I’m recycling clay today. I recycle all of my trim scraps, as well as any clay that gets too dry to work with. I put it into a bucket and let it sit until bone dry. That doesn’t take long in the arid climate of northern Arizona. Here you can see a bucket of dry scraps, and some small slabs drying on the table for future recycling.

Once dry, I cover the scraps with water and let it sit for a day or two. Then, I mix it up in the bucket - it stays lumpy - then transfer small amounts to the blender, where I mix it until it is a slurry (slip). Doing it this way ensures an even mix. I mix clay bodies when I recycle and this technique blends them well.

When mixing is done, the slip is poured into a plaster bowl. The plaster pulls the extra moisture out and leaves a workable piece of clay. This batch should be ready to be worked tomorrow. Happy clay!

Last week, we were hit by what weather people are fondly referring to as the “Western Wallop” - a week long series of snow storms that dropped over 50 inches of snow! I cleared a couple feet of snow off the roof of the kiln house - twice!

The snow gave me some time to work in the studio. I’m getting the feel for the wheel again… it’s like riding a bike (thankfully). I started out with mugs because I wanted to break my body back in gently. No sense in tweaking my back when I’m just getting back into it.

I also did a few slab soap dishes - see the new fish stamps? I got the stamps at NCECA last spring, but this is the first time I’ve used them. I’m going to be doing a lot of fish-themed work in upcoming months.

So many ideas spinnin’ in my head…

To make a clean start in the new year, I reorganized my small studio space. For the past four years or so, the room has been arranged with everything around the outside, up against the walls. After the re-org, the table juts out into the center of the room. Surprisingly, the room seems bigger! There is a great energy, too.

My life is going through a lot of changes. I am taking four classes this semester to finish my bachelor’s degree. I quit my 40-hour/week job, and ended up with two part-time jobs, with fantastically flexible schedules. This all means that I won’t get as much time in the studio as anticipated until after mid-May. I’ve been going to school and working full-time for eight years; I’m putting my nose to the grindstone to finish up.

Happy New Year!

I am excited to be starting 2010. It’s going to be a year of change and creativity. I’m coming off hiatus and will be able to spend a lot of time in the studio this year; that’s a good thing because I have a whiteboard full of ideas to start working on.

I’m going to change the content of this blog a little bit, and talk more about the creative process, in addition to continuing with the how-to posts. So while I plan to do picture posts with step-by-step instructions, I’ll be adding shorter posts in between that talk about what I’m up to in the studio. I promise I’ll try to keep the rants to a minimum.

Here’s to you and yours, may 2010 bring you the best of everything.

Firing the clay day pieces was challenging. The first attempt was made on Labor Day weekend, and was cut short by rain. I tried to regain the firing but the temperature rose too quickly, and I had to shut the kiln down, leaving the pieces underfired. The second firing was yesterday, and was successful. I hope the kids (and grownups!) are as pleased with their pieces as I am.

Here are a few favorite “other” pieces from the firing.

Plant pot:

Soap dishes:

Spoon rests:

I am still having temperature variance issues with the kiln. The cones on the right were in the top, and in fact, the pieces that were on the top shelf will have to be refired. I think I’ll need to start leaving that top shelf empty if it is too close to the top. It only had about five inches clearance from the lid and it just doesn’t get hot enough up there. Getting more studio time in the new year should help, since I’ll have more variety of sizes and shapes to stack into the kiln, as well as more practice using it.