Gettin' it done.

It's amazing what you can accomplish when you have a deadline and a very specific to do list mapped out so there is no time for distraction.

I got tons of photos taken.  So many that I overheated my camera.

Many of these pieces will be in the show at the Matador this weekend.

I had a lot of fun making these little cups.

So much delicious contrast on these pitcher.  

We made it over hump day and were on the downward slide to the weekend.  Keep smiling.

Soda Fired Pitchers and Mugs

Here are the results from my soda firing last week.  I've been having fun pairing them up and seeing how nice they look in good light and on the nice backdrop.  I think I am going to be ordering some business cards soon so these photos will be great for that. I love to order my business cards from Moo.  They are my favorite! I still have a lot more pictures to take before I'm done so that's what I will be doing this weekend when I am not lounging in the sun.  I am so excited for daylight savings.  Yippie!  Next week we should be putting in another soda firing.  Have a delightful weekend.

Soda Love

Remember a couple of posts ago when I was working on my paper stencil patterns at my computer table?  Well, here are the beauties!  Yes, it has taken me almost a month to get them photographed.  The firing was right before Christmas!  I think I have an aversion to my somewhat bulky photo shoot set up.   

Time to tackle that problem and make a mini version that doesn't take over my tiny living room.

But all that aside, I am really excited with the progress I am making with these.  It was a crazy long firing because the kiln door bricks and furniture got wet in a wild downpour so we had to "dry" out the kiln first.  It went for sixteen or eighteen hours or so when it should have only been about 12.  We did finally get the kiln firing much more evenly but I messed with the flew damper enough to knock a bunch of junk down into some of my pieces.  I've ground out a bunch of it and will try touching up the glaze and re-firing them in another cone 10 firing, or even cone 6 electric to see how that might work.

I'm busy making more work so that hopefully I can get another soda firing going by the first of February. Keeping my fingers crossed about that one.  I'm not exactly sure if I'll have access to the same kiln but if that doesn't work out I can always take some work out to Penland!  Yep, I'm headed out there again in May for a month to do some more studio assisting.  I can't wait!  And I am also going out to Arrowmont for my very first time!

Side A

Here is another one of my favorite pieces that I made last fall.  I stuck this in with my besties and started using it right away.  Somehow I just forgot that I wanted to document it.

Side B

I actually made two of these and the other one was fabulous also, that is until I sacrificed it to the soda kiln.  I was so positive it would come out great but I was not at all happy with it.  The underglaze fumed and bled and the clay body went very grey.  It's interesting and I'm sure someone would like it but me?  Not so much.  I'm glad I took this photo.  Something about seeing them in the right light on a nice backdrop has freshened my determination to make a few more.  

Visiting Artist and Field Trips

We've been having lots of fun in the studio the past couple of days learning printing techniques for clay.  Here, Jason Bige Burnett is getting ready to demonstrate his method of screenprinting engobes.

And, of course, here's Jason hamming it up for the camera!

These are some sassy mugs I am experimenting with after an inspiring visit to the studio of Nicholas Joerling.  Nicholas is an incredible potter with a warm heart, enchanting smile and some wonderful words of wisdom.  He lives right down the road from the school so I think I will be taking another trip down there.  I will share more on the studio visits in the next couple of days.  Today is our day off from the studio and we are headed on another field trip into Asheville.  Have a great weekend!

Studio Cat's Twelve by Twelve

I've been following Michael Kline's twelve by twelve challenge over at Sawdust and Dirt so I finally decided I needed to jump on the band wagon.  This was a great idea and I made it!  I got six bowls and six mug bodies.  My problem has been that I keep thinking I need to get other stuff done so that I can focus on the work but I just came to the realization that this is completely backwards.  My work needs to be my priority and I'm sure I will still have plenty of time to get other stuff done.  Besides, now I am all fired up with creative ideas (pun intended.)

Another goody for my day is that my Kickstarter project was put into the Arts Devo column of our local independent newspaper, the Chico News and Review.  Goodie, goodie, gumdrops!  So now I am celebrating my early day achievements with a snippet of dark chocolate.  Yum.

Here are the teapots that I finally got the handles on.  I was initially going to try putting some little feet on the bottoms but by the time I remembered I wanted to do that they were already a bit too dry.  I'm not so sure that middle tall one is going to work out.  I love the way the handle looks but I don't think it is going to be balanced for the shape of the body.  I'm thinking it will be awkward to pour.  But I like how this prototyping is going and I am ready to try some more.  These will be decorated soon with paper resist, underglazes, and texturing.

Studio manager, Tiger, says she is the one responsible for making sure the twelve by twelve happened and that I really need to give credit where credit is due.  Ok, Tiger, you win.  "Thanks, now give me that tuna you forgot to give me this morning."

Open House and New Work

If you happen to be in Chico, CA tomorrow come on by and say hello.  Our host, the illustrious, Pat Koszis, went to Penland School of Crafts last summer and had such a great time that we all decided we wanted to go.  In order to raise some funds to attend a workshop we decided to have this holiday sale.  So if you want to help us get to Penland next summer come on down!

Since I promised, oh so long ago, to upload some images of what I have been working on, ta dah!  Here they are.

I started playing around with paper resist and underglazes and am really learning a lot. I'm so used to firing cone 10 reduction that some of this has a bit of a learning curve now at cone 6.  I am loving the direction this is taking.  My mom and I are already fighting over the red plate above.  It is luscious and the satin was in the perfect spot to cool slowly.

I started this body of work with tumblers and then moved on to the mugs.  When I started everything looked like the mug in the flyer above but I felt like they just needed a little something so I started adding texture and staining them.  Love! Love! Love!

Fall Pottery Mugs

Fall is finally in the air here in Northern California.  We went from 98 degrees on Saturday to 78 degrees on Sunday.  My hands, nose and toes are cold as I sit here typing.  I could put on a sweater but I am kind of reveling in the new sensation.  It is supposed to go back up to 90 today so we are still in the fluctuating stage.  Leaves are falling from the trees and things are just beginning the change from green to oranges, reds and rust colors.  To celebrate the season I am listing new mugs to my Etsy shop.  Enjoy!

Terracotta Throwdown with Ronan Peterson

Mark Errol and Ronan Peterson deep in conversation during show and tell.

I was going to wait until tomorrow to make another post but I got sucked into the computer and spent most of the afternoon uploading photos.  Here is some of my work from Ronan Peterson's workshop at Penland School of Crafts.

 

 

I can't wait to get back into the studio and play around with some new ideas I came up with during this awesome workshop.  Thanks Ronan, Teresa and Mark!