The Glazing Process...

Just showing the time and process that 

goes into my creations.

Many times potters have large batches

of glazes mixed up in 5 gallon buckets

they simply dip the bowl in and Wala- all done.

For me that is not the case.  I hand brush

all my details on in a minimum of 3 layers.

I have to carefully brush around all

the details I created and not have it carry

over into the other color.

It does not matter if I paint over a drip

because that drip will come to the 

surface when fired and be

where I don't want it to be.

I work on this in the evening after my day job....

My time at work is literally

percolating ideas of what I can create

and do when I am off.

I know it sounds like a crap way to spend your day

but I only have 3 yrs. to go!

and then I can do what I want and collect

my pension and health insurance! 

 

So at any rate, you can see

 the evolution from simple

colored flowers....

to the detail which is applied to this

poppy after the first 3 layers of color.

I keep a log of how I applied

my bowl layers so that I have a

record of how and what I applied,

in case I really love it and want to do it again!

Then I basically hope for the best

and that it will come out

like I envisioned!

New Items in Etsy

These items are available in Etsy... 

I love how this Robin bird bath came out.

He is the first bird I sculpted with little feet.

The feet are submerged when

the bowl is filled with water.

I put a lot of detail into sculpting him.

Notice his tail feathers.

He was sculpted from a clump of clay

and then the interior of his

body was sculpted out.  This is to 

insure he doesn't explode in the 

firing in the kiln.

the first time I used the base color on this bowl.

I like how the coloring came out.

Here's a miniature sunflower bowl...

 A hanging butterfly feeder/waterer

New yard plans

With spring here we are trying to implement

some of our yard plans.  It's not an easy

task with some of the ridiculous restrictions

on what can be purchased for your home.

Above is my plan after many changes and I

have already changed again where the raised

garden beds with be. They will be more on the right

side of the yard than the left side.  This way when

the trees in the neighbors yard grow they won't

shade the garden.

 This is the front of the house.

It's ok, but a little bla for me.

I wanted to add another bed .  This way I can add

perennials and bulbs to add 

some interest through the seasons.

My husband removed all the sod by hand.

 We then put weed cloth down so nothing
would grow up into the new bed.  The goal is

to keep it weed free and make it easy in the future.

 All the brick stones had to be
leveled as the front yard slopes

toward the street.

 Then it took 7 pickup beds of dirt to fill it up.

Just as soon as it's warm enough and I

can go to the nursery to shop for plants 

This bed at least is ready.

Not Quarantined...

I wish I could say I was quarantined but I am not.  My 

husband and I are both deemed essential workers,

so really not that much has changed from our daily routines.

Honestly,I would love to be able to stay home

and have so much extra time to work on projects.

I am thankful though that we are not loosing 

pay or jobs like so many people are.  I am

Thankful for my blessings and my families health.

So I am just trying to fit in projects

after work or on the weekends.

Hopefully this weekend

I will be able to run my kiln.

This is a large Robin bird bath.  I sculpted

everything by hand and hollowed out

the robin.

The detail in this one took quite a while.

He's my first bird with little feet.