Back in the saddle - sort of

I am grateful to have my kiln finally up and running again. It was a mix of emotions every time there was a delay of some sort. 

Now, I need to re-adjust my expectations of glazes at the correct temperature. This glaze on the shamrock pin had a wide range of firing temperatures. When the elements in the kiln were old, it was not reaching the top temperature, but that was OK for things that did not have to be vitreous to hold food and drink (like gnomes and friends...). So, I thought the green on these wouldn't be quite this dark. Don't get me wrong, I love how they look, they just were not the shade of green I was expecting.

Now I need to finish packing and hauling off things to be donated (that we once thought could be in an on-line estate auction) so I can move some of my boxes of things I am keeping out of the corners of rooms and into the closets and cupboards. This is all so I can list the house again. I need to downsize or I will literally go broke. I cannot afford the upkeep of this house. It is also much too much room for me.

Speaking of downsizing, the house I really wanted to buy 2 years ago, when mine was not ready to list, was back on the market. I was getting hopeful as it stayed on the market for several weeks. Unfortunately, it has a contingency offer on it now. 

The right house for me will come on the market when the timing is right.

I hope all are doing well. I'm putting up with the arrival of pollen season here. 

 

This year I decided to make some gnomes with shamrocks on them, but using artistic license, they are round leaflets. I didn't create these as Limited Edition, they are just part of the "Everyday Gnome" collection.

I also was asked to create 4 gnomes with 4-leaf clovers on their hats, one of them is in this photo.

I also have been toying with the idea of creating a shamrock pin in homage to the ones my parents used to get around St. Patrick's Day back in the town I grew up in. (St. Pat is the patron saint of at least ceramic engineers - not sure about the other engineers...).

Their glaze firing is tonight and I will add gold trim around the edges tomorrow. I have 8 in the kiln at the moment with one of those being spoken for.

 

February Check-in

 

I brought in my little work-horse of a kiln so I could change the elements where the temperature is a bit more comfortable. Rick & Alice had removed the old elements in December when they were visiting, with all intentions of putting the new ones in. Unfortunately, I had ordered the wrong size. (Fortunately, they will fit the larger kiln.) 

I then ordered the correct elements. (They have tripled in price since the last time I bought the size for this little gal.)

Once I got the new elements in place, I decided to change the sensing rod for the kiln sitter. I then discovered that the old sensing rod was permanently fused to the collar that holds it in. So, I had to order a new Tube Assembly. The old tube was broken for years, but I was able to use it despite the break as it was supported by the kiln bricks that form the outer shell of the kiln.

The new Tube Assembly arrived and has been successfully mounted. Now to make the connections of the elements to the control box. That will wait until Sunday when I have more time so I can make sure I do it right without feeling rushed.

