Well, today was my day in front of the camera. Who knew?…
that my little “addiction” to kiln filler & textures might get me on HGTV?!
That making little textured rattles might get me noticed?! Crazy, huh?!

Let me back up a bit…

A little over a week ago, I was contacted by the Producer of an HGTV show.
You know, one of those shows where they go in and transform an average couple’s
home with cool design. Showing the creative choices, installation, design choices…
all leading up to the “Big Reveal” where the couple sees their new room for the very
first time. Well, this is one of “those” design shows!!! And here’s the host…

Yep… that’s Meg Caswell. Winner of HGTV Design Star season six.
One of those Reality TV shows where they compete in design challenges weekly
and get voted off one by one. Until the last one is standing… and she gets a TV Show!!!

The initial contact came through the Producer who did a search and found my work
on the Internet. Good thing I’ve been keeping my blog up-to-date, huh?! She contacted
me and asked if I would be interested in creating some custom ceramic knobs & door pulls
for the kitchen they are renovating. So of course I was intrigued… and FULL of questions.
We did some e-mailing back & forth, including some samples & “mood boards” being
shared. She also stopped by my studio to check it out, meet with me… which I now realize
was probably also my “audition.” Once we had worked out the details, I was in…
and now facing a production deadline to get all of the knobs & pulls done in time
for the “Big Reveal” taping.

Luckily, we came upon a creative solution… where I would make the knobs in a very
similar style to the textured Relic Rattles I’ve been making for about a year. Handbuilt
stoneware, textured, stained and fired to cone 10… minus the rattles! The plan gave us
different shapes, different textures and different stain colors to play with. I gave the
Producer a few samples that she shared with Meg. Her choice was to go with two shapes,
each with their own texture, and one stain color for continuity.

So I’ve already made the knobs… “squares” for the cabinet knobs, and “horns” for the
drawer pulls. They’ve already been bisqued in my last kiln… look closely, they were the
“still too wet” pieces sprinkled around the kiln… masquerading as simple “kiln filler.”

Today was my day in front of the camera!
Complete with Meg, a full crew, professional lighting, wireless microphones, makeup,
craft services, the whole “shebang”! I guess I never quite expected the full production?!
But there I was, suddenly in front of the camera, with Meg… cameras rolling!

The plan was that we were going to do a little banter, discuss the project, look at a few
rattles I’ve made as samples, do some interactive demos where she plays with clay,
and so on. Everything went really well… despite the fact that it was SO hot in the studios!
No one expected 80-degree days in mid-March… so no one planned on air conditioning.
I’m sure we’re both going to be glistening with sweat. Even though the makeup guy did a
couple touch-ups along the way.

Hopefully they got some good shots of my work and my studio while they were there.
And the witty repartee and banter with Meg will come off well on-screen. Even though
I’m pretty confident that my hours & hours of “brilliant, Emmy-award worthy” footage
will be edited down to a mere 20 seconds or so!

We finished the initial filming – the interactive studio work with Meg… “the Talent.”
Then they left for a short time to do some prep-interviews that will be spliced into the show.
While they were gone, I set up two more demo areas so that they film some B-roll film
that they might intersperse – montage shots of me working on the actual knobs!
Complete with a change of wardrobe to make it “appear” as though time has passed
and the process is well on its way making the actual hardware the homeowners will see
in the “Big Reveal.”

So… that’s the story so far.
I’ve kept it to myself for the most part. It was kind of in the category of “too good to be true.”
I didn’t want to hype the project until I was sure it was going forward. I was afraid that the
plug might be pulled at any time… apparently, not to worry. It was a very professional
production. All of the people were great to work with. And I wouldn’t mind doing it again!

I just hope I don’t look too stupid on screen.
Or too sweaty…

When I find out the air date, I will definitely keep you posted.
I will also do a blog entry about the step-by-step process of the actual pieces I’m making.
Until then… you’ll need to wait for the “Big Reveal” also!!!

So it seems like everything is coming together nicely…
and my “intriguing proposition” project is coming to fruition soon.
I can’t quite reveal it all yet… but here’s another hint.

Don’t get too excited… it’s really not THAT big of a deal.
More to come!

Remember when we were all “forced” to buy digital boxes for all non-cable TV’s?!
Somehow telling all of us that we need a digital box to watch regular television shows?
What?… free TV no longer free?! And to make matters worse, when I plugged in my
digital box, I also lost most of the channels on my studio television!

With this latest & greatest “improvement” they shoved on us, I got four stations!!!
So my TV viewing in my studio has been quite limited and I’ve been watching a LOT of DVD’s.
Until today…

My studio neighbor Lisa told me she knew how to fix the problem. Who knew?!
So we unplugged, replugged, scanned, rescanned and did some other mumbo -jumbo
and I now have a LOT more channels. Including ABC which I’ve been without for a long time!
So today.. we even got to play “JEOPARDY” at 3:30pm!!! Thank You Lisa!!!

It’s been so nice taking some time off these past few weeks.
Time off from both the pottery studio and my “glitter gig” responsibilities.
Time off for the holidays – both Christmas and New Year’s Eve.
Time off to play with friends – sharing meals, stories & gifts.
Time off to watch FAR too much television!!! And I do watch too much TV.

And I seriously don’t think that my TiVO has EVER been empty!
Except maybe the first day when I first plugged it in?!!!

This window on my TiVo is usually filled with shows, hours & hours of TV all
piling up because I don’t have time to watch them! Many shows with that little
yellow symbol threatening to delete shows if you don’t watch them soon!

Now that I’m all caught up on my favorite shows…
I can’t wait to get back into the studio! Starting tomorrow!!!

I love clever puns… clever wordplay gets me every time.
I love giggling… and seeing people giggle uncontrollably in an awkward situation.
And now I love Anderson Cooper for both of those reasons.

