Glynt Pottery

Starting 2012... a little late

2012-01-27T19:32:00.001-05:00

I am so late in wishing everyone a wonderful new year! But here it is anyway: Happy New Year! I seem to be finally recuperating from a nasty bug that caught me in early December and has kept me quite lackluster.

It's January 27th and I'm doing the first glaze firing of the year in my newly reconditioned 15-year old Skutt manual kiln. The Kiln Doctor (aka Mike Swauger) came by last week and changed the elements, rewired the dials, fixed the kiln sitter and cemented a crack on the lid. Now I'm all systems go for the next 100 firings or so.

And today was a perfectly wonderful day! The weather was Spring-like in Northern Virginia and I was able to glaze with the studio door open. But what made this day fantastic was the arrival of a very mysterious package by Royal Mail all the way from Wales. Here's what was in it:

A sweet little Phil Rogers jug with a wonderful note from Phil who had heard that I had lost the large pitcher of his that I bought circa 1994 in this Summer's earthquake (see my earlier post). So he sent me this beautiful jar as a small replacement.

I am over the moon! Not only because I once again own an intact Phil Rogers piece, but also because Phil's gesture confirms my view that potters are the most generous people around.

The new pot has taken a place of honor on the dining room hutch.

Special QR Code for Blog Followers...

2011-11-15T20:54:00.001-05:00

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Use coupon code BLOG15 for a 15% discount in my Etsy shop this weekend.

Show Time!!!

2011-11-14T20:57:00.001-05:00

This year I'm only doing two shows:

* November 19 & 20, 2011 ~~ City of Fairfax Holiday Show at Fairfax High School in Fairfax, VA. Booth #199 in the Gym.

* December 4 & 5, 2011 ~~ City of Falls Church 2011 Holiday Craft Show at the Falls Church Community Center, Falls Church, Virginia. Booth #50 upstairs.

Guess how many large trees are in the box.

Right now, I'm getting ready for the City of Fairfax show. I've got 2 bins packed and, to take a break, I decided to start putting ribbons on the tree ornaments. Here are all the ornaments I have to work through... and just to have some fun... I'll send one of these ornaments to the first 3 persons who come closest to guessing how many large trees are in the box.

See comment for answer.

Losing Katie

2011-10-25T18:38:00.000-04:00

October 25, 2011

October 7, 2011

Well, the studio is done. Chris scraped the old, peeling paint, cleaned off the dirt and gave it two coats of paint. Everything is ready now: the wind chimes and birdhouses have been rehung and the studio looks wonderful. But... can you see who's missing?

Katie is gone... My faithful companion passed away of heart failure due to old age in the morning of Sunday, October 23. She was 14 1/2 years old.

I used to be afraid of dogs as a child. Katie changed all that with her "surprisingly human" eyes that understood everything. She was a superb soccer dog, dribbling the ball between her front paws and heading it with her snout. She kept the backyard free of squirrels and raccoons. And she stood guard. She "guarded" me when I was in the studio, no matter the time of day or the weather... she was at her post. She kept Chris safe from the critters of the night when he went out to the hot tub. She sat by us in the kitchen, in the den, in the bedroom... no matter where we were she was right there next to us. During the past year, the stairs became a real challenge for her, but she still managed them in order to be in the same room with us.

She was doing her border collie job... we were her sheep and she was our faithful shepherd.

Katie spent Saturday lying on the living room rug. Somehow (we haven't figured out how), a bird flew into the house, flapped about the living room, and flew out when the door to the backyard was opened. After she died on Sunday, Chris noticed that one of the large azaleas in the backyard, the ones that bloom in the spring, had one huge flower on it.

Thank you Katie... you will always be in my heart.

First Coat of Paint

2011-10-09T11:56:00.000-04:00

It looks better already... Thank you, Chris!

Time to Paint

2011-10-03T21:35:00.000-04:00

I had the studio built in 1997 and it has needed a new coat of paint for a while. So... my husband started getting it ready by scraping off the peeling paint... but that's as far as he got and the rains started again (will they every stop?). This is what we've got so far... They promised some sun for tomorrow so maybe we can pick up the project again then. In the meantime, this is what it looks like.

Etsy Front Page!

2011-10-01T13:22:00.000-04:00

My yellow citrus juicer made it to the front page of Etsy! Very exciting!

Earthquake Aftermath

2011-09-30T18:40:00.000-04:00

Phil Rogers pitcher

As everyone already knows, a 5.8 magnitude earthquake hit Virginia on August 23rd, 2011. My husband and I were at the kitchen table at the time... we stared at each other for a moment, as the rumble got louder, I yelled "earthquake" and ran outside with Chris following right behind. Oddly, our old dog, Katie, didn't bat an eye and I had to jump over her to get out of the kitchen.

We didn't have a lot of damage. Of the three shelves of pottery inventory only 3 things broke and, as I always say, "I can make another one!"

Not so with the pottery displayed in the dining room... these were pieces I've bought over the years that, to me, are irreplaceable: a Phil Rogers pitcher, a sculptural vessel made by Annette Hansen, and a bottle made by Fran Newquist.

We collected as many shards as we could and they have sat on the dining room table all this time... Chris got me several different types of glue/epoxy/cement to try to mend the pieces but I haven't been able to bring myself to do anything about them. Finally, Chris started to glue the Phil Rogers pot... It was not easy and the joins seems very "iffy." I would just like to be able to put the pieces back together in order to keep them... I just can't bring myself to throw them away!

Sadly, I can't find any photos where these pieces are visible intact... Here they are...

Annette Hansen Sculptural Vessel

Fran Newquist bottle

Embracing the Opportunity

2011-09-12T12:29:00.000-04:00

Last time I posted I was wondering what to do about all the orders for yarn bowls. I have since decided not to look a gift horse in the mouth and accept, with gratitude, the opportunities that this presents for me.

So, I am thrilled to announce that my yarn bowls are now carried by The Red Thread in Warrenton, Virginia, and by The Memory Tree Yarn Shop in Monongohela, Pennsylvania. I am particularly grateful to Terry and all the work she has done on my behalf to get my bowls into The Memory Tree, and to Wendy for steering Karen and Barbara (from The Red Thread) my way.

As I started making more yarn bowls and communicating more often with knitters, I have come to better understand their needs and improve on my design.

I have also realized that the pieces I make that include some sort of carved design are a very big hit. It had already happened with the lamps and now the yarn bowls. It gave me idea to use the same type of carving for my berry bowls and they've also become a hit.

Yesterday I received I precious "appreciation" photo from a customer who bought one of the Starry Nights Lamps for her newborn's nursery. This photo really touched me. It makes me very happy, and at the same time, humble to be a part of people's lives in this way.

So I'll keep carving lamps, yarn bowls, and berry bowls!

Too Much of a Good Thing...

2011-07-23T19:00:00.000-04:00

I enjoy making yarn bowls, especially the carving. But I've had to work hard to come up with a design for the open part of the bowls (the section that is carved through the rim) so that it is wide enough for the yarn, but not too fragile so that it will break or collapse during the various steps necessary to making them. My first design was okay, but I decided it needed to be wider. Then I tried to make a large spiral, but there were way too many casualties! Then I tried several variations of a spiral that is, essentially, the number 6 and finally settled on one that seems to work well, both technically and aesthetically.

So, what is my problem now? The problem is that I've become too successful! I am now the queen of the yarn bowls... Of the last 24 items I've sold in my Etsy store, 14 were yarn bowls. With a few exceptions, they sell within a few days of listing, and I am having a very hard time keeping them in stock, particularly the green ones. I am now down to 4 unloved bowls (all blue, who would have thought?).

I like making them... they are selling well... so??? The thing is that all I make are yarn bowls! They now take all my studio time and I miss making other things. Most importantly, I miss my creative time in the studio.

I am at a loss about what to do... I thought that I would just ride the wave and that soon enough everyone would have a yarn bowl and things would quiet down. But that hasn't happened and it doesn't look like it's going to happen any time soon. A very savvy potter friend suggested that what I need to do is raise my prices. I suppose that another alternative would be to simply tell all the people who write asking for "this same bowl in green (or blue, or yellow)" that I am no longer taking special orders and that the only bowls available are the ones in the store. What would you do?

Glaze Conundrum 2011

2011-06-16T23:02:00.000-04:00

This year has been a tough one for me and my glazes... I don't know what is going on, but several of my trusty, dependable glazes have decided they will no longer cooperate. Take a look:

1. Pharsalia Green then...

Here's my Pharsalia Green glaze. I've had this glaze for over 12 years (15?) and I've always loved it. It's from Richard Zakin's Electric Kiln Ceramics (1994 edition, page 124). This is what it used to look like (photo 1)... Nice, right? This is what it looks like now (photo 2).

Something in one of the ingredients, you say? I checked... I made a new batch just in case I had made a mistake... nothing... I can't get back to my old Pharsalia Green no matter what I try!

2. Pharsalia Green now...

Maybe it's the firing, you say? Maybe... but I'm not doing anything different AND the "sister" glaze: Pharsalia Blue is doing just fine, thank you!

Another glaze that's breaking my heart is the old Randy's Red. I got that recipe so long ago that I can't even remember when or from whom. But it was a beautiful, reddish brown glaze that broke to blacks and golds. Now it's just a mucky old brown with nothing happening, no breaking, no gorgeous color, nothing... Here is Randy's Red before (photo 3) and after (photo 4).

Both of these glazes have Gerstley Borate in the recipe. The Pharsalia glaze has 10% and Randy's has 31%... They also both use soda feldspar... 30% for the green glaze and 20% for Randy's Red.

3.Randy's Red then...

And I've got a couple other "old" glazes that are also failing.

The one thing the failing glazes have in common is that the raw glaze on a pot feels dry, rough, thin rather than powdery and smooth.

A sad state of affairs...

Fortunately, in the meantime I have been experimenting with glazes from the Mastering Cone 6 Glazes book and have got great results with slate blue, oatmeal, and spearmint... and now with the new Selsor yellow.... I think I'll just forget about the old glazes.

4. Randy's Red now..

Any thoughts on my conundrum will be appreciated it.

Kiln Opening!

2011-06-15T13:42:00.000-04:00

I had a nice firing of a brand new (to me!) glaze yesterday. It's the luscious yellow that you see in the pictures. I am so happy with it! I got the recipe from John Britt during a glaze workshop he did for The Clay Connection (in Alexandria, Virginia) last October. During the workshop, we tested the recipe in oxidation as well as reduction firings to Cone 6, and it looks equally wonderful in both.


Selsor Base

Gerstley Borate            12.5%
Whitting                       10.4%
Nepheline Syenite        56.3%
Silica                            20.8%
                                    100.0%

Bentonite                         2%

For the yellow, add 5% rutile. We also tested a green version of the glaze during the workshop, which was with 3.5% copper carb.

And, as you can see from the picture... once again, I dropped a kiln post and broke a rally nice yarn bowl... Oh well!

Oh! And about the baby birds:
My intention was to follow the baby birds as they grew an left the nest, but I missed about a week when my grandson had to have his appendix out. By the time I got back to the studio, the baby birds were long gone (the fledge in 14 days!). I was so disappointed!

Yarn Bowls and Baby Birds

2011-05-21T14:15:00.000-04:00

This is the one and only yarn bowl that I have left in my Etsy shop.

I have about 20 bone-dry yarn bowls in the studio waiting to be finished, but it's going to be a while before I can fire the kiln.

The reason? The baby birds, of course!

Even with the doors open the studio gets very hot when I fire (plus the fumes!).

Fortunately, Google tells me that by the time they're 10 days old baby wrens are ready to fly. Here's the latest photo of the brood taken yesterday.

I'm thinking that I should have the yarn bowls, bisqued, glazed, fired, photographed, and listed by mid-June at the latest.

So, please stand by for yarn bowls and fledgelings...

Sharing Studio Space: We've Got Babies!

2011-05-18T18:46:00.000-04:00

Here are the baby wrens! It's not the best photo, but it's the best I could do with the parents fussing outside.

For the past couple of days, one of the parents has been in the nest constantly. Every so often I would hear some peeps and then everything would go quiet again. I think that might have been when the babies were coming out of their eggs.

When I went into the studio today, one of the parents was coming in with a bug in its beak and once it saw me got very upset and started doing the *alert* chirping. Then, the other parent, which was in the nest, came out and both of them were outside the studio just carrying on, very upset, for a while. I decided to go about my business but without making any sudden moves. Eventually, they got used to my being there and started to come in: one or the other parent would fly in about every 5 to 7 minutes with a tasty morsel in its beak! There was still quite a bit of chirping and carrying on by the parent that was outside, but they did get used to me.

The babies' chirping is *almost* outside of my hearing range. It is a very high pitch and I can barely hear it... it sounds like it's coming from very far away. I'm sure that will change as they get bigger.

I hope that we can manage to live together for the next few weeks! My studio is very small and when I'm at my wedging table, my head is only a couple of feet away from the nest. A big-headed monster that close to home can surely make any parent nervous!

I realized today that I am not going to be able to fire the kiln until the babies are fledged... Fortunately, I don't have any shows coming up right now.

Sharing Studio Space (cont.)...

2011-05-14T15:36:00.000-04:00

I was throwing the coasters for berry bowls today when the brooding wren decided it needed to get out of the house for a while. She left and fussed and fussed at me when she got well outside the studio. I had come armed with my camera so I was able to get a picture of the inside of the nest. It is cup-shaped with a little "roof" or overhang. The eggs are a cream color with reddish brown spots. I count four eggs now but I think there's another one in the back (I had originally counted five eggs).

