So I teach my students to sign all of their pots as well. And it’s one of my “pet peeves”
when they try to sign their pots with their sharp needle tool. I try to explain to them
that it is too pointy and will just make a scratchy signature that won’t look so good and
will have sharp edges all over the place. Instead, I suggest that they use a dull,
round-ended tool like a pencil, chopstick or ball-point pen to “displace” the clay as they
sign pots instead of painfully scraping into it with their needle tool. In my studio, I use
a ball-tipped tool for my signature. I found it, liked it… and bought a few of them!!!

So over the years, I have signed a lot of pots. And like I said, I never knew that many
people have “assumed” that I used a stamp to keep it so consistent. But it’s not a stamp.

But for those of you have known me and my pottery from the beginning…
you may recall some beginner pots that weren’t signed. My “early pots” have my first name
& year carved in with a needle tool. Yes, I did it too… a needle tool. I have since learned
better. But if you find an old pot with block lettering, we lovingly & mockingly
refer to those ones as “vintage.”

Tonight I trimmed a bunch of things, added bottoms to the ovals and
added handles to the mugs. Getting ready to wrap them up for the night
to keep them “workable” for another day. Once the moisture levels “balance out”
a bit, I’ll add a little slip for a splash of color and then they can start drying!

So I pulled out some stamps and started pressing them in. Making the first “impressions”
of the New Year. Sadly, the newest batch of stamps has not been bisqued yet, so I’m still
using last year’s stamps… picking from the “thousands” of stamps in my studio arsenal.

Next up… trimming the mug cylinders, adding bottoms to the ovals…
and handles to the mugs! Otherwise, they’d just be cylinders, right?!

After a two-hour Lillstreet teacher meeting, sheesh, I finally made it into the studio
to get my hands dirty. First, I started with a lot clay layering & wedging to get some
of my fresh reclaim clay prepared to go. I had reclaimed a huge pile of clay shortly
before the holidays, and just put it into clay bags to store it until I had time to
properly wedge it up. So today was the day. And then, once I had that “task” done,
it was time to start throwing. I started with a couple simple favorites… mugs & ovals.

Some simple cylinders… proving that I am still ready for class to start on Tuesday.
It may have been a long holiday break… but I’m back and ready to throw!

And yes, I do put my name on every stamp… you never know who’s going to
borrow something, where they may “travel” on their own, and I frequently
let my class students borrow a few to decorate their pots!

Just for the record, all of the snow melted within a couple hours.
But it was white when I woke up… I swear!

Layer #1 – bowls, ovals, tiles, ornaments… and a couple Karen Patinkin pieces!

Layer #2 – bowls, ovals, ornaments, tiles and soap dispensers.

Layer #3 – ovals, ornament, soap dispensers, tiles and more

Layer #4 – lots of tiles, a Karen Patinkin platter and some freshly made, still wet tripods
for firing my ornaments in the soda kiln. Yes, I made the tripods about 5 minutes before
loading them. Let’s hope they survive the firing?!!!

And, I think I may have redeemed myself a little better this time…
not as much empty kiln space as last time! I love me some kiln filler…

Well, by now you know the answer is always ‘make more fresh work.’
I can glaze another day.

Kiln Layer #1 – ovals & mugs

Kiln Layer #2 – ovals, mugs & bowls

Kiln Layer #3 – ovals, mugs & bowls

Kiln Layer #4 – ovals… and one more bowl!

Hopefully next Tuesday’s bisque kiln will be packed a little tighter…
as long as I’ve made enough new pieces between now and then!!!