How to make clay (or paper) angels

This little clay angel is a cinch to make. It could be easily adapted to using sturdy papers or stiffened gauze for the body and lightweight wood balls.  I am using white stoneware clay  and Amaco Potters Choice Glazes.

The first thing to do is to roll out a nice slab around 1/4 " thick.

I use a small pattern roller meant for fondant that I got at the craft store, but you could really use anything to create  the texture you desire.

Cut the slab into a circle the diameter that you wish to make the base. Mine was measured with a cool whip lid. Make a center mark and cut a straight line of clay from the out.

Fold the clay around on itself until it makes a nice tight sturdy base. If your clay is pretty wet, just a little pressure at the seams will keep it together. Other wise, score and slip. 

I took the corner edge and gave it a little flip to add depth and interest. Roll balls of clay the size that you want your heads to be, poke a hole in them (to deter unfortunate kiln events) and attach to the bodies with slip. 

A handy dandy miniature extruder (also bought at the craft store in the clay section) is great for making textured spaghetti hair.) If your clay is wet enough, just put it on there and give it a gentle push to attach. otherwise slip it on neatly.

From the scraps of you slab, cut the angel wings to the desired shape and attach with slip to the backs.  My little praying hands evolved from the wing leftovers but you can fashion them any way you wish. Have fun and Happy Christmas in July!

My studio essentials

Every studio needs it's basic equipment for whatever it is that you're making. In my studio it is my pottery wheel,my bats, clay and assorted tools. I also have to have shelving to put items on both items in process and finished items. I  have to have my easel, paints brushes and good lighting.

Beyond that there are a few things that enhance the process and just make for a better creative experience. In my case, the outside has as much to do with it as the inside. I love the happy colors that I had my daughter paint on the outside. The yellow, green and purple  greet me with a feeling of perpetual spring, even when we are buried in snow.

My studio is basically a 12 x 20' Amish shed that came to us bare-bones and unfinished studs on the inside. My husband and I finished it with drywall,insulation, flooring etc. We made the ceiling Cathedral which gives the small space a feeling of having more room than it actually does.We added track lighting to shift around the room to light paintings on the wall and I ordered extra windows in the back and large rounded windows on the doors. My window boxes were an essential for me. The flowers that I add them to each spring add a homey touch and contribute to the happy feeling of the exterior.

Inside, some of my must-haves are my little portable speaker which hooks up to my iPhone and plays my music as loud or as quietly as I am in the mood for. This replaces my iHome which stopped supporting my iPhone about two generations ago.




I also have my cute little red IKEA couch for those times when I just need a break or a place to sit and gestate ideas or a home base to wrap and write up orders during open studio.



My coffee pot is essential. I guess I shouldn't called it a pot anymore now that we have Keuregs. We used to be very anti-Keureg in this family because of the waste of all the little k-cups but my husband relented last Christmas and got me a small one for my studio. I have to say that I absolutely love it and the coffee that it makes is just the best. Aside from McDonald's, I don't think there's anywhere that I get it as piping hot. I keep a small refrigerator in my studio though I'm not sure that it's an essential except for during open studio when I put cheeses and fruit in there to keep from one day to the next.  I do also keep some cold beverages like seltzer and beer and soda for studio visitors.

My two other essentials, or maybe I should say three, are my window air conditioner which I absolutely cannot be without in the summer and in the winter I am kept warm with two electric space heaters.



It depends on the temperature whether I need to run both heaters or not, but this winter, given our many days of temperatures below freezing, I had to keep them both running 24/7 to prevent my clay from freezing and rendering it all unusable.




I bought a handy little thermometer which keeps me apprised of such things and therefore is an indispensable studio item. My little wooden figure which stands next to the thermometer, is sometimes helpful when painting people, but he doesn't bend too much so he just hangs around a lot to remind me that I am indeed and artist.

My little "create" sign, a gift from my daughter, serves a similar function, reminding me to get going and do what God intended for me.

  Not sure it's essential, but the Frida Kahlo flower head band that I made last Halloween, is fun to have around and wear when I'm throwing or painting because it feels like I am channeling some mystical creative juice from artists like Frida who came before me. Plus, I just like to be silly sometimes.

