NO WORDS

Healing peace to the people of Newtown Connecticut - and to us all......

TEXTURE

I love using texture in my work - especially combined with a contrasting smooth area.  The front and back pieces of this piece were thrown on the wheel, heavily textured with The Steve Tool and then cut apart and used as slabs.  I used a hand-carved rolling stamp on the sides.  The knob on top is a pinch pot.

Hope you enjoy.  Thanks for your comments!

IT'S THE LITTLE THINGS!

Most of my pottery is made in my home studio.  I have a wheel and kiln and most of my work is thrown  and  thrown-and-altered.  When I started doing pottery 7 years ago I joined a local club.  This is where I learned to throw and did all of my work until I set up my home studio.  Many in our group have been there for 6 or 7 years and have become close friends. For that reason I still attend club sessions once a week.  It's become more of a social time for me.  I usually work on small pieces at the club such as beads, pendants and buttons.
A few months ago I started making pinch pot seed pods.  It's been fun to make a variety of sizes and use them to test glazes.  I've stuck them on branches from my yard and display them in a vase.  It makes me happy everytime I pass by them - Yes, it is the little things in life!

Thanks for reading and for your comments.

Still Learning

I'm still trying to figure out this blogger business.  I can't seem to expand the size of my posting.  I will figure it out eventually,  Meanwhile, here's a picture that should have gone in the previous post.

Sling Mold Tray

I was inspired to make this piece by a tutorial (Oct.4 2012) by Lori Watts of Fine Mess Pottery.  It was made using a slab shaped on a sling mold - I used a piece of fabric duct taped to a large plastic storage bin.  My slab was actually a cylinder thrown on the wheel and cut apart to use as a slab.  I placed the slab on the sling mold and allowed it to set up overnight covered with plastic.  Meanwhile I threw a short bottomless cylinder, removed it from the bat and shaped into a rounded rectangle.  The next day I attached the molded slab to the cylinder base.  I then added a coiled piece around the edges and coiled handles.
It was tricky to get the bottom centered under the top and I actually wasn't very successful. One edge was wider than the other and this caused it to slump during the glaze firing.  I see it as a learning experience.  Can hardly see the flaws when filled with fruit!
Thanks, Lori, for the tutorial and you permission to post this.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

I hope everyone has a wonderful, peaceful day.
Our son, Josh, arrived from Tampa last night and we are having dinner at a local restaurant with a potter friend.
Oh, and it's my birthday!I'll give you a couple of clues to my age:
- JFK was assassinated on my 15th birthday
- I'm wondering if my husband will still love me today?....

PORTAL SERIES

Here is #5 in the portal series - beach house.  It reminds of a house on stilts at the beach.  I
started this piece well before Hurricane Sandy, but as the piece was drying and Hurricane Sandy hit, the piece took on a whole new meaning.  My husband spent his childhood summers in Ocean City, New Jersey and it holds a special place in his heart.  He also has relatives who have been driven from their home because of Sandy and will not be able to return for several months.  It's a reminder of how fortunate we are and how that could change at any time.

I put some pieces of stained glass at the base of the house, and in the kiln the glass bubbled up and ran down the side - reminds me of the houses which were flooded in the storm.