ITALIAN INSPIRATION: STRUCTURES,etc.

ITALIAN INSPIRATION: Texture...

WALLS....

DOORS of TUSCANY

We are back from Italy!!!!

I have quite a few photo entries to follow!!!!
Our FAMILY:

ITALY vs. Kiln Repair

So... we are off to Italy Friday...
Very excited!!!!
Florence! San Gimignano! Milan!
BUT...I need to replace my elements...
So THIS is what my brain is doing:

ITALY?













Kiln?


















ITALY?














Kiln?



















ITALY?














Kiln?



















Well...instead of getting that kiln element replacement done...
I packed and planned and researched...
Perhaps tomorrow...
BUT in the MEANTIME...
If you have any suggestions for our trip...
I may be willing to get sidetracked again tomorrow...
Caio!

GETTIN' HOT IN HEY-AHHHHH!

OUCH.
HOT here, already.
AND my kiln made it to 2099 and just errored out...
YEPPERS, I believe I've got some EXCHANGIN' to do...
ELEMENTS that is...
WELL... at least I have my health...(knock on wood...poo poo poo....very superstitious...)

SO the kids had school close unexpectedly at 1pm...
AND it will close at 1 pm tomorrow too...
EVIDENTLY there is not enough air conditioned spaces for these growing rug rats...
SO... they came home.
AND went in the river:
FRICK AND FRACK:




















SO I took one look at puppy Chai...
AND I went in too... all the way in... and she came in too.. and swam...



















NO photos of us in the water...
BECAUSE I left my phone where it would be safe from the water...
WHILE I was drying her off and showering, I rested it in the garage on the hood of my husband's car...
HOWEVER, he failed to tell me he was going to take off for a meeting...
IN his car.
SO... I called him in a panic( about a mile after he left...)
THEN we both searched for the phone.
AND FOUND IT.
BUT this is what it looked like:















SADLY, It needs to be replaced.
HAPPILY, I will be using the insurance I pay for every month
BUT, I believe they will not insure me anymore because that is 2 phones in about 6 months.
BUT, I HAVE MY HEALTH. (knock on wood...poo poo poo....very superstitious...

MEANWHILE..
THESE are the latest in the studio:










NOW I am working with Standard's Brooklyn RED.
LOVE it.
MESSIEST CLAY EVAH...
BUT, I do love it... more photos to follow...
AND
I sold a few things the past few days...
EVERYONE IGNORED my sale...
OH WELL.

ADDITIONALLY...
I made the top 50 ceramic blogs from this cool chick's LIST!

ALL of my faves are there...
COOLIO.
HELPS beat the heat.

20% off Sale 2 days only!!!

20% off
6/4 Today(sat) and 6/5 Tomorrow(sun) only!
Coupon: EARLYJUNE20
In my ETSY SHOP!

Just in the mood...

Black Walnut.

Trying this out...basically working with it so far looks like I have spray tanned my HANDS! But... it promises to to be a great dark brown/blackish cone 6 clay in oxidation with NO Manganese... and it costs a FORTUNE. and it has to be SHIPPED... but... we shall see...It seems to throw well...

(*jumping back in here because I spoke to a supplier out of philly and evidently it is very hard to get this clay...
SO if anyone out there has suggestions for a chocolate brown(and/or speckled)WITH OUT MANGANESE....I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to know about it...)

AND... remember my tea bowl for the Kansas City show(look right for details...)





















It sold from the online photo ... and the show opens next month!
Pretty cool.

Happy Memorial Day weekend.
Thank you to all of those fine men and women who commit to protecting us from evil.
Actually feels like summer here in NEW JERSEY!!!
May even walk over to the beach this weekend with my hands that look like they have a spray tan...

Did someone say SALE??????

WELL...
I am giving 10% off at MY ETSY SHOP
Use COUPON CODE: MOVINGON
EXPIRES 5/25 Wednesday....
I try not to do this a lot (because, frankly it is usually just a matter of time until a pot find's it's proper home..
BUT I am feeling generous...AND I need to make room for my NEW, DIFFERENT body of work!

What's Goin' On...I'll SHOW You What's Goin' On.

Red Clay.
Sculptural Carving.
Enjoying the process.






































































Click TITLE for Music!!!

I've been having a Mother of a time...

No photos... I have been back and forth and up and down and in and out with the direction that my work is going in... and sometimes it feels like the more things change...

Well, I have been brainstorming and experimenting and mixing and trying and contemplating and brainstorming and sketching and re-thinking and trying stuff and moving forward and moving backward and I feel like I know which direction I am headed in, but I have felt like this before and I tend to move backwards and forwards and then I feel like I have made no progress...but I just know this all part of something bigger.

I have been contemplating my issues with my work...
The end result: what I like about it/what I don't...
The process: what I like about it, what I don't...

It is very important to me that I enjoy the process. I almost think that is more important to me than the end result. This is why I am at this crossroads perhaps...
It has be done "JUST SO" for me to be happy and continue to evolve in a direction that makes sense to me...I enjoy carving and touching and working with the clay, manipulating it, feeling it...but I am also completely concerned with the structural integrity of the piece and the weight and the visual appeal and creating work that speaks to me... or speaks for me.

A very popular, wealthy, African American talk show host says that if you do what you love, you will be successful... I always think about that...now I am down to the actual step by steps of the process..

Look, I know I DO go on but this has been going on fairly intensely for me as internal struggle for a while now and I feel this need to talk about it...but then when I do, I realize it cannot make sense outside of my brain.
So,trust me, that is what's going on...

Now that I have typed us into a virtual abyss of confusion, I'd like to wish all of you moms out there a happy day. ACTUALLY I would like to wish you a happy LOT OF DAYS!!! We will be having sushi for dinner as THEY know that it makes me happy!