piggy banks. Jeff has been working on bowls and pitchers. Last night when I was heading out to water my little garden, I noticed Jeff was trimming a guinomi. I couldn't resist snapping a photo with my phone. These are Jeff's favorite things to make and I think it's a great way for him to end his day in the studio.

Let's Eat!

I haven't had much time for blogging, but I always make time to eat! I figured I was overdue at posting a food shot. Last night was lasagna primavera, served beautifully in a slip trailed bowl by Maureen Mills. Maureen is chair of the ceramics department at NH Institute of Art (where I learned to make pots AND met Mr. Brown). If you are looking for a good information about surface design, her book "Surface Design for Ceramics"would be an excellent addition to your library. Lark Books is the publisher.

It didn't dawn on me until after my second cup of coffee this morning, that we have a kiln to unload today! The big ginkgo vase is in there... keep your fingers crossed for us.

These came out of the kiln week before last. Aside from a sink with some crawling shino, we were very happy with the firing.

I hope everyone had a fabulous 4th of July weekend. My friends and family in New England had a very rainy Independence Day, and we had gorgeous blue skies and low humidity here in Seagrove, NC. We are now on day three of this great weather and I am taking advantage of it while it lasts.

hanging out at the bee bath

Jeff shot a little video of the honey bees that have taken over the birdbath in front of the gallery... seems there are more and more coming to swim everyday!

weekend update from the 'grove...

i have been enjoying the fabulous weather for the last few days... the temps have been great and the humidity much lower.  perfect working weather...

new bowls with wide rims and textures

handled bowls with some texture... jeff prefers my standard handles as opposed to the free form ones (center bowl) that i have been experimenting with

here is jeff working in his new space... we decided the other day that we are going to enjoy working together in this studio!

saturday night we went to a big party for Benjamin Burns birthday.  he and his wife Bonnie were gracious hosts.  we had a wonderful time and didn't get home until 1:30 am... and we were not the last to leave!  the McCanless bros., Michael Mahan and Jeff entertained us with fabulous music - ranging from Irish, bluegrass to rock and roll.  we met lots of potters and pottery lovers from the seagrove area.

come september it will be our turn to have a big grand opening party!