It was a crazy mix of clouds & smoke this morning!!! With the smoke from the Canadian wildfires making it’s way to Chicago, we had poor air quality & even poorer visibility. Not much of a sunrise as it was struggling behind the clouds & smoke. There was such a smoky “fog” engulfing the lakefront…. practically obliterating the view of the downtown skyline. CRAZY!!!

Roll out those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer! Another warm morning with no breeze along the lake… sweaty!!! Perfectly still waters for shimmering reflections as the clouds dappled the sunrise view.

Loving this single stem of a Black-Eyed Susan… in one of my textured square vases! Thanks for sharing Carmie… both this photo & a few plants for my garden too!!!

After summer camp today, I zoomed home to work in my basement prepping & pricing new pots for this weekend at the GLENVIEW SUMMER ART FAIR. Lots of mugs waiting to be priced… but honestly, I kinda got distracted & sidetracked by cleaning out the basement a bit. Felt good to clean, organize & get rid of things I haven’t used for years. Pricing can happen tomorrow, right?… because now I’m off to the studio to teach class again tonight!

Celebrating the start of a new summer camp day… with FRESH CANVAS on our wedging table!!! Huge thanks to Caleb & Calvin for getting it done just before the kiddos started to arrive!!! So exciting… we’ve had ripped-up canvas for far too long!!! It’s a BIG day!!!

Not a lot of clouds this morning… but the few we did get really worked some magic. Just a layer of low-flying clouds on the horizon. But when the sun finally worked its way through, we got some great layered-sun looks & shimmering reflections. Definitely worth the wait.

Celebrating another MUGSHOT MONDAY with a vibrant collection of magenta roses in a soda-fired hybrid mug. Yes, that’s right… not every mug needs to be used for coffee or tea! Sometimes a big mug can also become a great vase just for the fun of it!!!

After summer camp today, I had one more leatherhard bowl in the studio to carve. So I did a quick sgraffito session with my favorite carving tool from DiamondCore Tools… carving through the layer of white slip to reveal a design & the clay body contrast!!!

Mark you calendar for the GLENVIEW SUMMER ART FAIR this coming weekend… Saturday, July 18th & Sunday, July 19th from 11:00am-5:00pm. We’re at a new location this year due to construction… just a few blocks northwest of the original place. So we’ll be setting up at Attea School this year… and I’d love to see you there with plenty of pottery for everyone… and bring a friend!!!

Quiet & calm along the lakefront. Not a lot of clouds… but just enough to make a colorful splash. And beautiful reflections on the rippled water.