I can’t seem to get away from them. I’ve come back full circle to the desire to make colorful, festively patterned pieces. So, that’s what I’ve been working on. Why fight the urge? The pictures in this post are pre-fired. That’s why the colors are pastel; once fired and glazed, the colors will be brilliant and saturated.

My time in the studio has been limited what with school and work and life, but I’m sneaking in an hour here and there. I’m playing with some new color combinations and patterns, along with some old standbys. My mantra this year is “Don’t stress. Just do what comes naturally and work when you can.” Last year’s stressful run up to the holiday shows took a lot of joy out of my favorite indoor pastime, and I’m going to do everything I can to not let that happen this year.

The clay that I had in stock from the Christmas season is a little bit dry and firm, but still good for working on the slab soap dishes (see previous post) and little spoon rests. I also made a few dip bowls. I guess I have about twenty five pounds of the old clay left that I’ll try to get to this weekend, then it will be into the nice, soft, fresh stuff. That’s reserved for bigger pots.

This afternoon, I’m going to pour another plaster mold - this time for a square rice bowl. I was at a local department store in the after Christmas sales and came across this bowl and thought, “Aha! - I could make a press mold out of this!” and that was that. The sale bowl was in my basket and it’s been on the shelf since then. Stay tuned for results!