working on some new pots

I had an unexpected day off from work today. I normally work 10-3 at Ceramics Canada, but the construction that is going on in the bay next door required that they turn the power off today, so no work. I went into the studio around 11 and left at about 4:30. In that time, I didn't throw a lot, but I got a faceted teapot trimmed and assembled, as well as 8 small mugs handled. I know, slowest potter in the world. 

pots in progress

Except for those pitchers, it has been a while since I have posted any pictures. This is some of what I have been up to lately

This is one of the 4 large plates I threw this weekend with a lot of slipped dots etc. This was the 2nd reincarnation of this pattern as the first time was obliterated by the plastic when I was loosely draping it. After I got the slip on again, I concocted an elaborate tent for it to rest under over night.

This is a funky little butter dish I was working on last week

A tea pot from last week as well

A vase from last week too

A funky tray

More teapots in progress. I trimmed and assembled these on Sunday, and then I threw a couple more.

round and round I go...

3 more classes to go! I only have to teach tonight, and then Monday and Tuesday next week. Every day at lunch I drive over to the studio and make sure that the studio is open, or that there is at least a key in the mailbox if no one is there. Walter (our resident perfectionist/potter/carver) is usually there, but you never know. Then today, I went over to Ceramics Canada (after I drove by the studio) to pick up some clay, and to see if the Green Barn order had arrived with my lustre. The answer to that is no. It should have arrived yesterday, but Trudy (da boss lady) thought it would be here tomorrow at the latest. My fingers are crossed so tight, I can’t stand it. This means that I will be pulling a very late night on Friday trying to finish those stupid place settings. I feel like I am in a race, but I can’t see the finish line, I don’t know who I am racing against, and I’m not even sure I am on the race track. So, if you see me looking a little harried and out of sorts, these are the reasons why: Not enough time and not enough energy. I can’t even sleep in on the weekend. I have to work on Saturday, pray that my lustre firing worked (if the stupid stuff even arrived for me to apply and fire it), and then I need to price and pack for the sale that starts at 10am on Sunday.

In hindsight, I should have backed off from teaching so much for Dave, but he was in a bit of a bind and needed someone to teach for him and I was the only option. The next time he gets a bee in his bonnet to go to Kansas, he shouldn’t plan to go right before the studio sale...just a thought.

Do "A", and "B" should happen...

My experience with firing kilns is limited. The first time I fired a kiln, it was the 40 cu.ft. gas kiln at our old studio. The only type of firing that I did was the glaze firing, as the bisque required a better understanding of how that monster worked. I only ever ended up firing that kiln a few times before we moved, and then all that learning was for naught, as we moved to firing to ^6 electric. Now, I have fired the electric kilns many times, and I have done bisque, glaze and on glaze (ie: lustre) loads. However, because they are computer controlled, I usually just load ‘em up, turn ‘em on, and go home for the night. They usually take 15-19 hours to fire a glaze, depending on how densely packed. On Monday, I fired both kilns at the same time, and they were both glaze loads. I went to the studio on Tuesday at lunch time to check on them, and they were both still firing away, but that is not unnatural. I returned at about 5pm that evening and to my surprise, one kiln had turned off properly, but the other one was still chugging away, and had not reached temperature yet. I freaked out. That kiln had been on for 19.5 hours and was still not to temp. I turned it off, then I said to myself, hold on....turn it back on, see how far it needs to go, call my potter friend Susan and see what she has to say about this. Susan has been potting/sculpting for many more years than I and she worked at Ceramics Canada for 20+ years and has a brain full of knowledge. She talked me down from the ledge, advised me to let it go for a bit longer, watch the colour in the peep hole etc.  I ended up letting it go until it was as close to temp as I could let it go before I had to go home for the night. It was only about 5 or 6 degrees away from ^6 at that point (It ended up firing for approximately 24 hours (crazy, I know). I went back to the studio today at noon to check that the inside of the kiln was not a hardened lump of melted glaze. Everything was fine, at least as far as I could tell by only seeing the top shelf results. I have a feeling that this kiln did not fire as quickly due to the fact that I had loaded it quite full, and I know that the elements are getting old, and need replacing, and the thermocouple might need swapping out too.

So, when you do “A”, and the “B” that is supposed to happen, doesn’t, don’t freak out. It’s all just one big learn’in experience.

3 down, 7 more to go

I have 7 more teaching nights to go now. I don’t get home before 10 pm most nights, and that is starting to be a bit of a drag. I had one new student last night; she seemed very thoughtful in how she approached the clay. I helped her make her first bowl, but her second one (without my help) was pretty successful. It may have taken her half an hour to make it, and the walls were a bit on the thick side, but relatively even, and her bottom was not paper thin. She didn’t manage to get anything else thrown, but she also did not struggle with the centering process as much as others do, so that was a bonus.

I loaded a glaze last night as well, and I will load another tonight. I will then hopefully be able to fire a load of lustre on the weekend. I need to get all my pieces ready for the Turning the Tables show, and it is creeping up pretty quick. The gallery is only allowing work to be dropped off on Nov 10^th at 10am. A bit a bit inflexible, but that’s ok, I will get the CCAA president to deliver it for me, but that means I can’t fool around, I will need to get it to her by the 7^th at the latest. Maybe after the CCAA Christmas sale on the 7^th...2 birds, one stone...

Tonight should be a cake walk. Thursday night is pretty much a class of very independent potters that have been coming for quite a while, and most of them leave really early. Last night I didn’t get to leave until 10pm as there were people still there madly attaching handles and glazing. Speaking of cakes, I also going to unload the very first cake stand that I have ever made. I don’t make a lot of cakes, and if I do, I usually eat them before they would ever make it onto a stand :). I was inspired by Kristen Kieffer’s cake stands (kiefferceramics.com). I WILL take pics tonight If I can get a peek into the kiln, it will be too hot to unload tonight, and let you know how it turned out.

I also have 3 pieces loaded that are not mine, but belong to the 2 people that I taught a private pottery class to for their anniversary. It was a one off class, and they really wanted to keep what they made, so I offered to fire and glaze them, I hope they turned out alright.

And now it begins...

I will be teaching every night now for the next 2 weeks and two days. The only days I won’t be teaching are Friday nights, as that is my own time in the studio and there are no classes that day, and the weekends. I will be dropping the key to the studio off during my lunch hour on weekdays, as that is way easier than getting up early to drop it off in the morning. I will also drop the key off on Saturday morning before I go to work at Ceramics Canada. Of course, I will be bringing the key home every night as well. I have a feeling that I will be very tired by the time Dave gets back from Kansas. However, this will allow me to get things fired. I usually only fire on the weekends so that I don’t interfere with Dave’s firing of student work.

Firstly, I will be firing a load of my dinner ware set that needs to be complete soon for the turning the table show on November 13. As soon as I get it glaze fired, I will turn right around and lustre fire it. Then, I need to get the work that will be going into the two pottery sales I have coming up. I never know what I have ready until the last second it seems. I need to provide an inventory sheet for the CCAA sale on Nov 7^th so perhaps this will make me more organized. The Fairview sale is never that demanding. So long as my pots are priced and packed by the night before, I am in good shape.

I keep saying that I will post pictures of what I am up to, and every time I go to the studio, I leave at the end of the day without having taken a single shot. Perhaps I will manage to take some pictures while I am glazing etc...

I had booked a few days off from my day job near the end of November so that I could go to Medicine Hat and fire in the Medalta salt kiln, but as I mentioned before, that is on hold. I was considering not taking those days off, but now, I think I might just need them after all this. Maybe I will book a massage for that weekend.....