Promises, kept and unkept

Never make promises about that which you have no control over...the kiln was unloaded before I had a chance to shoot a picture.  This is the best I can do, a photo of the pots after they were removed.

Some of the bowls and one of the vases came out nicely...some not so nice.  There was a hammer used on a few.  But all in all, a good firing.

Spring Show and Sale

The Arvada Ceramic Arts Guild is hosting their annual spring show and sale in a couple weeks. Join us for the reception on April 30th from 5 - 9 PM for refreshments, pottery and good company. The gallery will also be open Saturday and Sunday from 10 AM - 5 PM, May 1-2.

The Guild is on Facebook - tune in for regular updates @ facebook.com/arvadaceramicarts

Multi-tasking

These are the pots I glazed on Saturday.
I spent yesterday firing the 16 cu/ft gas kiln - took 14 hours instead of the 10 or so I'd expected.  It's been a couple of years since I'd fired that kiln and don't have the details worked out...lots of variables, gas pressure, blowers, damper.  I stalled it out at about hour 8 and couldn't get the top and bottom temperatures to even out.  I will open the kiln tomorrow and see how everything turned out.  About half of the kiln load is my work and the other is several members' work.  I promise pictures before I unload.
I made use of the time by cleaning up after glazing and by cutting glass and putting together some jewlery bits; earrings and pendants.  Instead of fully fusing the glass as I usually do, I "tack fused" the pieces and am pleased with how they came out.  I must admit that I stole that idea from a pair of earrings a friend was wearing that she got in Santa Fe.
Today I was in to crack the kiln (which means taking out the peeps in the door and opening the damper) to allow it to begin to cool off.  And I did a bit of jewlery work with Precious Metal Clay.  Mostly, I looked through the bins and boxes of 'stuff' I have and located some of the findings I need to finish those earrings and pendants.

Bummed out, or is it bombed out?

As I'd mentioned, I've been spending time with the g-kids and feeling really good about it.  As a result, I am in a crunch to get ready for the show at the end of the month.  Then yesterday I put wet pots in a bisque firing, thinking I could warm them slowly and then bring them up to temperature.  Works fine is a computer controlled kiln, the one I put the birdbath bases is; doesn't work at all in the manual kiln, with the bowls for the birdbaths.  The bowls ended up in a zillion pieces.  As a result, I spent three hours vacuuming out the kiln and picking tiny debris out of the elements.  The kiln belongs to another member of the guild and I am stress out about talking with her about the disaster.  And bummed out that I put myself even farther behind.
Is there a way I can get at least one birdbath ready for the show?  I doubt it, all of the kilns are booked pretty solid and obviously I'm going to have to 'do it right' and let the darned things acutually dry out before firing them.  The weather is nice, I can set the bowls outside to dry more quickly.  Guess it is reasonable to attempt making them again and see.  As the least, I will have bisqued birdbaths to set in my studio as works in progress. 
I also want to get a couple of encaustic collages done...which can happen while the bowls are drying, I guess.

Trimmings

This morning I threw eight more bowls, five with 2# of clay and three of 1#, 1 1/2# and 2#.  Then I threw three 3# vases.  I wanted to leave the texture of slip on the surface that comes from ribbing up the side of the pot to smooth the surface.  That was an interesting exercise - I felt that I was getting lots of surface interest but when I went back later much of the slip seemed to have been absorbed into the pot so that there was no as much in the way of slip lines.  I made one very regular, one much more irregular and one kind of wonky, out of round and with slip really globbed on.  I meant to take pictures but of course I forgot.
I also trimmed the eight bowls.  The clay was just dry enough.  The clay came off with the tool in long ribbons.  That is such a satisfying activity, the bowl becoming round and smooth, the foot taking shape, then lifting it off of the wheel and feeling that I got the weight just right - not something I do very often.  When it is right the bowl feels so right, not too heavy and not too light.  It weighs the way it seems it should weigh.
So now I have 18 bowls made, in three sizes, that hopefully will be sets that will nest.  And I have four vases with slip decoration.  I'm a long ways from where I'd like to be in terms of filling the kiln.  The other members of the Guild will help fill it, but I will wish I had more new work for the Spring Show.
As I was trimming the bowls I was noticing that my face was red, like I was embarrassed.  I've noticed that feeling other times too.  I'm all alone in my studio, doing work that I feel really good about so why the feeling of embarrasment?  I wondered tonight if it had to do with not 'honoring' my skill...that I spend so much time away from doing work with clay and others are much more committed. 
The reality is that I will not choose to spend much more time in the studio.  I find the time I spend with my family and friends to be just as important.  I can't choose clay (or glass or silver or encaustics) over them.  Thursday I skiied with my son and two grandkids, this afternoon I helped my son get his house ready to paint, Monday I will ski with my granddaughter.  How can I do otherwise?  The birdbaths and coffee mugs will just have to wait.