Pitchers

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As promised, here is a picture of the last pitchers I made. This was just before being loaded into the bisque this morning. I can't wait to fire these guys. Sarah says these are the best pitchers I've ever made. Nice, tall, and light.

Intentions

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I had planned on getting a good post up this weekend. Instead all I managed to do was sort of botch things up a bit. I changed my template for the blog and wiped out my HaloScan comment setup. Now I am having difficulty getting that going and I have yet to reinsert my links. So be patient. I want to get a pic of my new pitchers up and a shot of the new workshop. I should be moving in there by the end of the week....I hope.
I promise a better update early this week.

Monday Update

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Hey Folks. Hope you are all well out there in computer land. It's been a rainy day here on Wallace Grove but a good day. My friend Steve and his wife Charlotte from SC stopped by on their way to Asheville. Steve and I became friends a few years back when he stopped in my booth at a pottery show. He has been making pots for several years and is coming along quite well. He spent the fall at Penland in the Concentration Class. While he was visiting tonight he showed me some pots he had made including some great pitchers. He gave me a little tip he learned at Penland and after he left I made some of the best pitchers I've made in a while. Thanks Steve. I'll try and get a pic of these after I get the handles on them.

Steve is also a pizza lover, so we talked a bit about dough before he left. It just happens that I made pizza for me and Sarah and our painter friend Sally last night. Oh it was so good. We had one spinach, sundried tomato, and goat cheese, which was on a spicy olive oil brushed crust. And one Fontina, Parmigiano-Reggiano, over a spicy olive oil crust that had dollops of thick marinara sauce dotted on top. I have gotten to where I prefer Fontina to Mozzarella. Of course if you get a really nice fresh Mozz then that's hard to beat.

My workshop at Clayworks this past Saturday went well and I had lots of fun. Thanks for everyone who came.

I often complain about my computer so I was also excited this past week when the new iMacs came out. I hope to get one this year (if pottery sales are good). I also have to see about getting cable trenched in down here. I got a $350 estimate from Time Warner to do it, I'm gonna see if I can't do the trenching in from the road myself to cut that cost down. For now I'm on the slow road.

That's it for now.

Self destruction

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What a day I had yesterday. I didn't realize until around one o clock exactly what all I needed to get done before the day ended. I started the day off smacking my left index finger with a slap stapler and busting loose a big chuck of skin just below the nail. A few hours later as I was finishing off working on the drywall I fell off the top step of the 26" stepstool. As I lay on the concrete I began to realize this wasn't exactly my day. What is up? I have injured myself more in the past two months than I have in a year.

Well, then it dawned on me that I needed to scrape all the kiln shelves, glaze some pots, (oh no, not enough glaze in the bucket) mix some glaze, make cone packs, and mix my yellow glaze tests. Plus I had promised to cook manicotti for supper and have it ready when Sarah got home from school. I wanted to get all the pottery stuff done so that I could load the kiln Tuesday morning and be finished before 3 pm (because I have an appointment in Charlotte that evening) Okay, stress level is maxxed out.

Solution...no firing this week. I decided this morning (as I still had pots to glaze) that I wasn't going to bust my hump and probably accidently damage myself further just to get a load of pots fired. It can wait till next week.

Today, I will work on the drywall finishing (and not falling) and will glaze the pots at a leisurely pace. Remember to breathe.

Pottery Week

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There's a lot happening in the pottery this week. I am firing on Wednesday. So today I have the last of the pots drying by the woodstove. I need to mix up some test glazes, I am looking for a good yellow glaze to use inside pots. I need to clean all the shelves for the kiln and make wadding too. So fire on Wed. unload on Friday.

On Saturday I'll be giving a workshop at Clayworks in Charlotte. I am really looking forward to this. It will be fun to interact with others. Being a studio potter involves lots of time working alone and after a while this really takes a toll on me. I need some good energy time with others. Saturday night is the ClayMatters Pottery Guild annual party. That will be fun too, there is always lots of good food, company, and pottery talk.

Six Years and T.M.P

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Sarah and I celebrated our 6 year wedding anniversary on Sat. Jan. 14. We were married in 2000 on the beach in Negril, Jamaica. Oh to be there now. How lucky I am to have such a beautiful, wonderful wife. She never ceases to amaze me. She is the most positive, compassionate, caring person I have ever known. Her trust in life and what is to come is inspiring to me. I look forward to our many years together.

