I’m in the middle of glazing for my upcoming kiln…
and I’m feeling more than a little overwhelmed and behind schedule!!!

Luckily, my friend Nancy was willing to come into the studio and lend a hand… or two!
She was concerned that she may not be “qualified” to help with my work. But I was quick
to tell her that “any help” would be better than none. Plus, I’m sure that she can handle
any task I would give her. So she was more than willing & able to inlay some glazes, wipe ’em,
stain some ornament tops and other tasks. Tasks which would have taken ME hours!!!…
but luckily, she was there to do them for me! Thank you so, so much Nancy!!!

You know… I could really get used to this. I may need to reconsider getting another one…

Well, the new session of classes began tonight at Lillstreet Art Center.
My Tuesday night class for beginning & advanced beginning wheelthrowing started
tonight with a full classroom of 18 students. Several of my students this time around
are new to clay, or at least haven’t done anything in clay for several years! They were
a little frustrated tonight… as most beginners are. I kept reassuring them that centering
is the hardest part, and each week it would get easier & easier. Trust me…

It was also great to see so many familiar faces in my class. Surprisingly, I have a lot
of returning students in class. And not any returning from the last session. Frequently,
I have a lot of students who just keep coming back. This time, I have students who have
returned after a couple-session hiatus! Including Pam, Ben, Janet, Nadine, Chris…
plus Martin & Christi who actually moved to North Carolina a couple years ago…
and suddenly, without any advanced notice, they show up in class again this session!
Apparently they missed me, and my class, so they had to move back to Chicago…
or at least that’s MY version of the story and I’m sticking to it.

Another beautiful morning along the lakefront.
One bike. Two trees. Which sadly have already begun to lose their leaves?!

C’mon… really?! Why does summer have to end?! And isn’t it too soon?!!!

With another round of Fall art fairs right around the corner, it’s push time in the studio!
I’ve been working hard to make the work, get it all bisqued… and now, glazed!
So tonight I started the glazing process with more mugs! Luckily, I’m working to fill
another soda kiln. Which means that I only need to do some glaze accents and a liner glaze.
So I typically fill all of the stamped impressions with glaze and then wipe it off…
accentuating the details & patterns. Then a quick liner glaze inside the cup… wadding…
and then I’ll let the soda kiln atmosphere work its magic on the side of each piece!

This morning was very quiet.
So calm. So serene. So beautiful.

We’ve often joked that the best part of biking is stopping!
Of course, we jest… kind of. But seriously, I’ve ridden my bike so many miles
to so many great places. Stopping once & awhile to enjoy the adventure, to smell
the surroundings, meet some locals… and maybe even to eat some homemade pie!

Today was the Harmon Hundred bike ride… a hundred miles of fun!
Starting in Wilmot, Wisconsin, coincidentally just a five minutes north of my parent’s house,
and riding up into Southern Wisconsin through small towns & farm fields on rural roads.
And this was the first rest top. Very serene and calm with a layer of morning fog.
Another great day on my bike!!!

This morning was clouded over. With a solid layer of clouds.
And not much “potential” for a beautiful sunrise. Not today. Some mornings I wake up
and see a lot of clouds on the horizon that I know will light up the sky when the sun hits them.
But not today… too many clouds, not a chance.

Then the sky opened up… just a little bit. For just a little while.
And then it was back to cloud cover… and no sunrise ever broke through!
But the waves were still crashing all around. Like little aqua-explosions hitting the lake walls!
Plus, all of the lifeguard stands have been tipped over and moved away from the lake just
waiting to be picked up and put back into storage for another Winter. Always a sad sight.
One more sign that Summer may already be over?!!!

With the crashing waves & wind over the past few days, the lakefront shoreline
was cluttered with a lot of seaweed & debris. Like our own little “homage” to those of you
who have been dealing with the hurricane disasters on the East Coast!

ART DETOUR is just one month from today!
Three days of art, friends & fun up in the Wisconsin Northwoods!
Mark your calendar now for a wonderful Fall weekend getaway. C’mon up North!!!

I will be there with my tent full of pottery, along with some of my friends and their beautiful
artworks as well. We will all be setting up at Pigeon Road Pottery… home & studio of my
friend Amy Higgason. Stop by to see her studio full of incredible pottery, plus jewelry,
paintings, glass beads & fine metalsmithing by Sarah Chapman, Kathy Furda & Wendy Powalisz.

ART DETOUR will be located in Lake Tomahawk – between Rhinelander & Minocqua.
Surrounded by beautiful woods, lots of lakes and plenty of natural beauty!!! Especially in Fall.

Plus, during that same weekend, “allegedly” there is another studio art tour going on
around the Northwoods. We’re not “officially” part of the tour… we’re the Detour!!!
“Alledgedly” there will be a lot of other studios & artists to see, but we’ll be more fun…
and we’ll have s’mores! With a campfire going all weekend to toast your marshmallows!!!

Remember you can follow all of the artists, activities & fun on Facebook!
www.facebook.com/artdetourwisconsin

With a low layer of clouds on the horizon, the sunrise was punctuated with crashing waves
all around. The sound permeated the morning… and made it a bit treacherous to “avoid”
the waves as they crashed up & over… and occasionally onto the bike path!

By now you all should know how much I love a well-packed kiln.
Well, this isn’t one of my better kilns. I’m trying to “speed it along” a bit
and fire things as they’re done to make room in my studio. And a few things
may be just a little damp still. So I knew I could spread a few things and not
stack things quite so tight as normal. But still not too shabby…

Kiln Layer #1 – ovals and a couple mugs… sure I could’a nested ’em… but…

Kiln Layer #2 – and oval, some stacked platters, leaves… and some call ’em empanadas!

Kiln Layer #3 – more ovals and some more mugs

Kiln Layer #4 – a lot more mugs and some bowls… that were drying in Lisa’s studio!

Kiln Layer #5 – now here’s a layer of low-fire fun. The green glaze is low-fire clear!!!

Kiln Layer #6 – and a layer of ornaments, test tiles and a bowl to top it all off!