*** Frustrating update - because the parts are not labeled on the website as to which kiln-sitters they fit. I, of course, ordered the wrong one! It is too short and does not clear the bricks, so it is not useable for me. I have ordered the longer version and hope it will be here by Tuesday, USPS willing... they delayed the last one's arrival...****

~~~~~~ Update! The correct part arrived, has been installed, test firing completed, as well as a bisque firing and one glaze firing! ~~~~~~~~

Next, I tried creating a new Friend... This is one chunky, floofy-tailed squirrel! 

Stay tuned for more new Friends.

I hope you all are having a good start to the new year. We have had snow this winter, the first in 3 years! I know it is nothing compared to what is falling up in NY, PA, and elsewhere with it being measured in feet rather that fractions of inches. 

My heart goes out to all of you dealing with WAY TOO MUCH SNOW! 

(Not to mention the frigid temperatures!)

My secret project is secret no more

Well, to give a little background information first... Back in the 1950's, our dad was a fine arts student at the NY State College of Ceramics at Alfred University (graduated in 1953). During his time there he designed, modeled, molded, and cast some salt and pepper shakers. We used a set on the table while we were growing up. 

After Dad passed, my younger brother Rick decided he would like to have the shakers replicated for all 6 of us siblings. I gave him the shrinkage rate of the black porcelain I use and he worked to create an up-sized 3-D printed model. It was then sent to someone to make a mold and he brought the mold to me in October. 

Once I finished preparing for Mistletoe Market, I thoroughly cleaned my work area so the buff clay would not have any chance of contaminating the black. I then started casting. In all, I cast 8 sets, to be able to get 6 good sets.

Unfortunately, my kiln was not firing hot enough to be able to get the true black finish on the shakers. First, I contacted Juliet Bravo studio in Seneca, but they were unable to assist with the firing at that time. I then was referred to Magpie Arts LLC in Clemson and made plans to do the glaze firing in her soon to be delivered kiln. The delivery got pushed back, and then she was dealing with a faulty breaker. 

FINALLY, firing day arrived and I dropped off the pieces to Kimberly. Then, I patiently waited for the firing and cooling to complete. (Insert the Jeopardy theme here.)

Success! They fired a little hotter than I normally fire, but her kiln is computer controlled, while mine uses a cone sitter. Either way, I was/am very pleased with the results.

Rick had me send him copies of one of Dad's signatures, as well as one of mine. He then laser engraved them onto the lids of the wood boxes he purchased. Silicone stoppers were added and they were nestled into wood shavings inside the box.

The glazes I used are definitely not the ones Dad used long ago. His were more muted and covered the entire surface except the feet. We decided that I would use speckled glazes (Dad's were also speckled) and only glaze the lower portion so that the black porcelain would show. This brought Dad's design a new life with my spin on it.

The bottoms are signed with both Dad's and my initials and the year.

I will make more.

Now that all family members received theirs. I am able to "go public" with the project.. 

Making these brought back so many memories of my youth. It also is a testament to how our family remains close-knit. 

As 2024 comes to an end, and 2025 is about to begin, I wish all of you the very best life has to offer. May any stumbling blocks become stepping stones, and may you face life with a positive outlook, no matter the circumstances.

Love to all.

 

May your New Year be Bright

 Enjoying a quiet Boxing Day before heading back to the store tomorrow. 

Yesterday was  filled with family, love, and laughter. I am blessed to have such wonderful people to call family.

Today, my younger brother is headed to town from NC. He will stay with my nephew until tomorrow before heading back to NC. He and his wife have offered to replace the elements in my kiln. I have them on hand, I just have not had the time (when I have had the energy) to replace them myself. I am grateful to have the help. ** They tried to replace them, but when I ordered the replacements 2 years ago, I ordered the wrong ones. These are for one of my larger kilns, not for my little one that I use most of the time... I just ordered the correct ones. **

My "excitement" this holiday season was being the "victim" of squirrels snacking on the power cable running from the power pole to my house. Luckily, the worst of it happened while I was home after work on Friday. The Christmas lights began to fade in and out, and blink (they were to stay on steady), and so did the tree across the room. I unplugged both. Then, the ceiling lights in the sunroom burnt out. Next, as there were multiple times the power blinked off and on, my microwave made a loud popping sound and died. The house smelled like hot electronics. What I didn't notice right away is that the electronic control panel on my gas stove also died. 

I put in an outage report to Duke Energy, stating that there were power surges and partial outage in the house. They arrived within 20 minutes or so, I think. He spent a while up in his bucket truck working in the wind to repair the line. 

