A beautiful start to the day… with one big cloud… hanging low, hovering on the horizon!!! Waiting & hoping for it to blow away just enough for the sun to make an appearance. We “kinda” got there… but nothing too special. I must admit I was kinda hoping for more!

Ya’ gotta love when people celebrate the holidays with a bit of pottery to make it extra festive!!! Like this sweet little sipper filled with a “festive” beverage to celebrate the Fourth of July!!!

And then THIS happened… TIMBER!!!

As my collection of trees were sitting on the table, one of them started to slump down… one crack… then two… three… more!!! All of a sudden it started to tip over… and then it all slumped down!!! I’m pretty sure it was just way too wet. Freshly thrown clay, kinda thin walls, and far too much slip slathered on the surface… all adding up to wet, goopey & slumping down!!! I think this would definitely work better if I did it on a slightly firmer “pre-thrown tree” and not an instant demo piece!

Last week in my Advanced Wheelthrowing class, they decided that we should tackle Christmas Trees!!!… a little fun with Christmas in July!!! So we threw the trees on the wheel and then tried a few different surface decoration ideas on them… including a few with some thick white slip, and one with rhythmic chattering through white-over-green slip!

It was fun trying different techniques…
including these last four made by Darcy in class!

For some reason, a couple of the folks in my Advanced Wheelthrowng class are all about making holiday pieces in class?!… and you know I’m always up for a challenge. They want to get a head-start on them so that they’re ready for the holidays to come… instead of rushing last-minute & waiting for kiln firings at the end. So last week in class we tackled wheelthrown pumpkins… next up?… CHRISTMAS TREES!!!

Finally loading the bisque kiln… putting in a LOT of mugs on the bottom layers!!! You know they’re my favorite thing to make, so this has been the perfect project to keep me busy for awhile!

Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer, do…. I’m half crazy all for the love of you! Especially the great example of the spiraling Fibonacci Sequence as found in nature! That wonderful spiral effect, the fuzzy perimeter, the little white curlies… and then the white petals associated with a traditional daisy!

After more than a year of pandemic shutdowns, face masks, hand sanitizers & eventually vaccines… it feels extra special this year to be celebrating the FOURTH OF JULY with friends again. To have a celebration of something good… and not the doom & gloom of the pandemic over-shadowing everything. It feels like this Independence Day might be offering a new sort of “freedom” this year… and I’m thankful that the vaccinations have been making a difference… and making it possible for us to see friends again… including their mouths & noses!!!

Here’s a quick peek at Helen’s first attempt at the “sanggam” technique during our SURFACE DECORATION class last session. You basically do some stamping into the clay, then cover the entire piece with a contrasting colored slip. When that layer of slip dries up, you then scrape it all off to reveal the original surface of the piece, and the contrasting colored slip stays inlaid in the stamps… hopefully creating a smooth surface with an inlaid design. Nicely done Helen!!!

Our SCULPTURE CAMP “Gallery Show” was a huge success! My summer campers were so proud & excited to show-off their sculptural masterpieces to the parents & guests that stopped by. They worked really hard all week… not only making their sculptures & flowerpots… but also memorizing over forty famous artists along the way “thinking” it was just a game!!! Little did they know I masterminding a few fun art history lessons along the way!

JANE – Orange Fox

ABBEY – Her Painting Art Table

BLYTH – A Large Bowl of Macaroni & Cheese with a Cat & Mouse Swimming in it!

MAXINE – Stacked Earth… ala Robert Indiana style!

AMAY – An Elephant Head

AVILEY – Chocolate Labroador

CECELIA – The Panda

SOPHIA – Vintage Movie Camera