Saturday in Whynot

I was asked to be a mentor for a High School student.
I thought about this and it was just too good of a chance to pass up.
I would not only be working with someone in High School, but she is the daughter of my best and longest friends in Seagrove.

This week Allison and I meet to talk about her project.
We decided she would take two of her designs and interpret them into clay tiles.










The first one she did was cut to 7.7 inches.

The second to be 4 -4x4's.

Thursday we rolled clay to cut for tiles.

Then Allison set to work to draw out her designs to fit her tiles.
First on paper and then on plastic.

Today she used her plastic templates to transfer her design to the clay.
I gave her some carving tools and about a ten second explanation of how to use them and she was off!
I was amazed at her confidence with the clay and the tools.
After carving today- we have them wrapped up tight to dry slowly.

She will be back next week and I will keep you posted on how they come out.

Meanwhile; pots are in the finally stages of drying.... more bisque coming up and then glaze, glaze, glaze!

A Star in Star

Last night Beverly and I went over to Starworks for their annual meeting.
The parking lots were full and the building was filling up quickly with a real mix of people, artist, locals and politicians.
When you take an old mill building and add an awry of things to do and things to be done you can get a bit of attention if you do it right and do a good job.

The building is now home to a clay operation, a full blown ( no pun intended) glass studio a heat and air business and others.

The folks from Wet Dog studio ended up here after losing everything during Katerina. They build top notch glass studios which are shipped all over the nation. They are in the mist of their high school program of teaching high school students to make glass. The first program like in it anywhere.

The clay operation STARceramics has now developed one salt/wood body and two cone 6 bodies. They carry supplies for potters who can just pop over to pick them up.

Then there is the gardens, Starworks gardens, which have been built and we are a member of their CSA. We get a vegetable share weekly from them. We never know what will be in the share, but it is always something yummy with a surprise or two thrown in.

The latest endeavor is the Biofuels operation

But who is behind all this?
Someone has to care enough to take on the challenge.
They need to think outside the box.
They need long range vision when all around them say , " It can not be done!"
And that would be long time friend and person of many hats; Nancy Gottovi.
So Nancy can I say, "Job well done!"
The food, spirits, networking and people is great and wonderful.
Hat's off- take a bow and give yourself the reward of knowing things are working.

I wish I had a glaze the color of fall.........

We live in a great spot, on a dirt driveway, with a big pond and lots of trees.
A few years back the person who owns the land behind us clear cut all their trees- ouch! We lost the whole top of the hill and the colors of fall that went with those trees.
We still have some trees back there, thanks to my sister who owns what was not cut.
So yesterday Mark said let's ride over to the zoo you have to see some of the trees they planted in the parking lot, the colors are wonderful.
So we did and he was right---- nice job for a parking lot don't you think!






We then headed into Asheboro for a beer and some food.
Beer- you have to remember it has only been a year since you could have a beer in Asheboro.
And if you are still reading... we have some family news.
Our daughter is going to make us grandparents.....
Cheers!

Taking stock on inventory.

We are working towards the last two kiln loads for this year.
One which, we will fire in November for the upcoming Celebration show,
And the next one, which will be the last kiln we will fire for the year in December, with Christmas orders.

I did a walk through yesterday and Mark is still throwing, pots are drying, the bisque kilns are being fired and unloaded and I am mentally looking to see what else we need to fill out the first load and what we will need for the second load.

One of the older potters use to tell me you need all your Christmas pots made before Halloween. The first year we were in business I thought this was so silly. I remember just working along and taking my time and then BAM!
The season hit and I felt totally behind.
The last few years with the slow down I have changed the way I think.
I try not to be as anxious as I once was since we don’t see as many folks down the drive as we once did.
There is a recession going on and I think we all feel it.
But as any potter knows you need inventory when they do buy.
So we stay busy working and making pot. Just like we always have

Last night I had trouble sleeping and woke up with my mind full of things I need to do. I find that 2 in the morning is a great time to read. I picked up my book on murder, death and mutilation and read for several hours. It is just the kind of book someone needs to put them back to sleep!
I try to read in the evenings and usually this will make my eyes shut quickly, 20 minutes and I am done. But- at 2 I find I can read for several hours before I give it up and take a nap before it is time to get up.
So with Halloween looming this week I am ticking off what needs to be done.
Back at it!

