So excited to have some new replacement parts for my Giffin Grip!!! If you recall, one of my bottom brackets broke a couple weeks back… surely from years & years of over-use!!! My friend Lisa tried to “fix it”… but it didn’t work. But the wonderful folks at Giffin made sure I was back up & running! Thrilled to get back to trimming like a Rock Star!!!

For the record, they offer a wide range of replacement parts & additional bumpers & posts online if you need to upgrade YOUR over-used Giffin Grip!

You know how I LOVE my Giffin Grip!
It’s such a wonderful pottery tool that makes centering & trimming so much easier! And I was banking on it for trimming all of the commission mugs! So imagine my surprise when I put it on the wheel and it wasn’t centered any more?!!! Apparently one of the black clips on the underside had cracked from over-use!

Luckily my studio neighbor was there… and tried to fix it for me with some plumber’s putty and a big vise clamp! I know they sell replacement parts, but we’re hoping this might work!!!

So I finally got around to trimming these new textured vases. They’ve been under plastic for quite awhile… as I did this demo with my SURFACE DECORATION class a couple weeks ago! We used some of my textured rollers from MKM Pottery Tools to press the pattern into a straight-sided cylinder… and then expanded them while throwing on the wheel. I’m intrigued by where this little texture journey might go… more to come!

Just a few of the new “wheelthrown-handbuilt-combo” mugs fresh out of the soda kiln! These are just a few of the orange ones… my favorite color! I’m loving the bright, clear color, the flash of soda-white that highlights the textures & the all-around-the-mug texture pattern! Many of the textured patterns were made with hand rollers from MKM Pottery Tools.

Methinks there’s a very good chance that a few of these might just make their “Big Debut” at the HINSDALE FINE ART SHOW this weekend.

And yes, I’m still looking for a clever name to call these new mugs!
Open to suggestions… please…

Tonight in my SURFACE DECORATION pottery class, we’re tackling a little sgraffito!!! I’ve got a couple surprises ready for them… and sharing my collection of DiamondCore Carving Tools for them to play with!!!

Have I mentioned lately how much I LOVE trimming?! Especially when you get such clean cuts, lines & smooth edges with my DiamondCore Tools!!! Spinning fast, ribbons of clay coming right off the pots… making cool spirals & piles of trimmings!

We’re nearing the end of the month…
and again, I’m looking for a little inspiration!

Trimming some bowls… and then THIS happened!
A wonderful little spiral of clay that curled around my DiamondCore trimming tool. For only a moment… and then it was cleaned off & back to the trimming at hand!

So I kinda forgot about this bowl… trimmed & under plastic… still a remainder from our first night of SURFACE DECORATION class! We started with an ombre’ blend of green & white slips… which could have been enough. But more is more, right?! So I finally finished it off today with some decorative carving using a P1 curved tip carving tool from DiamondCore Tools. So much better now!