Working on color and texture

Its summer time which means not much time for blogging!  But that's ok, I would much rather be spending time with my hubby, kids and friends,--well, lately it seems mostly my kids friends, but that's good too.

It's funny how as your kids get older their season in life seems to direct your season in life.  I guess they are really all interrelated.  When our children where young we took them everywhere with us, they learned to adapt to our lives and our schedules, it was our friends who dictated their friends and our lives dictated their lives.  And it was good, I believe it gave our kids the ability to function in an adult world, to be other person centered, to be confident and to not intimidated to go down the paths in life that were presented to them.

And now, as they embark on their lives as young adults (sophmore in college and Junior in high school) I am seeing that things have shifted a bit. Yep, Dave and I have moved from being focused or centered around our friendships to being focused around our children's (young adults) friendships. For example:   "Mom, Dad, can so and so come to the lake with us?".  "Mom, Dad, can so and so come over?"  "Mom, Dad, I am home for the weekend, what do you want to do?"  You see all of a sudden its not Dave and I telling them who is coming to the lake with us and what we are doing this weekend as a family, nope, it is Dave and I giving of ourselves to make room for the emerging adults and their friends. Ha!  I think I actually like it though.  It is for but a season, I realize this, and, I for one, am going to enjoy this season in life with as much joy and gratitude that I enjoyed the others.  Well, maybe a bit more joy and gratitude because I am older and wiser and am more able to see the times as fleeting.

In a couple of years it will be back to Dave and I having a little more say in things, but for now.....I will gladly enjoy the fruit of some of our labor and enjoy watching the two young adults we raised be young adults.  What a blessing.  I am so thankful to God for HIS steady hand through all the "rough patches", because there were some rough patches, and I am so thankful to for a greater understanding of HIS unwavering love.  It is amazing sometimes to think that God cares for lil' ole' me and my lil' ole' family.  But HE does.  Man does HE ever.

Well having said all that I have a couple pictures to post.  I've been working on some great glaze combinations.  I love the Robin's Egg blue with the honeycomb accents on the two prep bowls that I did.  I have them sitting on my kitchen counter and the more I look at them the more I love them.  The blue is a matte finish and the inside honeycomb and random honeycomb color on the outside is a gloss, beautiful.

Hope you enjoy the photos. I have some really neat hand built peices I am working on and will be firing them next week with the kids camp pieces.  Until then here is my new favorite color combo.

And now I just have to share a picture of the latest Salsa/Condiment bowl....for me, it makes you want chips and salsa just by looking at it.  If I hadn't just eaten a great Father's Day dinner I could go for Mexican!  Bon Appetit.

So, have some friends over next weekend (maybe for some pulled pork on the bar-b and some chips and salsa), whether it be your friends or your kids friends.  Embrace the life God has given you, relax, give to others, know God loves you unconditionally, (HE desires you to know that) and....enjoy some pottery!!!! (either making it or admiring it.)  There is nothing better than nurturing the God given desire to create, after all we are made in HIS image and HE loves to create!!

                       ~Rhodena

Finishing Touches on the Studio

For the next couple of weeks my kiln is officially out of business. So sad!  Last week I pulled the last load of pottery out of the kiln, unplugged it and put a cover over it--well actually Dave put a cover over it.  It was the final run for a bit, the kiln will not be up and running again until the drywall is up, the walls are painted (me) and the flooring is in (Dave and I). Yay!  Sounds like fun.  I don't know how much time I'll have to do any pottery between painting the walls and installing the floor (yikes!), but I am sure I will make some time to work on the wheel or hand build a few items and get them ready to fire. Pottery is my reprieve and by the sounds of things I will need a reprieve.  

Here are some of the results of the last run of the kiln before it was forced into taking a vacation. The pieces turned out beautiful!  Leaves me wondering if an Etsy store is in order...hmmmmm?  My original intent was to provide an open studio, a place for fellowship and creativity, a place to nurture the soul,  but maybe the addition of an Etsy storefront is not a bad idea.  :)  Something to think about. 

Here is a sampling of the finished pieces.  These colors turned out amazing.  Absolutely stunning!  I adore  turquoise blue, no matter where it is used or how it is used turquoise adds a spark so I decided to add it to my pottery.  WOW!  Makes me want to go on a tropical vacation.  These are so perfect for summer, they put me in the mood for the beach!    

Casserole/Serving dish

Salad Bowls

6 ounce coffee mugs....for an afternoon pick me up

I will get some more pictures posted through out the week.  Thought this would be good for today.  On such a beautiful spring day I wanted to bring a little taste of summer your way.

