Gary Jackson: Fire When Ready Pottery
A Chicago potter’s somewhat slanted view of clay & play
Categories: art fair, ornaments, pottery

TOMORROW is CYBER MONDAY!!!
My online pottery event will be going live at 5:00am CST tomorrow morning for those early-risers! It’s the perfect chance to do some holiday shopping safe from home, cross a few people off your gift list… and maybe get pottery and a FREE ORNAMENT for yourself too!

Check back here after 5:00am CST for full details!!!

Categories: ornaments, soda-fired, stamped

Three dozen wheelthrown & soda-fired ornaments will also be part of tomorrow’s CYBER MONDAY online event! I love making them… and tomorrow will be the very first time they’re available to purchase online!

But there will only 36 of them…
so grab ’em while you can tomorrow during CYBER MONDAY.
Full details to come…

Categories: ornaments, soda-fired

Looking for more ornaments for your Christmas tree?
I have lots of different shapes & styles for MY HOLIDAY HOME SHOW! All handmade & soda-fired… with wire hoops ready to hang on your tree, wreath, gift boxes or pretty much anywhere you might want!

Because a handmade holiday is always better!

Categories: ornaments, soda-fired, stamped

Plenty of wheelthrown ornaments all ready for MY HOLIDAY HOME SHOW. We’re open with scheduled appointments during the week, and a somewhat “open” house this weekend with limited capacity access. Click here for more details!

After MY HOLIDAY HOME SHOW, I will be posting some ornaments in “My Online Pottery Store” on my blog for those of you who can’t come to kick-off your holiday shopping at my place!

Categories: ornaments, soda-fired, stamped

Working on my holiday ornaments this afternoon.
Cleaning them up & getting ready to add a metal ring to hang them with! I love how each one of them is so different from the soda-firing… and surprisingly light for a clay ornament! Gotta get them all ready for MY HOLIDAY HOME SHOW which starts next week with socially-distanced appointments.

Click HERE to get more information & appointment times!

Categories: art fair, ornaments, soda-fired, textures

Plenty of stars to go around!!! These little textured stars are perfect as ornaments, gift-tags or just fun little tchotchkes to have hanging about. I’ll be adding strings to them before MY HOLIDAY HOME SHOW which starts next week!

Categories: ornaments, process, production, soda-fired

With the holidays coming quickly, it’s time to start firing my holiday ornaments! They’re wheelthrown and then propped up on these little tripods that I make for them. They’re in the soda kiln, so the tripod raises them and allows for all sides to be affected by the soda atmosphere. It’s always my hope that none of them decide to jump off their perch during the firing!!!

Categories: ornaments, patterns, textures

The sun is streaming into the studio and hitting these cute little star ornaments. Sure, they really need a bit of glaze and wadding… but the sun is shining in?! Which “kinda means” that I might just NEED to go outside to play on my bike again this afternoon? I mean… we don’t get these glorious 70-degree days very often in November in Chicago!!! I gotta take advantage of them… and quick!!! So my loading might be a smidge later than planned this evening… shucks.

Categories: glaze, ornaments, process, production

So I’m still glazing & wadding for my soda kiln… which I will be loading later tonight. I think I’m getting down to the end. Like these ornaments that now have some tenmoku inlaid glaze accents. Some of them will still get a blush of colored glaze before going into the kiln too. Things are coming along nicely… no need to panic yet!

Categories: ornaments, process, production, stamped

Added some accents & details of colored flashing slips onto my latest batch of holiday ornaments. Hopefully these colors will “pop” after the soda-firing! Which is coming up very quickly… it’s THIS Saturday!!!