I'm trying to make a line of pots that I'm really happy with.

I say "a line of pots," but I don't really want to think of them that way, I'm just not sure how else to phrase it.  A bunch of pots?  A style of pots?  Maybe that's the thing, thinking of what I make as "lines" rather than as simply different ways of creating and surfacing them.  They are in constant evolution, really.  I want them to be interesting, both to me and to the user.  I want people to connect to them, and to enjoy their food just that little bit more when they eat or drink from them.

But what is the right pot?  I *think* I have the glaze colours down, ones that I like and that fit the mood  I'm trying to present, and my personality.  I like the textures I've been working with.  I enjoy both throwing and hand-building.  But something still isn't quite working.  It's closer than it's ever been, but still not exact.

I've got a ton of ideas, pictures in my mind of how they look, but not quite the time required to produce them fluidly.  And then, should I use both white and brown clay?  My heart says use brown, but should I provide other glaze colour options?  Maybe not.  Am I working too hard to produce a "product," rather than an expression?

So many questions!! :-)  This is how my mind works.  Questioning myself all the time rather than just making.

For the Farmer's Market I'm working on some pieces that I've never made before--mortar and pestles.  I think the first ones will be for pressing garlic cloves.  My sister will give one a try so hopefully I'll get some good feedback on them.  Also French butter dishes.  That's new but could be an interesting item.  For the market I'm trying to think a lot about food prep and serving.

This is an example of my latest favourite "way of making:"

That's a slab built, textured sandwich plate and small soup bowl.  The glaze is painted in the circles, then wiped off the raised surface.  The glaze recipe was given to me by a friend.  It leaves such a lovely glow on the clay.  I just love it.  And it's fun to see people looking at them, picking them up and fitting their fingers into the grooves.

Getting started is the hardest part

I just came across this un-published post I thought I'd put up....It's from well over a year ago.  There are more like this.  But the concerns always ring true....how to get and stay organized...a lifelong quest.

So now that January is here, and it's a new year, I'm working at getting some plans together and make this the best year yet, with regard to the creative side of life.  So far, the year has started out with quite a bit of energy, but I find myself running into the same issues as before....time management and distractions.  I'm the first to admit that I am easily distracted, and working from home with all the daily tasks that need to get done does not always come easily for me.  I can build up tons of ideas while doing something else, but it seems there is always something else to do before I can get started on them....doesn't really make much sense, given that I feel most myself when I'm making something.

For now I'll plan to really step up my work this year.  I'm going to renew some lapsed memberships, most notably with the Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador, search out new local craft sales to take part in, and really work at letting my pieces evolve, both in clay and fibre.  That seems counterproductive..."working at letting my pieces evolve."   Perhaps I work too hard at that..

Today, with O home unexpectedly, we'll start with something simple, pinch pots.

Working on getting some new listings in the shop today.

I've been busily working away in the studio, making sure I have a good supply of buttons for Knitter's Frolic (Toronto, in April) as well as new ones to list on etsy.

Also coming up in two weeks is the West End Pottery Sale.  For that I'm putting together my functional work.  Not totally happy with the mugs that just came out of the kiln, but I'm thinking I'm a little preoccupied with buttons.  Ha!  So I'll save those photos for later.

March break ends after this weekend so schedules will be (more or less) back to normal on Monday.  Thankfully I have a wonderful SO who was able to take the week off to occupy les enfants.  They've been enjoying what will likely (and thankfully) be the last of the snow for this year.

Summer Projects

I'm working on a bit of goal setting at the moment.  Right now it feels a little scary to set them since I'm not sure I'll be able to fulfill them all, but I guess I need to make my best effort...Maybe just writing that will help.

One of the goals is to start thinking more about my blog.  Truthfully, I'm never sure what I want to say here.  But I do know I'd like to post every week, and if I can get in the habit, maybe a couple of times a week.

I'll start with this post.  No photos.  Photos will come.  I'll start to carry around my camera a bit more maybe.

The summer is gearing up to be busy!  More about my plans another day, but it will involve markets, fibre festivals and more.  Today I signed up for the first time for tour de fleece.  I have two full fleeces that I said I'd try to have spun by the end of the summer.....Anyway, this will help me make some headway on that!  Must get them washed in the next few days, will post photos next week.

Cheers!

Button button who's got the button

I've been making a lot of these lately.  The shop has quite a few sets and there are currently more in the works.  They are just such a joy to make.

Today will involve spinning up some batts that were put together yesterday, submitting another craft sale application and maybe working a little bit on some of these:

I finally left my tech job, so from here on, starting this week, aside from the few pottery classes I teach, I will be a full time maker.  Nice.  I just wish it hadn't taken me so long..

Setting Goals

So, I'm trying to set some goals for myself.

Things I need to decide on:  

A business name that encompasses all the things I want to make.

What exactly I will make.  (I find it really hard to limit myself...but there has to be a limit...)

How much clay, how much fibre.....Clay has been my main "thing," but I'm really enjoying creating yarns...

