-
Out of clay!
Oh no! I’m out of clay. I used up my bag at Pullen, and the last of my bag at home. While cleaning out the garage this weekend, I found several bags of moldy and rock hard clay. It’s a sign of having taken some time off. I need to drive out to Durham for more clay, but I’m not about to make that drive in rush hour traffic. Besides, with as low as the temperature will be dropping tomorrow, I doubt my trusty little space heater will get the garage warmed up. Last night I joined the Triangle Potters Guild. I’ve been eyeing this group since taking classes at…
-
Handbuilding in the Kitchen
With only two or so weeks until Christmas, I wanted to get in one more batch of pottery for the year. Since the pottery wheel is currently covered in Speckled Brownstone clay, and all I have left to use is Little Loafers, which is a white clay, I’ve moved back to handbuilding inside. I know I could just clean the studio, but baby, it’s cold outside! After glazing 75 ornaments in the last batch, I wanted quick, less tedious work for my hands. Nothing will crowd the kiln shelves quicker than making a batch of serving trays and casserole dishes! I’ve really been enjoying working at the kitchen table on…
-
Making Ceramic Ornaments with Cookie Cutters
For several years now, we have made Christmas ornaments from clay. Last weekend I brought my supplies into the kitchen to finish up a couple requests from friends, and my kids descended on the makeshift workspace and demanded clay and all my tools. After a morning of wresting on the living room floor and failed attempts at controlling the noise level in the house, the silence that their focus on the clay brought was amusing, even if it took me five times longer than if should have to roll out a couple Texas ornaments. Basically anyone who has access to clay and a kiln could make charming ornaments with relatively little experience. Several things that…
-
Making a Bead Tree for the Kiln Part Two
I posted “Making a Bead Tree for the Kiln” back in March. It worked pretty wonderfully until my three year old broke it, twice over, by knocking it off the table and onto the garage floor. It is still usable, but with that long span between the remaining supports, the nichrome wire tends to sag. I decided to build a new one, and it’s currently waiting to be fired. One of the troubles with the last design was that it required loading many pendants along two pieces of wire, then having to space them out evenly between supports. The new design calls for four wire segments with just a little less space…
-
This Friday’s Open Studio Event and October Updates
This Friday, October 2 from 7:30 to 9:30 pm, I’m hosting a little event at my house (see the FB event listing here). You are welcome to come shop for pottery and/or prints and place an order for personalized Christmas ornaments. I’ll be sure to have a bottle of red and something to munch on. October 10 and 24, I’m hosting a two part class at Gather. There is still time to register! Go here to register. I’m also running a 10% off sale from now until the end of October on both my Etsy and Storenvy shops. Use the code FALL10OFF at checkout. On October 19, Pullen Arts Center…
-
Highlights and Review of the Last Kiln Firing
This past weekend I unloaded the kiln to find some gems. I have a new partnership with a seller from Glasgow and was trying out a few variations of orange for him to pair with my favorite, Indigo Float of Amaco’s Potter’s Choice cone 5/6 glazes. Since I was already paying for shipping, I picked out several Potter’s Choice glazes to test: Deep Sienna Speckle, Salt Buff, Temmoku, and Deep Firebrick. Amaco is great about testing and sharing glaze pairings, which they claim will have consistent and stable results. Sometimes, pairing the wrong glazes can lead to disastrous runs or undesirable colors, so it’s great product development and marketing on…
