Video, Randy Brodnax and Don Ellis Workshop, and Open House

This is just a quick post to let you know about a few important events happening this weekend and next.  And, I have a chance to try sharing a video of me throwing a pot for a worship service Susan conducted on The Potter's Hands at church.  I don't know how to add music at this point, but if you do a search for the song Potter's Hands, you will be able to hear all sorts of versions of this praise song - it's one of my favorite songs.  Susan took a video of me going through the process of making this pot and while she showed it in the service on a screen, I was actually throwing a pot in the sanctuary.  It really was interesting in that both the video and myself throwing live were in-synch.

 

Besides the pottery worship service, I wanted to share two other things that are happening this month at the studio.  First, we have a two day workshop with Randy Brodnax and Don Ellis this weekend.  If you haven't seen any of their work, you can check out some videos on the Ceramic Arts Daily page.  I am really looking forward to this workshop and hope to learn a lot - especially about raku firing, which is their specialty.

The other thing that I want to share is the annual Finch Potters Open House next Sunday.  If you have never attended one of these Open Houses, it is worth the journey if you are close enough to Bailey, North Carolina.  Sixty potters in one place present a full day's worth of observing and shopping.

Go to www.danfinch.com for more information on both the Open House and this weekend's workshop.

Hope to see you at the Open House if you are in the area.

Orange Shino is Back . . . and so am I!

It has been a long while since I have updated this blog - a very busy time!  Preparing for the new school year, moving my mom down to North Carolina, and construction on the house have all taken extra time.  I have not neglected my pottery time too much - just my blogging time.  Right now, we have been out of school because of all the problems caused by Hurricane Irene, so I took the time to come up with a new post.

We got hit pretty hard here in Halifax County.  No electricity from 6 am Saturday until about 3:30 pm Monday.  We lost our weeping willow tree in the front yard and the top of a large tree in the back is currently sitting on the roof.  But we are all safe and no worse for the wear, so we are thankful.  It could have been much worse.  We are now watching Katia out in the Atlantic and hoping it continues to turn northward.

The studio has brought back my all-time favorite glaze - orange shino.  I have been using it on all sorts of pieces, from bowls to tall urns to face jugs.  I have also continued to work on creating larger pieces and now have several large urns that will be for sale this weekend at the Littleton/Lake Gaston Festival.  I am hoping for a big day in Littleton.  Between it being Labor Day Weekend and people wanting to get out after the storms of this past weekend, there should be a good crowd.  If you are in the area, come to Littleton.

Lots of pictures of pots I have been working on the month of August.  Also, some pictures of the storm debris in our yard.  And, of course, a couple of black dogs who act like an old married couple.

Looks like a real balancing act!!!

Lots of Pictures

Fuschia finally blooming

 I have a few minutes before leaving to go up to Virginia and start the process of moving Mom down to live with Susan and me.  She is worried that she will be in our way - I just hope she can handle all the critters in this household!  I know Bear is looking forward to her being here - he took an instant liking to her and rarely leaves her side when she is here.
  
School is out, summer school is going full swing, things are in place to prepare for next year, and IT IS HOT!  I have spent some time working on my pottery - trying different things and working on throwing larger pieces.  The June 2nd Saturday in Edenton was not the best - only two sales, but good sales.  I did tell them I would be back in July.  The problem seems to be that North Carolina does not have money in budget this year to promote the 2nd Saturdays program.  Too bad - it really is a neat way to showcase arts and crafts in the state.  I urge everyone who is interested in arts and traditional crafts to go to any of the state historical sites on the 2nd Saturday of July and see demonstrations and talk with the artists.

 Since I am in such a hurry, I am just going to post pictures of some of my latest work.  I like jars and pots with lids and have been working on perfecting that part of the craft.  Also the different glazing methods.  Enjoy!

Summer's Almost Here

 Happy Memorial Day!  Growing up listening to Navy stories from World War II makes me appreciate what our fighting men and women have done to preserve liberty.  I hope it is meaningful for you.














Although it is a little hot today - and supposed to be even hotter tomorrow - the weather has been great and everything is blooming and in full swing.  Our apple trees are loaded, having escaped the late frost, as are the pear trees and figs bushes.  The day lilies are in full splendor and Susan's transplants from the parsonage are starting to take root and bloom.  Summer is close! 