Yes, generally professional, straight-laced, and well-respected CNN Anchor
Anderson Cooper has combined a crazy “news” story with a ton of puns and
cracks himself up. On air. On CNN. On one of the most respected news shows
in the country!!! Imagine him doing this while interviewing the President…
or the Queen Mother… or reporting from the front lines in Iraq… or while hosting
“The Mole.” Yes, some of us do remember that he got his start on broadcast TV
as the host of the reality show “The Mole.” We should have known then…

Click here for the video… Anderson Cooper Giggling on CNN

And then, the following evening on CNN, he revisits the incident and puts humself
on “The Ridiculist” and calls out other on-air TV gigglers! More giggling fun…

Click here for the follow-up video… Anderson Cooper Puts Himself on “The Ridiculist.”

Happy Birthday Lucille Ball.
Hard to believe that she would have been 100 years old today
if she were still alive! Yet sadly, she’s moved on to another comedy sketch in the sky!

Luckily, her legacy of laughter will live on forever.
Whether she’s battling the chocolate conveyor belt…
or hatching another scheme with Ethel… lying to Ricky… teasing Fred…
or pitching the ever popular & everyone’s favorite Vitavetavegamin!!!

The new cast of the upcoming season of “Survivor” was announced today!!!
Only sixteen players so far, with the promise of two yet-to-be-identified returning
“Survivor” alumni who also be joining the cast! I can’t wait…

Mark your calendar now for the season premiere…
Wednesday, September 14th on CBS. And let the games, and the gambling, begin…

Special thanks to TV Land cable station and last weekend’s Season One “marathon”…
because I now have a new favorite TV sitcom. With all of the past season’s episodes
back to back, keeping my TiVO very busy… I’m now all caught up and ready to go
with Season Two of my new favorite… and soon to be yours too…

Okay, so it’s not the classiest… or the smartest… but it is very funny & witty.
And you know how I LOVE WITTY!!! And with these four classic funny ladies
at the helm, how can it not be funny?! It’s got Betty White after all.

Here’s the basic premise… three jaded & superficial girlfriends from Los Angeles
are on an airplane bound for Paris when they need to do an emergency landing in Cleveland.
And instantly find out that they men there find them “hot” as they are. No need for their
superficial ways, they normal guys in Cleveland find them irresistable. So they decide to stay.
One of them leases a house for the three friends in Cleveland that comes with a housekeeper
in the sarcastic form of Betty White!!! And hilarity ensues…

We’ve got Valerie Bertinelli, post Jenny Craig, as the grounded, level-headed one.
Wendie Mallick, as an aging & very self-centered former soap opera actress.
Jane Leeves as an English aesthetician looking for a Green Card.
And the incredible Betty White hurling slurs & witticisms at all of them!

Let’s not forget some of the other guest celebrities either…
Carl Reiner, Tim Conway, John Schneider, Wayne Knight, Joe Jonas, Amy Sedaris,
plus Susan Lucci and the cast of “All My Children”!

So check out your cable programming and find “Hot In Cleveland.”
You’ll be glad you did…

Yesterday, my studio “neighbor” Karen Patinkin asked if I would be
interested in splitting a cone 10 reduction kiln with her. Of course I said yes.
Unfortunately, I’ve been focused on my next soda kiln… and not cone 10.
So I asked her when she would like to fire and when I would need to have
my pieces ready to go. She mentioned two weeks!!! Yikes.

I’m always up for a challenge. So I started the production process today with
several hours of quality studio time. I used about 75 pounds of clay making some
of the “standards” I know I’ll need for the upcoming art fair season. Mugs, bowls,
soap dispensers, tiles and more! So I’m thinking that tomorrow I’ll be faced with
a LOT of stamping!!!

And if a day of throwing weren’t enjoyable enough… tonight was also
the PBS broadcast of the “Les Miserables” 25th Anniversary Concert!
So I got to play in the clay and hang out with all of my favorites… Eponine, Fantine,
Cosette, Jean Valjean and Javaert. The concert was great… even if it was on my
small, dusty & splattered studio TV! Didn’t matter… still completely enthralling!

And now that I’m home for the evening, how “convenient” that the second broadcasting
of “Les Miz” is currently playing on my larger & much cleaner living room TV.
It’s all so much bigger, brighter and more beautiful on a better TV. Looks like I may
be staying up a little longer than expected this evening. Shucks!

Okay, so I’m in the middle of Season Three in my “LOST” re-watch! And…
tonight I got to one of my all-time favorite episodes… that everyone else hated!!!
When it first aired, there was a LOT of griping about how stupid the episode was.
How it didn’t matter. It was a useless-information episode. That nobody cared
about these two people who unexplainable show up in Season Three… as though
they’ve been there the whole time?!

I thought it was brilliant. And very tongue-in-cheek how the writers finally
addressed the viewers questions about “the rest of” the passengers who survived
the crash of Oceanic Flight 815 – but never got to do anything “on screen.”
Okay, so we had Arzt who tried earlier… but we all know what happened to him!
They finally introduced two new characters who were “there all along” but gave
them a storyline, interspersed them into scenes we had already seen previously
and used them to reveal things from a different vantage point…

and then killed them!!!       Kind of… oops…   SPOILER ALERT !!!

Imagine how exciting it would have been for these actors to finally get the call,
and find out they’ve landed a spot in the hit show “LOST”… only to find out that
you only get three episodes and then you’ll be buried alive!!!

Going through “LOST” again from the beginning has been great fun. There are lots
of little things that I had forgotten about. Plus hints & clues that we didn’t put much
thought into – but now knowing how it all ends, some scenes take on new importance.

R.I.P. Paulo & Nikki… some of us will miss you!!!