Another night in the studio… tackling a class demo platter. Sure, I could leave it smooth & plain, but what fun is that? So instead… time to pick “the right” stamp!!!

Looks like Rosene is enjoying a crisp & juicy summer salad on the this warm & summery Saturday! Looks yummy in that green stamped bowl! Thanks for sharing!

A lakefront morning chuckle!

Not a cloud in the sky… and surprisingly few people out this morning. It was a beautiful ride… kinda like I had the whole lakefront to myself?! I’m guessing that with the beautiful forecast for today, more people will be outside playing this afternoon in the summer temps! I know I will be…

And I might be one of the last three people in the world still getting DVD’s in the mail form Netflix. HA!!! Until today that is!!! Say goodbye to the red envelopes in the mailbox… and a “forced’ hello to streaming. Yes, I am now “finally” streaming on a new Smart TV. I was dragging my heels as I have a traditional DVD player in my studio & spotty Internet service through Lillstreet. So that combination has kept me with DVDs from Netflix. Until today… sad, but true…

I love having talented friends… and trading art with those “Talented Friends”!!! During ART IN THE BARN last weekend, I struck a great trade with Sandy James! She makes wonderful pieces “Of Nature” by electroforming copper on actual leaves, branches, seed pods, etc. Such an amazing way to capture nature & preserve it forever. I was lucky enough to grab this one… so enamored by the “skeleton” of the decaying leaf being captured in copper… forever!

And who knows… there has even been some discussion of some future collaborations down the road… you know how I LOVE a good collaboration project!!!

For more about Sandy’s beautiful pieces “Of Nature”… click here… https://ofnature.com/

But oddly, Taylor wasn’t the only “surprise visitor” in my art fair booth last weekend. So… I stopped & bought some grocery store cookies on my way to the fair for a snack. But when Taylor showed up with HOMEMADE cookies… the store-bought ones went to the side. I set them in a crate that had a couple overstock mugs & my t-shirt inside… and promptly forgot all about them.

So imagine my surprise when I showed up Sunday morning to find some cookies scattered around my booth… and a broken hybrid mug from the now toppled-over crate! I’m guessing that I might have had a little raccoon friend visiting overnight. At least he didn’t find Taylor’s cookies!!!

And… I guess the up-side of broken pottery is you get to analyze your own pottery skills a bit. My wall thickness looks pretty thin & even! Not bad… especially for a “hybrid” wheelthrown & handbuilt combo mug!!!

So I had a wonderfully “sweet” surprise this past weekend at ART IN THE BARN. My niece Taylor has gone off to college about six hours away for her freshman year… so I knew I would be flying solo without her help at the art fair. But then imagine my surprise when showed up “out-of-nowhere” to surprise me!!! I couldn’t process it at first… you’re here?, you’re at college?, what are you doing here?, why aren’t you at college?, thanks for coming?, great surprise?, etc.!!! And then she handed my a tin of homemade chocolate chip cookies that she had made for me… just like my Mom did for every art fair before she passed. The sweetest cookies, the sweetest gesture, the sweetest memories!

But then… oh, but wait there’s more!!!

I also spent the night at Taylor’s house out in the ‘burbs instead of driving back & forth. When we went out for dinner… this PILE of cotton candy came out for dessert… passionfruit flavored cotton candy!!! Just sealing the deal… as the “SWEETEST gestures of the weekend! Taylor’s the BEST!!!

And huge congratulations to my friend Cheryl Holz who won “Best Of Show” at this weekend’s ART IN THE BARN!!! I’ve always loved Cheryl and her amazing multi-media artwork… but this time she really blew it out of the water with this new piece using an old letterpress type drawer! Such an amazing piece… such an amazing talent. You’re the best Cheryl!! Well deserved.

Huge THANKS to everyone who came out to Barrington this weekend for ART IN THE BARN. The weather was fantastic, the customers were great…and I do believe this may have been my BEST Barrington show ever!!! I need to check my records, but I could tell that a LOT of mugs, bowls, vases & Ghouls went off to new homes. It was a great weekend…. and once again, THANK YOU all for being so supportive of your “Favorite Potter”… me!