Sometimes....

you need some of this:

in order to go back to this.....

A visit from Tracey and Wes Broome

Well- sometimes you need a day to sit back relax, have some lunch and just chat.
That is what I did today when Tracey Broome and her delightful daughter, Wes, came over for a visit.
I have been askingTracey to let me know when she could take a day off and was in the area that I would be happy to fix lunch.
And that is what we did.
Some pizza and salad fixings on my end.
Tracey and Wes brought the best ice cream and pound cake for a sweet treat.
It was fun to kick back and talk about pottery, families and life.
I am amazed at the relationships that we bloggers are forming.
It reminds me of the days of "pen pals."
You would chose a person to write with back and forth and next thing you knew a friendship had formed. I feel that way with the bloggers. There are many of us who cross many miles daily to check in on one another, cheer each other along, pick up spirits for one another .
And on a special day like today just take some time to " break bread" and get to know each other a little more.

I have just been in touch with Linda Starr who has sold her house and will be traveling across county to see what she and her husband can see before they settle down somewhere and start their new journey into another phase of life.
I plan to follow Linda on her travels and look forward to the day she rolls in here for a visit.
Then it will be time to sit back again, take a day off.

I am amazed and thankful for the new friends we are finding through clay and these online blogs.


And I know, I know- I am looking at these pictures and wondering when I went so gray.
Is it time to go Red or blonde?

Sassafras Leaves.....

The woods around us are filled with lots of different trees. I have several favorites and the Sassafras is one of them.
It grows a bit like a weed here, showing up all over the wooded areas and throughout the yard.
I hate when I have to get rid of one. I really enjoy their odd leaves and the wonderful fall colors they give.
This one has taken up with a large pine tree and is now getting a bit big. It is not a good place for the tree to be growing, but I have not had the heart to get rid of it.
I keep telling Mark it has to go. Then I see it's leaves and now the fall colors and my heart is not in letting it go.
I have used the green leaves as a pattern on tiles- so there is a bond between me and these leaves.
It also brings back memories of my brother and his friends digging the root, making a fire outside and drinking the Sassafras tea.
It seemed so wild and somehow reckless to me, standing there drinking something we dug from the ground.
Mark also watched a show about using the leaves to make gumbo.
We took some of the dried leaves and ground them up , but I confess I have never made gumbo before- But I think about it.
Do any of you use the Sassafras leaves or root?

My mind is on leaves and tiles but my hands are working on the wheel getting ready for the next show.



So tiles need to wait until I have some down time.....

Cream and sugar?

Yesterday as I was making Cream and sugar sets I was thinking, there I go thinking again, about how some items just stand the test of time.
How many items come and go. Honey pots? do people still make Honey pots?
They use to be top on the list, yet, I can not tell you the last time I made a jar for honey.

But, cream and sugars are still on the list.
I do enjoy making them and then lining them all up to see which dance partner will go with the jar.
Are you too tall or too wide to make the cut?
This is one of the few items I sell as a set.
Oh, sure you can twist my arm and I will break up the pair, but I prefer not to.
I like sending them off together and I always hope they are used.
I use to use a sugar jar in my kitchen for salt.
Then once a visiting friend keep asking her two year old why he was spitting out his cereal.
Whoops, that was the salt jar!
Bleck!
I switched jars and keep the salt by the stove now in a different jar I started making a few years back. A great suggestion from my daughter.

I enjoy making this jar because no two are alike. I can have a bit of fun with them and go off in any direction the shape calls for.

Of course you can use these jars for anything.

Jars are so useful because they hold things.

What goes in a jar?

Anything you can think of including your imagination.

Sundays in the fall

Can you smell the coffee brewing....
You get up and walk out to get the newspaper, cup in hand and settle down to read the paper while sipping hot coffee.