I have a glaze that reminds of the way the eggs are colored. It's the oatmeal glaze from the Mastering Cone 6 Glazes book. Here it is:

Sharing Studio Space...

2011-05-13T19:24:00.000-04:00

A couple of weeks ago I left my studio door open overnight. When I went back, a Carolina wren had started building a nest inside. I've learned that Carolina wrens, which mate for life, are notorious for building nests in unusual places. This bird built his nest in a bag of doilies (I use them to texture clay) that was hanging on the door. The female approved of the location and has been sitting on five eggs for a week now. I've kept the door propped open and try to make no sudden movements when I'm around the nest area. I've spooked the brooding bird twice already and it has fussed at me a few times, but so far we're getting along. I expect that there'll be babies next week... I hope they don't evict me!

Cleaning the Studio : The end and the beginning

2011-04-19T11:51:00.000-04:00

There's a rhythm to the work of pottery that, for me, culminates with cleaning the studio. It's always an exciting time because it speaks of a new throwing cycle just around the corner.

The first part of the cycle is coming up with new ideas and watching them become reality (or not!) at the wheel. But making a form is not all there is to it. Forms need to be refined during trimming, and many items require additional alterations such as attaching feet or handles or carving designs. This is what I love most about pottery: feeling the wet mud between my hands turn the shapes in my head into real pots.

I need to make enough pots during this part of the cycle to fill up my kiln. Once I have enough pots and they are bone dry, I go over each one and lightly sand all the burs out before loading them into the kiln.

Loading the kiln is also one of my favorite tasks. I like to stand surrounded by pots of different sizes and shapes and try to fit them into the kiln in the most efficient way. At the stage of the first (bisque) firing this just means trying to get all the pots into the kiln. But when the second (glaze) firing comes around it becomes a more exacting dance. I know going in that I won't be able to fit all the pots because glazed pots cannot touch each other or any surface (if they do they will become fused!). In addition, I have to bear in mind where each glaze has the best results since the kiln does not have an even temperature all the way through. So some glazes do better in the hotter parts of the kiln, while others prefer the cooler parts. Finally, I also have to keep in mind that I want the hot air to be able to flow around the pots. So, filling the kiln (particularly the glaze kiln) is like doing a giant three-dimensional puzzle.

But I got ahead of myself! After the first firing I check every pot for small burs and crumbs that need to be evened out using a small sanding stone to do the job. Next, I dip each pot in a bucket of water to wash off all the clay dust. Once all the pots have thus been cleaned and washed, I wax the feet and bottoms of each one. I do this to make sure that no glaze will come in contact with the kiln shelves during firing. If this happens the pot will get stuck to the shelf.

And once all the pots have been cleaned, washed, and waxed, it's time to glaze. I have several buckets of glaze that have to be moved out from their storage space to the middle of the studio where I can stir them or sieve them again if needed. I glaze by dipping the pots into the buckets. Once all the glaze has been absorbed into the pots, I wipe any excess that may remain on the bottom of the pot and start to fill up the kiln.

I clean the studio while the glaze load is firing. By this point I have made quite a mess and I've got everything out of place (which is a huge issue in a small studio!). So I start by moving the glaze buckets back to their spaces, putting other things where they belong and wiping down all the surfaces as I go.

Here are some pictures of the results of the current firing cycle. I'm ready to start again!

Becoming Environmentally Friendly

2011-04-09T21:45:00.000-04:00

To reduce our energy use, our family decided to take advantage of our electric utility's renewable energy program. We pay a little bit extra every month, but all our energy comes from renewable (solar and wind) sources. This makes me feel a lot better about running the kiln to over 2000 degrees Fahrenheit or running it overnight when I need to candle load of bisque! Check with your electric utility to see if they have a similar program.

Another way of saving energy is to drive a hybrid vehicle. I have 2005 Prius that gives me an average of about 50 miles to the gallon and I usually only need to fill the tank twice a month. Although the car might look small, it is actually very roomy. I have no trouble packing it with all my tables and boxes when I go to shows.

This year I invested in a pug mill to make it easier to reclaim and reuse all the clay from trimming pots and from the slop bucket. There is no wasted clay going into the landfill!

When it comes to paperwork, I use 100% recycled paper from my office supply store. And for shipping my pots, I get bubble wrap and peanuts from our local organic market, helping them recycle it and keeping it from the landfills.

At home, we also compost and have changed all the light bulbs to more efficient compact fluorescent bulbs. We have also invested in a hybrid water heater, which uses significantly less energy.

I'm sure that I'll continue to find more ways to be more environmentally friendly both at home and in the studio. I'd love to hear what everyone else is doing to run an environmentally friendly studio.

Helping the Potters of Mashiko

2011-04-04T12:50:00.000-04:00

Destroyed Hamada Platter

Destroyed Kiln in Mashiko

The recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan had a devastating effect on the potters of Japan. Information from Mashiko is that nearly all of the Nobori kilns have been destroyed. Damage to the Hamada Reference Museum has been very severe with priceless national treasures lost.

Donated Sushi Set

The Etsy Mud Team are working together to raise money to aid the potters of Mashiko. Members will donate 100% of the proceeds from sales of specific items to the relief fund set up by the internationally known Leach Pottery which has a long history with the village of Mashiko. (For more information: http://www.leachpottery.com/What-s-On/News-Feed.aspx). You can view and purchase the donated pieces here: http://www.etsy.com/people/theEtsyMudTeam/favorites?ref=pr_faveitems_more

Donated bottle

Below are additional links for anyone interested in donating directly to help rebuild the potteries.

http://potters.blogspot.com/p/relief.html ~~ Mashiko Potters Foundation

http://www.johnleachpottery.co.uk/Appeal.asp ~~ John Leach Pottery

http://bl160w.blu160.mail.live.com/default.aspx?rru=inbox ~~ Potter’s Council

http://www1.networkforgood.org/help-survivors-pacific-quake-tsunami ~~ Network for Good

~~ CERF

Now is as good a time as ever to become acquainted with the work of the Craft Emergency Relief Fund (http://craftemergency.org/) and think about your own emergency preparedness. The website has important information for artists, including the Studio Protector, a tool that provides information for preparing for and recovering from emergencies, including fires.

Another Spring... Finally!

2011-03-22T15:20:00.000-04:00

Redbellied woodpecker on the branch on the left.

As far as I'm concerned, winter was too dark, too cold, and too long! I thought I was handling it okay, but then I realized that I have been completely absent from my blog for two months. I was busy enough since I had some special requests to fulfill: I made lots of Advent wreaths and yarn bowls in January and olive dishes in February and March. But now that the days are longer and the birds are starting to sing again, I feel like the winter fog is beginning to lift.

The old weeping cherry tree has flowered once again, but the effort seems to have taken its toll. It's a very old tree and despite our efforts, it's dying. I read somewhere that weeping cherries live 30 years and this was a mature tree when we moved into this house 22 years ago... yet it continues to flower. The redbellied woodpecker is back! It was very upset yesterday when it saw what the squirrels did to the two nest cavities it built in the cherry tree last year. But he's pecking away once again and calling loudly. Time to build another nest!

Katie

Katie is still here. My faithful Border Collie turned 14 this winter. She's having a lot of trouble with her hind legs: going up and down the stairs is an ordeal, but she still does it in order to be where we are. She's quite deaf now so we have taught each other sign language. One advantage of her deafness is the fact that she can't hear when I turn on the camera and I can now get pictures of her (she has always been camera shy). She's also taken to random fits of barking that the vet says is the doggie equivalent of senile dementia. I don't know about that... sometimes I get the feeling that she's trying to tell me something important.

So, we are all still here: the cherry tree, Katie, and me. I think it's time to get the old creative juices going and do some "barking, pecking, and flowering" myself!

Fitting Everything into a Small Studio

2011-01-10T17:26:00.000-05:00

My studio is definitely a one-person space. It is a 10ftx12ft structure where I do everything, from wedging to trimming and from glazing to firing. When I bought the pugmill recently, I was worried about where I was going to put it. I am very happy to report that I rearranged a few things and managed to find a place for my new pugmill while, in the process, ending up with a better throwing set-up than the one I had!

Kiln

So, this is how things work in my tiny studio. Every available wall surface has shelves to hold everything, from pieces in various stages of drying or waiting to be glazed, to towels, to underglazes and molds. The kiln sits at the back of the studio with clearance from the walls as required, but I did put a metal shelf behind to hold kiln furniture. A space heater sits behind the kiln, keeping the studio nice and warm and I have a second back-up heater for very cold days (like recently!).

Also at the back of the studio but on the left side, are the glaze buckets and a table that holds the pugmill. The pugmill sits against the back wall and under a shelf when not in use. When I'm going to use it, I move it so it sits diagonally across the table (see photo from posting on Jan 8).

On the left wall by the front and under the window, I have a 6 ft carpenter's table. I have a mini slab roller on the table with a sturdy piece of wood on top to serve as additional table space when the slab roller is not in use. Behind the slab roller is a belt grinder that only comes out when needed. I love my window because it lets in so much sunlight! It's also where the air conditioner window unit goes in the summer!

On the right side of the space I have the wheel and 2 tables sitting in front of the kiln. Originally I had the wheel and a low shelf next to it for my throwing tools. Now I also have the wedging table to the right of the wheel and another table to the left. Instead of a stool, I use a folding step ladder with a cushion, which can be folded up and moved out of the way.

Slab roller

I have a deck in front of the studio so that, on nice days I can throw open the doors and increase the size of my work space. Picnic tables on the deck allow me to set work down to dry and do my glazing there. We've run a hose from the house around the back of the building and connected it to an old sink by the side of the studio so I don't have to go into the house when I need water (except in winter when I do get warm water from the house).

Love my window!

It's time to clear out the shelves!

2011-01-09T11:21:00.000-05:00

Set of 6 dessert plates

I toyed with the idea of taking a hammer to some of those pieces that have been sitting on the shelf for too long. But many pieces are lingering through no fault of their own; they just need to find the right home. So I'm holding a Winter Clearance Sale in my shop right now! Everything's 25% off with the use of a coupon code at check out.

Just for my blog followers: Use coupon code BLOG30 for a 30% discount! Invite your friends to follow my blog and get a 30% discount on Glynt Pottery during the Winter Clearance Sale.

You can now purchase a gift certificate for Glynt Pottery!
The link on the right will allow you to purchase a gift certificate of any denomination through your PayPal account (if you don't have one, simple steps are provided for you to sign up).

A New Year: Back at Work!

2011-01-08T19:41:00.000-05:00

After the long hiatus of the holiday shows and get-togethers, I am finally back in the studio getting my hands dirty! I ended the year with many customers placing special orders so I'm busy making more Advent wreaths, Starry Nights lamps, French butter crocks, mugs and much more.

Lamps, wreaths, and bowls in various stages of drying

Last year was so good for me that I was able to buy a new piece of equipment for the studio. I got a second-hand Bluebird 440 pugmill to help reclaim clay and save my wrists from so much wedging. I am so happy with my new toy! Here it is:

Having so much fun with my new pugmill!

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and is back to doing what they love!

Many Thanks!

2010-12-14T19:25:00.000-05:00

Sofie with butterfly face paint.

Almost a month has gone by and I haven't had time to update the blog! It has been an extremely busy as well as rewarding month!

I was at the City of Fairfax Holiday Craft Show again this year on November 20 and 21. It was wonderful to see many old friends and customers! The second day of the show was much better than the first, and I think that's because #1 daughter, Bibi, was there helping me. She is the Queen of the Tableau, rearranging my displays to best effect, and also a fantastic salesperson (to say nothing of her packing skills!).

The first weekend in December was the City of Falls Church Show. Once again, I was heartened to see many people come by because they had received my postcard. I have to thank #2 daughter, Andi, for designing a magnificent postcard once again this year. Granddaughter Sofie came by to help on Sunday, greeting all the customers and steering traffic to my booth by just being her cute, sweet self!

Although customers laughed saying that everyone they know has a brie baker, these were, once again, top sellers. I sold 19 brie bakers in the two shows. The yarn bowls and baskets were extremely popular, I sold 9 of those at the shows and would have sold more if I'd them. I was surprised that many people had not seen yarn bowls. But they did think that they were great gift ideas once they saw them.I did manage to make enough ornaments this year: I sold 105 ornaments between the two shows. The textured trees, both large and small, continue to be a hit!

In addition to the shows, sales on Etsy have been hopping. They picked up right after Thanksgiving and have not stopped, allowing me to reach my goal of 200 sales. This averages out to 6.5 sales a month in the past 2.5 years since I opened my Etsy store. I'm very pleased with that!

So thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who came by my booth at the Fairfax and Falls Church shows, as well as to all my wonderful Etsy customers!

Leaves Falling Like Rain

2010-11-16T14:13:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year... I am fascinated by the leaves. Just driving to the grocery store is like going into a wonderland of color. I love the leaves in the spring too... all the myriad shades of green as the light-colored shoots turn into dark green summer leaves. All of life in a small leaf: from the tiny shoot, to the nurturing leaf that helps provide energy for the plant, to the splendor at the end of the season.

