Okay, so here’s an update…
My good friend Cory McCrory and I have decided to do a creative collaboration!
She’s a wonderful artist… full of whimsical imagery, colorful surfaces and beautiful textures. We’re both participating in the same art fair during the last weekend of August. So we thought it might be fun to do a project together just for this show!!!

Art In The Garden – Saturday, August 30th & Sunday, August 31st.
At the home… err, in the garden of our mutual friend & metalsmith Amy Taylor.
More details to come…

So… since this show has a garden theme of sorts, Cory & I decided to work together to make a limited edition of collaborative “garden” pieces. We’ve worked together to develop the plan. Brainstorming ideas. Working on the whimsy. Getting it all started. Cory has her pieces in the works & under wraps, and I’ve started to work on my part of the project tonight. Here’s a hint… with more to come…

With the Schaumburg Prairie Arts Festival drawing close, I’m in the final stretch and trying to squeeze in as much as I can. And at this point in the game, you gotta love low-fire terra cotta projects that can be fired once in an electric kiln. So it’s down to the wire… make, make, make… trying to make as many as I can, and get them dried in time to get them safely into the kiln… and back out in time for the art fair next weekend. The sides are set for this batch, next up… bottoms & rims! Then onto another batch!!!

So glad these turned out as expected. These textured wall pillows are part of a special order I’ve been working on for one of my best customers. I’m generally not a fan of commissions or special orders… but as a special request for a special customer, I had to bend the rules. It’s not every day Marilyn turns seventy!!!

Fresh out of the kiln… soda-fired slab vases! Each with a different texture “picture” on each side. Here’s a few quick glimpses of the latest textures & finishes…

Before class tonight I had a bit of time to add some flashing slips
to my latest batch of salt & pepper shakers.

These are handbuilt with clay slabs… and I call them “textured tile” salt & peppers because they are similar to the textured tiles I make. Just a bit larger, a bit “puffier” and will someday be filled with spices! After class, I drilled the shaker holes with my power drill… and now they’re drying overnight as I’m loading them into a bisque kiln tomorrow night!

While my computer has been down, I’ve been getting a lot done in the studio. Coincidence?!… maybe I should “break” my computer more often?! Anyway, I’ve been working on some new pieces with a lot of textures & patterns. Here’s a couple sneak-peeks…

So here they are… I’ve been making some pieces that I hope will hang on the wall. My plan is to make them in a couple different sizes so people can put them together for a great wall hanging piece! We’ll see if my plan comes together…

After setting up in Hinsdale, I made it home in time to put some finishing touches on a few more new ClayQuilts. Arranging my handmade tiles onto boards to hang on the wall. Glueing them down so they’re dried and ready to take to the art fair in the morning. You know how tough it is to make them look so random???

I unloaded my latest electric kiln last night and got out these cute little terra cotta trays. They’re small & textured… ready to be matched-up with my new salt & pepper shakers!

While my soda kiln was cooling today, I took a chance to make some terra cotta planters & trays. I figure I’ve got a few hours today to make things, and then a couple days to dry & fire them before they’re ready for the Schaumburg Prairie Arts Festival this next weekend. Gotta love a good once-fired terra cotta project!!!!

And some small terra cotta trays for my new salt & pepper shakers. I just hope they fit?! I measured, but these look a little smaller than I expected? And now they’re going to shrink when they’re fired?… uh oh…

Bowl #2 – Originally a plain bowl with a bent-out, flanged rim.
Now with a little accent border of stamped texture!

Bowl #3 – Originally a flared out rim & fluted edges.
Now with a border of stamping just below the fluted fun.

Bowl #4 – Originally a large plain flange on a small bowl.
Which is really just a great “canvas” to do some stamping, right?

Bowl #5 – This one was originally just a bowl with a split rim.
Now it’s stamped and pinched back together in all the right places!

Bowl #6 – In class we left this one with the split rim and pinched together in 8 places.
I added a couple stamps, some little add-ons and a bit of curving.