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.

Out with the old and in with the new

It has been a busy year.  I have been working at our store, which consumes 6 days a week, and I have been busy with house/pet-sitting as well.  My one regret is that I have not had as much time to put into my clay creating as I had wanted to, for a number of reasons, including not being home in the evenings while house sitting.  I also was just not in that frame of mind for a bit and it took a lot to get myself back into the groove.  I hope to not have that happen this coming year.  (I think I say that EVERY year!)

One thing I did do was make a family favorite treat at Christmas time: Strufoli.  It is an Italian treat, from what we can tell, it probably is Sicilian.  I had not made it since the 1980's!  My intention was to make it last year, but the very night I was planning to make it was when I got so sick.

It started with Mom's recipe:

This is not the copy we used to use in her cookbook, but it is in her handwriting.  The "original" was long ago stained with oils and probably honey as well.

Then, after mixing the dough, I rolled it into small balls:

Once I was about 2/3 of the way through rolling them, I started heating the oil in a shallow pan on the stove.  I also started to heat the honey mixed with the orange rind.  I added the surplus lemon rind I had grated for the dough.:

Once the dough had been fried to a light golden brown, I drained it on paper towels, along with some slivered almonds I also had lightly toasted in the oil:

Into the infused honey they went, and then they drained a bit before placing them in the serving dish:

Once in the dish, they were joined by the almonds (which had also gone into the honey bath) and sprinkled with colorful non-pariels:

It was sooooo good!  Memories of Mom & Nana came flooding into my head as I taste tested the first piece.  Brother Rick and his wife Alice were visiting over Christmas and he approved of the taste.  We also brought it down to our niece Karen's house the day after Christmas and our Sister Sue approved.  Karen and her brother Bobby and his wife Shelly also approved, although they don't recall ever having it before.  I was sure to leave some with all of them.  I then brought a bit into the store yesterday to share with our friend Marissa (who had made it before) and she liked it.  (Her 2 year old son loved it so much he stole all of the leftovers from her!)   I just wish I had known her mom Rose was going to be in the store on Christmas Eve, I would have brought some for her to try, it is one of her favorites.

If you have never had it before, it is not an overly sweet treat, the sweetness comes from the honey, but it is delectable!

My next project is to get a sample puffed heart wall hanging done out of porcelain for a class I am teaching in January.  And also pull out the Teapot mold so I can make an Ebonyware teapot for a customer who received one in the 1990's and had broken it.  It was such a surprise to open that email and read that she had looked to see if I was still out here and still making pottery.

May 2017 be a year of healing and of joys.  I was horrified at how nasty all sides got during the US presidential election.  I can only say I did not like any of the candidates from the time the first one threw their hat into the ring.  But we must persevere and try again next time to find a cast of candidates better suited to the job at hand.  I know some of you may disagree with me, that is fine.  If we all had the same tastes and same opinions, the world would be a very boring place.  It takes all to make things work.  And a lot of the politicians on both sides need to learn how to work together and compromise.  This all or nothing attitude has made the work of our presidents difficult for many years, through several presidencies.

Ok, my semi-rant is over.

Peace to you and yours.

A breakthrough!

After having a gazillion ideas running rampant through my brain, I finally was able to create today.

First, I graphed out the patterns for my Christmas Iris Folding class that is on July 30.  (I will post the samples once they are finished... waiting for some papers to arrive.)

 

Christmas Iris Folding 2016

 Once I had that finished (Yes, I know the photo is upside-down, Instagram did that to me, and I just left it.), I actually was able to create 6 new clay angels!  In the last several months I have only been able to manage 3 total, so 6 is a really big thing for me!  I do have other ideas swimming around in that grey matter in my head, but this is the first step and the rest will come in time.

Clay Angels 2016!

No, it's not world peace, but I myself cannot achieve that.  It is a big deal to me to break through the creative block.

