Getting ready for Mistletoe Market

 With Mistletoe Market coming up on November 1st, I have been busy in all my spare time creating.

Even though this year's Mistletoe Market is only 1 day, I have over 250 pieces that are slated to go, not counting the wooden pieces. That is, if everything makes it through the firings.

Flat pieces to become magnets, pendants, pins, or whatever I think they might want to be, and squirrels.

Glittery paper stars that I plan to use in my booth.
Some as a yet-to-be-made garland, and some loose as a give away for the kids.

The results of one of my glaze firings.
I had a special order for one of the snowmen and a black chicken.

I mentioned the bit about "if everything makes it through" because of my weekend run-in with an inhabited Joro spider web at the kiln. And, when I say run-in, I mean face first into the web. That caused me to jump, drop the tray of pieces slated for a bisque firing, and losing about 80% of them. Hopefully, the few that survived will make it through their firings. 

Using a very long stick, I relocated the spider. cleaned up my mess, and then after an hour or so calming my nerves, I remade most of what was lost. Luckily, it was a small batch of many.

I know that Joro spiders will not hurt me, but when irrational fears jump in (arachnophobia - big time), that knowledge goes out the window. When I went to do another firing the next morning, I took a leaf rake and a can of bug spray with me to be sure the coast was clear.

As always, I look forward to this show. It is such a wonderful event space, fabulous staff & volunteers, not to mention great fellow vendors. I usually do a good portion of my Christmas shopping there.

Hot summer!

I have been working on some stock pieces, as well as requests for Chickens and Squirrels.

These are some of the chickens I have drying, waiting for the bisque firing. (There are a couple of squirrels hanging out in the background as well.)

I'm still struggling a little with my creative flow, but I am definitely moving forward. 

Now if the weather will cooperate, I can get these bisque fired in the next few days. 

(There is a threat of thunderstorms again today...)

When finished, the Chickens and Squirrels will look somewhat like these completed pieces.

I have had someone request a turkey... I will try, but I cannot promise anything.

Now to get my photos ready to send to Mistletoe Market for their social media blasts.

I hope all is well with anyone reading this. We are in the midst of what might be classified as a Heat Wave (not sure if it's officially one yet). I am ever so grateful to the inventors of air conditioning!

 

Breakthrough

 I have had a breakthrough! For some reason, I have been in a creative slump these past couple of months. I have been imagining things I can create, but just have not had enough mental motivation to actually create much of anything. Oh, I may make a thing or two, but the drive to actually create, has been hard to come by. It happens to most all creators.

What started getting me out of the slump was to create a project for the creative group that meets once a month at our store. I had chosen paper quilling as the medium. 

I found a free pattern and tutorial on line for the crab. I made it to her dimensions in the red. Then, I doubled the length of the strips and made it again in blue. (thepaperycraftery.com) The bear and the squirrel were from the instructions in a kit we have at the store by Quilled Creations. The gnome, I designed myself. When we had the creative session, a few people made the gnome into Santa by making a red hat with a white pom pom at the tip.

The flower is one I created on-the-go for my aunt's 87th birthday last week. 

The beagle is another design-as-I-go for a birthday card for a friend (she has not seen it yet). I know improvements can be made if I make one again.

The bear is another birthday card for a friend who has not seen it yet. 

And, finally, this weekend I made a concerted effort to take out the clay and get started. I created 20 pieces over the two days. (I possibly could have done more, but I had to take care of other things like laundry, sorting through some boxes, running the dishwasher, paying some bills, and some R & R to re-charge for work this week.)

The creative slump is over. I may not be moving at a record pace, but I have broken through and hopefully will keep some momentum going. Next weekend I should be glazing and firing these so I can re-stock gnomes and angels at the store... they are seriously low. 

I hope all had a safe Memorial Day weekend and that you have a good week ahead. May the moments you share with those close to you be full of wonderful memories.

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!)