I thought all was good to go. But, there is one breaker that keeps switching off almost as soon as I reset it. My brother said he can take a look at that as well. It controls the ceiling lights in 4 rooms and the lights are all turned off. But, I have been managing with what I have. If my brother cannot fix it, I will contact an electrician. I was waiting until after Christmas to call one anyway. I didn't want to pay the extra fees for one to come out on a weekend or holiday. And, I did survive 6 days without power after the hurricane came through.

Regardless, I am still grateful for all I have, especially the emotional and moral support of my family and friends.

May you all have a happy, healthy, and prosperous new year.

A Busy Fall

So, I have been busy. 

At the end of September Hurricane Helene came through our area and left her mark. 

Fortunately, the tree uprooted in my yard (that fell over the street) did not hit the houses on the other side of the street. And, neither my house, Terri's house, nor the store had any damage. 

There were trees down all over town, most of them uprooted. BIG oak trees, and at one time there was no way to get in or out of town. We all were blessed that as bad as it was, it was nowhere near as bad as the mountains of North Carolina. And there were places in South Carolina that were hit worse than we were as well. We knew we would have wind and rains, 

but never expected to have such strong winds for so many hours.

We lost two days of business because there was no power at the store. 

Terri and the store were without power for 2 1/2-3 days. 

I lost almost a week of production time due to having no power at my house for 6 days.

However, I was able to continue to create enough Gnomes and Friends to stock my booth at Mistletoe Market at the Anderson County Museum the beginning of November. 

I had a great show and have brought most of the remaining angel & gnome stock to the store. 

My booth at Mistletoe Market.

Limited Edition Christmas Gnomes in the background.
Penguin and Polar Bear ornaments, and Black Bears.

In between, I had house guests (my sister Regina & her husband Matt, as well as my brother Bill) who were in town for a surprise 70th Birthday celebration for my sister Sue. 

(Brother Rick also came to town but stayed at my nephew's house.) 

Sue's comment when she saw Bill & Regina the first time was "It's not nice to surprise old people!"

The whole family that was here including Sue's children (Bobby & Karen), son & daughter-in-law (Matthew & Shelly), grandchildren (Blake, Logan, Cara, and Sawyer), and grand dog Tic, Terri's husband (Rodney) and son (Ben), Rick's wife (Alice), his dog Wrigley, Regina's husband  (Matt), Aunt Celeste, and Betty (Dad's friend in his later years).

While everyone was here we took to opportunity to place Dad's ashes in the columbarium with Mom's. This was something that Terri and I did not want to do with just the two of us, 

we wanted as many of our siblings to be there as possible. 

Dad in the car on the way to the church's columbarium.

Dad on the kitchen counter wearing his Elon cap that Rick gave him and Mom's crab hat giving him a hug. The urn was designed by my father-in-law Wally Higgins and made by my sister-in-law Laurie Higgins Lang.

At the beginning of October Terri created a scarecrow display for Scarecrow Season in Pendleton. Those scarecrows are only 12" tall! The title of her display was "Fairies of the Garden".

Faeries of the Garden

Now we are prepared for Christmas at the store. And, I need to get my house listed for sale again...

 

Busy Summer

 I didn't realize just how long it has been since I last posted. My apologies to anyone who may have been looking for any kind of update.

The painting is complete, and the house has been back on the market for 3 months now. 

I decided to introduce a new friend to my collection, as well as a new Limited Edition Christmas Gnome.

Black Bears (Brown/Grizzly/Polar to come soon)

A Black bear came to mind, inspired by a couple of my favorite clay artisans. Theirs are SO very different yet very inspiring. I have made 17 so far, and only have 2 or 3 remaining finished ones. I am making more for Mistletoe Market!

In addition to the Black Bears, I will make some Brown/Grizzly Bears, Polar Bears, and more Gnomes, Cats, Fox, Owls, Ghosts, Snowpeople, Pumpkins, Angels, Santa Hats, Mushrooms, Penguins, Bluebirds, Cardinals, Hedgehogs, Mice, Bunnies, and maybe more... Ideas keep percolating in my head.

2024 Limited Edition Christmas Gnome

As I was making some Polka Dot hat gnomes, I decided that I would make the dots multi-colored, like the Christmas Trees I started making. The background colors so far have been black, purple, and yellow. Anyway, that inspired me to create the Limited Edition Christmas Gnome for this year with a Christmas tree for it's hat. I have pre-orders for 40 of them! I will make plenty extra to bring with me to Mistletoe Market.

In other news... I am frustrated with the fact that nobody has come to look at the house in 2 months! I had both bathrooms worked on (as per my previous post) as well as painting the one bathroom, and painting the large kitchen wall. I then hired a crew to trim the greatly neglected trees and shrubs. We lowered the price. We would rather not lower the price too much more. The house is 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2,300+ square feet of living space with an out building and 1.55 acres. Our agent grew up on this street and her dad still lives in the neighborhood. Any pointers on getting people to at least come and take a look?

I know it will sell when the time is right. I just am stressing about how long it is taking to get to the right time.

I will do my best to update things before Mistletoe Market (which is November 1 & 2 this year!)