I had an extra day off yesterday.  We were planning to close the store on Saturday for our trip to Atlanta to the wholesale buyers market.  Terri was wanting to leave earlier on Friday to get to see some showrooms, yet it was not a good idea to have the store closed 2 days in a row.  So, I proposed that Terri, Ben & Phyllis go and I stay home and keep the store open all day Friday while they got an early start.  Our friend Marsha spent the day with me and we had a good day!  It was worth me not going to Atlanta.  Yes, I missed going, I haven't been since last July (I was so sick at Christmas that I stayed home to continue recuperating in January.), but it was the best decision in the long run.  So, what did I do with my extra day?  I spent all the money I have been saving for months from my house & pet sitting.  And I got something that should last me a long time... 55,000 miles... a set of 4 new tires for the Equinox.  I usually have been buying used, but the price was right for a set of new.  Oh, and I also got an oil change.  I know, I really know how to party, don't I?

This week has been a series of emotions.

• Tuesday marked 5 years since Mom passed away.  Sometimes it feels like she has been gone forever, sometimes I can hear her voice in my mind and almost feel her presence.  
• On Thursday, my little sister from my college sorority sent me an email because of this blog.  ((( Leslie! ))) I have not been in contact with her in about 15 years or so.  I was so happy!  She is a special lady and hearing from her made my day!  
• Then, on Friday, one of my best friends through high school sent me a message request on facebook. Another special lady who helped me break out of my shell all those years ago.  ((( Jacque! ))) I have not been in contact with her in over 20 years.  Another day made!  
• In among all that I sent a care package to my niece Sammy who is undergoing breast cancer treatments.  In it were scarves that Verne gave to me as well as ones his mom gave to me.  I also made her a pair of earrings and sent some other little somethings to let her know I am thinking of her and wish I could be closer.

Well, enough for today, I need to get some other things done this evening.  I am grateful for the break in my creative block :~)

Me again :~)

Checking in, I have nothing new to really share, but I wanted to make an effort to post.

I start a house & cat-sitting job after work today... and when I finish next Tuesday morning, I go to another one Tuesday evening for 3 days, home for a day after that and then 5 days at another.  I leave that one on one day, and go to the next one the next day!  Busy time of year!  But I love it!

The only drawback to the pet-sitting is that I am afraid to bring my clay.  First of all, I don't want my clay mess in their homes and secondly, yet just as critical, cats and wet clay items do not always mix well... I remember that well from Max.

Well, I need to get back to some things I am working on.  I don't even know if anyone reads this anymore.  But I felt I needed to try to make a habit of posting again.

One step at a time

It is cat & house sitting at the lake time again... it is so peaceful out here.  Especially compared to the festival I had my pottery at today.  The photos are from before the crowds arrived and the group at the food booth featuring foods from Bangladesh was packed (they were right next to our booth.).

I had a very successful firing of the new Red Silk Porcelain pieces.

Red Silk Porcelain Sake Bottles with & without glaze on the shoulder, roly sake cups and a scalloped pin/sauce dish.

Red Silk Porcelain Sake Bottle with clear glaze on the shoulder & neck.

Red Silk Porcelain Sake Bottle and 2 roly Sake Cups with no glaze on the outside.

Scalloped Red Silk Porcelain Pin/Sauce Dish.

It was a breezy & sometimes windy day, luckily, I had nothing break.

My small display at the International Festival at Clemson University.

My new Deep Purple glaze on one of my scalloped Ebonyware Porcelain bowls.

I have had a bit of a creative block lately, working 6 days a week is not allowing me the time to create.  I love my job & my customers and I cannot think of anything I would rather do.  But, the creating of my pottery is something that re-charges my soul.  I am so exhausted in the evenings it is difficult to create then.  My only day with any time at all, is Sunday, my only day off, and the only day I can run errands I cannot get to during the week.  Do I stay home and create?  Do I run the necessary errands?  I only wish that business at the store was strong enough to hire someone two days a week so that my sister and I can each get a day off.  We both work hard.

I think that I got past the creative block for now, which is good, I have a big show in Clayton, GA at the end of April... I need to get a lot produced between now and then!

