(That's my foot in the bottom left corner of the above photo. Doesn't it look like I only have one leg? I'm like a pottery pirate... arrrg!)
Sunday, March 28, 2010
One fancy-pants firing!
(That's my foot in the bottom left corner of the above photo. Doesn't it look like I only have one leg? I'm like a pottery pirate... arrrg!)
Friday, March 26, 2010
I know why the caged bird wears earrings...
I never did get my new table coverings made. Or my banner (that I meant to make last year). And I desperately need to get a serious, grown-up tent (this is the one I want - I figure if I put it out in the universe then maybe it will magically appear - right?:). I also wanted to lighten up my Summer display a bit so a few months ago I found these sweet bird cagey things and though "Hey, those would make awesome earring displays!"
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Pottery poll
Today in the studio I spoke with Maryanne, the potter who threw the bowl that I glazed in the last post. I ran the idea by her of possibly collaborating on a line of pottery and, happily, she said "Sure, I'm game!" So, I thought I would put up a poll (look to your right) to get an idea of what types of forms people would be inclined to buy online. We would primarily be selling online since both of us do shows with our own work and really don't have the room to be cramming in a new line of pots.
So please be so kind as to take my poll and let us know what kind of pieces you might be interested in. Maryanne can throw anything. I mean it. I listed a very limited bunch of forms so please(!) feel free to leave a comment and let me know if there are other pieces that would really float your boat. Also, you can select all of the pieces that you would be interested in, not just one, so go for it!
Please invite others to take the poll! The more input the better! This info will be so helpful to not only me and M but to other potters thinking about selling online as well. :)
So please be so kind as to take my poll and let us know what kind of pieces you might be interested in. Maryanne can throw anything. I mean it. I listed a very limited bunch of forms so please(!) feel free to leave a comment and let me know if there are other pieces that would really float your boat. Also, you can select all of the pieces that you would be interested in, not just one, so go for it!
Please invite others to take the poll! The more input the better! This info will be so helpful to not only me and M but to other potters thinking about selling online as well. :)
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Glazy glaze..glaze...QUACK!



Friday, March 19, 2010
The whole in parts
The actual visit wasn't much better. Unfortunately my grandmother had to be taken to the hospital due to a collapsed lung and my grandfather was very confused by all the packing and moving that was going on. It was hard to see their house in such an altered state. It was hard to walk around and choose which items I wanted, which things had the most meaning to me. I used to think that everything in that house had meaning to me but then I realized that everything has to stay in that house to maintain the meaning. It is the whole, not the parts. My brother and I looked through hundreds of paintings, remembering when some were first painted, remembering the stories behind others. I selected pieces that had personal meaning to me and I look forward to sharing some of them with you one day. Both of my grandparent's are incredible artists, still.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Some Extra pretties and a big thanks!
Anyhoo, the photo above shows the next phase of some of the pieces I shared with you a few days ago. I just took them out of the kiln this morning. I love the colors and I can't wait to complete them! I hope everything works the way I want it to...we shall see.
The leaf pieces were another request. Leaves tend to be a bit of a cliche in the world of pottery. I think everyone and their neighbor has pressed some leaves into clay at one point or another. But they are pretty, so there! These leaves came from a tree in front of Collegetown Bagels in Ithaca, NY. I carried them around for hours. :)
I'll be heading down to Long Island bright and early in the morning. My family is in the process of moving my grandparents upstate to live with my mother. For the first time in my life they will be living near me and I truly look forward to that. But packing up their house... a house that was my magical escape place as a child... well, that is not so easy. For me at least. I don't know if anyone else is having such a hard time with it, but I am a sentimental girl...
I'll return on Tuesday. Until me meet again...
Friday, March 12, 2010
Three pages
Several years ago when I was going through a rather difficult time in my life I began the practice of waking up each morning and writing. Writing by hand my thoughts, my lack of thoughts, the first thing that came into my mind, anything at all - sometimes it made sense and other times it was complete gibberish. I filled three pages each day. I would write before I did anything else, emptying my brain of all the clutter that had accumulated during the unconscious hours. For me, that is a lot of clutter. My mind is more active at night...it goes into hyperdrive working out problems, solving math equations, staging reunions with old friends, dreaming up the next big idea... It's not uncommon for me to wake up feeling exhausted yet glad to be out of my own head.
I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with my over-active mind. It makes me crazy that it rarely turns off. But I love that it rarely turns off. It's been my saving grace, the one thing that has been consistent throughout my life. Like an old annoying, nagging friend that only has my best interests at heart. It keeps my secrets but never lets me forget my mistakes. It dreams big and helps me to follow through. It's cocky because it's confident (and has therefore earned its right to be cocky). Its connection to my heart is a strong one and it will defend its honor like no one else. Yes, I am talking about my mind as though it were a separate entity. Sometimes I think it is.
Lately, my mind doesn't know where to go or how to empty out. It's so full of clutter, both good and bad. The good: creative thoughts, fresh ideas, a constant flow of newness. The bad: other people's lack of those things. I walked into a large chain crafts store the other day and came face to face with jewelry components that look just like some that I make. No, they are not made of clay, they are metal, and there are slight changes, but I know my ideas when I see them. And I know the manufacturer friended me on Facebook several months ago, out of the blue. They know who I am and now I know what they are all about. And it's disappointing to say the least.
