Not a bad day at the art fair today! It’s always nice to win a prize ribbon… and sell a bunch of pots at the same time! Were there again tomorrow from 10:00am-5:00pm at the SCHAUMBURG PRAIRIE ARTS FESTIVAL. Be sure to stop by… my now “award-winning” booth to say “Hi” tomorrow! Ha!!!

Healthy greens in stamped greens! Thanks to my friend Sarah for making this yummy salad last weekend… and serving it in one of my glazed serving bowls. Ever notice how handmade pottery can even make “healthy” food look better?! HA!!!

Well, here we go!!! Let the summer art fair season begin!!! Yes, this weekend will be the kick-off to my schedule. And several people have asked… so “YES the Schaumburg Prairie Arts Festival is still ON” even with all of the construction around the Municipal Center location. There is apparently a LOT of construction and the booth locations have been all re-arranged. I will be located on the far other side of the pond for the first time…. Booth #98. I’m sure there will be detours & signs… but I also know the artists will truly appreciate those who make the added effort to stop by & support the local artists this weekend.

Just stamping another large dinner plate… all with one handmade clay stamp!

Mental note to self… during an early-morning trimming session, don’t leave a stamped pot “unattended “ on the wheel. Because you might accidentally step on the pedal while you’re sitting down. And then bad things might happen.

Oh well, it’s just clay!

Just doing a little stamping here on some little oval vases!
All with my own handmade stamps pressed in one by one… by one… by one…

This week in my SURFACE DECORATION class, we tackled stamping & sprigging. I showed them the basics of how I approach a pot, how try emphasize the shape & geometry of the pot with my stamps… and the most important part… how to stamp! Sure, not rocket-science, but there are a few tricks!!! I did my demos and then set them loose… with their own stamps they had made the week before, as well as some of my collection. Many of them had made their “homework” pieces to work on, but I was glad I had a made a bunch too so they had more to “play” with! I tried to emphasize how stamping can become addictive… and they heard the mantra more than once…

MORE IS MORE!!!

It’s another Floral Friday… this time with an oval vase full of orange tulips gracefully cascading to the side. I love how oval vases allow the flowers to spread more side-to-side… and not always so vertical like in normal vases. A little stamping… a little soda-firing… and a little soda flashing on “raw” unglazed B-Clay!!!

Good thing there are “always” more where that come from!
Plenty of mugs for another MUGSHOT MONDAY…
and a LOT happier than Matthew’s broken one!!!

A true harbinger of Spring… a beautiful vase full of orange tulips for another Floral Friday!
Two different varieties of orange tulips to compliment my stamped & soda-fired vase.