Fall Challenge....you can win prizes too!

I think as mom's we are always looking for ways to "do our job" better.  I, for one, want to be the best mom I can be.  I want to teach my children to honor God, I want to model God's love, I want to give them a safe haven in our home, I want them to have the best of me and so on and so on!   If you are a mom, you can relate.


So, in perusing through my Pinterest account, when I came across this challenge for making your home a haven, I thought I would share it.  I am not always great with follow-through on challenges and sometimes I find that with only one left at home, and he being a wonderful 16 year old with a busy schedule, that I can't even begin to do as suggested.  However, I am always encouraged by posts like this and try to take what is applicable and apply it to our home to the best of my ability. So check it out, and I hope in someway you to can be encouraged and maybe get some good ideas to take away and apply in your home.  

http://womenlivingwell.org/2013/09/making-your-home-a-haven-fall-challenge-is-back-with-an-ipad-mini-giveaway/












Oh, and if after reading this, you want a good great candle to burn--or if you don't read it and still want a great candle to burn-- I LOVE Good Neighbors Candle Company on Etsy.  She has a scripture candle you can order in any scent you want.  You can also change up the color and the wick type.  Personal favorites of mine are the Pumpkin Pie Spice and also the French Lavender.  These are really great when you burn them together.....actually she is making me a candle that is a combination Pumpkin and Lavender, just because I asked.  She really is awesome!  I will see if that smells as good as when I burn them at the same time.  It is a great combination for this time of year......and has an added bonus; Google the wonderful benefits of the Pumpkin and Lavender scent--nudge, nudge, wink, wink!  Enjoy.  Here is a link to Becky's awesome candles. 



http://www.etsy.com/shop/GoodNeighborsCandle


Blessing ~ Rhodena

More Pictures for Pintrest

I met with Jim and Tony of Table Talk, Senoia, GA, today and we did a little "photo shoot" for an ad in Fayette Woman Magazine--coming out in October.  (Photo shoot sounds a little goofy but I honestly couldn't think of another way to put it!).  I have to say I really like Jim and Tony.  Tony is decorator extraordinaire.  I suggested he offer his services over the Christmas season to decorate homes for the holidays.  He told me that he actually DOES do that.  Hmmmm.....I think my house would look magnificent if he could have the afternoon arranging and rearranging....it's a cool thought at least.

I brought to the store a few new pieces, two of the new luminaries that I pulled out of the kiln last week, they are amazing, (well I think so and Jim too because he held onto them to sell).  They really look great with the flameless candles in them, I keep the candles on timer so they go off every night when it gets dark. Again, one of those special little things that adds a smile to your face.  Jim also kept some of the yellow pieces that I brought in.  A client had placed a custom order for yellow, so I brought in a cream and sugar set as a sample to clear the color with her.  Jim liked the cream and sugar set so he held on to it.

I took a few photos and started to post them on Pinterest when I decided it would be so much easier to just upload them to the blog and then link from the blog to Pinterest.  So that is what I am doing.  I may end up completing  this over the next couple of days.....or I may get them all posted today, depends on how much time I can carve out to do this.  But either way here are a few to start out with.......

Simple and pure pieces.  

they add so much to any setting.  

Simplicity is beautiful....ahhhh..... 

Citrine creamer and sugar bowl.

Summer's glow creamer and sugar bowl.  Larger version than the Citrine set.

Turquoise on dark clay.

A River Runs Through It creamer and sugar bowl with lid. 

Ravishing Red Sponge Holder.  
Sponge holders are the bomb and so functional!  Trust me they keep your sponge nice...no smellies...and they look good too!

  

THE CUP I ADORE!

So my latest new love has been the "cup" I made.  Well, it started out a coffee mug but got a little off center while I was throwing and therefore, did not quite make the final coffee mug cut.  Since it was a little imperfect, and I didn't want to waste the clay,  I thought "I will make it into a vase and experiment with it". (Novel idea, all my mishaps are now vases.)  Given it was an experiment I went all out, added some slip as texture (sorry for the technical term but that's what I did) and glazed it with a bunch of random colours.  I was curious about how the colours would look combined, how they would react over the slip, and how they would react with each other. This was the perfect piece to try everything out. When I was done, into the kiln it went.

In all honesty when I opened the kiln I had all but forgotten about my experiment.  I unloaded the top shelf, then came to the second shelf and there sat the experiment.  I picked it up and looked at it.  Since I really had no idea what to expect I looked at it and thought "cool--really cool"(and it is, the colors and texture are amazing).  I brought it in the house and sat it on the counter.  It sat there for a couple of days and I just looked at it.  During those couple of days I happen to read a post by a potter who makes his own cups and goblets.  He talked about how he enjoys drinking from his pottery cups.  He said that he uses them for everything from OJ in the morning, to a glass of red wine at night and everything in between.

The Original Cup

Hmmmmm, I looked at my experiment and thought, "this could be a really cool cup!"  I wondered what it would be like to use a pottery cup, I had never done that before. I gave it a try and....ok, can I say I LOVE IT!!!!!  Love, love, love it.  I love it so much I made 2 more.

The 2 new cups

I use my original cup for everything!  Morning, noon or night. It is awesome! It also works great to put some yogurt in the bottom, layer some granola and berries on top and --Bon Apettit!


 Now, when I made the other two cups I wanted to duplicate the first one as close as possible.  I didn't have anymore of the original clay, or the slip that I used, but I had written down the glaze combination.  So, I threw two "random" cups (random because I experimented with the shape and size), glazed them with the same glaze combination as the first and put them in the kiln.  Voila.  Now I have 3 cups!  I still only use the first one---I have been know to have favorites-- but the other two turned out so cool as well.  I am going to "experiment" and make a few more in some bright colors, maybe some yellows or reds, maybe both.  But I have to tell you pottery cups are the bomb!  I think everything tastes better. Seriously!

See the different clay, the original is on the left

The Sunlight shows the colors and texture best. They look great with the yellow!

They look great with the blue green combination as well.  Hello Fall!!!! Yay!

So as we enter into this INCREDIBLE fall season--incredible because I love this time of the year, my absolute favorite!--find something special that brings a dose of joy into your everyday life.  Whether it be a cool pottery mug for hot chocolate or, my new found joy, a pottery cup for sipping something special or eating yogurt parfaits.  It really is the little things in life that make our everyday experiences bring a smile to our face.
Happy Fall!
~Rhodena