Wednesday, October 31, 2012

'Leaves' Design

Here is the picture I promised of the pottery with the leaves:


Not a very good picture, but you get the idea.

The basic leaves are stenciled, then the details are added with brushwork. The only hard part is making the design random!


Friday, October 19, 2012

Gopher Guts?

It being Friday, which is no reason for anything, I decided to have a catch-up/clean-up day. I've been very busy getting things ready for my pottery sale, fireGifts, for quite a while now, and frankly, the local environment is a little the worse for wear.

In the Studio: pots in every stage on every possible horizontal surface. Drifts of dog fur under the tables. A couple of butter dishes still drying, they weren't dry enough to go into the last bisque load. The porcelain clay can go in a bit damp and never causes trouble, but the buff stoneware, if it has the least bit of moisture in it, kabloooie. They'll have to go in the small kiln tonight. Decorated ware with leaves design ready for the glaze kiln...... bisque waiting to be dipped in white glaze and similarly 'improved', finished pots waiting to have the bottoms seen to and then be packed. The only clear spots are the wheel heads.

In the office: little scrips of paper all over with maybe important info on them. I have an awful habit of scribbling important stuff on little scratches of paper (envelopes, shopping lists, receipts, bits of newspaper, all are apt to be pressed into unaccustomed service) and then losing them. Also invoices, paid and otherwise, drafts of ads for fireGifts, recorder music I am supposed to scan and re-size to fit on one page, a whole pile of pottery ideas...... and tiny dried-up leaves all over from the hanging plant I evicted the other day. Dead. Could be I didn't water it....

And the house itself, well, the less said the better. Let's just say, we've been having meals, sleeping comfortably is possible, and all residents are warm and dry. But now I have guests coming maybe on Sunday so action is required. Urgently.

Before I get started vacuuming, here is a collage of autumn leaves:


No, I haven't gone completely wahooo.... and you have not accidentally fallen into a photography blog, there is a connection. My latest pots have leaves stenciled and painted on. I'll try to get a photo to post when they come out of the kiln. Unless they are all awful, in which case I'll have to, well, I don't know what, take up knitting maybe.

Better get vacuuming. Now I'm humming the old silly thing my daughter used to sing: Great Green Gobs of Greasy, Grimy Gopher Guts. (She was about 6 at the time.) Hmm. Certainly suits the state of this place. Now, don't tell me I am going squirrely. It is too late.

fireGifts, by the way, is going to be terrific! Some 30 artists, mostly potters but two glass workers, all getting masses of new work ready. We open next Friday at 4pm. I'm not nervous! Oh, no, I'm quite confident, except when I'm shaking in my boots....  The ads in the papers look good, I've had several phone calls from people who have seen them.... everything on my to-do list is done except buying duct tape.... what can go wrong......

Nothing. Great Green Gobs......