I want to draw leaves, paint leaves, make clay leaves... but I've always tried to resist that urge because there is so much leaf imagery in pottery and elsewhere. Nevertheless, I've decided to take a few tentative steps. I've carved leaves on my lamps, I've drawn some leaves on a few bowls and brie bakers... I think I may look into this a bit more in the future! For now, I made a treasury that I hope you'll visit.

Time for a New Wedging Board

2010-11-09T23:05:00.000-05:00

1. Canvas Wedging Board

While most studios have plaster wedging tables, I've found it much better to wedge my clay on canvas. I like canvas because it won't gouge or crack and also because it dries the clay up a bit as I'm wedging. The latter is important because, to protect my wrists, I throw with very soft clay.

2. Stapling the canvas to the board

In addition, a canvas wedging area can be set up quickly and easily and lasts a long time. I made mine in 1999 when I built my studio. Eleven years later, the canvas was getting a bit threadbare so I decided to redo it today. With my husband's help, it took all of 30 minutes! Here's the quick and easy way to make a long-lasting wedging board.

3. Cutting off excess canvas

I started with a piece of wood about an inch thick. The dimensions of the piece of wood are only restricted by the area available to you for the wedging board. Mine is about 2.5 x 2 feet. Simply staple marine canvas to the board making sure that you pull it very tightly (fig. 2). I put canvas on both sides of the board and use one side for dark clay and the other for white clay. After stapling the canvas and cutting off the excess (fig. 3) I cover the edges with duct tape (see fig. 1).

I attach the wedging board to a a sturdy table with vise grips. I've placed bricks under the table's front legs. This puts the table at a slight angle away from me, which makes the wedging motion easier (see fig. 1).

4. Ware boards made out of wallboard

I also use pieces of wallboard as ware boards. Simply cut a piece into as many different sizes as you need and duct tape the edges so they won't crumble (fig. 4). You can also use one side for dark clay and other for white clay.

Yarn Baskets and Bowls Part 2

2010-11-05T19:28:00.000-04:00

I'm very happy with the way the yarn bowls and baskets turned out. You can find them for sale in my Etsy store.

Yarn Bowls...

2010-10-28T00:09:00.001-04:00

Everyone seems to love yarn bowls!

I make mine in two varieties: bowls and baskets. Both the bowls and the baskets have a relatively wide foot and thick bottom to make sure that they are very stable. The baskets evolved at the suggestion of some of the grandmas in Etsy's WWWG Team. The carved handle makes them easy to carry from room to room and provides a place to put the needles.

I like to the look of carved pieces and I enjoy carving through leather-hard clay, so I generally carve a more intricate design on the bowls and baskets than what is strictly necessary to serve the function of a yarn bowl. I think that this design element opens the bowls and baskets up to many more uses, making them an item of decoration for the home if used, for example, with pebbles or sea glass on the bottom to hold a candle. They can also be used as candy dishes or to hold jewelry or keys.

Love and Sweetness

2010-10-12T11:00:00.000-04:00

This past weekend was my brother's wedding. The ceremony was held at Overlook Farms in Clarksville, Missouri, overlooking the Mississippi River. The site--with its view of Old Man River, hills, pecan and walnut trees--was a romantic's dreamscape. The ceremony included readings of several poems, including e.e. cumming's I Carry Your Heart. But the most inspiring poem (which elicited a loud laugh from my 8-year old grandson) was Li-Young Lee's From Blossoms.

From blossoms comes
this brown paper bag of peaches
we bought from the boy
at the bend in the road where we turned toward
signs painted Peaches.

From laden boughs, from hands,
from sweet fellowship in the bins,
comes nectar at the roadside, succulent
peaches we devour, dusty skin and all,
comes the familiar dust of summer, dust we eat.

O, to take what we love inside,
to carry within us an orchard, to eat
not only the skin, but the shade,
not only the sugar, but the days, to hold
the fruit in our hands, adore it, then bite into
the round jubilance of peach.

There are days we live
as if death were nowhere
in the background; from joy
to joy, to joy, from wing to wing,
from blossom to blossom to
impossible blossom, to sweet impossible blossom.

My contribution to this lovely day was a "wishing pot." It was a humble pot that was filled with everyone's best wishes for my brother and his bride. What a wonderful idea!

Support Your Local Artisan

2010-09-23T16:56:00.000-04:00

In mid-August, The Washington Post ran an article about decorating for the fall that highlighted "artisan wares" and the fact that "major retailers are offering alternatives" to handmade artisan products found on Etsy. This really bothered me because, in addition to mentioning alternatives to Etsy sellers, the article showcased clay vases from Indonesia selling from $12 to $24. Well, I wrote a letter to the Post's editor, which got printed on September 2. Here's a link to my letter.

As I talked about this with several artisans, someone commented that in these difficult times you can't blame people for going for lower priced items. I think that it's up to us to educate our customers about our work and why they should purchase local artisan wares, even if they have to pay a bit more. Lisa LaPella has pointed out that she would rather save her money to purchase a more expensive handmade item that can become a treasured heirloom. But I think that one of my repeat customers put it best when she sent her own feedback in response to my letter to the editor . She said:

"I'm not an artist but I support local artists by buying at local sales and on Etsy. The benefits of buying locally applies to art, not just vegetables purchased at local Farmer's Markets. Buying locally produced products cuts down on energy consumption, because there's less transportation; it provides income to a local resident, it supports locally purchased materials, and it supports the local arts community overall."

Where Did That Idea Come From?

2010-08-05T18:51:00.004-04:00

It's not easy to come up with original ideas in a medium as ancient and everyday as pottery. Most often, new ideas carry with them echoes of all the other pots we've seen and admired. It reminds me of the sci-fi writer who refused to read other writers' work in order to avoid being influenced by their ideas. I've found that potters are probably the only artists who generously share their techniques, ideas, glazes, and so on.

I learned to make carved luminaries very early in my pottery journey and for a long time I made open and closed carved forms to be used with candles. A few years ago, my mentor, Virginia potter and teacher Jane Cullum showed me how to adapt the luminaries to accommodate a snap-in socket. One of my first sales in Etsy was one of those lamps! Later, I was putting my grandson to bed one night and had just turned off the lights when I saw the glow-in-the-dark planets and moons and stars that his Dad had pasted on the ceiling of his room. That's where the idea of making a lamp with a moon and stars came from. But how about having it project on the ceiling?

I had been making lots of items using closed forms, including boxes, so it was easy to adapt a closed form into a starry nights lamp with a snap-in socket. I've now started making them with other designs as well. Here's one of my favorite lamp forms, which takes two snap-in sockets and light bulbs.

Making Lamps 2

2010-08-04T21:04:00.009-04:00

Here's part 2 of "Making Starry Nights Lamps."

After you've made the round form, trimmed it, made the hole for the snap-in socket, and put feet on it, it's time to carve the design.

I use templates, stencils, hole punchers, and cookie cutters, but you can also use your own design or cut out a free-hand design. Two things are important at this stage: (1) how wet your pot is and (2) the type of design.

I talked yesterday about (1). This is really important. If you start carving when the clay is too wet you can expect 3 types of problems: clumping of the crumbs, a deformed pot and trouble removing the carved out pieces because the clay will tend to stick together even after you've cut it. Ideally, your clay should be a good leather hard.

I start by sketching the design onto the form. You could start carving from the beginning, but I like to sketch in the design first so that I can better visualize it finished. At this point I am taking care not to leave too little space between cut-outs because those narrow pieces of clay are the most likely to crack, deform or break off. Spirals and curlicues are particularly prone to these problems. However, it doesn't mean that I won't use such a design, just that I might not carve some sections all the way through. I also think about the size of the cut-outs and how it will look with a light bulb in it. I try to have a combination of large and small cut outs so that the light won't glare out of the lamp or the light bulb is too visible.

Once I'm happy with the design, I start carving with a scalpel, x-acto knife or other such sharp knife. I generally stick one finger through the socket hole and stab the scalpel down to my finger and use it as a guide while cutting. This minimizes cut "overruns" (but really hurts!). Pay attention to what the clay is doing, sometimes it's fine to slide the scalpel all the way around a design, other times it's best to move in an up-and-down motion all the way around the design. I find that this usually depends on how wet/dry the clay is and how intricate the design is. So, I'm likely to go carefully up and down around a spiral (because they break off so easily!), and just slide around the edges of a leaf.

Don't fuss with the crumbs and with refining the cut out areas. Once the piece is bone dry the crumbs can easily be removed by running a needle tool all around the cut-outs. Then shake the piece to get all the crumbs to fall out of the socket hole. I also sand the pieces when they are bone dry.

You can make these lamps as open cylinders as well and I'm experimenting now with covered oval, triangle, and square shapes... we'll see how those come out.

Have fun!

Making Lamps 1

2010-08-03T22:20:00.012-04:00

The Starry Nights Lamps have been my best sellers. I recently sold my last 3 in one week and had to put aside other projects to make some more lamps. So I thought I'd show you how I make
them.

I start out with about 1.5 lbs of clay and throw a closed form. Before taking it off the wheel, I use a metal rib to smooth the surface and an edger to remove some of the excess clay at the bottom. I run the wire under them but don't take them off the bat until they can be handled without distorting. At this point, it's a good idea to poke a small hole somewhere with a needle tool.

Once it is dry enough to trim, I refine the form and make a hole in the bottom for the snap-in socket. I have a small cookie cutter that is the right size and I've marked it "Lamp Socket" so I know which one to use every time. The hole is about an inch in diameter.

Unless you are going to trim and then move immediately to cutting out the design, it's best to trim the forms a bit wetter than usual. The reason is that it takes a while to cut out the design (the starry nights lamps take the best part of an hour) and the pot is drying as you're doing this (more or less rapidly depending on ambient humidity). You don't want the pot to be too wet when cutting because the clay crumbs will clump and also the form can collapse. But you don't want to do it too dry because you run the risk of cracking. So, ideally, you should be cutting the design at the pliable leather hard stage.

The next step is to add the feet. Feet are necessary because you need a space for the cord. The height of the feet is a matter of your own aesthetics. Sometimes I throw a ring and add it to the bottom, cutting out a notch for the cord. Other times I add small lumps.

Tomorrow: Cutting out the design!

Sharing Ideas

2010-07-24T14:43:00.009-04:00

I would never suggest to a painter that she paint her work in a different way or use different colors, or to a photographer that he choose a different subject matter or angle. However, it often happens that people suggest to potters different ways of making their wares or how, with only a few tweaks it could be repurposed. I don't have a problem with this. I think that the reason people feel more comfortable making these suggestions is that we make functional items that are more personal. After all, there's a difference between hanging a picture on the wall and the intimate action of bringing a cup to one's lips and drinking from it. Also, people bring their own life styles and experiences to bear on how they might use it. I made my Mom a vase, but she uses it to hold kitchen utensils. She loves it because the colors match her kitchen perfectly (totally unintentional on my part!) and she gets to have it out all the time, not just when she has flowers to put in it.

So, I made this business card holder a while back...

One of my regular customers saw it in my Etsy store and suggested that I make a casserole with impressed sided. What a brilliant idea! So here are some casseroles following Ronnie's great suggestion. To make them I first throw a bottomless form and push it into an oval shape. Once the clay is dry enough to handle, I attach a bottom to the form. The bottoms can either be made from a slab or thrown. Then I use clay stamps to impress a design and attach handles and feet. After they are finished, the pieces are carefully wrapped in plastic and left to dry slowly. Once bone dry they are fired once to make them easier to handle. They are then glazed and fired a second time.

Kiln Opening!

2010-07-21T19:29:00.010-04:00

I did a glaze firing last night with a couple of new glazes: the bright blue and the emerald green. You've already seen the emerald green, but I've mixed a large batch of it now and I'm having consistently great results. I think it's my new favorite: it looks great in the teapot and the casserole dish!

I had done a small test with the blue and originally thought that it was too blue, but I think I'm liking it more now that I mixed a large batch of it. It's a shiny, deep, deep blue that I think is going to go over well.

I have a feeling that these two new glazes are going to end up replacing the blue and green Pharsalia glazes, which are a bit more tricky. For example, the Pharsalia blue on the rim of the casserole sometimes comes out with brown splotches or speckles. These can be very nice, but other times... not so much. In this case, the brown is concentrated on the casserole's feet so that it looks two-tone...

Another experiment in this batch is the two small boxes in the bottom shelf: one blue and the other green. This is not a "new" idea, but a return to an old one. I use an oxide wash to stain the bisque making sure that the texture is highlighted, and then I dip the piece in a clear glaze. Here, I used cobalt carb for the blue box and copper carb for the green one. The pieces are white on the inside.

I painted some leaves on the soup bowls. I'm still having a bit of trouble with the green color burning out, but there's a bit more green in these than in past experiments. I think I'll just have to paint it on thicker.

And finally, my brother is getting married in a couple of months and I was thinking of making a set of dishes. I can't decide exactly how to glaze them and did this trial run using the Randy's Red and Pharsalia Green glazes. I'm liking that combination a lot!

Summer Clearance Sale!

2010-07-19T00:23:00.005-04:00

I am in the process of marking down items in my shop for my Annual Summer Clearance Sale. This will take a bit because I have to open each item listing and edit 3 different pages. Unfortunately, as far as I know, we don't yet have a tool that will allow us to apply percentage discounts to each item without having to go through the editing process. But, that's okay... It gives me an opportunity to tweak a few other things in the listings anyway.

