Raven Pottery and Art Nutz in Southern Pines NC

Raven Pottery and Art Nutz opened last month in downtown Southern Pines on the corner of Broad and Pennsylvania. The building is on a corner and has lovely big windows, tin and brick inside and a large variety of pottery and arts. Raven Pottery is our friend Anne Raven Jorgensen who moved from Seagrove to Southern Pines a few years ago. She had been working from a coveted garage attached to her house when the opportunity to partner with John from Art Nutz came up. She jumped in and the new space is working out wonderfully for her. She has set up a wheel at the back of the shop to work. Then  she has a set of stairs just around the corner that lead down to the basement where she has plenty of room for a working studio.

It is one of those great buildings with tin and brick to show off the work inside.
And- there is a women who is setting up a Crepe business next door.
Don't you know that all those people full of Crepes and chocolate are going to just float over to spend some money on pottery.

Anne's work area just up the first aisle

I am already making my plans for a trip when the Crepe business opens.
If you are in Southern Pines or Pinehurst drop in and see the new gallery.
Look for Anne of John they will be happy to help you.
Cheers, M

Walking the Walk

While walking the cliff walk in Newport we came across this group of trees. I was fascinated by the possibilities of how this group formed. It appears that one of the trees was damaged, who knows how, but had somehow rooted to grow in another spot. It makes me think about all those times when things happen in our lives and we have to find a new path to follow.

I am still working on hangers for tiles- clay work delay. Mark has been busy filling his cart with new work. I will have to slide over to get some pictures from his side of the room. The weather this week end holds promise of real fall. I found it hard to believe this is almost October with our too warm days. It will be an a/c to heat week. Cheers, M

What's up Buttercup?

Hello!
It really does take a week to recover from a week's vacation.
We jumped right back into work when we really wanted to continue to travel.
In fact Mark is already looking at the next destination.
That one is going to take more planning and more money so we had better keep right on working.
So what are we up to.
Making pots for the baby gas kiln, firing the tiles for the awards. ( fingers crossed on this one, I know I have a curler or two in there.)
And just muddling through the hours.

we want one of these for the pond. What do you think- would people pay to come and let us paddle them around?

Now for the down and dirty list of things to make for the next firing.
Do you ever just go blank when you are throwing for the next kiln load or do you keep a list of things that you start with?
I use to keep a list that I pulled out of my head.
Now that the brain has too many list I have to write it down.
But number one on the list is always Mugs.

The tried and true of any potter, I mean, really, is there a potter who does not make mugs.
The mug is as close to the most simple art form I can think of.
An art form you get to hold and drink out of everyday.
I don't think the folks that are getting their coffee at the "bucks" think about what they are drinking out of.
It is just the delivery system to get the coffee in, pop open the computer and plug in or plug out.
The hand reaches for their cup with no thought and they drink with all thought on the computer.
What happen to the moments of picking the right cup for the day?
First the making of the coffee---smell it don't you.
And then the act of curling your hand around the handle, breathing deep as you go for the first sip.
Now that 's coffee drinking.
Better go make my self some.
Cheers!
M

The Pucker Gallery; or how to do good business.

Yesterday when we were working the UPS truck drove up.
I figured since we did not order anything that it must be Mark's coffee order.
Mark has the best MIL that I know of.
Every year for Christmas she has bought him a coffee subscription.
If you know where we live you know how valuable this is.
3# of good coffee delivered at your door- life is good.
When Mark came through the door to the studio it was not coffee it was a package from the Pucker Gallery.
Inside we found a catalog from the show, a beautiful calendar book ( oh my gosh it is wonderful)
And a very nice note from the owners.
The note recognized our visit and the mention of their Gallery on our blog.
( you never know who is reading...)  
How thoughtful and we are so touch at the time they took to send us a note and these publications,
that we already treasure.

From the inside a quote:
It is one thing to be intelligent,
it is quite another thing to be wise.
and this one:
We certainly do live life forward.
and understand it backwards.
and each page has one after the other of beautiful tea bowls.
Yummy.....
This made me think of the little things we do for our customers.
We always enclose a Thank you note when we ship.
It is a note that just simply says," thank you for shopping with us at Whynot Pottery, we hope you enjoy your pottery for years to come."
I hope when they receive the package that they feel as I did yesterday just touched a little by a thank you and kindness.
And again if you are in Boston put the Pucker on your list of things you must do while you are there.
A few more pictures:

It's pouring rain here and after our dry, dry summer a very welcome change.
But remember it's dry inside the store so come on out and get a jump on your Christmas list!
M

Just a few more from the 3rd floor.

who would not want to hold these- although it was here I became very nervous about  prices...

 

 

 

Yum...

blogger decided this was best displayed on it's side- go figure

Some of our favorites from The Pucker Gallery

We were so glad we remembered that Hollis told us to be sure and ask to be taken upstairs. I like Copper red okay but it is not one of my favorite glazes in all the world. I am much more drawn to warm colors. A beautiful Temuku can make me swoon. We were happy to find a wider variety of galzes on the second floor. I fell quickly in love with the yellow piece, second picture. It would have been my choice to highlight the show.

Mark was digging the bottle and look at that orange!

My pick of the litter!

a bit of blue

this piece was pretty cool, but a bit much as your ink well.

We are back in the grind of working, lawn mowing and doing our own cooking....
Such is life.
Come on out and see us.
The weather has been down right nice for the south.
Fall is coming and those cool night call for an open window or two.
M

The Pucker Gallery Boston Mass.

