Sadly, today was the last Andersonville Farmers Market for the summer! So sad… yet another sign that Summer is over!!! Luckily, I stocked up on farm-fresh honey crisp apples… and had the perfect bowl to put them in when I got home!!!

Where have the morning clouds gone? This is like the fourth day in a row with practically no clouds in the sky! Now while most people “love” beautiful clear sky days… as do I… I still maintain that some dramatic clouds in the morning make the sunrise more spectacular. I love when the sun has something to “play with” and spread colors & shadows all over. Clear skies are fine… but I’d like a little more skyshow drama please!

Last night in my Intermediate Wheelthrowing class, we had wonderful demo about mocha diffusion as a kind of surface decoration. Spencer had “requested” a demo on mocha diffusion… but then I flipped it and challenged them to do the research, give it a try & then share a demo with the class. Spencer practiced over the weekend, I offered some advice along the way… and I made a bunch of trimmed cylinders for my students to play with. Spencer did a great demo… everyone was excited… and they made some really cool pots with their new surface technique. Thank for a fun demo Spencer! You rocked it!!!

Clear skies with just a smattering of clouds. But still enough to create
some sunrise beauty with bright orange highlights floating along the horizon.

So I’m NOT a “Fan” of the fan! I think it only promotes uneven drying.
But sometimes desperate times call for desperate measures!!

Finished “drying” these to leatherhard so I could trim the cylinders.

Trying to get them ready for class…
but I think they need to be a little drier & firmer for the demo to come!

A not-so-happy MUGSHOT MONDAY! When I was unloading my last soda kiln, I pulled out this hybrid mug to admire it. But then… I noticed a crack at the rim. Dang it… I’ve never had one of those before?!

But then I had a slight recollection back to when I was building the hybrid mugs. And remembering that as I was reshaping them at leatherhard, one of them got “caught” and jumped a little. It looked okay then. I finished rounding it… and forgot all about it. Methinks I may have just found it again?!

Not every mug is a success!

So I let it go… dropping it on purpose to let it go!!!

Crisp & clear with not a cloud in the sky! A great way to start the week… but I might need to add another layer soon?! It was cold this morning!!! “Crisp” is just the euphemism I prefer to convince myself that it’s not really all that cold yet. It worked today…

Since the day was gorgeous, and I was road-trippin’ around Central Illinois… I decided to stop by to check out CHANNAHON STATE PARK on my way home. I had never been there before – so it was kinda cool to see the old locks along the canal. The colors are starting to change. The hiking was easy, more like a stroll along the water. And it was fun to see some wildlife… including a big white swan swimming around out in the wild!!!

Today was another Third Sunday… which means Flea Market Day down in Bloomington. And since today was the last outdoor one of the year… and the skies were blue… I felt like it would be a fun road trip. Saw lots of cool old things… some cool , some collectible & some not-so-much. Loved seeing all of the rusty metal which you know is a favorite of mine! I saw a couple things that were “calling my name”… but I resisted! A fun day with the fleas!!!