After stamping the stacked vase, I had to do a little trimming on the bottom. Thankfully I have my Giffin Grip which helped support the vase upside-down while I was trimming!

After the two-part stacked vase demo, I took the tall vase up to my studio and did a bit of stamping. Always good with a little “creative camouflage” to help cover up the seam in the middle!

For my Intermediate Wheelthrowing class, we tackled throwing larger pieces last week… by stacking two pieces together and then re-throwing through the attachment. There’s always a little apprehensive moment when you hold your breath & flip one over to connect them together. Hoping they fit… hoping they don’t squish… hoping they don’t flop! Luckily, the demo went pretty well… as I connected the two pieces but didn’t worry too much about the finished look as I knew there “might just” be some stamping in the near future!!!

Cute little flowers in a cute little vase. This little bouquet smalls amazing… but sadly, the Lily-Of-The-Valley season is quickly drawing to an end. Enjoy them while you can smell them!!!

A quiet start to a shortened week. Serene sunrise reflections with just a few clouds playing in the sky. A great way to start our four-day work week… except for those of us that have an art fair next weekend… which makes it a SIX-DAY work week for me!!!

So last week during my SURFACE DECORATION class, my students got their glaze test pieces back from the kiln! The week before we focused on some “different” glazing techniques… and I encouraged them to try something new that they’ve never done before. They’re always hesitant to try new things on their own pieces… so I actually gave them some bisqued cylinders that I made for them ahead of time to play on! Overall, I think they all liked the results… learning some new tricks along the way. I kind of wish we had used a bit more glaze on a few of them that were looking for some good glaze drips running down the sides… not enough glaze, not much of a drip!

After the class discussion & demo about sgraffito, my SURFACE DECORATION class set-off to decorate their own pieces. The goal was to get crisp clean lines & patterns carved through the dark layer of slip or underglaze to reveal the lighter clay body. They really enjoyed using my collection of DiamondCore Carving Tools to get some crisp & clean carving lines. The perfect way to let their creative expressions reveal themselves!

Looks like Rosene & Gerry are enjoying a fine morning breakfast… on some fine dinnerware! Homemade food always tastes better on handmade pottery!

A huge THANK YOU to every one who came out this weekend to the Schaumburg Prairie Arts Festival. It was a great kick-off for my summer art fair season. We had incredible weather… and it was so much fun to see everyone coming out to enjoy some art & time in the sun! If you missed out… be sure to stop by one of my upcoming art fairs! Like the Hinsdale Fine Arts Festival next weekend!