Next weekend is Spring Jubilee here in town, we will have the store open on Sunday as well... that means no day off until the 2nd Saturday of April.  I can do this, I have been doing this, I will do this... one step at a time...

Thanks for visiting my blog and thanks for listening.  I hope you are all well.

Til next time...

A beautiful Spring Day

No, this is not a picture from our garden... it is a stock photo from my desktop...

Today is a gorgeous Spring day!

Did you remember to "spring forward" with your clocks & watches?

I have been absent as of late on here, I hope to be able to change that.

I am working on mugs and all for the Celebrate Clayton show the end of April, but today, I will take a break & go to Greenville for the FLW Fishing Expo for a few hours with friends.  I promise - I will NOT get a treble hook embedded in my leg!
We have been busy at the store.  Dad has been building new display fixtures to Terri's designs for the 'Garden Corner' and the toy department.  We have been having a lot of fun with the Osher Lifelong Learning classes in Wire & Metal Jewelry.  (We have some extremely talented students!)  And, we have been busy planning for a guest instructor to visit in April.  Nathalie Metivier from Magenta Rubber Stamps is going to be teaching a 3-hour class on April 22.  And in a week and a half, we have gotten 27 spaces filled!  (The limit is 30.)

I hope to be able to update things more often.  I have been sidelined by a number of things adding up.  And, on top of that, I got an Android phone, so the old desktop doesn't get fired up as often.  I plan to change that!

Meanwhile, I hope you all enjoy this Spring day.

Still here, but not having much to report...

I have been just lurking the last month or so.  

I had a bit of a creative stoppage, but I am back on track now.

The photo is one they took of me in 2008 at Celebrate Clayton.  I ran across it on their web site today and decided to copy it.

My current projects are #1 - first and foremost, figure out what is causing the handles to crack on the large mug and fix the problem.  #2 - produce for Historic Pendleton's Spring Jubilee (I am not a vendor, but I add to The Mercantile's inventory at that time.)  #3 - produce for Celebrate Clayton.  #4 - begin making some clay beads.  #5 - decide which design ideas to make next...

Hope all is well with all of you!

Goodbye to 2010

As I look back at this past year, it has been filled with so many things.

There have been ups and downs with Mom's cancer journey, and the year ends on an up note.  They have reduced the dosage of her chemo treatments and taken out the PICC line (to be replaced on Monday with a 'permanent' port.)  There seem to be no signs of the nodules at this time.  Her blood work was good before her chemo on Wednesday, so she did not need a Neulasta shot on Thursday.  She continues to gain her strength and be able to do more.  We can only hope that the new year will continue to bring good news.

I have had my ups and downs with my creative muse this past year.  I started off the year with winning an award for the best of show in pottery at the Spring show I do in Clayton, GA.  I wanted to use my prize money to take a wheel throwing class, but my teacher got some sort of stomach bug and had to cancel.  Then, I needed my prize money to pay some bills... My brother in MA was down for a visit, and took one of my drawings home with him to turn on the lathe.  I now have my larger mug... if I can get past the handles breaking off before they are finished... That itself has gotten me in another creative slump... I need to take the time to work on the handle a bit more so it will cooperate...  And my brother has given me the gift of making 3 additional models for me.  I just have to decide which ones other than a tea pot that I would like made...

Work has been rewarding.  I love working with the public, and teaching creative classes.  My sister Terri & I have had to take on more responsibilities at the store because Mom is not able to come in often.  And Dad is taking more time to help Mom as needed.  We have a wonderful clientele.

My health has been generally good.  

My family is wonderful!  We have had visits from all of the siblings this past year... wish we all lived a bit closer to one another!  We plan to have a family reunion in 2011, I am looking forward to that!

I don't like to make resolutions, I know I cannot keep them.  I just want to strive to be a better person and to grow creatively.  

Thank you all for following my blog.  I hope to get a bit more organized in the future.

I wish you all a wonderful New Year!

A productive day!