Lots of things have been happening to keep me from my blog.  Heart of Virginia Festival in Farmville, Virginia, getting ready for Mom to move down to live with us in North Carolina, school will be out at the end of this week, and the summer festivals begin.  Trying to gear up for everything at once is getting "tiresome", but the end of some of these things is near.  Graduation is this Friday night and, other than the few students who didn't believe that I would really make them come back to school to work off detentions after school is out, I will have a break from dealing with students.  This has been a long weekend and I took advantage of the extra time to throw 25 pounds of clay - working on some bigger pieces and trying out some new methods

One of the methods I am trying is using paper resist and mason stains to decorate the pots.  It is a method that is recommended for earthenware, but I will see how it works on stoneware.  I have had pretty good success with mason stains and clear/transparent glazes.

June 11 is the first 2nd Saturday program in North Carolina and I will be at Edenton, demonstrating and selling my work.  If you are not familiar with 2nd Saturdays, check it out at http://www.ncdcr.gov/2ndsaturdays.asp or look for the ads in Our State magazine.  There will be crafts people and artists at most all the historical sites around the state each month.  I will also be in Edenton in July, but am looking for maybe a different site for August.  If you are close to Edenton, come by and see me.

Spring Break = Break My Back!

Apple Blossoms

First, I want to say how blessed I feel to have escaped the tornadoes that were all around us last Saturday.  After a six hour trip from the D.C. area, which should have usually taken only about three hours, we ran right into the string of storms heading east and were able to get home before the worst hit.  Our hearts and prayers go out to those who were affected by the tornadoes, especially in North Carolina where over 60 tornadoes were documented.

Rainbow after the storms Saturday the 16th

This is my week of Spring Break and although it is a break from my usual work, it has been filled with other tasks that have tested all those muscles I never use.  We were finally able to move our two storage sheds from the parsonage to our new location (about 1.5 miles down the road) with the help of our neighbor and his workers.  One shed is 8 X 12 and the other is 12 X 12.  Quite a job over the last two days!  As a result, I have not really had much time this week to sit down at the wheel, but spent a good deal of time preparing for the Halifax Arts Council "Sip and See" program on Monday the 25th.  Danny Hinnant and I are the featured artists for this month and today we set up our pots at Ernies on King Street in Halifax, North Carolina.  The program is from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm on Monday evening for anyone in the area.  Check out http://www.halifaxarts.org/sipseefeaturedartist.html for more information.  The pictures are from setting up this afternoon.

Starting point - "empty" store

The plate at the top is Danny's

Center Shelves

Have to display some Face Jugs

Some smaller pieces

Some smaller face jugs - the one of the right is less than 2 inches tall.

Have a wonderful Easter Sunday.

Back Again! Time is moving fast these days.

Sometimes it seems like no time has passed since I last logged on to post, but I can see from the date of the last post that I have been pretty slack in keeping the blog alive!  Things are picking up all around, so I really haven’t even been on the computer much except for at work.  When I logged in to my personal email yesterday, there were 62 messages waiting!  I really need to get better organized.

I have been keeping up with my pottery and Thursday nights are something I look forward to each week so I can get in Finch’s studio and glaze.  My inventory is growing as I prepare for upcoming shows.  In April, Danny Hinnant and I are being featured in the Halifax County Arts Council "Sip and See" evening.  We will be showing and selling our work at an evening program.  In May, I will again be in Farmville, Virginia, for the Heart of Virginia Festival.  And, I am still trying to decide on whether to register for a larger show in July.  Even though I have a good amount of ware right now, now knowing what I will sell before July and being able to keep enough to last for a three day festival is somewhat of a concern.  I have to decide within the next week in order to meet the application deadline.

Easter egg look - Pre-fired

After glaze-firing

The pictures in this post of some of the more recent pieces I have made.  I am really pleased with the vase and casserole that I just got back this week.  I had used mason stains mixed with clay slip to make a “paint” that I applied while the pieces were still wet on the wheel.  This allowed the slip to dry with the clay body for a permanent bond.  After the pieces were bisque-fired, all I had to do was spray a clear/transparent glaze and the designs would show through.  The before pictures show the bright colors of the stain-slip.  The vase looked like an Easter egg with the bright blue and blackberry stains.  I oversprayed with a light blue glaze.  I really did not know how it would look after the glaze-firing, but was really pleased when the colors toned down to blues and greens!  I am definitely going to work more with this medium.

Lots of face jugs, smaller pieces that will sell, and casseroles – functional pieces for cooking.  I have been getting more people coming to me for pieces and today talked with a friend who is looking for Celtic design pieces for a series of Celtic festivals this summer.  So, things are plenty busy and opportunities for sales seem good.  Maybe I could retire and become a full-time potter sooner than I think!

 

Josie - looking tired