same old, same old.

I can finally post pictures again! I don't have too much to say...but here are the pots I have been working on the past week.


This is todays production...or more accurately, this evenings 3 hours of production. Most of the day was spent trimming, assembling and slipping other pieces. I've estimated that on average the time spent on the wheel for making new pots is about 15-20% of the actual hands-on time before it goes in the bisque kiln. Clearly things like trimming(aka-"turning" or "cutting feet" depending on your locale)handling(aka-"pulling handles"), assembling, and slipping take up the majority of the time.

Large shallow bowls, some new ideas mixed in with the old.


New casserole shape...I prefer the right and left shape over the one in the middle. I was trying to make a shape that could be lifted out of the oven without needing lugs(aka-"handles") on the side. It isn't clearly visible but the rim of the base sticks out nearly as far as the lid, further aiding the ease of lifting out of the oven...in my mind I saw this as a solution to keep hands from sliding up and pushing off the lid while carrying it...if that makes any sense whatsoever.

Greenware.


Treadle wheel. The woodworking part is completely finished(minus the seat and treadle arm), I now have to tackle the metalworking which I should easily be able to do in an afternoon. Though that afternoon may not come until after the fourth of July weekend. I'm ready to have this guy finished so I can go back to working in my studio instead of out in the classroom. The wheel I am currently using is one of the student wheels(though in true college fashion I lay claim to the wheel by leaving my mess on it) and though I really like using it, it wouldn't be fair to move it to my studio. Currently my studio is storing my clay racks and other misc. stuff that should really be elsewhere. Hence my work pouring out all over the classroom...thank goodness it's summer and I only have 8 students that have to put up with that! Hopefully I'll be re-situated before the fall semester begins.

Firing in 12 days....I suppose I'd better go find some wood.

Cheers.

home

I'm back from my weekend at the Llano show. The sales were very good considering how small the show is. We did quite well and the show far exceeded our expectations but strangely enough we sold only larger pieces...usually at these small shows it's nothing but cups and soup bowls...which is mostly what I took with me and then had to turn around and bring home. That's okay though, I'm just about out of large jars and platters now so it's nice to make those knowing that I need them. Speaking of which... I made a bunch of platter/bowls today of varying size.

I'm doing a show in Rockport on the 4th of July weekend. Rockport is down on the coast, near Corpus Christi and Port Aransas. I'm doing a firing right before we head down there that will be full of glazed work. I have nothing but slipped work right now and it doesn't sell too well near the ocean so I'm going to try to have a chunk of the ash glazed work to take with me. Speaking of ash glazes... I have figured out that putting the ash glaze over a white slip that has a good bit of silica in it makes the glaze look better in the wood kiln, that was kind of a "duh" moment for me.

That is all I have for now, I haven't replaced my camera cable yet so no photos...maybe tomorrow.

Cheers.

Pots & Wine

I had some photos to share but it seems I have crushed the end of the USB cord for my camera, dang. I have about 100 pots sitting around, 2/3 under plastic waiting to be slipped on Monday. We are leaving tomorrow for the Llano Estacado Wine and Clay Festival in Lubbock, TX. It's located at the Llano Estacado Winery so if you're in the area Saturday or Sunday stop by, 10am-6pm both days.

We had a couple stop in for a visit last night, they're jewelers from New Mexico that we'd met at a show awhile back. We had a good time, it's nice to have that social time with other artists from time to time.

See ya later!

productive morning.

I've had a fairly productive morning/early afternoon. I made a bunch of dinner plates and some soup bowls. I saw 2 soup bowls left in the showroom so I may need to make some more. There are some mugs back there under plastic waiting for handles(I sound like Keith!)

I'm going to make some lidded jars tonight based on some of these. I really like the guys on the left. They sort of have an early 80's Randy Johnston feel to them.