This makes me think on the fact that life to is made up of seasons (It's been a very reflective day). I know I have been guilty of thinking some seasons are forever (the good and the bad), but that is not true.  Good or bad, this too shall pass. That sounds fatalistic but it definitely doesn't mean that things always get worse--though they may for a time.  There are seasons I have gone through that I thought were the BEST, now looking back on the other side I have come to know they weren't.  They may have been the BEST at the time, but in my journey with God, HE has lead me to BETTER.  Not to say I didn't go through some rough waters to get there. And in dealing with the rough waters, no question about it, they are rough!  For me, if I can remind myself to keep my eyes focused on HIM and then lean back into HIM and trust HIM, the waters loose some of their fury and I can tap into HIM to pull me through. I guess James said it well when he said "consider it all joy when you encounter trials..."  That really is the key, find joy or rejoice in the midst of it all.  (On a side note: I absolutely hate rough waters!!! Just for the record. )

Having said all that--mostly as a reminder to myself--- I want to be one who enjoys each and everyday that God has given me.  To make knowing HIM and knowing HIM in my day my highest priority.  When I do that it makes the good days and good seasons even better and it adds light to the bad days or bad seasons....much like the Turquoise does I guess, adds some light, a reminder that summer is right around the corner.  Keeping my eyes on God and trusting HIM gives a peace and a confidence in the midst of a storm, helps me to know that over the horizon the sun is shinning.

Slow going

Its been a busy couple of weeks on the personal front so potting has taken a bit of a back seat. I have made it out to my "studio"--still in the garage--a few times but it has been rather hit and miss.  We moved the kiln over to the new studio and I managed to complete enough pieces for a bisque fire and then, after a day of glazing, a glaze fire was also completed in the new studio.

The sun was setting and the kiln had heated up to 1083 degrees. 

 As night time came, and the kiln temp reached around 2300 degrees, I looked out my kitchen window and was amazed to find that looking across the backyard I could see the red hot peering out at me from under the lid of the kiln. Really cool!  I went out to take some pictures to share, unfortunately, they only give you an idea of what was there to look at....some things you have to see in person I guess.....here's the best I could do.

It looks like nothing so I hestitated on whether or not to even post, but seeing the glow across your yard is rather cool.  You have to admit that is pretty hot!!! 

And the results.....

I did some experimenting with the kiln settings--ummm--note to self  "just leave it alone". (Fired med cone 6 with a 5 minute hold--should have not done the hold)  I did learn a lot, the bummer is I had a few pieces that the glaze ran onto the kiln shelf.  Oops!  However, the rest turned out great.  Here is a little sampling.

Turquoise and dessert sand on a light weight clay. 

Perfect Good morning, Good Afternoon or/and Good Evening Coffee cups.  

 

SALSA BOWLS!!!!  A personal favorite

 One of my favorite things to make is a salsa bowl.  I think it is because they are so functional!  I use mine for nuts, olives, salsa, guacamole and sour cream.  Anything, they are perfect! (I personally think everyone needs a Salsa bowl and a couple GP-- general purpose--bowls.  For this salsa bowl I used 4 different glazes which produced an amazing color spectrum

I think the greatest reward of potting is when, after you have given your time to mold and create a piece and then you give your time to bisque and glaze a piece, you get to see the finished product. In this case the extra hold time in the heat of the kiln did produce some wonderful results.  However, I think I will put experimenting on hold for a while.   

I guess it is the same as in life, some extra time in the heat can produce a beautiful result, however, I have discovered that, if given a choice, its not necessary to undergo that "extra" time.  For me, I would rather stay out of that time in the extra heat.  Yet for those times when I chose to stay where I shouldn't have, either in my thoughts, my actions, or my situations I am thankful to God that He can make something beautiful out of my pain and out of my bad choices. He knows we are but dust, we will make wrong choices and He loves us no matter what.  Wow.  Nothing can change His love for us.

The backyard studio

With the backyard landscaping project complete and "The Potter's Touch Studio" almost complete, I am getting anxious to move from my garage studio, which has been wonderful, into my own little space.  

With the wiring was completed last week, we are now in the midst of debating about the drywall and flooring--I think we will go with Laminate flooring installed by Dave and yours truly--that will be fun! 

My little studio is in it's baby stages of life.  I have to admit it looks a little barren, but not to worry, with summer coming, the flowers blooming and the grass turning green, it will be looking a little spunkier. I even bought some cedar window boxes and painted them red, as soon as I find the perfect window box holders or brackets the planter boxes will go up and grace the front of "The Potters Touch Studio". 

I'll keep you posted as we move along.  Happy Potting!