Papalisa, bowls and more

After talking with my parents, I had this wonderful idea to eat some papalisa soup. Papalisa is a kind of tuber, a kind of potato in Bolivia, and I'm bolivian, so I used some of the papalisa dried soup mix I had and added some potatoes my parents grew in their garden. Papaliza just has this distinctive taste about it. My grandmother (abuela) in bolivia used to make the best papaliza soup. Ahh- the good days. I miss her and my abuelo, and this is the best second I have here in Charlotte. Especially in one of my soup bowls. A glass of wine in a yunomi was a good addition.

Made some bowls in the studio tonight. Am working on some new shapes for bowls. I may alter this form if it doesn't dry too much tomorrow night before class.

Etched some words onto this vase. I like the handles I finally created on it. The vase is a gift for a very, little precious boy. Will write more in time. It's on my shelf drying.

Etched some Epiphany words onto this bowl yesterday. Words from Isaiah. I'm pleased with it so far. I love to etch words onto pieces; it just takes SO much time!

Used this book today to get ideas for some different bowl forms, and it helped!

An altered bowl in the front, plus some other bowls and forms that I've been working on.

Bowls that I etched some words onto. Got some ideas for quotes from Michael Podesta's book "Joy". He's a calligrapher who I met at an Episcopal convention recently.

Made these yunomis this weekend. Will trim them tomorrow. The simple forms are my favorites.

Put handles on these pictures this past weekend. Will make more o f these. Pitchers may be one of my favorite forms of 2011. Yunomis were that in 2010.

Well, on Friday I came into the studio and noticed that all of my throwing tools were missing. This is an unusual thing at Clayworks. The yogurt container that had all of them--- was gone. Hmmm I hope it shows up somewhere. Meanwhile, it meant a very frustrating afternoon. The studio director lent me these tools above to use until I can buy some more of my own. Hope mine weren't stolen, and instead, just inadvertently placed somewhere.

Meanwhile, another potter gave me some these extra tools. How thoughtful! Tools are expensive, and I'll make a trip to Asheville in the next few weeks to buy some extra ribs-- the ribs were what was lost. :( I must say that it's unsettling for something of yours to disappear from your space. Kinda like a robbery.

A tall pitcher-the first of its kind. More of these in the future!

What came out of the kiln?

This is the best piece of the last firing. Spotted shino yunomi with blue/green celadon dipped on top of the shino.

Great reduction too. Sprinkled a bit of wood ash on part of it. I will use this glaze combo again soon!

My shelf at the studio is quite full. Pitchers, teabowls, and bowls...

Inscribed a few bowls. This one says 'a friend has been described as one who comes in when the whole world has gone out.'

This cereal bowl has the prayer of St. Francis of Assisi. So many words, the last words are on the bottom of the bowl.

Some more pics from the gas kiln firing. Becky's birds are simply gorgeous!

These were in the back left fo the kiln.

Here's how the kiln looked once the door was opened.

While some of the glaze on my bowls turned out darker than I wanted, this was one of my favorites. (Top Left) Blue and purple!

Here's one with the same glaze combo but it was thicker--- and the kiln got a bit hotter, I was told. Oh well..... Had to re-do a few orders. Life in the pottery world is an adventure. I think I'll paint on the alfred's blue next time.

Another bowl with hues of purple. :)

Finished throwing and trimming some pitchers this weekend. They look great! More pictures soon.

Mystery and Learning

My kiln shelf seems to be full these days. Bowls and pitchers, mainly.

This is a new style of pitcher. Still needs a handle. I like it. Thanks, Adrienne! (Instructor)
She challenged me to try a new form, which I now really like. Will make more of these.

Kiln was unloaded on Monday. Results for me were a bit disappointing. The alfred's blue glaze was too thick, plus the kiln was fired a bit hot, resulting in different colors. The blue/green celadon turned almost clear instead of the bluish hue. I have to re-do a couple orders of commissioned pieces. Oh well.... I'll make sure the alfred's blue is thinner, despite what the hydrometer says and will not pour it on top of the celadon. Instead, brush it on sparingly. Wish there wasn't disappointment in the pottery world. This too shall pass. I finished my time at the studio by throwing four big bowls in a short amount of time. :)

That's one of my blue bowls.... it has some writing etched in it. Beautiful dark blue. Becky's birds seemed to do well, no matter where they were put in the kiln.

I did try this new glaze combo. The yunomi (cup on the right) is glazed with spotted shino and then some blue/green celadon poured on top. Also sprinkled a bit of wood ash on the outside. REALLY liked the results. I see a switch in glazes back to the shinos. More pics to come.

Time in the studio tomorrow, finishing the pitchers and etching on some bowls. Can hardly wait!

Monday

Spent a couple hours in the studio today. Trimmed bowls... Trimmed this plate, meaning I made the ring on the bottom of it, trimming the clay away from the plate when it was leather hard. Then, I let it dry some more and wrote some words with that tool in the pic- sgraffito tool--onto the outside of the plate. SO good to spend time in the studio.

Made several yunomi teabowls--- my default and favorite and easiest form. All have that indentation, like the teabowl on the right in this pic has. Each here was made with one pound of clay.

Second pitcher ever--- I spent a bunch of time on this... and while it needs some work and a handle of course, it is a good start. Will finish it tomorrow and work on the spout a bit. More practice needed. Free Starbucks coffee in the background... ahhh this was just a peaceful day.

It's just simply wonderful to be in the studio these days. Gotta think of some more quotes and words to put on the outside of bowls that I'm making. What fun this is!

Oh, and the kiln will be loaded on Wednesday evening. Wish tomorrow was Wednesday.

Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! This is a very late post, but here's a pic of my Christmas tree...I got a great deal on it and in time, it will travel to PA to be planted there at my parent's house. I'm quite proud of it and for now, it's watered and happy in my home.

Well, it snowed here in Charlotte, NC on Monday and it's been a winter wonderland since. Not like this (above pic).... out in the North Cascades where I was over thanksgiving. Beautiful in its own way though. Wish I had cross country skis... but the snow will soon melt, and well skis and ice aren't a good combo.

Back to life in the pottery world. Here is the inside view of a casserole dish I gave to my mom. The colors turned out so well and this one was my first! :) More of these to come. That's phoenix clay with blue/green celadon glaze and a then alfred's blue glaze with some tom's clear glaze on top to help it run.

Over Christmas I spent a week in PA with my parents, siblings, and nieces and nephews. It was a very busy week, in part because this beautiful boy, my 7 week old nephew, was in the hospital, because of a very rare and very serious bacterial bone infection. I met him in the hospital. Garrett. Please keep him in your prayers; he has a long road of recovery. Thankfully, he's home now, yet is on antibiotics and may have to have surgery on his lung if it doesn't heal. Please pray for his parents and his sister, who is sick with an ear infection and now has fluid in her lungs. She's taking antibiotics. We all celebrated Christmas in the hospital. I wouldn't recommend that location for anyone, but I wouldn't have traded being together for anything.

I returned to Charlotte and learned from a friend that she was taking a break from classes, so her shelf was available. This may not seem like a big thing, but her shelf was a couple inches taller than the one I was using and the location was better. Had a great start at the wheel. Made several cereal sized bowls and and larger one, plus a smaller plate. All in not alot of time.

This 2011 in pottery I sense more exploration coming! Making new forms.... bigger forms, and different surface design- trying new glazes. I don't know how it will all emerge yet. Time will tell! Oh, and I hope to make more blog posts. :) That's all for now.