Tag Archives: pottery lessons

EEEEK!

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 I was heading out to the studio yesterday when I noticed something hanging off of the porch roof, swaying in the wind…

I got a little closer and realized it was a snake skin. A really long snake skin! I know it’s just a skin, but it still creeped me out. Mostly because it means there is a rather long (close to three feet) snake around here. I am hoping that it’s just a harmless black snake. The skin is hanging next to the electric kiln. Today I will get brave and knock it down with a broom. I wimped out yesterday, but I can’t handle another day of seeing it hanging there. 
I will leave you with a happy photo, so that you can wipe the creepy snake skin from your brain.
Jeff had a great time playing sax at the festival in Mungyeong. He was invited to join some of the other musicians on stage. He hadn’t played in a long time, but said that it all came back to him.

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Elbow Grease

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I am spending all of my spare time doing work at the house. The wallpaper in the main bath is stripped. Tonight I will start prepping the walls for paint. I should have taken a before photo. The wallpaper was quite ugly. I think I have settled on a very light gray paint color. I really dislike this whole window in a shower thing. What were people thinking back then?! I was shocked at how well the window cleaned up. It was pretty gross.
Along with the bathroom work, I have been taking out screens, hosing them down outside, and washing all the windows and sills. The house had been empty for many years, so you can imagine the amount of spider webs and crud that had taken over.

Eventually we will replace these pain in the ass crank out windows. We have a few broken pains that will need replacing. I am hoping it won’t be too difficult (or expensive) to find someone to do it.
Doesn’t the “indirect” lighting in the master bedroom remind you of a hospital? And how ’bout those bedside wall lamps?!

When Jeff returns from his trip we will tackle the job of stripping the kitchen cabinets. Some years back latex paint was applied over the oil based paint… it’s peeling off like crazy. This job I am not looking forward to!
The lawn was looking like it was ready to be hayed, so I hired someone to mow this week. Everything is looking so green and pretty! We are definitely going to have to buy a riding mower.
While I slave away working on the house, making pots, manning the gallery, Jeff sends me this picture at 7:15 am…

It was 8:15 pm in S. Korea and this is the evening hang out for the festival participants. The 7-11 is next to the hotel and there is outdoor seating. They can go in and buy beer or soju and drink it outside.
The timing of this trip was definitely not ideal. Jeff could have declined the invitation but would it have jeopardized future invites? Thankfully we don’t have to be out of the log cabin by a certain date. I know that everything will fall into place… eventually.

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Name your pig

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 We unloaded the gas kiln in the late afternoon on Sunday. Most of the load was orders and it was a great firing… thank you kiln gods and Jeff, who stayed up all night to get this firing done before his trip.

These are few samples of the “personalized” piggy banks. I was relieved that “Anne” came out perfect. This was a re-do. I totally forgot to add the flowers to the first one, and didn’t realize it until it was bisqued. If you know someone named Anne that needs a piggy bank without flowers, I have one ready and waiting for glaze! At least Anne is a common name. I am sure it will eventually sell.

 I had some fun with the underglaze on this piggy. It will be available in my Etsy shop tonight…

I took Jeff to the airport yesterday and he landed in Tokyo in the early morning (our time). He is staying with a potter friend in Naga and will visit Mashiko tomorrow. On Thursday he will fly to Seoul. It was a stressful week preparing for this trip. There was so much to do and we both came down with head colds at the beginning of last week. We felt like we were moving in slow motion. To save our sanity we took some things off of our “to do” list. We postponed the stripping and painting of the kitchen cabinets job. Better to focus on getting healthy. The cabinets can wait until Jeff returns.
I am certain they will still be there, in all of their peeling paint glory.