So please keep checking my Etsy store because, like the items shown here, everything will be marked down!

If you are local, keep an eye out for information about the Kiln Club's Clearance Sale, which will take place on August 7th at Bethesda Elementary School from 9am to 2pm.

Wedding Favors

2010-07-17T20:02:00.007-04:00

When one of my daughters got married 4 years ago, she asked me to make tiny vases w/ a heart to hold the table assignment cards. I made them all different sizes and glazes, and guests even traded them! These are the vases:

I also made some personalized hearts to be used for gift bags at her shower:

But that was it. I never really got into the "wedding market"... until now!

I met a delightful bride-to-be and her fiance who asked me to make 100 olive dishes. They plan to give them out as favors. Apparently, there is a family story connected to olives! This is the olive dish they want:

I am delighted by this order! First, because weddings are a time of such high hopes when it seems that the future is wide open. Second, because I love olives! Third, because making these little dishes is a lot of fun!

So, there it is. I have until next April to get them done and I started this week.

Here are some dishes waiting for handles:

And some handles waiting for dishes:

And the first batch of 8 dishes drying:

With a Little Help from My Friends

2010-06-13T14:13:00.012-04:00

I keep thinking that I'm not going to be doing shows for a long time so I haven't really focused on the set-up. Just some tables and crates should do! But for this show I needed a canopy tent. I also wanted there to be enough room within my space for people to move around. And, from past experience, I decided that I needed a bit more space in the back to be able to pack purchases more efficiently. So I decided to have shelves on one side rather than 3 tables in the shape of a U.

Potters are well-known for their generosity and I was the beneficiary yesterday! Roberta Couver lent me her E-Z Up canopy tent and two 4-ft tables. Jennifer Dinkelmeyer lent me her shelves... And I was ready for the Ballston Arts & Crafts Market!!!

The Ballston Arts & Crafts Market is held in Welburne Square in Arlington, Virginia, on the second Saturday of every month from May to October. It's a really well-organized show and it's easy to get in and out despite the fact that it's in a busy urban setting. Welburne Square is really lovely. It's very shady and there are lots of restaurants and apartment buildings around, which should ensure a good crowd. The live music was excellent! Fingerstyle guitarist Jeff Severson entertained the crowd. I got two dates for the show: June and October (but had to turn down the October date because it coincided with an important family event).

Saturday, June 12th was a hot day: The temperature reached 91 degrees! But I had a lovely spot under a tree and at the corner where there was a nice strong breeze all day. I was also right in front of Cosí where we could get iced tea all day long! Here are some photos of my spot. Note the duct tape all over the table covers to keep them from blowing over and up onto the pots! I was warned about the strong wind in the square so I made a point of keeping my set-up low: I started the shelves much lower than usual and did not put any attention-grabbing platters up high on the crates or shelves.

I met fellow-Etsyan Kelley Squazzo, whose spot was right behind mine! She and Heather Rellihan run Pocketful of Posy and make wonderful handbags, wallets and accessories. Check out their shop on Etsy!

It would have been great if there had been a larger crowd; I was disappointed with my sales. But I guess it was a hot day and the pull of World Cup Soccer was much stronger than that of pottery on the Square. In any case, I did meet some very interesting people and spent a great day with my lovely daughter.

Embracing Failure

2010-06-08T21:58:00.004-04:00

I’ve been thinking about how much life is like making pots.

You spend most of your time trying to make that idea in your head into a real thing you can wrap your hands around. Searching for the perfect job, the perfect relationship, the perfect house… the perfect pot. After much work, you get what you wanted, but it wasn’t what you expected… it turns out that the pot you get out of the kiln isn’t much like what you had in mind. Or after you think you've got it, something goes wrong. This form flew off the wheel while I was trimming it. It had been perfectly round. Now my choices were to toss it into the reclaim pile or... square it!

After struggling for years you have a moment of perfect understanding and peace… you sit at the wheel and make gorgeous pots effortlessly… and then the moment is gone.

I’ve learned that life, like making pots, is about embracing failure. Not being afraid to fail frees us to spread our wings a bit farther, push the clay a bit more… it might collapse… or it might yield a beautiful pot!

So it is with life. Looking back I see how fear kept me from much joy. I am learning to be fearless now!

The Better Butter Dish

2010-05-28T22:54:00.010-04:00

I have to admit it right at the top: I don't eat butter. But I've become a bit obsessed with butter dishes.

It all started a few months ago, when several Etsy potters had their French butter bells removed from the site because someone has actually registered the term "butter bell" as their trademark. So now we have to call them bell-shaped butter dishes or butter crocks or something else. This was followed by the publication, in Pottery Making Illustrated, of Keith Phillips tutorial on how to make a classic American Butter Dish, and by the discovery that butter sticks in the East and West coasts are different sizes (who knew?).

So I decided to look into butter dishes. First I tried to make the infamous butter bells. My first attempts looked nice but, once fired, the top and bottom didn't quite fit. I eventually modified the design and came up with this. I'm really pleased with these. The only glitch left to figure out is how to ensure that they don't warp too much in the firing since they sit on their rims in the kiln.

I then went back to making what I've always thought of as a "butter bells," that is, a dish with a dome-shaped lid (rather than the French version for storing butter outside of the refrigerator). Got some good results there too, although they might need to be a bit larger.

I finally tackled Keith's American Butter Dish. I've made a few and I am ending up with a tray that is a bit too large relative to the lid. I think that this might be happening because I am putting the bottom on the tray when the clay is still too soft and it stretches more than it should.

So, here's what I think about this exercise.

I like the shape of the French butter crocks and I especially like that I could use one of the components for olives (place the pits on the outside rim!) and the other for a dip bowl.
Making the dome-shaped dishes reminded me that I should make some garlic roasters (same shape just add a small hole for the steam to escape!).
And I absolutely love the trays that are resulting from my efforts at making Keith's butter dishes.

What do you think? And... who still eats butter?

Visit to Burlington, Vermont

2010-05-25T19:12:00.004-04:00

My fabulous niece, Monica, graduated from the University of Vermont with a Bachelor of Arts in Sustainable Development this past weekend. I drove Mom up to Burlington and we spent a wonderful time with my brother, my sister-in-law and my SIL's sister.

We arrived Friday night and met at Monica's for wonderful organic pizza. On Saturday morning we went to the Burlington Farmer's Market. What a treat! I bought some artisanal bread and one-year old cheddar cheese (yum!).

At the Farmer's Market I met a couple of Etsyans selling their wares. Dan Siegel is a potter who makes graphic mugs, tumblers and other vessels. I bought one his mugs for my collection and have already enjoyed drinking my tea out of it. Jen Kahn is a brilliant jeweler and my wonderful SIL bought me a pair of earrings that I had admired! Check out their Etsy shops!

After the Farmer's market we had lunch at Stone Soup where I had the best roasted tofu sandwich in a long time. Following lunch we visited with Monica's professors at a reception for the environmental science students and headed to the shores of Lake Champlain for a very touching impromptu ceremony. That evening we had the best dinner at Leunig's. I had risotto stuffed artichoke... to die for!

Sunday was graduation day! We got to the Campus Green at about 8am and found the perfect chairs under a big shady tree with a magnificent view of Lake Champlain and the mountains in the distance. Even though the ceremony was very long (they read each graduate's name... and there were 2000 seniors!), it was a delightful, breeze day. Following the graduation ceremony, we met at Monica's house where all the housemate's mothers had a wonderful meal ready for us. There we met parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and siblings of Monica's friends. That evening we had another fabulous dinner at Starry Night Cafe. This time I had the salmon w/ the most amazing mashed potatoes.

So that was my weekend. I really felt privileged to be in such a beautiful setting, celebrating this most important occasion with my beautiful niece and dear brother and the rest of the family!

My Starry Nights Lamp is on Etsy's Front Page!

2010-05-18T19:49:00.001-04:00

This is very exciting because I actually got to see this in real time!!! I'm very honored and extremely grateful to Walrustusks for including me in her treasury. Please visit her shop!
View an Etsy Front Page Treasury List - The Vault on Craft Cult

Mother's Day Sale This Saturday!

2010-05-03T12:02:00.004-04:00

Please join me and 13 other potters in The Clay Connection's Spring Pottery Sale, just in time for Mother's Day. The event is being held at a new location: John Calvin Presbyterian Church in Annandale, Virginia on Saturday, May 8 from 10am to 5pm.

In addition to my pots, you'll be able to enjoy the work of Marvel Adams, Ginny Ainsley, Marianne Cordyack, Laurie Erdmann, Brigitta Feinberg, Bruce Glassford, Michael Hough, Klaudia Levin, Linda Moesser, Amy Wandless, Dick White, Becky Zweibel and Wendy Zaidman.

Admission and parking are free and visitors will be able to participate in a drawing to win one of Dick White's beautiful crystalline vases.

I've been a member of The Clay Connection since its inception and seen it go through many stages. I've become more active in the group since retirement and I'm excited about its new direction.

A new grandbaby!

2010-04-15T21:45:00.002-04:00

I have a new grand-daughter that I want everyone to meet. Isabel Josefine was born at the end of February and here she is at 6 weeks. She's just gorgeous and looks just like her Mommy, my beautiful daughter, Andrea. Check out her Etsy shop and the beautiful photocards she designs.

Name that Glaze!

2010-04-04T23:45:00.004-04:00

This is a test tile for a glaze I mixed last month as I was testing different colorants on a High Calcium Semimatte glaze from the Hesselberth & Roy book Mastering Cone 6 Glazes. The authors call this glaze "field mouse brown," but clearly it doesn't look brown at all and nothing like the example in the book.

I was not going to go any further with this glaze, but something about it made me give it another try so I mixed a 1000 gram batch and here are the results.

All I can say is Wow! I love this! I can't decide what color it is: it's black --or maybe it's very dark purple. It's got gray shadings --or maybe it's a very light brown. What keeps coming to mind is "Smoke."

And, clearly, it's not Field Mouse Brown! I think that I put a lot more cobalt carb than called for in the recipe... whatever it was I did, I hope that I can keep doing it.

Next step is to mix a 5000 gram batch and go for it!

New Green Glaze

2010-04-02T21:20:00.005-04:00

Got some really nice outcomes from this firing. The base recipe is the High Calcium Semimatte from the Mastering Cone 6 Glazes book by John Hesselberth and Ron Roy. One of my favorites is this green (called "Spearmint" in the book). I especially like the difference between a thin and a thick application. The thin application (seen in the little cups and the berry bowl) has more orange/light brown tones while the thicker application (seen in the ring holder and the box) is more of an emerald green.

Spring is here!

2010-03-25T12:44:00.005-04:00

Spring is finally here and the weeping cherry tree is still with us despite this winter's punishing snow storms and winds, and the best efforts of the carpenter ants and resident red-bellied and downy woodpeckers. This beautiful tree is again raining pink petals on the deck and life moves on.

Nature's awakening this March was accompanied by renewed activity in my Etsy shop. This has been a very good month for Glynt Pottery, so far, and I thank all those people who have shown an interest in my work, including several returning customers.

I was honored to have two pieces included in Etsy Finds this month.

This stoneware box was featured on March 13th. It was hand built from clay slabs that were impressed using a clay stamp. The box is 5 inches tall and would look great in any room of the house!

This double-walled bowl was featured on March 25th. This piece was thrown upside down on the potter's wheel. It looks stunning with an ikebana flower arrangement, especially if you were to arrange pebbles or small stones around the extra wide rim. It's also a great bowl to hold potpurri or sea glass, and it makes a great dip dish!

Glynt Pottery and 2010 Snow Storm

2010-02-08T11:49:00.003-05:00

Well, we've made it through the "epic" storm of 2010! All in all, we were okay. We only lost power for about 5 hrs on Friday night (Feb. 5) and it happened late in the evening so we chatted a bit by candlelight and then went to bed. Without the furnace running, it was eerily quiet and that's when we heard the unmistakable "Swoosh... Thwack." We jumped out of bed and looked out the window to see a huge magnolia branch lying on the ground right next to the studio. I was sure there would be some damage, but had to wait until the morning to check it out.

I dug a path to the studio at about mid-day and this is what it looked like (bear in mind that it kept snowing for about 6 more hours!). The cedar three on the right was bent almost to the ground from the weight of the snow.

And here's a picture of the magnolia branch. It appears to have caused no damage at all! It missed both my studio and my husband's workshop, it missed the table with the umbrella and it even missed the a/c window unit and the wind chimes on my studio!

Things are melting slowly because it's still very cold, but we are getting beautiful icicles!

We had about 2 ft of snow and we're bracing for more snow tomorrow! I've lived in this area for almost 50 years and this has been the snowiest winter I've ever seen. And a lovely one at that!

Oh yes, I did continue working in the studio through the storm. I have 2 space heaters that keep the studio toasty warm. I am working on several types of butter dishes, including regular dishes, butter bells and butter domes. I've never made butter dishes before so I don't know what'll come of it, but I will post the results.