Here is a closer look at he Ebony Porcelain coffee pot and mugs... the sugar and creamer set was not in this photo... but this is the mottled chocolate brown glaze on the set that sold at the Arts Infusion Show.
I spent today casting the mugs and all out of porcelain and stoneware... I have to try to get some cast each day if possible.
Maybe not as productive a day as I would have liked to have, but definite progress was made, the slump is over!

inspiration?

What inspires your creativity?
For me, I envision a piece and then try to create it, whether it is beaded jewelry, paper arts, pyrography, or pottery (to name a few). The finished piece does not always end up as envisioned, which is alright with me, I usually like it better.
Sometimes I see something that inspires me to create something else.
Right now, I am not seeing anything that inspires me to actually get in gear and create. And I have a show to do in 2 months! That is not a lot of time!
Yes, I have made this or that, and done a little, but then I lose all interest and momentum.
I have it set in my mind that I will spend Sunday morning creating. I re-set my work table so it is ready, my molds have been cleaned and my clay is ready and waiting... and once I get started, I should be able to do a little each morning and evening during the week (unless I have a class to teach at the store). Sounds like a plan...
One friend on Facebook suggested I try to slow down the rest of my life to find that creative vein again, unfortunately, that is much easier said than done these days. Someone else suggested I find a bigger shovel to dig myself out of this creative slump I've been in.
I'm looking for feedback. If you have any additional constructive suggestions for lighting the spark of creativity, please let me know.

Starting off the New Year

This is a bracelet I designed for a class at The Mercantile. I was inspired by a totally different bracelet in a recent magazine. I was trying to modify and make it my own... this was the fourth and final attempt. It looks absolutely nothing like the bracelet that inspired me. I had no name for the bracelet when we made up the class schedule. Terri dubbed it the MMX bracelet (for the Roman numerals for 2010).
I have been a little creatively challenged the last several weeks. Partly because of all of the holiday hustle and bustle, then I had a sinus allergy that left me nearly voiceless for Christmas.
My mom had a biopsy on some nodules on her back and neck, that turned out to be breast cancer cells. She fought it 10 years ago, she's determined to fight it again. And yesterday we found out that the PET scan shows no signs of it being anywhere else. YAY!!!! (She goes to the Oncologist Monday to find out her treatment and treatment schedule... she has a cruise planned for early April!)
I have orders to fulfill with mugs, and a show to do at the end of the month. Saturday I hope the weather allows us to go to Atlanta for the Gift Market.

(Sorry my post rambles a bit... I'm tired and ready for bed... good night all!)

Hoping your 2010 is a wonderful year!

Friday ramblings

I know, it is not Autumn anymore. I took this photo last fall and just never used it for anything. I wanted to take a picture of the Dwarf Iris that are in bloom in the garden but it was raining. Maybe tomorrow.

When I went to dinner with my friend Lisa last week, she mentioned joining Facebook. I took the time a couple of days ago and signed up. There are people there that I have not seen for years!

I wish I had a nicer photo of myself to post, but all I have is the one my nephew DragonBen took last August. (Although he just took the one I have here now (in the purple shirt) last Thursday, so I cahnged them both here and on Facebook!)

Speaking of DragonBen, at age 9 he has been selected to represent his school for National Youth Art Month with his work included in a county display at the Anderson Arts Center Warehouse! We are not sure which piece has been entered, it was submitted by his Art teacher. We go to the opening reception on Sunday afternoon. We are not sure how many from each school there are, but the show has work from grades K - 12 all across the county.

I have hit a small creative block. I had an idea for decorating my porcelain and stoneware pieces, and I nearly obsessed about finding disposable eye-droppers. Then a friend got me some droppers from work and I cannot get my mind around just how to do what I want to do. I am not liking what I see in the unfired pieces. It is frustrating me.

I need to find someone who can make my models and molds for me... I can do it, but I don't have the tools and equipment available here. I can provide drawings... But I cannot afford most model & mold makers pricing (well worth the price, just out of my meager budget).

Enough of my ramblings... if I can take a photo at the Arts Warehouse, I will post it Sunday night or Monday.

Oh, and this week I was nominated and appointed as the Secretary of the Pendleton Area Business Association for 2009... all in about 2 minutes.