With storms all around, still trying to set up the booth, and trying not to pay
too much attention to the wind blowing the tent around… it was great to have a customer
stop by early to make a great purchase. She saw some photos of my newest pieces and she
knew she had to have them! She called me prior to the show to make sure they were going
to be there… and where I was going to be. I suggested she get there early as I only had a
limited number of creamer & sugar sets coming to Schaumburg… as well as an equally
limited number of the new Double Spice Pots!… name still pending…

Well, the show started at 10:00am…
and yet it was so great to kick-off the show at around 9:15am with a great sale.
It’s a great feeling to have “covered” you entry booth fee even before the show starts!!!

Special thanks to Karen for making it happen…
and for getting my first art fair of the Summer season of to a great start!!!

After last year’s literal “wash-out” flash flood at the Schaumburg Prairie Arts
Festival, I was concerned this morning when I got up to head out to the ‘burbs
and saw cloudy skies. As I got closer to Schaumburg, there were dark storm clouds
all over the place – and huge lighting flashes north of the expressway! Great…
another bad weather art fair weekend?! Not a great way to start the season, huh?

Well, as it turned out, the weather wasn’t as bad as it looked.
Apparently, the real storm passed north of Schaumburg. My parents drove though
blinding rain to get there. My sister in Palatine said they had huge hail storms.
Luckily, we just had dark clouds and wind… the clouds came close, but never quite
made it to the show. Thankfully.

Now I’m okay with dark clouds… I’m even okay with a little rain…
but I’m not so excited about wind. I just hate when the winds blow and the tent shakes.
I understand that my tent is pretty well staked down. It’s not going anywhere…
and if it does, we’ve much got bigger problems going on than just my booth!

As the day went on, the clouds blew out and the storms never materialized.
The sun came out and we ended up having a beautiful day in Schaumburg…
and a lot of great customers made it out to see us at the fair!

The beaches in Chicago are officially open starting today!
I can always tell a few days before when the lifeguard chairs re-appear
and get a fresh coat of white paint! Summer’s on its way…

While there are still far too many things on my “To Do” List for this weekend’s
art fair, I couldn’t resist… and just “had to” go for a bike ride this morning!

Tonight I loaded more pots into a cone 10 glaze kiln.
Marian, one of my studio neighbors, is firing a kiln of her work for the
upcoming 57th Street Art Fair. Lucky for me, she didn’t have enough work
to fill the kiln… so I was once again “Kiln Filler.” I glazed up some more bisqued
work to load in, as well as some of my normal kiln filler tiles & rattles.

Unfortunately, the kiln won’t be unloaded in time for the Schaumburg Art Fair
this weekend… but they will be ready & on their way to Hinsdale!

The morning sky was very rosy this morning with clouds on the horizon
that almost seemed to glow early on…

And then, as the sun finally made it over the horizon, the pink dissipated
and the clouds became dramatic wisps across the sky!

Well, it seems like Summer may have finally made it to Chicago “for real” this time?!
And with it so sunny outside today, I felt it was a great day to bring some “sunshine”
into the studio with some new flowers. And by “new” I mean “new to my studio”…
not really new. I’m just “repurposing” them from a glitter gig again!

Thanks for playing… and for guessing the names of some of the potters
who share their talents during the St. Croix River Valley Pottery Tour!
In case you were wondering…

Here are the 20 potters who I thought had really cool patterns & textures!
And if you noticed, they’ve been in alphabetical order just to make it easier for you.

Potter #1 -  Mary Barringer, Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts

Potter #2 -  Bob Briscoe, Harris, Minnesota

Potter #3 -  Linda Christiansonm Lindstrom, Minnesota

Potter #4 -  Delores Fortuna, Galena, illinois

Potter #5 -  Steven Hill, Independence, Missouri

Potter #6 -  Michael Hunt & Naomi Dalglish, Bakersville, North Carolina

Potter #7 -  Karin Kraemer, Superior, Wisconsin

Potter #8 -  Simon Levin, Gresham, Wisconsin

Potter #9 -  Suze Lindsay, Bakersville, North Carolina

Potter #10 – George Lowe, Decorah, Iowa

Potter #11 -  Kent McLaughlin, Bakersville, North Carolina

Potter #12 -  Jenny Mendes, Chesterland, Ohio

Potter #13 -  Matthew Metz, Alfred Station, New York

Potter #14 -  Donna Polseno, Floyd, Virginia

Potter #15 – Ellen Shankin, Floyd, Virginia

Potter #16 -  Mark Shapiro, Worthington, Massachusetts

Potter #17 – Sam Taylor, Westhampton, Massachusetts

Potter #18 -  Shoko Teruyama, Marshall, North Carolina

Potter #19 – Tom Turner, Mars Hill, North Carolina

Potter #20 -  Richard Vincent, North Branch, Minnesota

So mark your calendar for next year’s tour… it’s always on Mother’s Day Weekend.
You’ll be glad you did. And you’ll see a LOT more incredible work by more than just
the twenty potters I featured here in my little game!

It’s just a few days before the Schaumburg Prairie Fine Arts Festival…
and surprisingly, I’m already packed up and ready to go… almost!
I still have a lot of “busy-work” to do before then… but the tough part is done!

We cleaned, organized, priced and packed up a lot of new pots fresh out of the kiln.
And with the Hinsdale Fine Arts Fair just two weeks after Schaumburg, there’s not
enough time in between to make a new batch of work, fire & glaze… so we packed
for both shows at the same time. Luckily, I made enough pots over the past few months
to give us a full inventory for both shows! So there will be a different assortment of pots
in Schaumburg than there will be in Hinsdale! Come to both shows to see everything!

Schaumburg Prairie Fine Arts Festival – May 26th & 27th, 2012
Hinsdale Fine Arts Fair – June 9th & 10th, 2012

But here’s the funny part… while we were packing the pots, my Mom got “caught”
by a piece of pottery! She was wearing a shirt that had a lace-up neckline and the laces
had a metal aglet at the end. Apparently, the piece of metal somehow got “wedged”
on between the flower pot and the connected water dish. She walked around for a
couple minutes trying to get un-hooked! Of course I had to laugh & take a picture
BEFORE I could help her get it undone!

I’m ready to kick-off the Summer Art Fair season starting this weekend!
It’s been a busy Spring in the studio over the past few months…
making lots of new pieces, glazing & firing to replenish the inventory with new pots!
Including some new pieces I’ve never made before! Click on Preview.

Schaumburg Prairie Fine Arts Festival
Saturday, May 26th, 2012 – 10:00am-6:00pm
Sunday, May 27th, 2012 – 10:0am-5:00pm
Robert O. Atcher Municipal Center, 201 Schaumburg Court in Schaumburg, Illinois.

All of my pieces are already priced, packed and ready to go…
and with the Hinsdale Art Fair just two weeks later, I’ve already split the inventory
for the two shows. So each show will have a completely different assortment of work.
Come to both and see two different assortments! Now that’s a LOT of pots!!!

I hope to see you this weekend in Schaumburg… and bring a friend!
Or better yet, bring five friends! We’re all hoping the weather is better
han last year when we got flooded out of the park!

Remember, you can always follow what’s going on with quick updates on Facebook.
Click the link below to get to my Facebook pottery page – and then click the LIKE button.
www.facebook.com/firewhenreadypottery