is an artist and designer who lives in atlanta, georgia. these days she is primarily making handbuilt and wheelthrown pottery items, as well as painting, making things with wood and paper and getting her hands dirty with her two small children.
The thing about having two full time jobs- in addition to being a mom to two small children, is that you are never, EVER caught up! Work for the tea house- the fabulous- you must visit and/ or buy some tea- tahCha.com has been keeping me most busy for the last few weeks, and i have only been able to dabble in the studio.... yesterday i was finally able to get in there and do some much needed cleaning-- so at least this lays the groundwork to be able to begin working in there again!! additionally, i took about 700 photographs (well, probably more like 300) and then uploaded and edited them on the computer.... (you can't sell your work online unless you take pictures of it!). Today i hope to list a few of these newly photographed things... but it remains to be seen whether time will allow. The children will be back soon and then there is the business of feeding and bathing them. i just made them dinner last night, for crying out loud! why do they have to eat every night?! (of course, i am just joking here. mostly anyway). Otherwise, the rest of the afternoon will be spent in the garage continuing to throw mugs and yunomi for custom orders, the tea house and my dwindling selection on etsy.
Here are a few pics of some of the things i was photographing yesterday and hope to list soon.
I just realized that i had not yet listed anything in my shop with this design... People at my shows buy them all up!
starting to get some spring fever i must say.... these pendants
are awfully fun- and so very springy!!
are you sensing a theme here? i love the bright colors on these rainy days!
here are a group of them together.
Some of these little cuties will be listed here soon--- so come and visit and check out what i have going on in my little corner of etsy!
The holiday season, family obligations and the business and "busy-ness" of the tea house have kept me from being in the studio very much, and from being able to list new things on etsy.... all great reasons, but still a little frustrating.... largely because i have so many pieces ready to go that are just waiting to be photographed, or worse yet- have ALREADY been photographed and are just sitting and twiddling their thumbs waiting to be shared with the world! not that there are too many people waiting with bated breath to see what's coming out of the studio.... but anyway....
so today, after a phenomenal business meeting with my partner and a woman with whom we may work in some capacity (more cannot be divulged at this point... but it is exciting stuff), i picked up my littlest one, played on the playground a bit and then took her out to lunch. That was a rare treat as we don't get too much one on one quality time any more, and she was delighted by the opportunity to be with mama for a little while before she went to her grandparents for the day. i was delighted too! upon my return home and after certain domestic chores involving dogs and taking out garbage etc... i finally got out to the garage to work on some mugs for an order that i got a few weeks back. I threw a few pieces but then had to take a break because my clay is not as nice and soft as i like it to be for throwing, and i wasn't coming out with forms that i loved... so here i am; thought it would be a nice chance to check in with this blah-blah-blog and say hello. maybe i'll mist the clay and wrap it up for tomorrow. I have a couple of paintings in the works that i could spend some time on instead.
here are the first few strokes on a canvas that i worked on throughout my show last month
color number two introduces itself... a nice warm ochre...
mmhmm... let's get some red in there...
bringing in the green...
okay- this is starting to get fun!
a detail of what is starting to happen....
now we're getting somewhere.
almost finished....
detail of almost finished painting
all done!
this and other paintings will be on display at tahCha tea house in an upcoming show... i'll keep you posted with details of the event and the opening reception.
this painting measures 2 ft by 4 ft and is painted in a combination of acrylics and oils.
here is a shot of part of the show; a couple of new paintings on the walls, mugs and tea cups galore, a sample of my "lamp revamps" and a little peek at some garden markers and some of the glass pieces by my friend Molly of Rockwater Glass
this is a shot of some serving pieces and plates from my "global impressions" series; they feature stamps and textures inspired by the art and culture of different places in the world and are glazed in earthy browns and black along with various shades of green and blue.
a detail of some of the "global impressions pieces and another new painting called, "Pupil of the Eye"
here is a shot of a few of the earrings that i had out when the show began. Many of them are gone now, but i just finished out about 40 more pairs yesterday and have now added them to the mix. One of the nice things about doing a show that runs over the course of a few weeks is that you can keep adding new and fresh work! If you live locally and want to come by, give me a shout and we can arrange a time for you to stop in!
this is the link to the e-vite for my studio show and sale! i have been a busy busy little bee and am so excited for this show! it is only the second year that i have done a show here in my own studio (though i have been doing other shows for many many years), and it is just too much fun! I have been working on all of my standards- mugs and serving pieces, jewelry, clocks and garden art.... and this year i have 10 new paintings to show and also a boat load of adorable ornaments for your holiday tree or to use as unique and beautiful gift tags! There are a bunch of new jewelry designs- earrings, necklaces and pendants galore!! and many more clocks and mirrors than i had last year!
There is a lot for me still left to so, so although i would like to stay on the computer and tell you all about it... i had better get going and DO it!!!
here is a little teaser.... some of the fun pottery dishes that i will have available.... in this photo, just waiting for their clear glaze and final firing! come see me if you can!!
i am really quite the master of procrastination. more than anything, i need to be cleaning up the studio, beginning to set up for my studio show and glazing glazing glazing.... instead, i can't seem to stop painting. i thought i would start a couple of canvases to pick away at in the weeks to come, and now i am obsessed working on about 7 paintings and NOT glazing. what is wrong with me?
Sometimes i have such a hard time staying focused and on track in the studio; especially when i have so much to do. I blame it on the rain today.... but really i am just having trouble keeping up with all of the things that need to be doing. I worked for the morning in the studio sanding and smoothing the edges of a bunch of trays and dishes that are dry and waiting for their initial firing. The mud gods weren't with me for much of the time, and i ended up breaking a number of pieces under my - apparently not so gentle- touch. bummer. I was hoping to get the kiln fully loaded and get that bisque fire done before the evening rolled around, but it was not to be. Having to drop work in the middle of any task and go to pick up a little one from school always throws me for a bit of a loop, and today it really threw me off my game.... what could/ should have been about a 45 minute round trip, turned into a 3 hour tour of school, a few different printing places, the craft store, the post office, and, why oh why did i even go inside? TJMaxx. it didn't seem like any of these little errands were taking too long until i got home and realized that it was 2:30 and that my work day was already moving quickly towards being over. I guess at that point i just got discouraged enough that i haven't really poured myself into much of anything since then.
The trouble is, i have a busy weekend coming up with out of town guests and soccer games and a drop off for a holiday show that i do every year, and my studio show is NEXT weekend! i am so ill prepared for this year's show, and i really should be spending EVERY waking moment making things, and finishing the hundreds of things i have already started... not to mention cleaning the studio and the rest of the house, and starting to set up the show....
I see a few all nighters (or VERY late nights) in my immediate future.
and lots and lots of coffee.
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