Dare I say I'll try to keep up with regular blog posts?  Maybe a monday mornings would work, to keep me focussed for the week.

 I'm also going to get to work on some buttons for Buttonmania, which will be part of Fibrefest in Almonte in September.

Building Momentum

Let's hope I can keep this up....

Spring

What beautiful weather we're having. I know it will temporarily come to an end next week but for now we will enjoy it. Olivia just loves being outside and since I'm just working nights this week we will take advantage. Yesterday we went for a walk and stopped at a park with Toffee. We watched the ducks in the little stream and threw rocks in the water. Everything is a joy to an 18 month old.

Today we'll walk over to Olivia's new daycare to get her registered, then maybe surprise the boys at school. They're having a sugar shack day today, and what a great day for it!

Also on today's list of things to do is to get some mohair dyed. I ordered some from Dyeing for Colour on etsy to make a few more skeins of stoney pink for a special order. I Might also get a start on another skein of pistachio ice. A little more dyeing today? All this plus some tech hours at the studio tonight. I think days should be 30 hours instead of 24.

Organic Cotton

The winter edition of Wild Fibers had a really interesting article about an organic cotton farm in Northern California. I was so inspired that I had to give it a try. The fibre is sold as both yarn and sliver, it was definitely the sliver I wanted. Spinning it was interesting; with a very short staple length it required some practice before I got it down. I ended up splitting the fibre in half three times to get a good spinning thickness, then plying it together to make sure it would all stay together.

But the coolest thing is when you set the twist. It has to be boiled, as opposed to wool which has to be treated so gently to prevent it from felting. The hot water causes the colour of the fibre to deepen so this beautiful soft green colour in the boiling water is much darker, and still so lovely!

At the moment I'm knitting it up into a sweater for a soon-to-arrive baby, it is so so soft and will be perfect.

The next skein might make it into the shop if I can keep myself from knitting that up for Olivia...

a studio downstairs

My poor neglected blog. So many months have passed and I haven't even attempted to keep it going.

Well, with a bit of a lull happening this week and Olivia starting daycare next week things could change. Here in Quebec we have subsidized daycare and so for just $35 per week life will be a little more organized. I was hoping to be able to manage her early years with her staying with me but with 20 hours of teaching and teching things just never seem to get done around here.

First and foremost I will be making more work. My studio, which since the move is now downstairs as opposed to out back, has been sorted out and is tidy. It is finally truly workable.

So I figure I might work a little more on clay pieces. I've been making these little cars, something I always wanted to do when my sons were younger, though I think they still might enjoy them. I have to look into the regulations for selling things on etsy intended for children. The other question would be if I start making more clay items do I have to open a clay shop or can I keep adding them to a shop intended for fibre items? We will see.

Otherwise, there are more buttons in the works since they seem like they could be a good seller in the shop.

I wonder if I can make blog entries a daily thing? every second day?

Fibre Frenzy

Since I started this spinning thing in January, I just can't get enough fibre! I always "need" to get that extra bit so I can make that perfect yarn.

I went to a computer store yesterday with the excuse of checking out their prices on Macbooks, but with a fibre store (wabi sabi) just across the street, I think it was really a ploy to go buy that last locally made alpaca bat that I saw there on the weekend.

So now there are three in my collection, of varying colours to suit any of the dyed fibres that I also have stashed.

And with shearing happening soon at a local farm I'm sure there will be more to collect...

First day of school

It's been a while since I've taken the time to write a posting, but now that the move is over and done with and the boys have started school, there is a little more time.

Only a little though, since the girl still needs a lot of me and I'm back to work at the pottery studio as of this morning. One year of mat leave goes fast!

Yesterday, being day one of grade 2 for my guys, Olivia, Toffee and I went for a walk. After Olivia fell asleep, we came back home and I rushed to get out the fibre and spinning wheel!

It's cooling down but still warm enough for a little outdoor spinning!

And, now that I've opened shop at etsy, I spun up this yarn I called Raspberry and posted it this morning.

While Olivia slept, Toffee the wonder pug stood watch.

Still wondering whether I should list this one or knit it...I just love the colour.

Vendu

What a joyous sight. We're now preparing for the next phase of life in a different house--one that will work much better for us.

This post was started about two months ago, and now the move will actually be happening in about three weeks. We sign papers on Friday and get the house in two weeks, at which point we shift things gradually and...the most exciting...watch as our new kitchen gets renovated! Yes, we will be moving into a brand new kitchen--how exciting is that??

And on top of that we will now be able to spread out--there will be a basement. Plus a swimming pool. Since we have decided not to go to Newfoundland this summer Thane is excited about the pool. The summer forecast calls for hot weather so it will be well used!

Days

Yesterday, I dropped by wabi-sabi in search of the lazy kate I've been looking for for a while. One of the things with buying the spinning wheel second-hand is that all I got was the wheel and not the extras that would normally go along with it. Well, except for the five bobbins. But since I have no lazy kate and four bobbins filled with yarn that needs to be plied, I'm just a little stuck in the spinning department.