Glaze Tests -- Phase 1

2010-02-05T12:23:00.013-05:00

My pottery group at Manassas Clay decided to test some new glazes this session. I have been meaning to try some of the recipes in Mastering Cone 6 Glazes (Hesselberth & Roy, Glaze Master Press, 2002), so I chose to try the High Calcium Semimatte Base 1 on page 86. In their book, Hesselberth & Roy present several glaze recipes that they developed, which pass their safety and durability tests. I did not venture too far afield in these tests. I mixed the glazes presented in their book and a few other options where I tweaked the colorants. I did 10 tests in all and now I will narrow down the choices to move on to the next step of testing, which is to mix 1000 gram batches of the glazes and fire them on a pot rather than a test tile. These are the ones I've chosen to move on to the next step (all the test tiles can be viewed on my facebook fan page). I welcome and look forward to feedback with respect to the colors!

Hubris, Detachment and Making Pottery

2010-01-24T15:12:00.007-05:00

“You can’t always get what you want

But if you try sometimes well you just might find

You get what you need”

Through the years I have found that, of course, Mick is right.

The information I need to make a decision, the lesson I need to learn, the missing piece to the puzzle are all there right before my eyes: all I need to do is pay attention. And a lot of this “paying attention” I’ve learned through the practice of making pots. I can just sit at the wheel and throw a pot and move along. But every so often I am reminded to stop and pay attention, to listen to the clay and listen to myself. And that is what just happened this weekend.

I wanted to get some greenware fired. I had some pieces I had made for an exchange that the Etsy Mud Team is having. I also had some pieces for a commission that I wanted to finish. And, most of all, I had some new pieces: two boxes that had turned out beautifully! I knew that some of these pieces were not yet bone dry but in my hubris I thought I could handle that. I packed the kiln and turned the bottom ring on for most of Friday afternoon, checking the boxes to make sure all was well. I turned it back on again on Saturday and let it run for several hours. Things were looking good so I slowly took the kiln up in temperature and confidently left the studio. When I opened the kiln up today, this is what I found.

The boxes exploded in a shower of bisque shards that landed on every shelf below and in a pile on the bottom of the kiln. All the commission items were hopelessly cracked. I had to laugh at myself! I knew better! What made me think that I could get away with it? Arrogance, of course.

I actually did laugh at myself when I opened the kiln. At another time I might have cried in frustration. I don’t know when I learned this detachment but somewhere along the last few years I stopped attaching so much importance to the end result and focusing instead on the process. [For another perspective on detachment, read Laurie Erdmann's recent blog post.]

In addition, this kiln mishap has provided me with an opportunity to approach the clay with the spirit of learning, to once again sit at the wheel to study the process of making a pot. The centered lump of clay is filled with opportunity to become shards at the bottom of the kiln or a fabulous new pot.

Kiln Goddesses

2010-01-05T18:51:00.005-05:00

I am a member of The Mud Team, a group of potters who sell their work on Etsy. Periodically, we have challenges and exchanges (we recently had a casserole challenge and a mug exchange).

Our current challenge is to create kiln gods. Those are the amulets that we place on our kilns to ensure a safe firing. I currently use a variety of amulets as my kiln protectors (see April 25, 2009 posting) and have often thought about actually making a kiln god (or in my case, a goddess) of my own.

I am back in the studio after the holiday hiatus and found myself with some brown clay in my hands as the thought of the kiln goddess played in my head. It's awfully cold and I do my best to keep my studio warm with the portable heater, but I had to bring a second heater this week. So my mind was full of thoughts of spring and here's the first goddess that emerged: a female torso pregnant with new growth! It evokes creativity and potential and is just the lady I need to look after my firings.

I still had some clay left over so I embarked on another goddess. The thought that came to me then was of stages in life. One of my daughters recently laughed that by the time I get up in the mornings she's had what seems like a full day. I replied that I thought that was as it should be because I am (finally!) retired and she is responsible for a home and two lovely children. My first goddess is the young mother~~my daughters. The second goddess is the crone~~me! Here she is. Once fired, the witness cones in her hair will bend to their particular temperature and, I hope, she'll look more hag-like (and not like the Statue of Liberty or the Geniol ad!)

I do hope that these little sculptures make it through the firing because I'm already a bit fond of them given that I am not a sculptor and this is the first time that I try my hand at something like this.

Happy New Year!

2009-12-24T10:55:00.005-05:00

As 2009 draws to an end, I'd like to thank the many many people who have given me their support and helped make this year a successful one. The wonderful friends who so generously share their advice and expertise, as well as lend an ear when one is needed. The great customers who appreciate my work and keep me busy year-round. My family members who are my greatest fans. And all those who are quick with a comment or good wishes.

To all, my heartfelt thanks and wishes for a bright, blessed and hopeful 2010!

A New Work Area

2009-12-11T14:46:00.007-05:00

I don't have a large studio so finding a place to put all my inventory, to organize and pack pots to take to shows or to Manassas Clay or to ship Etsy purchases has always been a big problem for me. I was struggling with my boxes following the last of the shows when my husband peeked into my study and said "What you need are some shelves" and off he went! Before I knew it, there he was, with the boards and the tools putting shelves up on the wall!

Now I can see what I have, I know where things are and I can easily find something that just sold on Etsy. Thanks Chris!!!

Here's a picture of the work in progress:

And here's the end result! My study seems huge now... The table is not all cluttered, making it easier to weigh and ship items that sell. And I have a perfect place for taking photos of my work.

Doing a Hundred Things at a Time...

2009-11-28T11:01:00.010-05:00

I am still unpacking and checking inventory following last week-end's show in Fairfax, Virginia. After taking time off to cook the vegetarian food for our Thanksgiving get-together, I am back to listing new items in my Etsy shop and deciding which items to take to the store in Manassas and which ones to pack for the Falls Church show next week-end. This means that my house looks like a pottery explosion: pots, mugs, vases, plates, brie bakers, olive dishes, casseroles... everywhere! I am fortunate to have a very supportive husband and also lucky that the fridge is full of Thanksgiving leftovers and I haven't had to worry about anything other than the shows.

Here is one of the items I just listed on Etsy. I am very pleased with the way this little dish turned out! I used a crotched doilly to impress the pattern on a slab of clay and then molded it. I am especially happy with the way the glaze pooled in the indentations.

I am also happy with these mugs because of the way they show the movement that takes place during the forming of the piece on the wheel and reminds us that this "stoneware" was once nothing but soft, squishy mud!

Next, I'll be at the 17th Annual City of Falls Church Holiday Craft Show:

Saturday, December 5 ~~ 9am to 4pm

Sunday, December 6 ~~ 11am to 4 pm

Falls Church Community Center

223 Little Falls Street

Falls Church, Virginia

There will be 60 crafters and bakers selling handmade items. Children's activities will available and lunch will also be available for purchase.

Look for Glynt Pottery in Booth #50 upstairs!

Featured in a Gift Guide

2009-11-23T19:51:00.005-05:00

I was excited to find out today that my little angels with the blue lace wings are being featured in Etsy's Ornaments Gift Guide. Click on the link and see all the beautiful ornaments that so many talented Etsians have for sale. This is the second time in the past two months that I find myself in an Etsy Gift Guide! I feel like I have finally "arrived" since I had not been featured in anything before. It's a great feeling!

It's just more good news to add to the great weekend sale at the City of Fairfax 23 Annual Holiday Craft Show. My husband was a real trooper, getting up at 5am to drive the truck to the venue and help me set up. Then, daughter Bibi arrived to help. She is an enthusiastic greeter, organizing the display to show my wares to the best advantage and closing many a sale. Despite her pregnant belly, daughter Andi came to help on the second day of the show, and Bibi showed up again (surprise!) so the 3 of us had a wonderful time!

I was very pleased to have several repeat customers who came by because they got my postcard. Including a lady who walked into the booth and announced that she had come to buy "the lamp that was on the postcard." (See below the beautiful postcard that Andi made for me.)

I was also happy to meet another Etsy seller and member of the Etsy Mud Team, Suzanne Rehbok of Flying Pig Pottery in Greensboro, NC. I got this beautiful mug from her to add to my ever-expanding mug collection:

City of Fairfax Holiday Craft Show

2009-11-19T16:45:00.005-05:00

The City of Fairfax is holding its Holiday Craft Show this coming Saturday and Sunday (November 21 and 22) at Fairfax High School (3501 Rebel Run, Fairfax, Virginia). This show, which is celebrating its 23rd anniversary this year, has a very loyal following and organizers expect a crowd of 8000.

The admissions process begins in January of each year and the participating artists are chosen by a panel of local artists, art teachers and a craft shopper. More than 500 artists applied in 2009 about 230 were selected.

I am proud to be participating in this show this year! I will be in booth #199 in the gym and will be bringing all my latest work, including plenty of brie bakers (a year-round favorite item), mugs and bowls, as well as ornaments.

The show is from 10am to 5pm on Saturday and 10am to 3pm on Sunday. Admission is $5 per day or $8 for a two-day ticket (persons under 18 are admitted free of charge).

In addition to juried crafters there will also be gourmet food vendors so come on by and make a day of it!

This fabulous postcard was made for me by talented daughter, Andrea. Check out her new Holiday designs in her etsy shop, agephotocards, and order your Holiday card today!

Kiln Opening !!

2009-11-08T20:28:00.002-05:00

I think that this is going to be my last firing before the big shows this month and next... I had a nice firing yesterday and I emptied the kiln today and filled it back up, so it's running again with the last batch. As usual, there were four little trinket dishes I couldn't fit into the load... there is always something that I can't get in the kiln! But I was able to fire all the brie bakers/paté dishes which were my biggest concern since they sell quickly. So here are the results, top to bottom:

Top Shelf: Brie bakers/paté dishes, olive dishes, lace-impressed dish and one so-so result. I put three little feet on the black trinket dish, but it slumped and distorted a bit. Next time, I think I have to put the little feet further apart.

Second Shelf: A nice little casserole and two matching bowls. I really like the way these turned out. My red iron oxide glaze continues to come out more on the red side, which is how I like it. I'm really pleased with the combination with the yellow glaze! The green and blue votive candle holders and wine chiller are darker than usual because they are made with warm brown clay rather than the usual white stoneware, which gives the glazes a completely different look.

Third and Fourth Shelves: Nothing particularly new here. The green and blue glazes continue to perform. And there's the last of the Starry Night lamps... I should have made more as two have already sold.

Bottom Shelf: Something new here. I pressed some leaves into the still-wet clay of three brie bakers (this is, after all, the time of year for being entranced by the leaves falling all around). Then, instead of painting a design over the white glaze as I usually do, I did so on the bisqued pieces. The colors went right into the impressions left by the leaves, accentuating them. Then I put the clear glaze over the top. I am very pleased with these results!

Bells and Angels

2009-11-01T08:53:00.004-05:00

My Etsy Mud Team friend, Barbara Dunshee, makes beautiful work and she also teaches ceramics. She recently posted some videos on her blog showing how to make her porcelain bells. I thought I might want to try making them at some point but was not in any hurry to start experimenting with new items right when I'm in the midsts of getting ready for the Fall shows. But I was making some trays and found myself with small slabs of stoneware at hand, so I took the first steps in making Barbara's bells: I cut a circle of clay and then I divided it in half diagonally to make two bells... The pottery fairies must have been twirling around my studio because I didn't end up making bells. This is what happened instead:

A parade of tiny little angels! I don't know if they'll survive the firing... but they're mighty cute!

Soup Time!

2009-10-23T14:58:00.009-04:00

It's really getting chilly outside! Time to warm up with a nice bowl of soup. Here are some of the soup bowls currently available in my Etsy store:

October 10 Kiln Opening

2009-10-10T17:52:00.010-04:00

Getting ready for the Holiday Season! Here's the latest kiln opening... a lot of ornaments, as you can see! I am partial to the trees, large and small, because they are a great symbol of Winter. They have quite a few uses, not just as ornaments. My favorite is to use the small trees as name tags on presents since you can write on the back of them with a Sharpie.

A small disaster on this shelf: I made a piggy bank prototype and broke it's ear when it was already bisqued. I decided to try and see if I could "glue" it back on with glaze. The thought actually crossed my mind that as the glaze melted the ear could begin to slide off the piggy... and, of course, it did... coming to rest on the lip of the mug next to it.

This shelf also shows a couple of salt pigs I made for a friend (a new item for me), as well as a new direction for my lamps. Instead of making them cylindrical, this time I made them as closed forms and carved a crecent moon and lots and lots of stars.

And... I'm loving the green oval dish with the textured rim!

I fired this load a bit hotter than usual and you can really see the results in my green and blue glazes on this shelf.

Almost to the bottom! I like the way the creamer came out with the white interior.

Here's the bottom shelf! I don't know if you can see the difference in the green glaze on the teapot and on the oval cylindrical lamp... Interesting how the far side of the kiln was much hotter and what a difference that makes on the glaze.

That's it for now! Keep an eye on my Etsy store, I'll be listing these items soon.

A Great Week on Etsy!

2009-09-26T11:32:00.001-04:00

This lamp was featured in two Etsy treasuries this week and is currently on the Etsy Artful Entertainment Gift Guide!

New Listings!

2009-08-09T20:22:00.003-04:00

I've been very busy listing new things in my Etsy store this week. I have 126 items for sale and will probably be adding a few more things in the next couple of days.

I made several sets of "word" bowls, including soup bowls, rice bowls and ice cream bowls, as well as a set of alphabet bowls. Also listed several really nice platters and a whole lot of brie bakers and olive dishes, as well as some mugs, boxes, and vases.

Come by for a visit and help me get to 500 hearts!

