Umm, yeah. I’m not going to talk about how long it’s been since I’ve posted here. TOO LONG, is all I’ll say.

I am happy to report that I’m finally back into the clay. Life is settling down a little bit, the home improvements are finished for now, and work is going to become less demanding in upcoming weeks.

The clay that I had in stock became pretty hard and stiff, so I decided to make some big bowls out of it, to get it used up. I made 6-pound bowls which end up holding about three quarts when finished. I left a lot of throwing marks in the bowls to try out some of the new shino glazes from Coyote. I think they’re going to come out nice.

I also have a lot of bisque on the shelf, ready to be glazed. The plan right now is to build up a large amount of bisque through September and early October, and do a lot of firings the latter half of October, and into November. That’s the plan.

Wow. It is hard to believe I haven’t updated this blog for three weeks. Alas, it has been that long since I have worked in the studio. Life has been busy. We’ve been doing a lot of home improvements, including installing ceramic floors in the kitchen and entryway, and hardwood floors in the living room and hallways. It was worth the time away from clay, just to have the beautiful new floors. And, of course, one job leads into another (painting, rugs, window blinds…), and in the end it’s like living in a new house. Nice!

Pictured here are a couple of small frog ice cream dishes that came out of the last firing in late June. All of that work is still sitting on the cart, with the exception of nine spoon rests that sold before I could get them listed on Etsy. I need to make a bunch more of those, they’re very popular. They make a unique, inexpensive gift. I think they’ll sell well at the holidays.

Thrown in just for fun, here are a couple of pics of the fruits of our labor for the past few weeks - new floors!

… the tiles are transformed.

The reds came out especially nice, and the shinos did too. I think I’ll be able to pick a few favorites out of these to add to my color palette.

I got a couple of glaze sample kits from Coyote Clay, and am firing about 45 test tiles as I write this post. I am testing the Coyote glazes along with some other glazes that I had on hand. This is what the tiles looked like when they were loaded into the kiln. I am always amazed at how flat and powdery glazes are, until they are fired and transformed into glass and color. This firing also includes a bunch of other stuff including frog items, a sushi set (pictured) that is being refired for (hopefully!) a more attractive color, a whole bunch of spoon rests and some other fun stuff. It is threatening rain, I think the monsoons are starting. Oh, how we need the rain! I just hope it holds off for another hour or so, until the firing is done.

This week, I am in Southern California, attending a professional skills program in dispute resolution - my other non day-job pursuit. The program is excellent, and an added perk is the view from the school, located in Malibu. Mediation sometimes keeps me away from the studio, but it is an important part of my life. My ultimate goal is to own a private mediation practice and a ceramics business, side by side. I can’t think of a better way to earn my living.

Here’s the view from patio at the school cafeteria.