What- no- screech........
It's fall and you no longer take the paper....
You get your news off the Internet, and it's all true....
Where are the funny papers????
What!? No funny papers to hold and recycle as wrapping paper.
Hummmm and you say coffee comes in paper cups while you browse through the Internet at your "local" coffee house.
How is Paris Hilton these days?

Sunday use to be the day of leisure.
A day for PJ's, sipping coffee ( in your favorite handmade mug), long walks, family dinners and naps while the game is on.
But did I say its fall?
In the fall we work 7 days a week., One week just flows into the next week.
Then again I gave up my newspaper and I feel really guilty about that.
The newspaper was my Dad's life and work.

He started every day by reading the newspaper.
He ended his work day by putting the paper "to bed".
While we were snug in our beds, my father was working the grave yard shift proof reading to make sure the paper hit our door and others in the wee hours of the morning, every morning.
So, canceling the newspaper was a gut wrenching decision on my part.
But the newspaper is not the paper of my youth or even what they were 10 to 15 years ago.
I now read an article and think, " I don't care what you think." You are here to report the news not tell us what you think and how to think about the subject."
My father use to tell me his job was to report the news not be the news.



If you have read a newspaper lately you know what I mean.

Or just listen to the news. What do you think Katie?

I personally think you should report the news and let us think.
Well there I go thinking again!
Back to my lazy Sunday.

I have clay waiting and I still want to find the time for a lazy walk and here I am on the Internet... wondering where Paris is these days.
I am so out of the loop.
Maybe I need to get the paper.

Loud and Rich!

Trashed.


That is the only word I can think of to describe the way I feel.


We took off after work yesterday to go to a show at the Carolina Theater in Greensboro, a small non-profit in Downtown.


Many years back as they were getting their "act" together we discovered this as a great place to go see music. Not too big, good sound and they get some great musicians in.


We have seen Dr. John, Keb'Mo', Be'la Fleck and Be'la Fleck with Tony Rice ( well if you can find Tony Rice, he does one of the best disappearing acts I have even seen, here one minute and gone the next. When he is propped up on stage he is one fine guitar player).


Last night we went to hear a real favorite Richard Thompson he play with Loudon Wainwright III.They are touring together under the bill of Loud and Rich.
It was a great show and I would have and did give up sleep to be there.


If you have never heard Richard or Loudon live you have to go.
Give up some sleep and take the time.


It was a great show and their affection for one another apparent.
They played separately and together.


A real treat, just a long ride home.


We are open today, but please, don't expect full sentences.


I hear the clay calling....



PS- Today is the LAST day for the giveaway- go sign up and maybe you will win a sweet little oil lamp for your house!
Link in post below..!

Making pots for Christmas and the giveaway

I was on the wheel yesterday making bottles one right after another.
You know the gig.
Thump, whirl, center, pull up, shape, off.
And another,
And another.
There are times that throwing production gives you that same feeling that you get when coming home.
You ,the clay and your wheel.
Just humming along and making some pots....
Then there are times that an idea begins to shape and you think of another shape you want to make.
If you don't watch out you will look down and your bottle will be a bowl or a mug or a vase.
It is where the mind thinks and the hands take over.
I love how potters learn to make a pot, let the mind take over and the hands do all the work.
There was an older potter here, Waymon Cole, who use to say, " If I had any brains, they was in my hands."
I love that expression and think of it often as I throw, or turn pots.
Thunk, whirl, center, pull up, shape, pot.......

Today is the last day to go over to the Women's Colony and leave a comment to win one of Mark's oil Lamps.
I have the lamp all packed up and ready to ship for the lucky winner.
So go- it might be you!
Me- I am back on the wheel today.
Making more bottles for a Christmas order.