Featured in Handmade Registry Front Page

2009-07-31T13:07:00.004-04:00

Just found out that my Butterfly Lamp is featured on the front page of My Handmade Registry. What a great honor! Here's the lamp:

Handcrafted Mugs at Walmart for $3

2009-07-29T23:21:00.005-04:00

Went to Wal-Mart today to get a gift for my grandson’s birthday and took a stroll along the housewares section looking for the “$3 mug” someone had mentioned. I found it. Here’s one version of it: there are 10 different styles/glazes/colors. And, actually, it’s not $3, it’s $2.46, 80 cents cheaper than the birthday greeting card I got for Alex’s 2nd birthday. A 16-piece (dishes, bowls, mugs) costs $40. There’s also an $11 stoneware baking pan, a $6 pie pan and a $13 covered casserole. All of it made in China, of course. There’s no way that I can compete with those prices!

Until now I highlighted the “handmade” character of my work. I am the only person involved in the entire process in my studio, from wedging the clay to throwing the piece to mixing glazes to firing to marketing and shipping. However, as the photo shows, now Wal-Mart is selling stoneware pieces made in China that are prominently marked with a sticker that states “Handcrafted: Special Glazing Technique Makes Every Piece Unique.” Wow! This blows me away!

These pieces are not unattractive and they make it possible for people who can’t afford my $18-$24 mugs to enjoy stoneware pieces in any of 10 designs. But they make me sad. Maybe I’ve become a pottery snob, but I feel that they lack soul. The Chinese “hand crafter” has left no indication of his/her presence on this mug; there’s nowhere on the mug that you can say “Aha! Here’s the mark of the maker’s hand!” When I first started this blog, my first postings were about this idea of the importance of handmade pots. I quoted Carla Needleman’s notion that “a mug can save the world.” Now, faced with this reality, the only response I can come up with is to continue to make my pots with even more passion and trust that there are enough people who want to own handmade pots as much as I want to make them. Or, as Kevin Crowe, has said “making pots has become an act of civil disobedience!”

Glynt Pottery @ Manassas Clay

2009-07-26T17:59:00.003-04:00

This is my current display at Manassas Clay (in Manassas, Virginia). This month I'm highlighting platters, as well as brie bakers and "sweetheart" vases. On the top left are two large platters in a tomato red glaze. With the small bowls featured below each platter, they would be ideal for veggies or chips and dip. The platter on the bottom left has a rustic feel because of the different type of clay used. This platter is a bit deeper than the red ones and could be used for pasta or a salad. The green platter on the middle far right is similarly deeper than the red ones and comes accompanied by two plates

The "sweetheart" vases are on the top shelf (and one on the bottom shelf in front of the brown plattter). I started making these as gifts for my daughters' wedding anniversaries (all 3 of my married daughters have anniversaries in the Spring within a period of 3 weeks!). These are two small bud vases that have been smooshed together and are now inseparable!

I only have 3 brie bakers left at the shop right now as the 2 others sold before I could take the photo! But there are many more brie bakers where those came from!

Other items are the highly textured hand-built boxes, vases and tray and the 3 small soy bottles.

Hope you'll have a chance to visit Manassas Clay soon!

Featured in Mellow Tones!

2009-07-18T11:04:00.004-04:00

I am being featured in Mellow Tones: Handmade Shopping Guide with this pitcher and tumbler set:

And, oh yes!, the summer clearance sale is still going on in my etsy shop. Don't miss your chance to take advantage of significant discounts on all my pieces!

Huge Summer Pottery Sale

2009-07-02T14:14:00.011-04:00

It's summer, time to start clearing out inventory! Everything (and I mean everything!) in my Etsy shop is now on sale. Discounts range from 9% to 61%. This fabulous gas-fired lamp is on sale for $50 (discounted by 17%). Other lamps are marked down even more!

Most mugs are now half-priced!

And, can you believe that this cute casserole dish is only $18?

Also, mark your calendars for the Kiln Club Clearance Sale on Saturday, August 1, 2009, at Bethesda Elementary School (7600 Arlington Rd, Bethesda, MD 20814). Check my website for more details and additional local sales.

Kiln Opening!

2009-06-24T21:16:00.007-04:00

I woke up with a start at 2:30 am today thinking that I had forgotten to turn the kiln up to high before going to bed. I guess it's the potter's equivalent of worrying about whether or not the stove is off when you leave the house. There I was in the wee hours of the morning with my flashlight making my way out to the studio. The good news was that I had remembered to turn the kiln up to high and it had fired properly.

The bad news was that I forgot to close the top peephole. This is not so terrible, but it meant that the kiln took longer to get to cone and the pieces on the top shelf that were glazed in Pharsalia Blue were more tan than blue. (I like this glaze for exactly that reason, but most customers like the deeper blue.) One tray (on the far right of the photo) was more tan on the side facing the peephole and blue on the side farther from it, while another that was to the left of the peephole was dark blue because it was not directly in line with the source of cooler air.

I unloaded the kiln this afternoon, after spending a perfectly lovely morning glazing with Jane, Jennifer and Lynn. I don't usually use the words "lovely" and "glazing" in the same sentence; glazing is definately not my favorite endeavor, but any chore gets done quickly in good company!

I should have waited a bit more to unload but, as usual, I am impatient to see the results, especially since I had some new items in this load. Things don't usually go well when I'm impatient and that was the case this time. As I was removing the last shelf, one of the kiln posts got stuck to the bottom of it (this wouldn't have happened if the kiln had been cooler) and, of course, came off in mid-air, crashing down on one of my new pieces and breaking it. Not too happy with myself about that!

Raku, Pit Firing & Post-fired Finishes

2009-06-20T11:23:00.016-04:00

Raku

As I mentioned earlier, the raku/pit firing workshop was a lot of fun! I am especially happy with the raku results. The vase and the mask were the first two I pulled out of the fire. Then came this wonderful little surprise:

I put the glaze on too thickly and the result was this beautiful bubbly "mess." This is just such a cool little bottle vase! But not everything turned out this well. My last little bottle vase was a big disappointment. I think I know what happened to it: I covered the can too quickly and the combustible material didn't have a chance to really catch fire because when I opened the can most of it was unburned.

Pit Fired

Pit firing was an afterthought. I had focused on making a few pots for the raku fire and did not focus on the pit firing. As a result, I neglected to make suitable pots using a smooth clay body such as B-Mix and I also neglected to burnish the pots. All I had was a couple of vases and a small box that were made using the same clay I had used for the raku firing. No matter, I decided to go ahead and try them out in the trash can "pit." All three pieces turned out really nice: smoky black w/ patches of white where pots touched each other and no smoke was able to get to the clay. Also, a pattern of white dots developed on the pots.

Post-fired Finishes

The last piece was the small box. It came out of the fire looking just lovely: all smoky black with just one area of white. I decided to experiment with post-fired finishes and used metallic gold acrylic paint to embellish three areas on the box where the clay was impressed with a pattern. I also used a clear non-fired glaze on the box. I loved the outcome! However, all is not success stories in my studio. I have an unfortunate tendency toward clumsiness. I dropped the lid of the box and the beautiful impressed knob shattered. Here are the remains of my lovely box:

Another experiment with acrylics turned out a lot more promising. I kind of like the look of this box! I made it following Pam Eisenmann's dry brushing techniques. I have not decided how or if to use a non-fired glaze on it since a previous attempt on another piece yielded a milky look. We'll see what eventually comes of this, but it certainly was a lot of fun to experiment!

Charan Sachar's Color Feature

2009-06-15T12:04:00.005-04:00

Charan Sachar is a spectacularly creative potter from Seattle, Washington, who makes pieces inspired by the colors of his native India. Check out his Etsy store and you'll know what I mean. His dancing diva wall sculptures seem to have been taken directly from a Bollywood movie! And the color dance doesn't stop there, even his salt and pepper shakers dance!

His fascination with color has prompted Charan to do a "Color of the Week" feature on his blog. This week's color is buttery cream and Charan has featured one of my platters. Do visit Charan's blog and Etsy site, I promise that you'll be bookmarking them!

Thanks Charan!

Raku and Pit Firing at Pig Pen Pottery

2009-06-14T21:41:00.007-04:00

What can be more fun than a bunch of women (and one fellow!) playing with fire?

Last Saturday I joined a group of potters from the Kiln Club for an afternoon of raku and pit firing at Hidden Springs Farm, a pre-revolutionary farmstead that is home to Laura Nichol and Pig Pen Pott ery. Laura choreographed our dance around the raku kiln while Mia van Zelst showed us her terra sigillata technique for burnishing pots for sawdust firing.

Our raku dance was a sight to see as, on Laura's cue, we each pulled our red-hot piece out of the kiln and placed it in a can with flammable material to begin the reduction process. Flames shot up as the hot piece touched the material in the can and we threw in more sawdust before covering the can tightly. Thus starved of oxygen, the fire pulls the chemical oxygen in the clay and glazes before consuming itself. We had great results! I am particularly happy with a mask and a vase that show all the effects of the fire.

The sawdust firing was done with cedar chips in a metal can. I had two vases and a small box in that firing. All three came out beautifully: dark black from the smoke with ghostly white shapes where the pieces touched each other and were thus protected from the effects of the smoke.

At the end of the evening we gathered on the gallery of Laura's house to share a delicious potluck supper (potter's are such great cooks!). My only regret is that I didn't take more photos, but I was too busy having a wonderful time! I got home late in the evening, dirty and smelling of smoke, but very happy with my four raku pots and three pit fired pots. More importantly, it was great to spend an afternoon enjoying the company of such generous potters and partaking of the view and the great food. Oh yes!, and I also brought home a dozen farm-fresh eggs from Laura's chickens.

Manassas Clay Window

2009-06-12T14:10:00.004-04:00

I've always said that potters are very selfless, caring and giving people and here's another example: I was supposed to do the window at Manassas Clay during May, but I had been under the weather the month before and was unable to do it. Enter my wonderful friend Jennifer Dinkelmeyer, who was doing the June window. She invited me to share the window with her this month! If you're in the area, please visit Manassas Clay and check out our window!

New ideas and revisiting old techniques

2009-05-19T23:21:00.007-04:00

Several things happened in the past few months that have led me revisit handbuilding and heavily textured pieces. First, the Etsy Mud Team had a clay stamp swap and I found myself pressing scraps of clay into everything in my studio to see what textures I could pick up. Then, I attended a presentation by Novie Trump (at a meeting of the Kiln Club), who showed us how she makes her textured niche sculptures. At about the same time I went through all the stuff from my in-law's house and found a treasure trove of doilies and lace. And finally, I attended a presentation by Pam Eisenmann (organized by the Clay Connection), who showed us her post-fired finishes techniques.

So I ran some clay through the slab roller and went to town using all the clay stamps, textured mats, doilies and lace that I had in the studio. The result was these boxes and I can't get enough of them! A couple of them moved in the direction of vases and I was thinking today that I could easily transform them into birdhouses.

Once they are completely dry, I will put them through the first firing. The bisque firing drives off all the water in the clay structure and burns off much of the organic material, hardening it sufficiently so that it is easier to handle during glazing. I don't know how I'm going to glaze them yet, but I will certainly try Pam's technique using acrylics and patinas. The main goal of the process will be to enhance the texture as much as possible.

This is a sort of return to the beginning for me. I used to do a lot of handbuilding when I first started on this clay journey and I also used a lot of texture on my pieces, usually marks made with found objects: shells, pine cones, twigs, buttons, etc. As I became more proficient at the wheel I stopped handbuilding. But, here I am again, revisiting textures and handbuilding.

A Couple of Platters

2009-05-14T11:44:00.005-04:00

A while back I mentioned attending a workshop by Kevin Crowe and learning a new technique for making plates and platters. Well... I made 9 plates and only 4 made it through the bisque firing. I have since figured out that the problem lies with my trimming process: I am putting too much pressure on the rims when I trim, weakening them enough that they crack during the first firing. Of the 4 that made through the bisque firing, I have 2 glazed and I must say that I'm very happy with the results.

The 10-inch plate was fired to ^6 in my electric kiln. It is glazed in a matte green glaze with a design in shiny yellow running through the middle. The design was made with a piece of lace taken from a linen napkin that belonged to my mother-in-law. I dipped the lace in the yellow glaze and placed it over the top of the green glaze on the plate. Then I saturated the lace by applying more yellow glaze with a brush. There are some blue shades where the two glazes mix.

The 12-inch platter was fired to ^10 in a propane gas kiln. It was glazed in an iron-rich tomate red glaze. The subtle pattern showing some black speckling that you see in the middle is where I poured more glaze after having dipped the platter once so that the glaze is thicker there than in the rest of the piece.

These pieces are currently for sale at Manassas Clay.

May 5 is my First Etsy Anniversary!

2009-05-04T17:57:00.002-04:00

It's been a very rewarding year on Etsy! To celebrate I'm offering my blog followers a 15% discount on all purchases at my Etsy store made during the week of May 4th. Please send me a convo through Etsy and I'll adjust the price for you. Or, you can mention that you are a blog follower in the "message from buyer" as you check out and I will refund the difference.

I want to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who has been a part of this year's adventures: all my friends, customers and, especially, all the members of the following wonderful teams: the Etsy Mud Team, the Wise, Witty and Wild Grandmothers Team, the Design Style Guide Team (and the Virginia DSG Team), and Etsy for Autism! Many, many thanks for your support and encouragement!

Show Schedule is Starting to Shape Up!