That was fixed yesterday. No, the lazy kate still wasn't there, but the kind owner of the store loaned me an extra bobbin to hopefully keep me satisfied with spinning some singles, and I picked up a bunch more of the shetland pencil roving that I've been working on and had run out of--in that colour anyway.

It's been fun spinning the shetland--it almost spins itself--but I wasn't sure what it would eventually become. I think it was sometime as I was waking up from a nap that I decided I'd ply it with a darker brown shetland and knit it into a poncho. I've always liked ponchos...though I've only ever had one--and I'm not even sure I ever owned one, I just have this vague memory of wearing a white one back in the late 70s or 80s. Anyway, I think it will be lovely.

In the meantime, while I'm waiting to be able to ply all this yarn, I've been working on a shrug, using yarn that I ordered from colourmart. It's mostly synthetic, but with a small percentage of mohair. It's quite nice, and if this works out well--it's my first attempt to knit without a pattern, other than hats--I'm going to knit one for Olivia to wear to my sister's wedding, over the dress my aunt knit.

As another thought, one of the plans I have is to eventually make some new pendants and put them on felted yarn. I think it would make a lovely neckpiece, though it's not much to look at right now.

This still needs work, of course, but it's the start of an idea. I have a bunch of pendants like this in various colours that I made last summer without a real idea of what I would hang them on. Before the spinning and rekindled interest in fibre. Once it warms up a little and I can get back to the pottery studio we'll see what else I can come up with.

Thankfully, spring is in the air! (even though it's a little soggy and windy out, and will be -14 C tonight...we have had a hint of it!) And not a moment too soon.

Envy

Pretty much every day I look up etsy and to a lesser degree, but still regularly, ravelry. I just love looking at the projects people are working on, the things that are being sold, and from time to time I see things that are very similar to some clay pieces that I've done in the past. That's really just the way it is; I believe there are no truly new ideas, but a multitude of different perspectives on the same idea. And reading through all these great blogs that are out there gets me really excited about all the possibilites there are for working with fibre.

As for now, here are some examples of what can be done in clay:

These first three are examples of my soul houses.

And here's a tea set.

Keeping it up

I guess if you start a blog, it's really best to try to maintain it.

Somehow I will find a way, but in the meantime I have started teaching a kids/parents pottery group at the community centre, so that world isn't totally passing me by. It's kinda nice to be back in there, and I suppose it really is a good idea to get out sometimes!

The knitting and spinning projects are moving more slowly than I would like, but I did manage to get this spun. It will soon become a hat for Thane. Hopefully before winter ends.


Then there was this beautiful merino/silk blend that I predrafted. It looks like clouds and feels as soft.

a studio out back

This title refers to my pottery studio--at the moment a very cold, cluttered place. I don't get much pottery made in the winter, well, at least not this year. Olivia takes up much of my day, and when she sleeps it's a whole lot easier to pick up a bit of yarn than dig out clay. Besides, since we blocked off the heat duct to the studio this year, all my clay has frozen. An unfortunate thing, I guess I didn't really think about it, or thought it might not get below freezing since the place is connected to the house. I will figure it all out in the spring--I think that if I just dry out the clay and rework it, it might be okay.

All my glazes and underglazes have also frozen...don't think it's as bad for them, but again, will assess it in the spring.

Whatever the case, I do find myself not as interested in clay at the moment. I'm sure it will come back, it's just time. Maybe it's the winter, it's so much more comforting and inspiring to work in a medium that brings warmth.

So I learned to spin yarn.

I wasn't sure I would do this. Close to the end of my pregnancy I decided I would knit my sons a sweater each, after, of course, my husband got his 7 year old sweater (which he rarely wears, but I digress. Admittedly, it was an itchy choice of wool). Then I explored etsy for the beautiful handspun and felt so inspired I bought my first skein from hobbledehoy.etsy.com

After some reworking, this fun, colourful yarn is turning itself into a lovely hat.




In the meantime I spied a gorgeous undyed merino/tussah silk blend from snowberrylime.etsy.com and just had to get it.

The first one turned into a short scarf, which I gave to a friend for Christmas.



Then I had to get more.




Anyway, my point here is I could see myself spending a ton on handspun, and it just seemed like all these spinners were having so much fun!

I took a drop spindle class, and with my own first yarn I made a hat.



Then I bought a spinning wheel. Now, if only I could get all the time in the world to sit and spin...

The Beginning

So this is it. I've started it. Been thinking about it for a while and now here is the first post. Phew!

What will this blog will be about? My three kids, pottery, my latest interest, fibre. It will hopefully help me organize thoughts, make plans, and work through designs.

I picked up knitting again last summer, as a way to keep my hands busy while waiting for Olivia. Wasn't able to get my stomach around a potter's wheel and there was a 7 year old sweater I had to finish. Now there's a spinning wheel in what will be Olivia's bedroom, and I find myself wandering through more and more yarn stores, looking up nothing but fibre related websites, and dreaming up tons of new projects. Starting them doesn't seem to be a problem...now if only I could finish them all!