Pop an animal on it!

The fun of these animals are that I made a mold for them myself, so they are my designs, but still hand made.  And add them to a triangular shaped cup which holds 10 oz...then just charge $10 each...whoo hoo!  Things are moving along.  Thanks to Wendy who told Elizabeth R!

COld and wet here in western NC today.  I'm glad to have a warm home in which to work...as well as feline companions of the warm persuasion.

Going out of town

...there's this assumption often (and often totally off the mark) that the out of town person knows something/has something to offer, different or better than the locals.

The Little Bookstore of Big Stone Gap, VA

So I got to go out of town yesterday, and proved it's a small world.  One of the women who bought one of my mugs comes here to Black Mountain frequently, and knows a couple of potters that are friends of mine, and who make beautiful works...so I was very grateful that she liked my work also.

Here are some of the photos that spread out my day.  Meeting the owners of The Tales of the Lonesome Pine Bookstore, as well as a lot of their friends and customers, as well as the chef who prepares fabulous food for the Second Story Cafe...it was all wonderful fun.

And did I sell pottery?  More than I expected!

 

That's the advantage of having so much to look forward to, besides sales, that they indeed become just a secondary aspect of everything that's happening.

Elizabeth Cooperstein took some mug shots...ha ha.

While I snuck in some book shots... and Wendy Welch shots, and cat shots...and friends...and so on.

My books for the day, and some pottery which didn't all come home with me.

Pause here, because this lovely lady hiding in the mystery book room is waiting to be adopted.

But 18 year old Nicki is the shop-cat!

I hope someone enjoys candlelit baths!

The wall of fame, thanks to Wendy's book

Erin and I had some good talks

Helen found a niche where she could read and not be bothered about pottery sales

And I came home to find I'd missed photofraphing several important members of their community...so I'll have to go back again and make sure to include Jack, Wendy's husband, and Hollie who creates fantastic food for the Second Story Cafe.

The Wedge and spine of what?

I can't in all good intentions include this in my Black Mountain and beauty of Western North Carolina blog. 
It's an interesting sculpture, maybe a spinal sculpture, and certainly not an expected thing to see as you park next to the Wedge building in the River Arts District of Asheville.

Last Wed. a friend and I walked around a bit, since it was the first day that we could wear sleeved shirts without coats.  It was also less than a week since a big snow storm shut down our entire area for days. 

So we enjoyed looking around.  And I took very few pictures. 

Tree mugs

OK, these are my standard tree mugs now...with the celtic cross thumb bob, and three colors of glaze and a stained and waxed (unglazed) tree shape on each side.  They still have the slope which allows stacking or using in a car cup holder.

  I've been so pleased that these go home and become parts of other people's lives.  I like using them, but I refrain from it.  If I ever get enough made for there to be "what's called inventory" in the merchandising of business, then I'll probably have a set for me to enjoy too!  For now, I get to look at them and enjoy my fun design.

Tree creation 5.0

Home work

More bowls...of course.

Three-glaze bowls, with 6 different colors where they overlap.

Too hot to open

Waiting for the bisque to be complete, lots of pots that might need glazing are just sitting inside, baking hot!  Well, not many of our ovens can get this hot, can they! (Fahrenheit)

Tree creation 4.0 Waiting for the last step

Awaiting the kiln load

Four mugs in a set with trees on them, await a glaze load before the kiln can be fired.  These mugs have cover/saucers that go with them as well.

Photos sideways

I'm pretty new to having a smart phone.
I take lots of photos with mine.
I always hold the phone vertically.  And snap the pics.

Today I discovered Etsy won't let me use any of those vertically oriented photos on my little shop.  These aren't exactly "professional" level photos...but I did set up a nice background, and had natural light, just like they asked me to do.

And all the pots lie there on their sides.  There is no Etsy fix.  I looked through 60 or so of their topics that had very little to do with sideways photos.  Finally tried the forum page, and others had had it happen, and spoke of using Picasa to switch them around.  So I edited all the ones I wanted to use, saved them after turning them on their sides then back to vertical, crossed all fingers and toes. And finally it worked. 

And of course then I had to click about a dozen other tabs that have nothing to do with pottery.

I'm so glad Etsy is there.  I'm waiting to make a sale on it.  I do like browsing other's shops and choosing favorites.  I'd like to sell something some day.  Maybe I need more pots listed.  So today I've got a few more to post.  Now that I've got the photos upright!

Chopstick Bowls

Hi blog buddies

Just checking in with you.  I'm still not feeling 100%.  Let's see, I guess if the best day I've had in the last year were 100%, then I'd currently be at about 85%.  I'm very grateful for that.

I went to the studio downtown yesterday and glazed 4 mugs and 3 tops.  The glazed stuff will all sit around a while, it looks like.  Charles started firing a glaze kiln that had already been loaded before I got there.  And the bisque shelves look like there will be enough for a bisque firing soon.

It was 62 in the studio, inside.  In the 40's outside, but windy, so I got pretty cold, and started coughing, so I went next door to warm up, and get a cuppa, and use the facilities.  And stayed an hour.  I didn't plan to, but I had to run back to lock up the studio.  I felt bad about deserting my friends and my duties, but I had finally gotten so there wasn't that shivering somewhere inside.  Not quite to where my teeth chatter.  Just felt too cold to be comfortable. 

My coughing treatment is changed after seeing a specialist on Monday.  I'll let you know if it's successful.  If not, who knows what's next.  So for now I keep on keeping on.  Slogging through February.  Seems pretty much the approach I expected to have.

Dry and waiting

For the firing to bisque it...right now at bone dry stage is the most fragile.  I even put a note, thanks for not touching, in hopes nobody will try to see the other side or something strange.

Didn't make it into the last bisque firing, so it will wait another week or so.  With this weather we're having, the students have cut back a bit on their production...what, you disagree?  Well, that's my impression, but I admit I was out of the studio for a week.  I'm sure my one or two pots a week weren't missed.

And serving soup now...

Yes, I couldn't skip having soup in that bowl that's captured my heart.

Just a can of plain old Campbells Chicken Noodle, with a half can of water added, throw in the microwave for 1 min, and voila! 

Oh I need to tell you about the butter colored butter dish.  One of these day's I may get around to selling it, but it's very special.  You see, on the bottom, I scratched out "Make butter into gold." and signed my name.  I love the silliness of that concept.  People seem to go gaga over gold, and butter is still a pretty neat thing, I think.

Isn't that a pretty place mat?  My present for Solstice/Christmas in 2012 from Tai and Kendra.  They wash and fold and are ready to go back on the table, and these days really brighten up things!