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Not About Me
Eight years ago, I was lying on a bed with my head the largest square pillow I had ever seen. The windows of the bedroom were open slightly – a compromise of mosquitoes and stagnant heat of the non-air conditioned communist block housing in the middle of the summer. I was alone in the room, and my host Romanian family was just outside the door, but my thoughts were alone, my emotions were alone, the only interruptions were the sounds…
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Kiln Opening!
We were very pleased with the way the Antique Iron fired! We got the full range of brown, red, green, and even a touch of blue. The only disappointment was that several of the pieces have spots where the glaze did not take, which was likely due to me stacking waxed pots before dipping them. Lesson learned: no stacking after waxing!
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Ready, Glaze, Fire!
I have three glazes in my little garage studio: Chun Red, Heather Green (I can’t recall the exact name of the glaze, but this sounds about right), and a new one – Antique Iron. We (this includes myself and my kiln-master husband) just mixed the Antique Iron and this will be our first time firing with it. I have no idea how this glaze behaves, so I took care not to put it on too thickly and Joe used all…
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Duking it out with Orangestone
Almost to a fault, I am overly ambitious and a bit of a wishful thinker. Joe loads his plate up with more food than he can eat, and I loaded up the Jeep with more clay than I could throw. I’ve been throwing with Loafers Glory, a creamy white clay that is close to porcelain but still a stoneware. Last time I went to Claymakers in Durham, I purchased 100 lbs of Orangestone, a clay I have been admiring for…
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Kiln Loaded
Joe and I loaded the kiln this afternoon for a bisque firing. Once this firing is finished, I will have forty new pieces to glaze including cereal bowls, serving bowls, a large plate, several pitchers, a variety of other small pieces and several handfuls of herb pendants. I am nervous and excited about the upcoming glazing because I have one glaze I have not yet tried and am hoping to improve my use of the other two which had mixed…
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Handprints and Pendants
Last night, Joe and I played with my new letter and number stamps, and I made herb pendants by pressing herbs from my garden into the clay. I am thinking of using these for necklaces and as tags for herb pots. This craft smells absolutely wonderful as the pressing releases the beautiful aromas of oregano, thyme and rosemary. This morning, I had Scooby do a handprint. He wanted to do more, so as soon as this one is dry enough…