We are back and a wee little give-a-way over at the Women's Colony

The trip to Crozet went very well.
The weather threaten rain and cold, but it turned out to be great weather with the exception of some sprinkles on Saturday, which gave way to sun and warm weather as the day moved on.
Sunday morning started out cold, but soon turned beautiful and warm.
One of the best parts of going to this show is I get to see my youngest sister, Leslie. She and her husband and daughter live very close to Crozet and give us a place to stay and food to eat.
How is that for good planning?

Picture- Leslie, me and friend Pat.




My sister and her husband took us out to a great brewpub on Friday night for beer and bar food.
We sat outside and the night was beautiful with the mountains all around us.
Sigh.... where was my camera? Tucked away safe at their house....
The place went went was called "the Devil's Backbone."
It is out near Wintergreen just in case you have a need for beer and some skiing.

When we drove in Friday morning the trees had bits of color in the leaves.
But- through out the week-end, with the cool snap, the leaves went to reds and yellows over night.
By this morning it was a spectacular drive through the Va. mountains back to the Piedmont of the Carolina's.
Plus- I will get fall twice.
It's like having your cake and eating it too!
Yummy.
The great weather did bring out some buyers and we came home a bit lighter then we left.
That is a good thing.

Last week I offered to put one of our oil lamps up on the Women's Colony website as a give away.
Go over and make a comment on the page and you could end up with one of our oil lamps.
Also take time to read some of the pages- it is a blog which I enjoy and hope some of you might as well.


Time to unpack and get right back to work.

Crozet Va

We are almost packed and ready to roll out of here tomorrow for a craft show.

We are headed to Crozet Va. for the fall show.

It is a beautiful spot in the Va. mountains.

I am looking forward to seeing some Va. mountains and with a little luck there will be some color in the leaves.

I love fall....

The display is packed and I am doing the last minute things that need to be done.

Oh, don't forget the --------whatever.

Last time we did a show I forgot to pack the cloths for the tables so we ended up at a fabric store.

The store here in Whynot will be open and running as we leave Beverly here in charge while we are gone.

There is still a lot to do and I had better get cracking.

I hope you all watched the Craft in America last night.

It was really good.

If you could not see it I hope you will find a copy to watch.

The viewing party I helped with last night raised about 1500.00 for the North Carolina Pottery Center.

I hope to have a final count when we get back.

And, if you are in Seagrove, the North Carolina Pottery Center needs to be on your places to go list. ( along with Whynot Pottery!)

M

Pots for the Celebration Auction

Mark and I wanted to make something bright and light and different for the auction in November.
We used some cone 6 clay that I use for making tiles.
Mark made a jar and creamer and I made a tray.
We then laid down some slip and I carved a pattern through the slip.
I then used green and blue slip to fill in the pattern and dipped it all in a cone 6 clear.
Which if you remember a month back I was testing.

We are happy enough with the results to send it off for the auction.

Somebody might "just have to have it!"

Friday night Gala Preview Party.

This is your opportunity to browse and shop the booths before the marketplace opens Saturday morning. We will feature a delicious spread of heavy hors d'oeuvres, wine, beer and assorted beverages. A live band will be performing and the popular Seagrove Collaborative Pieces auction will take place.

Artists from different potteries will work together to make one of a kind pieces, all created here in Seagrove! The Gala begins at 6pm, inside the exhibit hall at the Luck's Bean Cannery in Seagrove. Tickets are $35 and must be purchased in advance

2nd annual event Saturday, November 21, 2009 from 9am to 6pm and Sunday, November 22 from 10am to 4pm.
Tickets are $5 at the door.

Craft In America

Tomorrow Night! I hope you can all view this if possible!

The North Caroilna Pottery Center

Just a few more

It is Monday and time to get right back to glazing tiles.
Below are a two trays and some oil lamps from the last kiln.
If you live where we do you need an oil lamp for those times when the lights go out.
Two and you can still play a game of cards.

A few pots from the kiln.

The vase fresh out of the kiln.




Mark- tray



Three of Mark's small egg vases







three of my jars


three of my bottles

Station Break

Kiln is cooling, I am glazing tiles and family visit with Mark's mom and brother- just talk among yourselves.

I'll be back!

Louise at Joel's wedding.