Saturday night we went to Charlotte with some friends who had invited us to the Tosco Music Party. We had a great night. The T.M.P. happens a few times a year at Spirit Square and sells out all 700+ seats in a short time. At Tosco each performer does one or two numbers. So we saw 17 acts all for the low price of $12. My favorite of the night was David Mead. Check him out.

Big Cover Up

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No this isn't a post about dear old George and his secrets. It's about studio construction progress. Over the past week we got the drywall hung in the showroom and all the paneling and ceiling primered in the workshop. Wow, that's looking good. I am going to start finishing the drywall today. The showroom will get ceramic tile on the floor and a nice color on the walls. The workshop will keep the concrete floor and some sort of light color on the walls.

Friday

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I've been avoiding my computer lately for several reasons. One, it is slow. Two, I have been making pots and working on studio construction again which has kept me busy and when I come in I just want to chill out. I called the cable company yesterday to see about getting cable ran out here so we can get a high speed connection. I should hear back from them next week.

Anyhow I will be firing next week and I am excited about that. I have a good load of pots made up consisting of dinnerware, teapots, bowls, mugs, and bottles that I plan on side firing. I hope to get a few pitchers made today.

On Jan. 21 I will be giving a workshop at Clayworks Studios in Charlotte. I am looking forward to that. It's been awhile since I have been infront of a group of people to make and talk about pots. I always learn a lot about myself when I do this.

All the drywall is hung in the new studio showroom. I will start finishing it tomorrow and painting next week. The walls in the workshop are covered in paneling that I got for free. I will paint it a light color. So things are coming along in there. I plan to be all moved in time for my Home Sale at the end of March.

Okay that's it for now. Sorry for the long lapse between posts. I promise to do better. I'll be sure to get pics up of pots and studio construction soon.

A Good Day

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Yesterday I got back into full swing in the studio making plates and bowls for some dinnerware orders I need to fill. It was a good day to be in working as the weather outside was very rainy. Sarah worked in her studio too finishing up some special orders. It's nice having her home from school and having some time together to spend like we used to when we were both working at home full time. Today I'll cut feet on all these plates and bowls and get to work on some other things.

Back to work

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I got back to making my usual pots for the salt/soda kiln on this week. Monday I made some cups and yesterday I made a couple boards of animal jars which I will finish up today. This is the time of year when I am trying new things so yesterday I experimented with some new lids and jar shapes, I am not sure they will be successful but it is good to try.

We had a good Christmas. I got a new yoga mat which I hope to put to good use this year, I really need to be taking better care of myself. I didn't over indulge in all the holiday food and sweets this year, also no sodas or alcohol. Pretty good for a guy who has a hard time getting out of Harris Tetter without reaching for a free cookie from the kids ballon stand.

My clay should be coming out of the racks this week, so I'll be stocked up for a while. Tomorrow we'll be heading to Charlotte for the day and we plan on having a good meal at Lang Van our favorite Vietnamese resturant. YUM.

That's it for now.

Catching Up

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Sorry for the long lapse between posts. Here is a bit of an update as to what I have been doing.

I have been to the Mint Museum of Craft and Design twice in as many weeks to see the Don Reitz exhibiton. AWESOME!

The county was hit by a major winter storm less than a week ago that produced mainly ice, leaving many without power. We were spared.

I made two earthenware slab paintings using commercial slips for my niece and nephew. I have to fire them and then I'll post a picture.

I haven't read any books since The Power of One. Mostly keeping myself entertained with magazines, pottery books, and Food TV.

Today I FINALLY mixed clay. I am glad that's done.

I want to get back to work in the studio after Christmas working on some dinnerware orders and pots for an upcoming exhibiton. I have been drawing some but don't know if any of this will work it's way onto any pots. The wall slabs were fun to do and may be where I put my clay-drawing energy for now, as opposed to drawing on pots. This will allow me to experiment and learn some mark making skills without ruining pots.

I have changed the 'comment' software for this Journal Page. I think it is easier to use now. Give it a go if you don't mind, I welcome your comments, etc.