2009-05-02T22:00:00.002-04:00

I got my first show acceptance and I'm really happy about it because it's a two-day, city-wide holiday craft show! So, it's time to start marking your calendars! I'm going to be at the City of Fairfax 2009 Holiday Craft Show on November 21 and 22. The event is held at Fairfax High School and I will be in the Gymnasium, booth #199.

I'll be updating as the event dates near, but wanted to share this one now!

Kiln Opening!

2009-04-25T14:22:00.009-04:00

I fired the kiln last night and got to open it today to find all kinds of goodies! Last year at about this time Mike the Kiln Doctor tuned up my kiln and it's been fired very efficiently ever since. I have an old Skutt kiln and still fire with a kiln sitter (no fancy programable kiln for me!) and I'm getting to Cone 6 in about 4 or 5 hours after turning all the switches to High. The kiln is not only efficient, but also very reliable so that, barring any wild experiments on my part, I can be confident about the consistent outcome of my glazes. Here are a few pictures of today's opening.

The first photo shows my kiln gods at attention. Over the years, I've collected lucky stones, toys, magnets and other such things that I've been placing on the kiln to ensure a good firing. Right now my gods include a small frog; a magnet showing a spider with a funky spiderweb that says "Try, try again!"; small stone with a drawing of Kokopeli, the god of Mischief; another stone with the word "Balance" etched on it; a small white stone with a perfect hole in it; and so on... I do like stones, as you can tell... They always have something to whispe to me.

Featuring Tracy Gordon

2009-04-18T17:32:00.005-04:00

Today, I'm featuring Tracy Gordon, another member of the Virginia Design Style Guide team. Although I don't think I've ever met Tracy, we are both part of the Manassas Clay community, so I'm sure we're going to cross paths soon.

Tracy lives in Prince William County (Northern Virginia) and works for a local government elected official. She has two dogs, one who is definitely a "bad dog" and a puppy who has the potential for becoming a "good dog." While public administration at the local level has been Tracy's passion, she is loving her foray into artistic and creative endeavors, which she finds very fulfilling. Tracy's Etsy store is called New Dominion Blues and there she sells trivets and coasters, jewelry, garlands, photographs and other items. Currently, she is taking pottery classes and learning how to throw on the wheel. She finds the sensation of practically spinning a pot from her fingers to be almost magical.

The name of Tracy's shop has an interesting story behind it. Tracy and her husband are big fans of blues music and spend most of their vacations visiting Chicago, attending blues shows in little dive bars. They have tried to create a blues haven in their own home and have thought about starting their own blues bar in Northern Virginia, the Old Dominion. Since the blues bar is not yet a reality, Tracy thinks it's fitting that she name her first small business venture: New Dominion Blues.

More on the Virginia DSG Team

2009-04-15T20:31:00.005-04:00

As I mentioned earlier, Design Style Guide has created state teams. I, of course, am a member of the Virginia DSG Team. Today, I am highlighting fellow team member Sue Furrow.

Sue loves to paint using acrylics and oils. She especially loves to paint on Masa Rice paper with acrylics, but because it's so time consuming she feels that it stands in the way of spontaneity and hasn't used it lately. Sue is inspired by nature and the pieces in her Etsy shop include wildlife, gardens and landscapes. She lives in Salem, Virginia, in the southwestern mountains of the Blue Ridge, outside of Roanoke and about 25 minutes away from Blacksburg and Virginia Tech (GO HOKIES!). She has a studio in her father's old workshop, which she cleaned out and remodeled to suit her needs.

Sue has a big family and a grand baby on the way. She works in a shoe store and she says that everything she knows about computers she learned in the past year. For someone with an online store and a blog, that's pretty quick learning if you ask me!

Made it to Another Spring!

2009-03-29T17:43:00.007-04:00

The weeping cherry in the back yard is an ancient tree and here it is, blooming again! Weeping cherries are supposed to live 30 years. We've been in this house for 20 years and it was a big mature tree when we moved in, so I wouldn't be surprised if it was planted when the house was new, 40 or so years ago. When the kids were small, the weeping cherry held a large tree house and a swing. It has held countless nests and been home to squirrels, mourning doves, chickadees, woodpeckers, cardinals and more. Several years ago it started to drop limbs and the carpenter ants got to it. The children were grown and gone so the tree house came down. We considered cutting the tree down because it's so close to the house. But the woodpeckers really love it (we've even had a piliated woodpecker visit a few times!) so we thought we'd wait and see. And this wonderful tree continues to bloom every spring!

That's my studio in the back. I've been practicing a new technique for making platters and plates and really having a great time with it.

The Virginia Team on Design Style Guide

2009-03-27T20:54:00.006-04:00

Design Style Guide is an online handmade home décor presentation website with a unique focus on handmade home design products, services, and events that promotes quality handmade Home Decor items to Interior Designers and Decorators and like-minded buyers. DSG has recently allowed members to form regional teams and, of course, I joined the (Made in) Virginia Team. Our team is so new that there are only 6 members, but it already promises to be a lively bunch! With me in this group are Virginians Janice Alexander from JKADesigns, Tracy Gordon from NewDominionBlues, Lisa Walker from WhimsicalXpressions, and Laura Trevey. I plan to highlight these talented artists and their Etsy shops, beginning with Lisa.

Lisa makes cards, frames and decorated glass candle holders and containers. The most delightful thing about Lisa is her secret identity: Lisa's alter ego is the Easter Bunny. She works full time for the Parks and Recreation department and has the pleasure of giving free rein to her alter ego every year and entertaining old and young alike, along with her sidekick, Taylor, who happens to be a chipmunk.

Knowning this it will come as no surprise to hear that Lisa "likes a little whimsy." She is inspired most by color as well as her family and friends. Her wonderful crafts certainly show it.

Lisa reports that the most challenging part of working in her medium has to do with reactions between her materials (such as tissue paper and mod podge used to make her candle holders), which can be very frustrating. But she has her trusty dogs, a chocolate Lab and a Sheltie, to keep her company througout it all!

Please visit Lisa's shop on Etsy, as well as the Design Style Guide site!

Pushing the Limits

2009-03-14T22:04:00.005-04:00

I already feel the Winter doldrums lifting and the creative juices beginning to flow again! Today was the first day of a 2-day workshop by Kevin Crowe that I'm taking at Manassas Clay. Kevin is a marvelous teacher who is helping push my skills to the limit so I can find my voice... and some of the pots I made today were really screaming out loud. Not that they are going to be keepers, but I can sense the possibility of a new type of energy.

I was telling my husband, Chris, about the workshop and mentioned that Kevin has asked us to bring an inspirational pot and a poem for tomorrow's class. This lead us to reading together some of the poems that Chris wrote as a young man and to a wide-ranging discussion of art, creativity, meditation, and life in general.

Sometimes inspiration is sitting right across the kitchen table and we've been wearing too many Winter coats to notice it's warmth. I can sense Spring just around the corner!

Rejected

2009-03-10T20:23:00.004-04:00

My grandson's school is having a silent auction fundraiser. I told my daughter that I would donate some pottery. My intention was to donate several important pieces so that, together, they would make a significant enough contribution to the school. Today I found out that the organizers of the silent auction declined my offer of support. "They said they don't want housewares, Mom. They said that you could give them a couple of matching mugs for them to put in a pricey coffee basket." I was thinking of giving them some of my best pieces. I wonder who these people are who reject offers of support when they are out hat-in-hand? The person who rejected my work has never seen it. She rejected it because it was handmade or, as she said, "we don't want any homemade stuff." As if I were sitting at my dining-room table rolling out clay snakes and making ashtrays. I am speechless.

I am grateful for the great potters of the Etsy Mud Team who rallied to my support when I reported this and told them I was a bit down in the dumps about it. Please support the potters of the Etsy Mud Team and check out their work at Etsy Mud Team Catalog.

Oh, and about Jacob's school... please support it as well. Kingsbury Day School is a wonderful school for children with learning disabilities and Jacob has flourished there.

Making Pots...

2009-03-01T19:57:00.009-05:00

An article in today’s issue of The Washington Post describing the “Dirt on Delight: Impulses That Form Clay” exhibit at the University of Pennsylvania’s Institute of Contemporary Art notes that people are increasingly taking up knitting and pot-throwing. It attributes to Nicholas Bell, a curator at the Renwick Gallery, the notion that this is a “reaction against the time we now spend working with ephemeral digital signals, rather than a sign of new things we’ve found to say with the hand-wrought.” Knitting a sweater might serve as an antidote to staring at a computer screen all day, but according to Bell, chances are that the sweater will look “an awful lot like another 100,000 sweaters that will have been made.”

This got me thinking about why it is that I make pots that look “an awful lot like another 100,000 pots that have been made.” In the past, I have agreed with Bell and held that my reason for making pots is to achieve a connection with others that I find lacking in today’s impersonal world. And, indeed, it is a special treat to see people ponder and handle different pieces until they settle on the one that calls their name. There are other more personal connections, like the 15 commemorative pitchers that I made for a group of Army spouses whose husbands were being transferred. They wanted to have something that they would use regularly and that would remind them of each other and their time together at Ft. Belvoir in Northern Virginia. Or, finally, the cereal bowl I made for my husband, inscribed with lines from one of the poems he wrote as a young man.

However, while connections (as well as the ego boost of people liking my pottery enough to spend their hard-earned money on it) are nice, the fact is that I am mostly an introvert, not someone that would be described as “craving to establish connections.” I am glad that my pieces find a buying public because otherwise I would be drowning in pots (my family and friends, long ago having decided that I’ve gifted them enough pottery, are wondering when I am going to actually buy them birthday presents!).

So, why do I continue making pots that look like 100,000 other pots? And, what is it that I have to “say”?

I think that it’s the process of making that I crave and that this is something intrinsic not just to humans but to all kinds of other animals. There is the bower bird who adorns its nest with bits of foil and other such “jewels,” for example. And I once read about a study of chimpanzees who were given clay and other materials such as feathers, beads and paint. The chimpanzees spontaneously made “art.” That is, they shaped the clay and decorated it for no purpose other than the “doing,” the joy of making. But if it’s about the making for me, why pottery? Why not something else?

I like the solitude, the aloneness in the studio, just me and my thoughts. Time standing stills; time rushing backwards to the land of memories and rushing forward to the land of hopes and dreams. It is the soothing meditation of the wheel going around. It is the growing and shaping of the clay between my hands, sometimes seemingly all by itself, other times requiring all my strength and concentration to get the lump of clay to take shape. It’s the physical aspect of it, the prodding and cajoling. It’s the learning anew how to make a pot every time I sit at the wheel as well as the way my hands seem to remember how to make pots. It’s the experimenting with new ideas. The continuous and inescapable changes of the clay from mud to stone: the malleability, the fragility and the hardiness of the pieces as they go through the cycle of lump of clay, bone-dry greenware and fired stoneware pot. Each pot is a bit like my own life, a lump of clay molded by people and events; a fragile, too tender being at times on the brink of shattering into dust; and the stone-hard woman who continues to endure despite all the cracks.

No, I don’t think of myself as a ceramist (artist), but rather a potter (craftsperson), enthralled by the muddy, mucky task of living. And, what is it that I have to say with my pots? Simply, I am!

Letting Go...

2009-02-09T21:02:00.010-05:00

I was going to write about cups... In fact, I thought I might wax philosophical about them! I just got a batch of small teabowls from the gas firing and all the mugs that I threw last months are glazed and ready to go out to a loving home.

But then I uploaded the photograph on the left and realized that, despite being one and half years into retirement, I still carry around with me the remnants of the economist I used to be. I was thrilled with the teabowls, they came out beautifully: the shapes are just right to cup in your hands and the glazes are delicious! But I went out to the deck to photograph them and, without even thinking, I laid them out in neat lines according to glaze. Take a look at the photo. What do you see? I see a bar graph! I guess I have much more work to do to shed my old self!

A Delightful Day!

2009-02-02T18:04:00.014-05:00

Last Friday I joined Judith of ClayCrazy Pottery at Baltimore Clayworks to see the Teapots IV show. It will run through February 27 and I recommend it highly to anyone in the area. The show was juried by David MacDonalds who notes that the teapot "...is an aspiration to the novice, and a source of inspiration and consternation to the experienced clayworker... [making it] ... the quintessentail ceramic enterprise." MacDonalds created an exhibit that displays a diverse and experimental interpretation of teapots with the requirement that they all must pour. Forty artists from all over the country are represented in the show, working in porcelain, stoneware and earthenware.

Included in the show are two delightful carved porcelain teapots by Judi Tavill of New Jersey. A “crusty” anagama wood-fired teapot by Sherry Wells of Montana caught my attention, as did Abigail Jean Deneau’s (Missouri) dark stoneware with celadon glaze teapot, which looked like it was ready to dance off its pedestal. Hsian-Yi Huang’s (Oregon) whimsical “Devil’s Prada” teapot was also a sight! It is really difficult to name just these artists because I found the entire show inspirational indeed!

In addition, Baltimore Clayworks is also showing a solo exhibition by Deborah Bedwell entitled "An Abundance of Cups," which also runs through February 27. The exhibition is like “a garden of cups,” each one decorated with leaves, berries and grasses.

