Tag Archives: pottery

2015 Firing of Hamada’s Kiln

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Last month Jeff packed up a few pots and shipped them off to Mashiko Japan. He was invited by Doug Black to have these pots fired in Shoji Hamada’s noborigama kiln. The kiln was heavily damaged in the  2011 earthquake and was recently restored. The kiln had also not been fired in 40 years. It was quite a celebration and Jeff was really honored to be able to participate. He is hoping to be able to pick up his pots on his next trip to South Korea.

These are the finished pots, along with Jeff’s “bitmoji” head, rising from the sake bottle. At least smartphones are good for a little fun!

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Results

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The wood kiln was unloaded yesterday…

As with most wood firings, you have to take the good with the bad. Unfortunately the majority of my pots got the bad. Only one pitcher survived and it looks great, the other got the hammer.

 The pitcher, like this vase, had the blobs all over it, as well as inside.

These were the only two spoons that were acceptable to me. The others have a so much thick, gray ash that the design was obliterated, and they are quite ugly. Most of my pots with ginkgo leaf carvings also ended up this way. There are a couple that might be saved with some grinding and maybe a re-fire in the gas kiln.

Jeff had some pots that were obliterated with ash, but he also had some really nice ones.

I have come to the conclusion that this type of long firing (4-5 days) doesn’t suit me or my work. I am too disappointed when I have spent hours carving a pot, only to have it obliterated with ash. I prefer a shorter firing with just a little salt or soda. In another week we will have some pots in the wood kiln at STARworks. I am planning to put just a few small pieces in. The firing will be shorter, which means less ash. No ginkgo leaves will be sacrificed!

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Feliz Cumpleaños!

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 Jeff had a birthday yesterday and last night we celebrated with a Mexican fiesta. Our potter friend and neighbor Phil joined us for the fun. The evening got started with a virtual toast, shared on facebook ,with Jeff’s friends from the MunGyeong chasabal festival. Since some of them live on the other side of the world, in a different time zone, they toasted with tea. We chose to enjoy some good tequilla.

Dinner was carnitas, rice, and beans. The birthday cake was key lime cheesecake. It’s a really simple cheesecake to make and the recipe is here. I cut back on the lime and if you can’t find key limes in the market, regular limes are fine. I have made it with both and I don’t think you can tell the difference.

While the carnitas was slow cooking in the crock pot, we glazed pots and loaded the kiln. Today is firing day which means new pots will be coming into the world on Sunday. Sort of like another birthday. I just might have to get another bottle of tequilla 😉

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Through the Fire Box

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Jeff was on the late night stoking shift, at the wood kiln, and snapped this awesome photo with his phone! I especially like the “hot” lady sculpture and the face jug, grinning in the heat.

While Jeff was on kiln duty, I worked in the studio, then settled in for the evening with a dinner of leftovers, while streaming “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”. I am not sure if I had ever seen the movie in it’s entirety! I enjoyed it, but found the stereotypical portrayal of Holly Golightly’s Japanese neighbor rather appalling. There is also lots of littering in the movie. Every package that’s opened and cigarette put out, is tossed carelessly to the ground. Those are just some of my pet peeves and perhaps I noticed them more because of it. I just might stream some more classics when I get the time. Readers, if you have recommendations, please post in the comments!

Our “Mugs for Moving” campaign continues. Thank you to EVERYONE who has ordered a mug. Jeff and I decided to add a give away to the fun. When the campaign ends (probably late spring), we will choose one contributor at random, that will receive a collaboration pot from us. We haven’t decided what it will be, but are bouncing around a few ideas.
Click on this link to place an order: “Mugs for Moving”

All mugs will be shipped by late summer 2015

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Roasting a perfect chicken

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The cold winter inspired me to use the “big” oven, as opposed to my cuisinart mini oven, a lot more. Not only to create some good ol’ comfort food, but to take the chill out of the kitchen as well. Nearly every week I have roasted a whole chicken. A good size roasted chicken feeds us for quite a few meals. I always make a stock with the bones, which gives us a nice soup for dinner and a couple of lunches. Instead of a roasting pan I have switched over to my trusty cast iron skillet. I have combined methods from a few different recipes and have settled on this…
Place cast iron skillet in the oven and heat to 425 degrees
Rinse chicken and pat dry, season the cavity with salt and pepper. Place a lemon wedge, half a celery stalk, and a slice of onion inside the cavity. If you have fresh herbs you could throw some in as well.
Chop a couple cloves of garlic and tuck them under the skin. Brush the skin with vegetable oil and season with with salt and pepper.
Take the hot skillet out of the oven and transfer the chicken to it. Place in oven and roast for about 1 1/2 hours. I alway check the temperature at an hour. When done, transfer to a platter and let the juices settle for about 15 minutes.
What I like about using the cast iron skillet is that if you want to make gravy, you can do it right in the pan. Jeff is the gravy pro in this household, so I always leave that to him.
TWICE I have taken photos of my chicken roasting process. The uncooked chicken in the skillet looked a little icky, I didn’t want to turn off my vegan friends, so that photo was nixed. The photos I took last night of my perfectly browned bird were way out of focus. I will blame the wine for that!
Instead of chicken pics, I will leave you with a photo of a pig (of course).