The painting prof. is in Europe teaching an art dept. study abroad program so I took over some tables in her classroom to stain & finish my treadle wheel parts. The painting class
room has the best ventilation and the least amount of dust. I've finished the majority of the wheel with Formby's Tung Oil Finish which is actually not tung oil but a varnish that attempts to replicate the look of tung oil without all the hassles. It is a long process, it requires several coats to build up a finish but oh baby is it a sweet surface! Beats out polyurethane by a long shot! The exterior of the pan is tung oil and the interior and rim are finished with Epifanes Marine Varnish. Funny enough this last months issue of Fine Woodworking had a review of how well outdoor varishes held up to moisture and weather, Epifianes was the best by a long shot. Fortunate for me as I had no idea what was the best to use. It's fairly expensive but I think will be worth it in the long run. It's certainly far cheaper than a copper or zinc liner.

Tomorrow is my wife and I's 1st wedding anniversary so I don't know if I'll get into the studio or not. We had our celebration last night but I imagine we'll spend some good time together tomorrow as well.

Time for a late lunch, thanks for stopping by.

no fly pots.

Argh...my clay is still not ready, it's been really humid lately. I'm thinking about making a batch in the mixer just so I can get some pots made!!! This has given me plenty of time to work on my treadle wheel though. The frame is completely finished and well, finished...with tung oil, or that stuff that Lowes passes off as tung oil. I started working on the flywheel today. I'm not exactly sure what the weight should be, I've heard conflicting answers to that query. Mine will be made from pine, I don't have any nice lumber around nor can I afford to purchase any right now. Summer is the slow season in Texas, very few shows and very little teaching pay.

These are made from 2x10's, southern yellow pine. There are two of them that will be laminated on top of eachother to make a solid 3" thick disc that is 28" wide. I made a circle cutting jig for my router, hopefully that will work. I have no interest in cutting this circle by eye.



In other news my birthday present from my wife arrived today. I've wanted a jointer for a loooong time so that I could surface my own wood and so that I wouldn't be stuck with what's available pre-surfaced(and overpriced) at Lowes or Home Depot. For those of you that don't know woodworking is a passion of mine, second only to pots. I'm not a pro by any means, maybe only a notch or 2 above novice but I enjoy it all the same. I think my wife got me this so that we can finally have some furniture that we need around the house. I'm real big on buying quality and it's rare to be able to afford quality woodworking like end tables, coffee tables, bed frames, etc. Well anyways, it'll be nice to have another tool around that can potentially rip my fingers off.

Hopefully some pots soon?

See ya.

i'm back and still no pots.

Well, I'm back. I arrived home Wednesday afternoon(which coincidentally was my 28th birthday) after a week of helping my brother do some renovation around his home in Kansas. My brother is almost seven years older than me and we were never all that close so we don't spend much time together, we joked that this was probably the most time we'd spent together since I was about 8 or 9 years old. I always thought that my brother and I were like night and day, he was an accomplished athlete in college and married the homecoming queen. He is now an accountant and a happy suburban homeowner with 2.5 kids and the proverbial picket fence. I am not any of those things. Though we are different in lifestyle we have the exact same personality. I was amazed at how well we got on together(not that there is any tension there, we just don't know each other all that well) strange, huh?


Anyways, back to business. I have about 1200 pounds of clay in the racks right now, the batch outside is just about ready and the batch inside will need a few more days. I also have a small batch of porcelain reclaim that will be ready in a few days as well.


I have been messing around in the woodshop the last couple days working on my treadle wheel. I had to redo a few pieces after the green lumber fiasco but I now have all the pieces for the frame finished. The plans call for this whole thing to be able to be disassembled and held together with bolts. I had a few joints that I felt were questionable so I felt that gluing this part of the frame together and bolting the rest would be the best solution for me. The problem with gluing the whole thing together is 1) it's freakin heavy, and 2) at 34" wide it will only fit through 36" doors. This seemed to be a decent solution for me though it'll take up some real estate when we move some day.

I'm teaching a summer class that will start on Monday. That will keep me occupied in the mornings and I hope to make enough pots to fire at the end of June. I'm thinking of making some pots for a redux. firing in the middle of June, we'll see if that happens. The showroom is looking really empty right now which I suppose is good in a way, so I'd better get cracking.

So long for now.

what to do, what to do.

Just another lazy, rainy saturday afternoon.


I was supposed to work in the garden today but it's raining so I think a PBS home improvement/wood working marathon is in order.

I'm mixing clay on tuesday, it'll be nice to get some clay under my fingernails again.