It's hard to say what is more disheartening - being ripped off by a large corporation or by an individual person. The next day I logged into Etsy and came face to face with a copy of one of my oldest and best-selling designs being made by someone else. This is a person who has done this in the past so it comes as no surprise. Her lack of imagination is well documented. This is something I really can't get my mind around. I mean, why would someone want to make something the same as someone else? Do they want the whole world to know that they are not capable of coming up with their own ideas? I realize the temptation is there. I make molds from all types of things from buttons to stampings... anything that has a design that is in the public domain. Public domain means that no one owns the rights to them so any artist can come along and do what they want with it. HOWEVER (!), what they do with it then becomes THEIRS. That is where original thought comes into play. If you did not think of doing it, then don't do it.
But I've said all this before. It's nothing new. Copying isn't new and it will continue. And I will continue to bring attention to it because my original ideas are worth defending. And my mind won't give me any peace if I don't say something. Until the day comes when people develop a sense of respect for the work and ideas of others and acquire some dignity of their own, I will keep writing my three pages. Which means I'll be writing three pages for the rest of my life.
I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with my over-active mind. It makes me crazy that it rarely turns off. But I love that it rarely turns off. It's been my saving grace, the one thing that has been consistent throughout my life. Like an old annoying, nagging friend that only has my best interests at heart. It keeps my secrets but never lets me forget my mistakes. It dreams big and helps me to follow through. It's cocky because it's confident (and has therefore earned its right to be cocky). Its connection to my heart is a strong one and it will defend its honor like no one else. Yes, I am talking about my mind as though it were a separate entity. Sometimes I think it is.
Lately, my mind doesn't know where to go or how to empty out. It's so full of clutter, both good and bad. The good: creative thoughts, fresh ideas, a constant flow of newness. The bad: other people's lack of those things. I walked into a large chain crafts store the other day and came face to face with jewelry components that look just like some that I make. No, they are not made of clay, they are metal, and there are slight changes, but I know my ideas when I see them. And I know the manufacturer friended me on Facebook several months ago, out of the blue. They know who I am and now I know what they are all about. And it's disappointing to say the least.
It's hard to say what is more disheartening - being ripped off by a large corporation or by an individual person. The next day I logged into Etsy and came face to face with a copy of one of my oldest and best-selling designs being made by someone else. This is a person who has done this in the past so it comes as no surprise. Her lack of imagination is well documented. This is something I really can't get my mind around. I mean, why would someone want to make something the same as someone else? Do they want the whole world to know that they are not capable of coming up with their own ideas? I realize the temptation is there. I make molds from all types of things from buttons to stampings... anything that has a design that is in the public domain. Public domain means that no one owns the rights to them so any artist can come along and do what they want with it. HOWEVER (!), what they do with it then becomes THEIRS. That is where original thought comes into play. If you did not think of doing it, then don't do it.
But I've said all this before. It's nothing new. Copying isn't new and it will continue. And I will continue to bring attention to it because my original ideas are worth defending. And my mind won't give me any peace if I don't say something. Until the day comes when people develop a sense of respect for the work and ideas of others and acquire some dignity of their own, I will keep writing my three pages. Which means I'll be writing three pages for the rest of my life.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Sneak peek
Above are some silhouettes that I am very, incredibly(!) excited about. This is just one of them, there will be more. I have a very specific project in mind for them, but I am sure I will make some simple necklaces and brooches with them as well.
Huh. Where was I going with this... anyway...
Monday, March 8, 2010
Mighty Brighty Lighty is Alrighty!
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Stringing wire. Who knew? (AND a giveaway!)
Anyhoo, this bracelet includes three of my own porcelain components and various glass, wood and natural stone beads. It was fun and fast to make so I foresee much stringing wire in my future. Thanks for the help, L!
Friday, March 5, 2010
Be my fan! Please.
In other news, I have been putting a lot of new things in the shop. The four leaf clover necklace above is particularly lovely, and it's the only one I made for some unknown reason (not sure where my head was at that moment). I probably won't have any more ready before St. Patrick's Day, unfortunately, though I will try.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Lost in the land of glaze...

First up I wanted to highlight the new issue of Belle Armoire Jewelry. As usual, it is a gorgeous issue! There is a little for everyone, no matter what media or style you may work in. My friend, Shannon LeVart, has TWO excellent articles, there is a great interview with Stephanie Lee (someone whose work has been very inspiring to me) and Carla Reiter (whose knitted metal jewelry is astounding!) and a new section called From the Boutique which is a gallery of work with quick, simple instructions at the end. And there is my article, Winter Wedding. This is the article that got bumped from the Winter issue (thus the Winter Wedding name) but has now landed in the Spring issue. My article that was supposed to be in the Spring issue got bumped to the Summer issue, so I may have two articles in that one, but we shall see.
Anyway, I'm rambling. On to the glazing! We did a firing in the gas kiln this past weekend and I am very pleased with my pieces. I really had fun glazing. I worked completely randomly, not paying attention to what I was mixing with what. I put zero thought into the placement and color combinations. Just for the hell of it. Seeing the results was so exciting! Below are a few of my favorites. (These are large pieces that will be made into pendants - they measure 2 1/2" in width by 2 1/4" long.)
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