The first day in Boston Mark and I found ourselves quite lost right out of the tunnel from the airport. We were trying to find our way to Charlestown to meet up with Hollis, but we shot out and around Boston traveling under the bridge we needed to cross but never figuring out how to get up there.
We stopped and after studying the map found a route and we were right there. All we just needed to do was turn left , when oh *&##**! we were in a lane to take us back through the tunnel and back to the airport. We ended up turning off before we went to the airport and ended up???? we did not know where. We pulled over and tried to figure out where the heck we were. I finally thought East Boston and we started trying to figure out the best route back to Boston. Finally I thought look for water and following the evacuation routes. This worked - we spied a sign for Boston, followed it to a bridge and there was a true to the right for Charlestown and we were on our way to find Hollis. After two harry rides and toll money twice to get into Boston we were happy to find parking and Hollis. And Charlestown was a beautiful and "calm" city after Boston- we were already thinking to never drive there again and this was day one!
Hollis wanted to send us over to the Pucker gallery and see the exhibition of works by Brother Thomas.
We glanced through the catalog and my thoughts were, "like hell" we are going back.....
Anyway we did go back on our last day in the area.
BUT- we parked and rode the train/subway.
Love that public transportation!
And here are some things we saw:

This was not in the gallery but upstairs-do ASK to go upstairs!

My favorite of the copper reds- rich glaze this one was.

hummm this was okay....

More copper

And a few more

I will let you digest these today and tomorrow before I post some of the pots we saw upstairs.
The show focused on some of the more flashy pieces, but the true treasures were upstairs and they tell you, "please pick them up".
And boy did we.
Cheers- good to be back in NC but the Cape has stolen our hearts.
Cheers!
M

Thoughts of our fellow bloggers

We took a vacation.
Really, we did!
And it was wonderful.
We have wanted to go to Newport RI for many years.
One Mark was born there and has really good memories of the area.
Two- I had never been.
This semmed like it was a good year to go.
Boston, Newport, Cape Cod and then back to Boston.
Let's just say the places were spectacular, the food wonderful and the company grand.
It was so hard to leave.

For Dan.....

digging of the clams- they make you work for you dinner!  ( so I sent Mark)

tasty!

the only tourest trap I wanted to go in and had no problems getting Mark to go along.

We did get to the Pucker Gallery in Boston which I will share later after I get the pictures together.
Thanks to Hollis and Dee for sharing their lives, house, food, friends and love of the Cape with us.
Cheers!
M

What happens when you turn left out of the driveway?

You get to be with some wonderful people......

Moving right along

While waiting for the kiln to cool last week we started an order of 15 tiles that will be donor awards for a conference being held in Raleigh the first of October.

We know we are cutting things close with our time on the order.
We finished carving the last one yesterday and now it is all about the drying.
Slow,slow,slow.
We did make two extras for those just in case moments.

Now, about those green beans.

We waited, watered and gave up on them. I was heading out to just pull them out when I saw beans.

Lots of beans. We have been enjoying and sharing the beans for sometime now. When  they finally decided to give forth and give up some fruits they went all the way.

I think Mark is ready to say enough! Yet, everynight we say these are the best so far.

They climbed up so far I had to use a ladder to pick them.

I wonder what Jack would say about my beans.....and just think Mark wanted to trade those beans for a cow.

Silly man!

Happy Week-end.

M

and then the tidal wave hit!

Bam! And I hit the wall!
I have been waylaid by one of my rounds of vertigo that hit me right out of left field Tuesday night and laid me up for a couple of days.
Dr. visit, drugs and time.
I am much improved as I can now walk somewhat of a straight line and get from point A to point B with out feeling like I am on a ship during a massive storm.
Here is another quick look in the kiln of pots on their way over to the gallery/store.

 And what are these?
Frogs of course!

 Funny looking frogs but frogs they be.
If you arrange flowers you will understand these frogs.
Back to moving around.
Cheers,
M

The small kiln- firing # 4

I have to make this really, really quick.
The firing went great 8 and 1/2 hours.
For the most part we are happy with the results.
And here they are .
More later.

All things P-Pottery and Peppers

Loading her up

The small kiln is loaded, door bricked up and ready to go.
Today, very soon, we will start her up.
It took around 9 hours to fire last time and we hope we can do that again.
This is firing number 4- more of the learning curve as we work this baby out.

filled up and ready to go-well need to brick the door.

 Mark and I went to see our good friends who grow the best veggies to pick up some peppers.
We bought two varieties one for roasting and freezing.
Then the other will be dried and ground into Paprika.
We did this last year and the Paprika was so good, it had so much flavor compared to what you get off a shelf in a store.
I might even go steal some apples today to also dry with the peppers.....I know where there are plenty that are just  waiting for me, wanna' come?

roasters

paprika-for drying

If all goes well- tomorrow pictures of fresh pots.
Off to see about those apples.
M

sorting through the mental stuff.

This past week has caught me quite off guard, but I can not really tell you why.
I mean my life has not been my own for the better part of a year or more or two or three so why now?
Maybe this week it is just all the piles piled high on top of me that promise to make me bend to a breaking point. I am working hard to keep one step ahead and not get smothered as I go.
The only consistent thing here is we are still making pots. We are glazing for the small gas kiln and we should have that finished up today and ready to fire- tomorrow? Or Sunday.

Since it has been awhile firing this kiln I am adding a reminder  of what we put in the kiln and how those glazes worked for us- it might help!

  We built this kiln to fire quicker loads and do some other glazes. But- here is the big but- we have not found time this year to really, really utilize this kiln the way we would like to.
So maybe a few back to back firings would help.
Meanwhile these pictures are worth gold when we go back to see what was in the kiln and where it sat and how the glazes worked.
So very much to consider.
I hope you all have a safe and happy holiday we will be here and open for business.
Our shelves are well stocked so come on out and see us!
Maybe you can watch the kiln fire or take a peek in a cooling one!
M