It’s going to be a warm one today! Even in the early morning hours before the sunrise, my ride was already warm & sweaty. Beautiful clouds drifting across the sky for another beautiful summer day.

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Also coming to ART IN THE BARN… festive holiday necklaces for the kids! With more candy corn pendants and adding new bloodshot eyeballs into the mix… joining the pumpkins, skulls & ghosts. Even the kids should have a chance to enjoy the art fair and buy their own wearable artwork!!! Special pricing if you’re 10 or younger!

Freshly fired in the kiln… these little gourds are headed to ART IN THE BARN this weekend!
They started as one of the first pieces in “The Ghouls Collection.” But they were just too friggin’ cute to retire. So I’ve continued to make more pumpkins every year while the rest of the Ghouls are “retired” when they sell out. A limited edition for the Ghouls… but the pumpkins just keep sprouting up!!!

Okay, “maybe” this one might be staying at home in my own Pumpkin Patch?! Too cute.

Here’s a quick glimpse of the class demo bowl I did for my class awhile ago!
It’s a simple bowl with a carved pattern with a great Zebra Carving tool. But before the carving, I painted the bowl with wax so that the slip wouldn’t get smudged all over the bowl… I only wanted it to stay inside the carved pattern. With the waxed surface, the excess slip was so easy to wipe-off… leaving only the slip-filled pattern. After soda-firing, the color contrast became a bit more predominant. I like how the decoration is “part of the bowl” and not just slip sitting on top of the bowl. What I don’t like?…. there was some cracking and shrinking of the slip. So the drying & shrinkage rate must be off a bit from the clay body. Definitely a fun demo. I’ll have to try it again. Maybe another demo opportunity for this session’s class?

Click here to see the steps that lead up to this!

Low flying clouds and bit of morning fog gave my morning ride a very moody feel. Warm and hazy until the sun finally peeked over to greet the day.

Sweet surprise tonight in our pottery class with the two latest flavors of OREO cookies!!! Of the two, I preferred the Apple Pie OREOs… but that didn’t stop me from eating the donut ones as well. Thanks Taylore & Ryan for sweetening our class!!!

This weekend is the BIGGEST art fair of my summer season!
I’m returning to ART IN THE BARN in Barrington… and I’ll be in my usual space with tons of pots & more. Lower Barn E4 & E6. A double booth with double the fun!!! Be sure to come out for lots of great artists in a great location for a great cause. It’s a fundraiser for the Auxiliary of Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital. So not only do you get some great new art, but you help support the hospital as well.

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Rain on the redbud tree. Sadly, no bike ride this morning. Mwah, mwah, mwa-wet.

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Tickets just went on sale today for the return of “Les Miserables” to Chicago!
Coming this Fall… and opening on my birthday! Go figure. Some sort of cosmic kismet, huh?
You know it’s my favorite musical… and this choir group does an amazing job singing
basically the entire show in just nine minutes!!! Amazing!

Click here for the amazing nine minute YouTube video.

The two things that made me smile the most during the ArtWalk.
One, the fun ongoing wood project that encouraged the kids to measure, cut, drill, sand, etc to build a wooden fort right there on Ravenswood. So cute.

And two, this crazy cool assemblage sculpture piece by Mathias Schergen. A whole bunch of crazy-cool parts & pieces put together to guarantee a smile! So much fun!!!