Sweetheart Vase Challenge

2009-01-27T21:05:00.009-05:00

With Valentine's Day right around the corner, the Etsy Mud Team is running a "Sweetheart Vase Challenge." Several team members have posted their vases on the team's website and everyone is welcome to drop by and vote for their favorite. As our "thank you for voting" you'll get a 25% discount coupon to be used in the Mud Team's etsy shop. So, what do you have to lose? Take a look at the wonderful entries and vote for your favorite!

My entry is The Mended Heart vase. The 6-inch tall stoneware vase was thrown on the potter's wheel and altered into its oval shape once it was leather-hard. One side of the vase has two red hearts that were impressed with a lace pattern. The other side has a broken heart (also impressed with a lace pattern) that has been "mended." The outside of the vase is rubbed with red underglazed but left raw (unglazed). The inside is glazed in a shiny white glaze to ensure that it is water-tight.

We've all had our hearts broken at some point or another. This vase celebrates, not the broken heart, but the ability of two hearts together to mend even the most broken of hearts.

Yearning for Spring...

2009-01-18T23:04:00.003-05:00

I'm tired of the cold! And it's only mid-January...! I changed my banner (as well as my website) to green to make the winter mood lighter! Oh, and by the way, my talented daughter, Andi, made my banners... Check out her etsy shop. And, yes, we do have the same green, don't we? What would you expect? Like mother, like daughter... or maybe like daughter, like mother?

Gifts...

2009-01-08T22:30:00.008-05:00

I am honored to be the recipient of this box full of books on ceramics. They belonged to the dear wife of a friend. Sadly, she passed away recently. I have already been perusing the books and they are full of great ideas and information. I know that I will put these books to very good use!

I am also honored to be a featured artist on the blog Siobhan's Dream. Please visit the blog as well as the Etsy shop of Siobhan's mom, Julie, who makes just gorgeous silver jewelry. Here's one of my favorite items from her shop, Sirenetta Designs.

Finally, I got a gift from AntB in today's mail! I entered a giveaway in her blog a few days ago and actually won a fantastic chalice ornament (I'm not used to actually winning stuff!). I love it! Please visit Ant's etsy shop too and check out her wonderful work or keep up to date with the antics of Grandpa and Grandma.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-02T15:29:00.002-05:00

A great, albeit cold, start to 2009! As is my tradition, I spent all day January 1st in the studio. It was so good to get my hands muddy after the long hiatus I took for the holidays!

My main New Year's resolution is to spend more time in the studio. I have a tendency to work in spurts and then goof off. I suppose I'm "recharging" during those goffing off periods, but I've come to the conclusion that I need to establish a pattern of working every day.

I have been helping my husband pack up his parent's house to sell and I have come across a lot of doillies and old lace. Unfortunately, it's been packed away for so many years (we think it was his grandmother who made it!) that it's not looking very good. However, I think I can use it in the studio to imprint patterns in the clay. So stay tuned! We'll see what I can come up with in the days ahead!

Imagine Peace

2008-12-26T16:31:00.007-05:00

I found myself in this amazing treasury this morning. There is my Peace Lamp at the end of the second row. It is carved with a bamboo design and the word "Peace" is incised on the side.

This tribute to John Lennon was put together by JoliJoli Designs. See her blog as well!

PEACE!

A Gift of Inspiration!

2008-12-24T23:16:00.004-05:00

Just got back from Christmas Eve dinner at my brother's house. We have a long-standing family tradition of only giving gifts to the kids, but there's always someone who feels the need to buy a gift for one of the adults, causing all the rest to say "I thought we were only buying gifts for the kids!"
This year I thought I would be the one to break the "kids only" rule for gift-giving because I wanted my sister-in-law to have one of my platters, which she had admired at Thanksgiving. But it turned out that she also had a gift for me... and what a fabulous gift: 500 Bowls: Contemporary Explorations of a Timeless Design. This is a fantastic book, full of color photographs of the most beautiful bowls... It's like food for the eyes! Inspiration on all the pages! I am poring over the pages tonight and going back into the studio tomorrow after too long a spell of not getting any clay work done!

A Holiday for the Grandkids!

2008-12-20T17:21:00.003-05:00

This year only the grandkids are getting gifts. That's how it was when I was growing up. We would put our shoes out on the night of January 5th and on January 6th my brother and I would wake up to find what the Three Wise Men had brought us. Afterwards Dad might take us to the beach. That was in Uruguay, of course, where the holidays come in the Summer!

My 6-year old grandson, Jacob, asked me for Shel Silverstein books and that's what I got him: A Light in the Attic and Where the Sidewalk Ends. I'm so happy that he is enjoying this author because his Mom loved him when she was his age. His 4-year old sister, Sofie, the only girl in the bunch, is getting a Fancy Nancy cloth doll and book because she's a very fancy girl herself. Both of them are also getting a board game to play with Lela (that's me!) when she babysits on Wednesday nights!

Alex is only 16 months and his Mom (that would be Andi, the daughter I bragged about in previous posts who just opened her own Etsy shop) said to just get him some clothes he could grow into. So I did that and also got him a farm truck with some animals in it that he's sure to love.

Ben lives far from us and we don't get to see him very often. This year the family got a wonderful Holiday gift in the form baby brother Josh who was born a couple of weeks ago. Grandad is sending Ben a Santa on a Harley that sings "Born to Be Wild" (daughter is sure to get a laugh!). I'm sending him a Mr. Potato Head and some cars (he loves cars!). And for Baby Josh? He's going to get a lot of hugs and kisses when we visit soon, but for now we're sending him the cutest plush bear and tiny pair of shoes to put out for the Three Wise Men.

300 Hearts!

2008-12-18T20:56:00.002-05:00

Another milestone! My etsy shop has 300 hearts! There's no better feeling than that of being loved! What is this all about, you wonder? Let me tell you:

Hearts are a way in which buyers and seller on Etsy.com bookmark a shop or an item in a shop that they like. Then, when ready to make a purchase, they can easily find their favorite shops and items simply by looking at their hearted shops in their "Favorites" pages.

Hearts can also serve as a means of saying "Welcome to the Team!" When someone new joins one of the Etsy teams to which I belong, I like to visit their shop and give them "a big heart" as a virtual hug and kiss of welcome.

Some hearts are particularly important to me; namely, those that come from fellow potters because there is nothing more satisfying than to have a colleague admire one's work.

Please visit the Etsy Mud Team's Shop and look over the wonderful work for sale there. All sales from the Team's shop go to support team activities. A quick and easy way to find the work of all Mud Team members on Etsy is to visit the Team's official website. On the front page you will find a link to the Mud Team Catalog organized by function (bowls, plates, mugs, etc), color, design content (birds, cats, butterflies, skulls, etc.) and medium (stoneware, porcelain, raku, pit fired, etc.).

Treasuries!

2008-12-16T11:14:00.009-05:00

I have a treasury ready to go, but I can't seem to catch one! What's a treasury? A treasury is a way of showcasing other artisans whose work you appreciate. It provides a way for Etsy community members to support each other. However, the trick is that you have to "snag" an empty treasury when the treasuries reach a certain low threshhold... and I haven't been able to do that for a while!

Nevertheless, some wonderful friends have featured my work on their treasuries. Please take a look at these! I think they'll give you great gift ideas:

Purple and Orange by Glassnwood from the Coastal Bend of Texas

I Love Flowers by JillsTreasureChest from Mississippi

Strawberry Honey by LittleBayClay from Texas

Pottery, Wood and Lace by RSSDesignsinFiber from Southern California

Hurry up and check these out before they expire! And also look at the beautiful work of these curators. See Glassnwood's handmade stained glass and woodcarvings, like this Ferruginous Pygmy Owl carving. And check out this Farmer Santa from JillsTreasureChest.

LittleBayClay is on vacation so her shop is currently closed (and, sadly, I can't pick an item to show you), but make sure to check out her pottery made with heart and imagination when her shop reopens on January 5. Last, but certainly not least, RSSDesignsinFiber has beautiful home decor and gift items, including this gorgeous and ecofriendly gift bag that's absolutely perfect for the holidays.

It Runs in the Family...

2008-12-15T21:11:00.002-05:00

I am extremely pleased to announce that my daughter, Andrea, has just opened her own Etsy.com shop. As I noted a couple of posts ago, when bragging about the beautiful holiday card she made for me, Andi, who's a teacher, has been dabbling in design since high school. For the past few years she has been designing all manner of photocards for her friends and family, and she has decided that it was time to take the next step with her photocard business. Her shop is at www.aGephotocards.etsy.com

A Great Bunch!

2008-12-07T20:17:00.006-05:00

I had a wonderful time at the 16th Annual Falls Church Holiday Craft Show! Not only did I have great customers who kept me busy ringing up sales, but I couldn't have been in happier company! To begin with, the Falls Church show attracted a wonderful bunch of people armed with their shopping baskets. I was very pleased by the visit of one of my old customers who told me how much she still treasures a bowl she bought from me several years ago.

Then there were my daughters who took turns helping me: Bibi on Saturday and Andi on Sunday. They are both great salespersons, engaging with the customers and explaining the "great virtues" of my pottery, figuring out sales taxes and wrapping up purchases without ever forgetting to include a flyer in the bags. Thanks girls!

And finally, there were the four other vendors in the area where my booth was located who could not have been nicer! Katie Hoffman is another Etsian who focuses on painting and wire work and also makes the most precious wooden block ornaments! Tiffany Corl makes beautiful shadow boxes to commemorate every occasion and had lovely Christmas scenes, as well as clever clothespin wreaths to hold Holiday cards. Jim and Mo ("Oh No! It's Mo!") Chism had us in stitches the whole time with their stories and upbeat personalities. They were the big attraction of our little corner of the show, selling glass nail files beautifully decorated by Jim.

And then there was Wendi Green of Jewel Obsession who makes the most beautiful necklaces, bracelets and earrings. Wendi and I were surprised to find out that we both lived in Bogota, Colombia, in the early 1970s. But we were floored to realize that we actually lived on the same street, about 2 blocks from each other! Small world, indeed! Oh yes, and you know that I bought a pair of her earrings and I'm still wearing them!

Falls Church Holiday ShowDay 1

2008-12-06T19:48:00.008-05:00

Day 1 of the 2-day Falls Church Holiday Show was a great success!

The show has many great things going for it.

I was able to set up the night before and that really makes a big difference because it removes all the stress of rushing about to have everything ready before the crowds arrive.

There are two vendor areas, the (larger) gym and the (smaller, more intimate) seniors center, upstairs. I was a little apprehensive about being in the smaller of the two areas because there were only 5 of us there. However, the lighting was much better, there was more room for customers to mill about, the bathroom was right outside [ :) ], there was a microwave oven (so I could drink as much hot tea as I wanted to!), and it was cozier and less echo-y than the gym. All of these are major ++++ in my book!

The show is very well advertised and, contrary to my fears (because of the state of the economy) it was very well attended, all day long... there was hardly a lull!

They provide a complimentary continental breakfast for vendors.

They have yummy lunch for sale at very reasonable prices.

Parking and unloading are easy and hassle-free.

My wonderful daughter, Bibi, spent the day with me and was a tremendous help. I met some really nice people, including another Etsian. One of my old customers paid me a visit. And... I bought a pair of fabulous earrings!! More on all this next time... for now, here's a photo of my set up.

My Very Talented Daughter

2008-12-04T10:50:00.006-05:00

My very talented daughter, Andrea, made this fabulous holiday card for me to send to my customers. I just love it! She did wonders with a not-so-great photograph. And I love how she picked out the green from the teapot and the red from the bow for the lettering.

Andi has been dabbling in design since she was in high-school. In fact, she designed the T-shirt for her senior year class party. Lately, she has been designing all kinds of announcement for her friends and family: births, birthdays, thank-you cards, holiday cards, you name it! We finally convinced her that she should starting charging for doing this, so she has settled on $25 for the design. You can email Andi if you are interested in having her design an announcement for you. And, if I have your address, you might be getting one of these gorgeous cards from me!

Weekend Craft Show

2008-12-03T23:53:00.008-05:00

I made three of these snowflake lamps for the craft show this week-end. I also made a whole bunch of candleholders, same idea but they take a candle rather than a snap-in socket. In addition to the snowflake designs, I made several with stars as well as a couple with holiday trees and a few with six-sided stars. So I'm ready with candleholders for everyone's preference! You can see them in the Flickr slide show to the right of this posting.

I also have a whole bunch of brie-bakers, which everyone seems to love. They make a wonderful gift for the cheese-lover on your list. Simply place the brie or other shoft cheese in the baker and spread your favorite topping. Cook until the cheese softens. One of my favorite toppings is this one:

Baked Brie w/ Mango ~~ Place brie in dish. Spread 2 Tbsp. raspberry preserves on top. Top w/ 1/2 cup diced mango and sprinkle 1 Tbsp brown sugar. Place in cold oven; bake at 350 degrees F until the cheese softens. Et voilá! Serve w/ bread or crackers.

And finally, I have the ever-popular MUG. I've got lots and lots of gorgeous mugs! I made "I Voted for Obama" mugs but I don't know what I was thinking and made only 3. I thought I'd list them on Etsy before the show and put the shop "on vacation" during the week-end. Well! I had barely posted one "I voted..." mug when it sold! So, I posted another one and, you guessed it!, it sold too! So I'm left with the one solitary "I voted..." mug. I'll be making lots more before Inauguration. And I will be taking orders. Email me if you'd like to place an order. Or go to my website and send me a message via the Contact Us page. Or convo me through etsy.

See the posting below for when and where information for this week-end!