Oh oh, kiln mishap last week

First glance doesn't look too bad, but it's sure waaay too shiny for matt black.

And you can't pick it up off the shelf...completely glazed to it...as were several other pots.

The kiln had new elements in it, and when our studio manager re-set the firing sequence, one of the numbers was wrong, so it held for too long, turning the glaze, and the clay to glass.  After hammering it off the shelf, (which had kiln wash on it) the base was ruined.

Inside the glaze was thicker, but had boiled into an ugly mess.  Getting the lid off also meant the clay of the rim shattered.  Clay against clay had fused.

I kept the lid to remember my first attempt at Mishima.  Then Charles put the pot in the trash and hammered it (upon my wishes) to shards.  I also retrieved the handle.  It wasn't made all that well, as seeing the cross section told me.

I'm just grateful to have another chance to work on another teapot.  I've got 2 waiting to be glaze fired as this was written, and one of them will be in a show next week at Black Mountain Center for the Arts (Sept 10 opening) of "What's the Buzz."  I'll be showing you what it looks like when it's finished.  There are also some little tea bowls and honey pots.

Today's Quote:

When we do the best we can, we never know what miracle is wrought in our life, or in the life of another.

Helen Keller

Rowan or Mountain Ash

^{Sorbus Aucuparia}

^{The Lady of the Mountains}

Black Eyed Susans

Today's Quote:

LESSON OF THE ROWAN

from The Wisdom of Trees by Jane Gifford

Rowan is able to flourish higher up on the mountains than most other trees. Closer to the sun and divine inspiration in this extreme environment, it yet retains its grace of form and its potential for healing. Exposed to the elements on solitary crags, it still produces blossom and berries to delight the eye and heal the body, bringing vibrant color and birdsong to the hills. Rowan emphasizes the need for color and creative endeavor in our lives and encourages us to open our minds to creative inspiration. It also teaches us that we can draw on the forces of life to heal ourselves and those around us. We can develop the art of turning adversity into creative opportunity. Rowan protects and gives courage and strength to those walking the path of spiritual growth and enlightenment. For the Celts , the rowan was the Tree of Quickening, of Sacred Fire, of the Awakening Spirit, and the Sun.

Marsha/Pat/Cathy/Barb & Bette

Yep, that's the Mud buddies. We only have 2 of us wo-maning the booth each Saturday at the market.  But we have all 5 of us represented with some of the latest work we've been creating.  I love how our regular customers drop by almost weekly to see what's new.

last week, Cathy and Marsha enjoyed being hostesses

My wares (I wonder why that casserole hasn't sold yet!)

Cathy has a new glazing style which is slip trailed floral on white

Marsha has a casserole dish waiting for a feast

A happy customer went home with a creamer/sugar bowl set made by myself

Today's Quote:

What is a soul? It's like electricity - we don't really know what it is, but it's a force that can light a room.

Ray Charles

A good old crowd

I've missed Sepia Saturday for a couple of weeks...just plain too busy to check my friends' posts, let alone find something to share.

But the prompt this week reminded me of some photos in an old album from my ex-husband's family.

I started out with a "wagon load" of folks, piled high on a car for their photo.  And I do believe these are only females!  This photo was pasted onto a black paper photo album, top center shown below.

On the same sheet from the album were other interesting shots, of the same unknown people...

I cropped some of them because I wanted to see more of what was going on.

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The photo on the upper left is another group shot with everyone squeezed together in front of some outbuilding...but it includes men as well as women!  The man kneeling in the dark suit on the left might be my son's grandfather Norman Heym, but it depends upon when it was taken.

The upper right photo has some young women sitting on a pipe that runs between two posts (hitching post?)...and some people who weren't aware at all their picture was being captured as they walked to the right.  This house was the home of the Louis Hillyers, my ex-husband's mother's family, in Michigan.

This is one of my favorites, with a group of people doing all kinds of strange and wonderful things.  Notice the teakettle, frying pan and ax.  Did I mention the family had friends who were theatrical?

Too bad the camera jiggled on this one, where one of the posing people (gentleman?) had a strange looking face.

This is my favorite shot, a little person watching the "big girls" hanging on the pipe...letting their hair down!

And finally, on another sheet, someone denoted who was at this house.  Louis and Gertrude Hillyer are parents of Mary (pretty young girl in this photo) who was my older son's grandmother that they probably don't remember.  She died when they were young boys.  She was born in 1907 in New York city, but the family moved to central Michigan when she was 3.  Her father and mother spent the rest of their lives farming, having retired from the stage.

The outfits worn by the women in most of the photos are from the 20's by my guess.  But the last photo on the porch must have been quite a bit earlier, by Gerturde wearing a long dress. So I'd guess Mary would have been younger than 10, sometime around 1912-1917.

Would that one photo have included her husband to be, Norman Heym?  Actually it's unlikely.  They didn't marry until she was 24, in 1932.  I wish I knew the story of how they met...but that's part of the family history that I've missed.

I'd recommend checking over at Sepia Saturday HERE to see what other bloggers have shared (go to bottom of the page where their names are listed by numbers, and just click on the links).



Describing a "...photograph of "Walsh's Royal Mail And Day Car" from the National Library Of Ireland archives. If you are joining in you can feature old photographs which - in some way or another - connect to any theme you choose to identify from this photograph."

Ongoing Teapots

Bisqued Little Loafers Teapot with Mishima style bees

Add some yellow and black stripes and little dots

Adding a coat of clear over the dots of Designer Liner, I found the dots streaking.  STOP.  Dry them for a few hours first.

So I did.  Then finished the clear glaze gently without any more streaking.  Then waxed over the whole area...
Then dipped and poured matt black over the whole rest of the teapot.
Now just to wait till it is fired.  Come back later!

second bisqued stoneware teapot

Details of flower and leaves are below the final coat of glaze

Teapot number two was then glazed in my favorite turquoise variegated combo glaze.
I also have one other teapot to work on soon, with bees somewhere on it  as well.  Then there are honey pots.  And some little tea cups.

Today's Quote:

Difficult times have helped me to understand better than before how infinitely rich and beautiful life is in every way and that so many things that one goes worrying about are of no importance whatsoever.  Isak Dinesen