As if  didn’t have enough to do… I knew that I wanted to add another “monster”
to the collection. Last year I made the skulls, pumpkins & Frankensteins. So this year,
I’m adding Vampires into the mix. But of course I’m running late… so after my adult
wheelthrowing class tonight, I stayed late in the studio making these new Vampires!
So now that they’re built, I need to come back to paint & underglaze them all… and add
a layer of clear glaze… and get them into the kiln tomorrow night! Yikes!!!

My terra cotta cylinders are definitely coming together. Monsters taking shape…
But that’s not the only scary thing in the studio. Look at the calendar…
I’m quickly running out of time to get these done!!! Yikes!

During my firing, I knew I had a lot of time to kill. You’re stuck there ALL day firing!
So, as typical for most firing days, I spent several hours cleaning & putting my studio
back together. The pace was a mess for the past couple days of frantic glazing & prepping.
When I finally had a clean studio… it was time to mess it up again!

With “Art In The Barn” just one week away… and Fall kicking in all around us…
I felt I needed to make some more of my terra cotta “monsters” that were a hit last year!
So I started throwing some terra cotta cylinders that will be transformed into their
alter-ego’s over the next couple days. And that’s all I’ve got… my next kiln is scheduled
for Wednesday night. Which means I need to get them all assembled & decorated in the
next few days, underglaze them, glaze them, load them & fire them… and hopefully get them
out of the kiln Friday evening… just in time for Saturday’s kick-off to “Art In The Barn.”

So they may not look like much now… but these will become pumpkins…

And these will be come skulls…

And these will become Frankenstein monsters!!!… if all goes as planned…

Still hoping to make a fourth “monster” too… but too sure I’ll have time?!
And I’m still looking for some “monster inspiration”? Any suggestions???

Well… it was later than I would have liked it to be.
By the time I finally finished glazing & wadding, it was quite late in the evening.
And I still had HOURS of loading ahead of me! It literally takes me hours & hours!!!
Placing every piece in the kiln, stacking shelves & posts… and putting hundreds
of tiles all over the place. My goal is to utilize every possible space in the kiln.
It pains me to see empty space & blank kiln shelves. So I like to make a wide range
of pieces in all different sizes so it all fits together really well. Tiny pieces fit everywhere!
I want every shelf space covered with something!!! I’m the “King Of Kiln Filler.”

With the back stack full, it’s time to move to the front stack. Easier with less climbing inside!
Two shelves deep that stack up together… or separate shelves is it helps pack tighter!
And room for a LOT more work to go into the kiln. More stacking. more packing. More fun!!!

And once I was done loading, it was time to brick up the door.
Closing the kiln for the night… err, well at this point,
it was early morning. Who are we kidding?!

Just a couple days away from my soda kiln… and I’m still glazing!!!
I still have a LOT to get done before I can start loading tomorrow evening.
I have a lot of pieces in different stages of glazing. Some have liner glazes.
Some have glaze inlays in the stamped impressions. Some still need sprayed
color accents. Some need wadding. Some still need a LOT of work!!!
Luckily, my “apprentice” Nancy was available & came in for a second night of fun!!!

I’m in the middle of glazing for my upcoming kiln…
and I’m feeling more than a little overwhelmed and behind schedule!!!

Luckily, my friend Nancy was willing to come into the studio and lend a hand… or two!
She was concerned that she may not be “qualified” to help with my work. But I was quick
to tell her that “any help” would be better than none. Plus, I’m sure that she can handle
any task I would give her. So she was more than willing & able to inlay some glazes, wipe ’em,
stain some ornament tops and other tasks. Tasks which would have taken ME hours!!!…
but luckily, she was there to do them for me! Thank you so, so much Nancy!!!

You know… I could really get used to this. I may need to reconsider getting another one…

With another round of Fall art fairs right around the corner, it’s push time in the studio!
I’ve been working hard to make the work, get it all bisqued… and now, glazed!
So tonight I started the glazing process with more mugs! Luckily, I’m working to fill
another soda kiln. Which means that I only need to do some glaze accents and a liner glaze.
So I typically fill all of the stamped impressions with glaze and then wipe it off…
accentuating the details & patterns. Then a quick liner glaze inside the cup… wadding…
and then I’ll let the soda kiln atmosphere work its magic on the side of each piece!

By now you all should know how much I love a well-packed kiln.
Well, this isn’t one of my better kilns. I’m trying to “speed it along” a bit
and fire things as they’re done to make room in my studio. And a few things
may be just a little damp still. So I knew I could spread a few things and not
stack things quite so tight as normal. But still not too shabby…

Kiln Layer #1 – ovals and a couple mugs… sure I could’a nested ’em… but…

Kiln Layer #2 – and oval, some stacked platters, leaves… and some call ’em empanadas!

Kiln Layer #3 – more ovals and some more mugs

Kiln Layer #4 – a lot more mugs and some bowls… that were drying in Lisa’s studio!

Kiln Layer #5 – now here’s a layer of low-fire fun. The green glaze is low-fire clear!!!

Kiln Layer #6 – and a layer of ornaments, test tiles and a bowl to top it all off!

After throwing my latest batch of ornament forms “off-the-hump”…
I’ve let them set-up a bit and they were no longer sticky or squishy.
So it was time to trim them, add a clay hoop-hanger and some stamps & textures!

Next up… a little slip decoration for color accents, drying then to the bisque kiln!

Continuing my “Labor day Weekend” by “laboring” in the studio!
And today I was assembling some oval casserole dishes. So here a few shots
of each one along the way. Basically three easy steps…

Step One: Throw a bottomless cylinder, and re-shape it into an oval.
Step Two: Stamp the textures & patterns into soft leather-hard clay.
Step Three: Add a slab bottom and lug handles.

Oval #1… in three easy steps…

Oval #2… in three easy steps…

Oval #3… in three easy steps…

Oval #4… in three easy steps…

So now it’s some “slow drying” and then off to the bisque kiln…