Relaxation

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I have mainly been chilling out since the Home Sale. I did make two trips out of town this week to deliver pots to galleries. Other than that I am not putting much effort into anything except reading, and drawing a bit. I just finished reading A Power of One by Bryce Courtenay. It is an awesome book, I can't say I've read anything that good in a long, long time. It is set in South Africa in the early forties and follows a young boy into adulthood. It had me laughing, crying, cheering, cringing, feeling angry, frustrated, elated, and over joyed. And it has a hell of an ending. Read it soon, your local library probably has a copy. I had to have a little history lesson via Wikipedia regarding certain peoples referred to in the book, ie the Boers and Afrikaners.
I need to mix clay on the next semi warm day, hopefully next week. I have a couple of dinnerware orders to fill and I am looking forward to exploring some new ideas.
It is wonderful having Sarah home from school for an extended period. I don't think she has to go back until the second week in Jan. Right now she's in the kitchen making pecan pies.

Sunday

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I have had a successful Homesale. Thanks to everyone who made it out to the pottery. I still have a nice selection of pots on the shelves and I imagine I'll get some folks dropping by between now and the 25th to get some gifts.
I plan on getting some work done on the new studio in Dec. and Jan. I hope to be in there by the March Sale. I am also wanting to get some work done on the kiln.
Tomorrow I'll be delivering some pots to Southern Pottery Gallery in Columbia, SC. Peter Lenzo and Virginia Scotchie are the owners and good friends. It will be nice to have a visit.
That's all for now. I will try and write a more indepth entry later.

Pots with drawings

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I had a good turnout this past weekend for my Home Sale. It goes on next weekend too and I am open by chance or by appointment through the end of the year. I still have a nice selection of pots to choose from.

The trays with the drawings were a big hit. I also had a square vase with a drawing of flowers that sold first thing. These pots with drawings were fun to do and I plan on making more to see how I feel about them. My January firing will have some more trays, and vases, as well as jars, cups, and bowls with drawings. My main concern is that these aren't kitchy. I want them to maintain a bit of an edge. Coming from a sort of self imposed strict Leachian background I have a hard time 'playing' and being childlike with clay. Historcally man has drawn on cave walls, pots, animal skins, canvas, etc to express his life, journey, everyday occurances, animals, objects and numerous other things. Why should I have a hang up about drawing on a few pots? I have always been drawn to pots with imagery, yet I was never good with a brush so I gave that up pretty quickly. I have drawn since I was a child. My mom was a constant doodler. She'd talk on the phone to my aunt and fill up a page with doodles in pen and ink. When people ask about my art background I say I was a drawer and that I liked to build things with wood. It seems inevitable that I'd eventually draw on some pots.
For inspiration and validation I am going to the library at ASU on Wednesday to look at books on African and Indian art and pottery, textiles, petroglyphs and anything else historical.
I guess the main thing I should do is keep an open mind, have fun, play, and let my creativity flow. Life is too short to get caught up in over analyzing al this stuff.

Pots

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I am getting all set up for the Home Sale which starts tomorrow. I unloaded the kiln today. Here are a few trays with drawings. I have been wanting to do something like this for a long time and finally just did it. They are really fun. I had a laugh when they came out of the kiln. I have more with fish, and different variations on the birds. My favorites are the two headed dog and the thunder chicken.

I have a studio full of pots!

Holiday Pottery Sale

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Today I am getting the studio cleaned up and all the displays set up for our Holiday Open House and Pottery Sale. I fired the kiln yesterday so there will be some hot pots out on Friday. These include some limited edition trays with drawings on them. I have been wanting to do this for a while. They were really fun to make. The images are kind of cartoon-y, chickens, two headed dogs, giant fish, tiny humans, just fun stuff.

I will have a large selection of pots for the kitchen as well as some more decorative bottles and vases. The hot item this fall has been the animal jars with birds and turtles on the tops. I have some of these coming out of the kiln too.

I hope you'll make it out to see me and Sarah. This is always a good time.
Two weekends:
Friday Nov 25 10 am till 5pm
Saturday Nov 26 10 am till 5pm
Sunday Nov 27 Noon till 4
Saturday Dec 3 10am till 5 pm
Sunday Dec 4 Noon till 4
We'll have hot cider and snacks, lots of pots and holiday cheer

I will be unloading the kiln tomorrow. I''ll try and get some pics up between bites of turkey.
Happy Thanksgiving!