A satisfying end and new beginnings

This is the end of the kiln for us, the beginning of a kiln for others.
Today, we clean, and plan.
Dreams can come true.
M

We live in

 interesting times.
When life is filled with so much controversy and you fill as if you will explode from all the news of the day, it's time for a car trip. Yeah, I know you don't think you have the time, but when better to just get away and clear out your head.
So just do it, pack a bag, grab a map and make a plan.
Ready?
No thought, just go.

Remember when folks hit the road for the unusual locations? When we travel we like to look for what is off the highway. Interstate travel is fast and made to get a person from point a to point b. The backroads of travel are made for a slower pace of life, just meandering the roads, following the new and unexpected to find the gems of the backroads.
We are one of those places that is a destination, you need to come off the highway to find us.
If you do you would not be disappointed, we have rolling hills, it's hay cutting time, cows, goats, chickens, and a lot of pottery shops. At the end of the day look for places to stay in Asheboro, Southern Pines, or even locally in a B&B.

 Food, we have several local restaurants in our area.  If you need a bit a night life, head to Asheboro for a beer at Four Saints, a glass of wine at  Lumina, dinner at Bia's Hardware. There are other places to eat that you can look up, these are just our favorites.
So, pack a bag, grab your car keys and get out, it's good for the soul. Call us, email us, let us know you are coming.

 Just a few pots from the last kiln load. I took the black vase outside and spent a few minutes trying to get a picture and noticed that the black glaze picked up the red from the building and the green from a tree. I like those elements even though I know it is just a reflection.

Happy Thursday!
M

We did fire last month!

Oh, I forgot to let you all know, the kiln was loaded and fired.
Seems we need to do that again since we sold all those wee juice cups last week.
More later, I promise.
M

tiles from the last kiln of 2016

Yes, there was an

  election.
No, we are not going to talk about it here. Instead I bring you sheep.
Before I could get these ready for the shop many of them left for new homes.
These hold a special place for me for many reasons.
Maybe soon I will share that with you.
Tonight they are here just for you to enjoy.

Keep the barn door closed tight, you never knock who will get in or out.
Later!

Mugs

 I guess I was taking pictures of mugs from the last kiln load. There were other pots in there, but the mugs seem to be front and center.
Can a person ever make or own enough mugs?
Tea, coffee, hot chocolate, beer, water, yes, water.
I like a glass with a handle, that is the truth.

More pictures coming, we unloaded a tile kiln as well as a mug kiln.
Ms. B we are keeping you for another firing.

Boo! Treat or Treat day!

Ms. B Just in time for

Halloween......
We have loaded up Ms. B again, we are trying to open the load up in the hope that we can get even heat throughout the kiln. We have several test in the back bottom shelf where we are testing some new glazes to  use them in the colder spots.
 When we first started making pottery we did not want to "throw" to the kiln. Well folks after 35 years of this we have found you have to plan around the kiln.

 I am also added some mid-range test into the electric kiln with my tile. We are trying to figure out if we can't get what we want walking through gas reduction then maybe we can get sometime from the electric kiln. We are playing with fire.

Fire today, cool tomorrow, unload on Friday.

We had a visitor tucked into one of our windows yesterday. He might have been happy to stay with us, but we placed him back in the woods.
Same frog different light. I love the look of, I have a secret on his face.

Time to hit the studio,
M

These pots rock

 Just in case you are living under a rock and not going to see our page on face book I will put up some of the teapots from the last firing in Ms. B
I love the warmth of the brown with Mark's quick design running around the pot.
Then there is the new blue ash glaze that can be very blue, but looks good with a bit of that same warm brown to calm the waters a bit.
And, Mark's designs just fit the spaces so well.

 The weather this past week has been calling for some walks at the zoo. Today we walked at the zoo and followed that up by walking downtown in Asheboro just to be there in the calm of the early morning while all the stores were shut up tight.
Then a ride out on the back roads to look at the trees as they start giving the green up to bits of color here and there.
I love fall and remind myself at how quick it can come and go.
Look everyday.

Here is a nice bit of detail on the tea pot lid, just a few drops of glass to make it even better.

 And, here is the glass of the pond.
We have had great weather with little wind to speak of, it makes the pond reflections show up even better.
With a full moon out there it is time for me to take a look to see if it is at the tree tops yet.
Cheers!
M

W

Late Summer brings guest calling

When ever I start a batch of tiles I am always thinking about what is new and different that I can put on them. There have been some ideas that come right from my yard, lizards, butterflies, flowers, and now praying mantis.
This female came to visit the other day and I had to get her to pose for me. She was not thrilled to be stopped in her mission of leaving the heavy load of eggs somewhere.