Lastly, is what I call my "wall of validation". On it hangs ribbons and plaques that I was awarded over the years from various art shows. I keep it there to look at when I am stuck for ideas, when something isn't going right and I am convincing myself that I stink as an artist, or during those lonely times of creating in my solitary space, it reminds me that someone thinks that what I do is OK and maybe I should just keep going :0) 

My week at Arrowmont School for Arts and Crafts

I had a beautiful drive through the Virginia mountains down into the Great Smokies to Gatlinburg, Tennessee where Arrowmont is located. It was really strange because you drive through these beautiful mountains and then all of a sudden, you end up on a main street that looks like they dropped the state fair on it. There are places to buy fudge and candy and play mini golf and ride go karts and a giant aquarium and a ski lift and every manner of attraction that you can think of. At first I thought I must be in the wrong place or have missed my turn even though my GPS kept telling me that I had arrived at my destination. On searching my surroundings when I looked to the left I found the sign for Arrowmont wedged between the sign for Cooters Go Karts and a sign for downtown parking. Just about 200 feet off of the road that seem to encapsulate Disneyland was the main office and all the buildings that make up Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts.

The Aquarium across the street from Arrowmont

Gatlinburg is a strange mix of religion and roadside attractions

Yes, we did...

One of the many boardwalk type attractions

After getting registered and being assigned to my room I went to the cottage called "Teachers". The cottage was really cool and had a big screened in front porch and a common room with a refrigerator and couches which was really nice but the bizarre thing was that my bedroom was located behind a bathroom which was supposed to be for common use. The only problem was that if someone else was using the bathroom, you were locked in the bed room unless you wanted to use the door that went outside and walk all the way around the building to get into the common room or anywhere else that you wanted to go.

My tiny room accessed through a bathroom

The awesome porch

My first night there was pretty rough because the room was tiny and I was assigned a roommate and she snored all night and so I didn't sleep and was really exhausted for my first day of class. Fortunately, she asked to be moved and I had the room to myself and no one else used the bathroom so the rest of the week was fine as far as that one.







I was so excited for my class because my instructor was Jason Walker a sculptural ceramic artist from outside of Seattle, Washington. His work is exquisite with the quality of construction and finely painted detail that I can only dream of ever mastering. I wanted to take Jason's class because having been a painter for so long and now being in love with ceramics, my goal is to learn to paint better and better on my own ceramic work.

City Animal: Squirrel by  Jason Walker

A porcelain cup by Jason Walker

porcelain cup detail

Jason's class did not disappoint. He is a fine teacher and a really lovely person. He was very humble and encouraging to all of us students. He was very thorough in explaining his process and very patient with each of us as we try to master the skills from construction to painting. I didn't have such an easy time with the three-dimensional construction. Hand building has never really been a great love of mine and I was hoping that the class would turn me more in it's favor. I'm still not sure that I have the patience for it and the piece that I worked so hard on ended up collapsing.


 Clay can be a heart breaker and that's part of the learning process as well. Jason's class was about a creating a personal narrative and developing images and ceramic pieces that told a story, whatever your story happened to be. Everyone in the class seemed to have a good time with that premise, creating all kinds of dreamlike and whimsical figures. There were some in the class who were very prolific creating about six different pieces and then there was me, who ended up with my  one 3-D piece breaking and coming home with only one completely finished piece and one piece that didn't make it into the kiln. But that was okay because I didn't go there to come home with a lot of finished stuff.  I went to learn a process and that's what I spend my time on. 



I learned from Jason how to layer under glazes to give them more depth and to use shading and crosshatching much like I do with paint to create texture and form on my pieces. I'm very proud of the piece that I came home with and I look forward to applying what I learned to my new pieces. I'm not sure that I want to make sculptural pieces like Jason does. I'm going to try hand building again but I like throwing on the wheel the best. I want to make art pieces but I like making beautiful functional pieces as well. My work and process is always unfolding and new, so who knows where my new found skills will lead me...

    

Jason demonstrating construction 

My friend Michele aka "Cindy Lou" working on a wall piece 

Jason working on fish wall piece

My 3d work in progress

detail- trying to emulate Jason's brush work but I have a long way to go

My finished piece going into the kiln

On the road again...

On Saturday I hit the road again bound for Gatlinburg, Tn. where I am attending Arrowmont School of Crafts for a week. I am taking a class from Jason Walker a Seattle area based potter known for his narrative sculptures in porcelain. I was torn about which class to take here, but when I saw Jason's work, I was completely blown away. My latest goal with my pottery is to bring more of my painting onto it and when I saw Jason's work it was a no-brainer. A I mentioned in last weeks post, one of the things that I enjoyed with painting once again was the ability to tell a story in a painting. Jason tells a story with his clay both in construction and surface painting. I am so jazzed to learn his techniques this week! We had orientation and a mini class tonight and so far I think it's going to be a swell week. He seems like a very communicative and supportive instructor and a generally nice guy.
I drove down to Gatlinburg, splitting the ride over two days. Cruising down Rte 81 through the Shenandoah Valley all the way is such a beautiful ride
. Surrounded by mountain ranges on both sides  with breath taking views at some places and best of all being able to do it with a 70 mile per hour speed limit is just awesome! The highway is also nicely paved and the truckers even obey the speed limit and stay to the right, making this a dream drive.

