When you’ve got twenty cylinders stamped, trimmed and at the perfect leather-hard state,
you’ve got to start attaching handles quick before the cylinders dry out. So I start by
wedging my clay, making sure it is the same clay as the cylinders themselves. Then I cut
the wedged clay up into smaller pieces and pound them against the table to create these
little “carrot” shapes.

Then I pick one up from the fat end at pull handles the traditional way. Basically by dragging
a wet hand down the “carrot” tube from top to bottom. The slippery friction makes the clay
stretch. By switching around your hand positions, you can create handles of different shapes
and widths. When I get mine to the right size & shape, I quickly give ’em a flip and loop ’em
over. They sit this way for a few minutes so that the clay can stiffen up a bit. If you try to attach
them when they are too wet, the handles don’t hold their shape… they get all mushy looking.

When they are ready, I cut off the portion for the handle that I need to attach to the mug
cylinder. Each one is then scored & slipped, and carefully attached to the cylinders.
Paying close attention to the placement & size of each handle and how they “fit” to the
cylinder itself. As I finish each handle, I put the mugs back on my plastic ware boards,
give them a quick spray of water and then wrap them up again overnight. I like to keep
them wrapped in the hopes that the moisture levels between the cylinder and the handle
might even out a bit so they can dry & shrink more evenly later.

Today, while I was attaching my handles, I was also watching this informative DVD of
Tara Wilson as she was demonstrating at the 2009 NCECA Conference. She makes these
wonderful forms, very clean, very smooth, very voluptuous. She does a lot of darting &
altering of her thrown forms, and then fires them in a wood fired kiln to create wonderful
flashing surfaces & finishes. Always fun to watch someone else show how they do
their work… as I continue to add my handles… again… and again… and again…

It’s February… and it finally SNOWED in Chicago!!!
Sure, we’ve had flurries & dustings of snow. But today I woke up to a couple
inches of snow. Which looked especially fun on this great “bike-frame-fence”
I found along my way home from Step Class.

Generally I’m not a fan of graffiti.
I think if you feel like you need to paint something, find a canvas, a board, a piece of paper.
Don’t deface the side of a building or public space that other people enjoy as it is.

But then sometimes you’ll see something really cool & unexpected. Not just some random
spray paint on the side of the wall. Not just some crazy block letters tagging a building.
But actually some incredible graphics. Beautiful designs in unexpected places. In this
case, it was on Grand Avenue beneath Lake Shore Drive near Chicago’s Navy Pier.
Propaganda posters slapped onto the concrete walls along Grand Avenue. Love ’em!
Sadly, like most graffiti… it might not last for long…

So I realize that these images are all part of a marketing campaign. Shameless propaganda.
Yet I LOVE the bold graphic design, the stark black & white contrast, and the dynamic
flourishes, patterns & crisp sense of whimsy. And while the above “segments” are great,
the entire posters were even better. So here they are as they were designed…
although some of them are showing signs of deterioration already.

But then sometimes, the reality of the structure gets in the way of a great art installation.
Couldn’t quite move around the pipes, so they had to be where they were… right in front!!!

Yes, each poster is pretty great.
But the entire “under bridge wall” plastered with these posters was quite a dramatic sight.
So similar in style, yet each one of them a beauty on its own!

Oh, the things you’ll see while playing on your bike…

With a freezing rain today in Chicago, looks like my sunrise bike rides may be
on hold for a bit!? But after watching this video, suddenly I’m feeling like my own
morning rides are a bit anti-climactic. This is a beautiful video with some
incredibly crazy riding… that I won’t be trying any time soon!!!

Maybe it’s just me… but wouldn’t you think there must have been a smooth &
obstacle-free paved road around there somewhere?!

Here’s a link to the video… click on “Danny MacAskill.”

So watch the video. It’s beautifully filmed & edited with a great soundtrack.
Love his sense of adventure & whimsy. And I hope he has a good helmet…
or even better, he should be shopping around for a good helmet sponsor!!!

Today’s his day… A day to remember… Martin Luther King Jr.

It was a beautiful day back in November 2012 when I had the chance to see the inspiring
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial for the first time in Washington, DC.

So thoughtful as he looks out over the Potomac River towards the Jefferson Memorial.
You enter through the large boulder rocks to see that one “slice” as been taken out and
“slid” forward. It isn’t until you walk around that slid rock slice that you see Martin Luther
King Jr. and many of his inspiring quotes chiseled permanently into the stonework.

Here’s a fun game of color-matching. It’s addictive. Be careful.
Just click your cursor on the small circle on the big color ring. Then move it around
to “match” the center color before time runs out. You get a lot of chances…
matching hue, saturation, complementary, analagous, triadic and tetradic.
Who knew there could be so many colors to match?! Have fun!!!

Click here for the game… COLOR.

The beginning of a New Year is always a time for reflection.
A time to consider new directions. New paths. New adventures.
To figure out where you want to be & what you really want to do.
Here’s an inspirational video that might make you consider some alternatives to
your path. Enjoy… and then tell me what YOU would do if money didn’t matter!

Click here for the video… What If Money Didn’t Matter?

I found this online and had to share…
Looks like entire cities are getting more and more excited about DIY Christmas trees.
Last year Kaunas in Lithuania had one made from 32.000 recycled bottles and this year
a Belgian town called Hasselt put up a 30-foot high Christmas tree, made from 5,000
porcelain plates. The plates were brought by around 3,000 residents of the town,
which symbolically titles itself as the Capital of Taste.

The idea was presented and implemented by Inge Vanluyd and Stefan Vanbergen from
Belgian company mooz. “At home we all have odd plates and cups which just don’t go
with anything and as a consequence never find their way out of the cupboard. We
noticed that friends and family also had ‘spare’ plates hanging around the house. This
was enough to get us thinking about a creative destination for these everyday objects,”
explain the creators.
Kinda want to make one of my own now…

In some instances, it seems like Thanksgiving gets overshadowed by the biggest
retail stores infringing on the holiday. Opening sooner & sooner. Offering up
big sales & huge discounts. Keeping people away from their families by making them
work on Thanksgiving! But is it worth it?! Who is really winning here?
Big Business? Yes. Businesses that have nothing to do with your community.

But this holiday season – you CAN make a difference!

Instead of supporting big retailers, we’re encouraging you to “SHOP SMALL”
this holiday season. To support the local businesses that rely on the support
of their communities. Small business owners who are working hard to keep their
life’s work going. People who are living their passion. Many of which are artists like
myself who are doing what they love. And working even harder to make a living.

So this holiday season, take a second to consider Shopping Small.
Don’t give your money to the Walmarts, Kmarts and any other “mart” out there!
Give it to someone who will really appreciate the efforts you’re making to support
your local community and the people who work there… instead of overseas somewhere!