My consolation prize for staying behind was a shopping trip to IKEA! Since I was already in Charlotte, it was an easy decision. I didn’t go crazy but did come home with new towels and shower curtain for the main bath, along with place mats and a runner for the dining table. I will actually NOT have a “photo taking set up” on our dining room table anymore! We have a good size office where we can keep it set up and out of the way. Now to see if we will actually eat at the table…

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Good Earth at 505

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 Our new home was connected to town water prior to our closing. That means a long trench to lay the new pipe… and there was a lot of good looking clay dug up during the process. Jeff brought some back to the studio in February and did some testing. It fired to cone 10!

 Last night I was at the house shampooing carpets, before I left I bagged up some clay for Jeff to process.

Sort of looks like pumpkin pie
All wedged up… we have dubbed it “505” clay, since our new address is 505 E Main St.
Jeff made quite a few purty little cups.
This little cup, made with our 505 clay, was fired in the wood kiln during FireFest. I believe that this is also the glaze that Jeff made from another clay, also found on our property. The clay fires in wood to a nice toasty orange. We are going to fire a bisque this weekend so that Jeff can take few of his cups, made with 505, to Mungyeong, S. Korea. While there, they will be fired in one the traditional kilns in the area. I can’t believe how quickly this trip has come up. So much to do and so little time!!

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Deadlines

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 Jeff leaves on Monday for Japan and South Korea. We have vessel sinks and piggy banks that need to be shipped before his trip. In order to get everything in the bisque firing, Jeff did his creative kiln extension trick…

A layer of brick with some fiber and we were good to go!
I thought this piggy bank order came at just the right time…

Yep, there is money in pigs! The piggy banks sure helped us purchase our new home. Jeff and I also joke that they bought us a brick house. As the story goes, the little pig that built the brick house was safe from the huffing and puffing, big bad wolf.

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Flashback to the 60’s!

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 Lot’s of my friends have been asking when they will see interior photos of our new home. First of all, it’s been empty for 2+ years, and prior to that was a rental. It needs a thorough scrubbing from top to bottom, along with some new paint. I didn’t want anyone to see photos until some of that work was completed.

 This is our main bath… don’t you love that retro green?! The porcelain and tile cleaned up pretty well and we will live with it until we can get new vanities. I think I know someone who can make me a vessel sink. The master bath is a lovely pink, or perhaps we will call it salmon.

Can you believe the original cooktop is still there… and it works?! Today I scrubbed most of the grub off of it. A little polish, new drip pans, knobs, and we are good to go. The wall oven is not original. It’s a newer model with a black front. While searching for cooktop parts online, I became engrossed with all the websites devoted to retro kitchens and baths. Around the time this house was built (1961) pink kitchens were very trendy. I like to think it explains why the interior of our cabinets are painted pink. Perhaps the Mrs. wanted a pink kitchen but the Mr. said no. I like to imagine that the pink interiors were a compromise!

The dining room needed the least amount of work. I cleaned the wood work, shampooed the carpet, and already moved some pottery into the china cabinet. Luckily, both Jeff and I think that the cherry blossom wallpaper mural is pretty cool. We are going to leave it for awhile. Jeff is going to make stoneware knobs and pulls for both the china cabinet and the kitchen. The kitchen cabinets need to be stripped and painted. When it’s done I’ll post a before and after photo. The before photo on it’s own is too scary.

***Celebration of Spring Studio Tour Update***
Day two of the studio tour was very rainy, but the people still came and bought pottery. It was the best Spring studio tour yet. Even though we sold LOTS of pots, we still have some nice ones left. We plan to stay open throughout our move. Come to Seagrove, buy some pots, and we will have less to move. If you can’t come to Seagrove, our Etsy shops are open 24-7. The goal is for our new gallery will be ready by mid-June.

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Celebration of Spring in Seagrove!

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The Celebration of Spring Pottery Studio Tour is my most FAVORITE event of the year! The countryside is green, the flowers are blooming. It’s a perfect time to get the spring cleaning done in the gallery, rearrange inventory, and put out new pots.
Happy couple with a new vessel sink for their bathroom remodel
It was super busy day. Barely enough time to eat lunch in shifts. We still have some nice pots available and day two starts tomorrow. If you are in the area, please stop in!

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