She decided that she would fool me by heading up the side of the house right by the front door.
As soon as I turned my back to do something she was gone.

Look at how menacing she is, ready to eat me up to protect the babies.
She went on her way as I left her be, after all, I have all I need to place her on a tile.

There were some good ones.

 There were two teapots in this past load that have gotten more than their fair share of attention on the FB pages that we have.
I thought I would toss them over here for those of you that don't, won't, never go there.
The one on the right has sold.
The one below has not, but the B&B in Seagrove likes to have one of our teapots to use for their guest. It is probably going over there to be used and enjoyed.

I tried taking a few pictures with my phone camera. The results were very blah. I went back to the camera. I kept one to show you a before and after. Mark probably used a bit more clay for this new one.
Teapots are on the list again for the next kiln load.
Yes, we didn't quit.
We have, mostly him, been reading about all the changes that have been made and are being made in our tiny world of ceramics. There will be some testing in the next few months.
And, your favorite glaze might just be on hold while we work this out.
I was looking at a bowl that we use in our kitchen while cooking lunch yesterday, I noticed how well the glaze look, melted, depth of color that the glaze had then.
Oh, yes, the good old days.
 It made me remember how we had little doubt in what we were doing then, throw, glaze, fire. We were on a roll and didn't even know it.

We are enjoying a few days of snow here, along with some ice.
Snow is always better.
It is our hope it all melts on Sunday.
Stay safe, warm and dry.

The last plan I am

going to make for this year

 We are bouncing around in the studio, cleaning, tossing and working on a load of pots to fire for the New Year. 
At this point we are working on our plan for the coming year as this one is quickly running downhill.
It has been raining, raining, raining, I am sure that unless you live under a rock you already know about this crazy warm rain we are having.
If it was snow we could toss this to the wind, curl up on the sofa, and watch movies all day. Instead we are pretending that we are working in order to "earn" our credibility points for taking time off later.
This is the only good thing about being self-employed, the carrot of time off later. Wait! I guess this would apply to anyone who works. We are all reaching for the carrot.

In the planning stages I am still working out how to load the top shelf for the kiln differently than we use to. I have found that using some plate setters as a way to place things under and a place for things to sit on top has been working pretty well.
The plan is to give the "crown" shelf some space without making it too short or too open. This has been working pretty well for us.
  I found that it is also useful to take some pictures so that I do not have to figure out this puzzle twice.
I do like that my cell phone can be my dairy for this since I usually have that on me.

Ever feel as if you are in a bubble?
This was us at the MC Escher show in Raleigh.
I was trying to figure out how to take a picture while they ( the wise-hats) were all trying to teach me how to hold the phone so that I was in the picture and not hidden by the phone.
What a laugh.
Great show you need to go see if you are in the area.

I need to go pretend to work some more, or not...
Cheers for 2016!
M

A month of Sundays.

 It's been a month of Sundays since I last found some time to just sit down and write about what is going on here.

We had family in, my favorite part of the month of Sundays.
We worked, I went off to school, we are working the best we can to keep both ends of the candle going.

Yesterday, as a kiln cooled, we drove to our favorite place to relax a bit before we start a new week.
The addition of Four Saints in Asheboro is that perfect place where everybody knows your name.

 There is nothing like walking in and being greeted by the guys who own the place, running into a few friends and enjoying the fruits of their labor.

On one of your trips to see us I suggest you stop in.

This has been the view from my kitchen window the past few days, so still that I feel as if I am living in a picture book.

  The clouds were writing messages of love.
 I am heading out to unload the kiln, followed by 2 days at work, packing for a show, spending the weekend at the show and getting up to start over again.
A month of Sundays might just pass us again.

I'll see you when I see you.
M

For the record books

 We are enjoying the most beautiful fall weather I can remember in many years. Then again, my memory can fail me as easily as the leaves float from the trees.
The past three weeks have brought out all the colors.
I always want to bring those colors into the pottery, the tones are so beautiful and rich.

October will fast give way to November, then we are all in a down hill slide to winter.
Get out and enjoy some of these days as they unfold.

More salt jars in the works.

We'll let you know what is up next.

Cheers,
M

Yes, it's wet

 Top to bottom, Front, Middle, Back.
Overall good firing, a little crawling on a few pieces.

Some gems, flattened bottles by Mark.