three.

In June I finished one of my part-time jobs (I'm down to just ONE now, how very normal!) and it's allowed me a whole extra day in the studio...last week was the first time that I'd had three full days in a row to knuckle down and it was GLORIOUS. 

big.

I always feel like I'm stuck making small things. I am NOT a natural thrower - it took buckets of determination to stick with the wheel for my first year, til I could finally make pots without crying!!

I ordered a half palette of clay in Autumn and thankfully it's very SOFT, which makes larger pots less scary. It's quite exciting - though I tend to pull them off the wheel and realise that *actually* they aren't that much bigger than the one before...! But it's progress at least!

[good morning!]

stoo-dee-oh

This was December...somehow I managed to squeeze some experiments into my Christmas production line - grown up sized dinner plates!

[snuggling next to the fire in the PineWood Studio showroom!]

[walks to shake off a bad mood]

p b

I've made 40 pots this week. That isn't much at all to proper grown up potters, but it's a HEAP to me, especially as I'm 9 months out of practice (with the exception of the teeny test pots I made at Faye's studio, the last pots I made were for Ebb Tide!). 

I made these 10 cups in 2 hours last night and 10 bowls in the same time tonight - this is a new personal best. (Typing that, I remember listening to a Ben Carter podcast this week that referred to throwing as a sport, quite rightly so.) Before, it was 4 an hour or 8 in two hours. I don't know why I've sped up without practice?! But I appreciate it. Maybe it's my instinct to 'catch up' with this lost time. Maybe because I know I have a Christmas order to fill and I want a good selection of work to sell at my studio warming party next month. Whatever the reason, I love that I have lots of potential to streamline my practice.

But ouch, does my body ache. Must find yoga mat.

new.

These photos are a week old now and I've done much more than throw in the last week (if you follow me on Facebook or Instagram you'll be tired of my clay spam already!), but HERE they are on my blog now.

[happy potter]

[the first pot.]

I've been in the studio every day for the last week, be it for 30 minutes or 5 hours! It's the most darling place. My every thought is 'when can I get there again?'.

Let's go over to Mud Colony! The blog won't be around for much longer, but I want to be a good blogger (for once) and contribute for the last few weeks. Kudos to Adriana for initiating such a brilliant group of potters on the interwebs.

farm throwing.

Early last Tuesday I snuck into Faye's studio to trim the previous week's pots and throw my last clay sample. Her studio is nestled inside a huge barn on her parent's farm. As I drove up the lane I was dodging baby chicks, then greeted by cockerels crows and horses stomping in their stable. It's a whole new experience to throw with so much noise around me - I became so used to filling silence with music on the Gold Coast!

My last sample was PF 700 (Porcelain White S/ware) from Valentine Clays was easy to throw with, however it dried very quickly and warped considerably. I could easily take it into consideration and work with that, but I'd be happier to use a reliable stoneware in the short term.

[Faye's barn!]

last week!

Ebb Tide has absolutely taken over my life. Nothing else is being done, only MAKING! And I love it.

[though I don't win everytime]

[Sunday painting time]

[Monday throwing times]

[and more blissful painting time on Tuesday]

ebbing

It goes on...last week:

[wednesday]

[wednesday]

[counting on saturday]

 This week:

[monday]

[wednesday]

I'm loosing track of the days - Tuesday of this week involved some ill fated wide dishes that I forgot to cut off the bats quick enough. *facepalm*

Minnie seems to be fixed, hurrah!

cylindrical.

I'm tentatively beginning some new work for various exhibitions later on this year. As my throwing confidence grows, I'm trying to push myself to produce larger and trickier forms. Cylinders can be pesky; keeping the walls straight, pulling enough clay up from the base, maintaining an even wall thickness. It's a good challenge, and I like it. 

3 days.

Monday: throwing.

Tuesday: painting.

Wednesday: sketchbook time.

Thursday = Mud Colony! Thanks Adriana!

better.

Today was a much better day than yesterday.

[early morning light in the studio]

[4 porcelain cups, 8 stoneware cups + 8 stoneware bowls]

I feel at peace with the universe again now! Though my fingers still hurt.

hello february

If you didn't know, it's been raining here in the Land of Queens. Despite expecting this annual soaking, we get super cranky when our feet get wet, so everyone rejoiced at the glimpse of sunshine this week. It made for quick throwing/trimming/painting turnover conditions;

 

Thursday means Our Creative Spaces and Mud Colony. Go on, run over then!