New piggy bank combo… green and shino!

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Glazing for a Wood Firing

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Jeff and I have the opportunity to put pots in David Stuempfle’s wood kiln, and help with with the firing.  At the last minute Jeff suggested I make a few square bowls using STARwork’s Seagrove Clay. I kept the decoration simple. Stamps but no underglaze or slip. I hadn’t used the fish stamp in a long time. Maybe it’s time for it to go back into the rotation.
Since there won’t be time to bisque fire, these will go into the kiln raw. Liquid wax was applied to the rims and handles and then the interiors coated with Albany slip.

 A few weeks ago I had thrown some vases and pitchers with the Seagrove clay. I had time to slip, dot, and bisque fire those pieces.

It’s hard to believe that the pots above will come out of the kiln looking (hopefully) like the mugs below!

The magic of the kiln.

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“Made in the Carolinas”

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We had our 2 1/2 minutes of fame last week! Jeff and I were featured on “Made in the Carolinas”, a segment on TWC News. I blogged about the filming last month, and weren’t sure when it would be aired. I can’t embed the video in blogger, here is a link if you want to check it out:

The segment brought people to us all weekend. It was pretty exciting and perfect timing for our “Mugs for Moving” campaign. A big GIANT thank you to all who purchased a mug or two this weekend! We are off to a great start, but still have a ways to go. If you would like to learn more, read my previous post or click here: Mugs For Moving

The first bunch of square bowls are out of the kiln. I am very happy with how they turned out. These are a nice size, they hold about 16 oz. Perfect for salsa, dip, and serving veggies.  This weekend I made a few more to put in the wood kiln at David Stuempfles. Imagine them all brown and toasty. Stayed tuned for more about the wood firing.

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Mugs for Moving

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Jeff and I have been in Seagrove, NC for nearly five years. Living and working in these two log cabins has been an adventure that we will always hold near and dear to our hearts. It was never our plan to be in this location permanently. We are renting, and our dream has always been to purchase our own place.
After many years of hard work, and frugal living, we have found that place! We have a contract on house just a mile up the road. It’s a perfect in town location with some acreage and a wooded backyard. All of this is both exhilarating and scary at the same time.
For most people moving is hard work and a pain in a$$, but for potters it’s that X 100. Once more our gas kiln will have to be dismantled and rebuilt, along with pouring a new pad and building a kiln shed. We almost have it covered but a little help from pottery lovers and collectors will make a huge difference. 
Mug for Moving is our campaign to raise funds to get our studio and kiln moved. We are offering three different mug styles for $25 each. This includes shipping in the US, and if you are in NC, sales tax as well. Mugs will be shipped or available for pickup by fall of this year.
The details are on our newly launched website along with a shopping cart to place your order via Paypal. www.gypsypotters.net

Thank you readers and fellow bloggers for all of your encouragement and support over the years. The blogging community feels like family, even though some of us have never met. Jeff and I realize that times are tight for everyone, if you can’t afford a mug perhaps you could share our campaign on Facebook via the handy “share this page” button on the website.

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Mud Season

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We are finally experiencing some warmer temperatures. Since it arrived on the heels of snow and rain, mud season is in full swing.
Monday was spent glazing and loading the gas kiln. It felt good to be outside, even if it meant trekking through the mud. Since we lack a spray booth, this is our outdoor set up.

It works quite well, as long as there is no wind.
The day flew by quickly and as the sun was setting I decided to grab my camera and venture out for a walk around the property. My neighbors cows are always a treat to see. 
I don’t know much, or really anything, about raising cows, so I am not sure why these calves are in this little pen. They were all laying down and quickly stood up when I approached. I will try not to think that they might be being raised for veal. 

This piece of farm equipment makes me think “bionic bug”.
Today’s weather forecast predicts temps in the mid 70’s. More rain is on the way, so I think the mud is going to stick around awhile.

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Yearning for Spring

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I was browsing through photos yesterday and came across this one, take on March 1, 2011…

The tulip tree did not look like this on March 1, 2015! There are a few fuzzy buds and that’s it. We are expecting warmer temperatures this week, even a possibility of 74 degrees. In between those warm days it is still expected to drop into the 20’s overnight.

 Despite the struggle to keep warm and dry, some pots have been made and bisque fired. Yesterday I got all the underglaze applied and wiped down.

Today we will glaze and start loading the kiln. My glazing will be straightforward… mostly nuka glaze and the usual assortment of piggy bank color combinations. There are a few sinks for this firing. Jeff and I do those together. I pour the glaze and he does the turning, dumping, and dipping. It’s sort of a dance that we have choreographed quite well. It can get messy, so we like to set up our dance outside. Looks like we picked a good day for it.

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