Just before hitting Rte 81, I gave myself a chance to enjoy the scenery and a little wine at a winery off Rte 66. It was about 5 miles off the highway and had a beautiful view of the mountain range. The tasting room was a really nice building with a great deck and umbrellas outside, but you were only allowed to sit there if you were buying their food. If you brought your own, (which I did) you had to sit down in the buggy, sweltering "picnic area" with no shade. I was a little pissed at this because I have never been to a winery that treated people that way and felt that my $12 glass of wine should entitle me to sit wherever the hell I wanted. 

Anyway, I needed the break from the road and sat down with my cooler of road food and enjoyed the view and the wine.
About 3 hours later, my next stop was at my hotel, my halfway point in Salem, Va., nice Comfort Suites affording the same magnificent views of the mountains and a much needed hot tub for my weary bones and sore back.

Painting Again….

Three years ago, I learned the magic of spinning a ball of  clay on the potter's wheel and and turning it into a beautiful vase, bowl or object of my imagination. I have been having a total love affair with it since then. Any potter will tell you that once you put your hands in clay and start making things, it quickly becomes an obsession. At the time I started making clay things, I was in need of a new challenge. I felt pigeon holed in my painting as it seemed there was an expectation for me to produce a certain thing- cow paintings mostly, and for those, I was losing my love for creating them. Making clay came around at just the right time. I needed the change and my daughter was leaving for college and if working with clay teaches you anything, it is how to let go- as your work can go horribly wrong at several points along in it's creation. So for all intents and purposes, I had mostly turned my back on painting for the last 3 years. I produced the occasional painting when I taught, but beyond that, I was giving all my love to the clay which is a very demanding lover indeed.

I wanted to create new work for a show of my paintings which I have hanging this month at Paradocx Vineyard. I have to admit that it was hard to get started. Once I did, I started to remember why still I love painting. Painting on clay allows me to decorate. Painting on canvas affords me the opportunity to create a visual story. I didn't realize how much was lying dormant in my head when images kept popping in there when I gave myself the prompt "winery." I finished a few new pieces and probably would have done more if I didn't run out of time. I have painted hundreds of cow paintings but lately, since I live with 4 of them, cats have been creeping into my work. Here is a little pictorial of the process of painting "Bottle Baby" which is in the show.  If you are one of my cow lovers, don't worry there are plenty of those in the show too!

Miniature Cat Sculpture in 3 Easy Pieces

Hey,

 I am on vacation this week so I am reposting this cool video showing how I make a minature kitty with clay.

 I often use these kitties to top my lidded jars and  garlic keepers.

Berry Season

One of my great joys is designing and making new berry bowls to use and enjoy during berry season. Right around March I start to get really excited because the sweetest strawberries start showing up in the grocery store. I don't know where they come from but it seems at that time of year is when they are really ripe and really sweet. I love strawberries, blueberries, raspberries. Blackberries- eh, not so much. It's not that I don't like them, they're just not that great to me and don't warrant the price that you usually have to pay for them.

One of my favorite things to do with strawberries is to sprinkle them with a little basalmic vinegar and sugar and let them macerate for a bit and then add a little mint (in my case, chocolate mint which I have  growing in my backyard).

I love to put it over vanilla ice cream or even cottage cheese and it's absolutely fabulous.

I also recently discovered the stuff called Brooklyn Cream in the grocery store in a little package near the mini cheeses and the butters. I'm on weight watchers and this is  a fantastic discovery because it adds just enough creaminess to my fresh berries to make me feel like I'm having whip cream without all the points. (In this case 1 WW point)

I had to make two turbo sized berry bowls to keep on my kitchen counter because my husband and I love to have fresh berries, grapes and cherry tomatoes readily available to pick at.





 Most of the ones that I make and sell are smaller and hold about a pint like these new ones that  I designed with flowers around the holes.

Handmade Berry Bowls $30

This years berry bowl designs

Here's another berry recipe from MyRecipes.com that sounds delicious and I really want to try...

Breakfast Polenta with Warm Berry Compote

Ingredients

COMPOTE:

1 tablespoon butter

3 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Dash of ground cinnamon

1 (12-ounce) bag assorted frozen berries

POLENTA:

3 cups 1% low-fat milk 

1/2 cup dry instant polenta

2 tablespoons sugar 

1/2 teaspoon salt 

PREPARATION

To prepare compote, melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add honey, juice, cinnamon, and berries; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Keep warm.

To prepare polenta, bring milk to a boil in a medium saucepan. Slowly add polenta, stirring constantly with a whisk. Stir in sugar and salt, and cook 5 minutes or until thick, stirring constantly. Serve with compote.

Have a berry recipe you'd like to share? Please post in comments!