LAST POST

 

I would like to thank Adriana for welcoming me to join in every week

to post my latest hits and misses.  I have thoroughly enjoyed "making 

new friends" which I would not have done without Mud Colony.  

 

It's only about 18 months ago I came across Mud Colony,

and it opened up a whole new world for me.  Every

week I would eagerly wait for the next installments

in the lives of the many talented potters who contributed,

following their successes and tears while getting

down and dirty in clay.

 

What a life and how lucky are we who get our hands

into lovely squishy clay.

 

I will miss Mud Colony, but intend to keep up by

 following everyone on Facebook.

  

The last couple of weeks I've been trying to "venture outside

 box" with my painted designs.  Below are just a few  images

of new avenue I'm experimenting with.

 

 I'm excited with the result of this jug,

just don't know if I got too carried away and

didn't know when to stop

 

And my gum leaves which are becoming very popular

and one slightly wonky bottle

 

 

Well, that's me forthe last Mud Colony post, but don't

forget to check out Mud Colony for everyone else's

last week.

 

Thank you again Adriana, and a big thankyou in regards

to your help with the gas "monster" kiln.  I've bought a

small electric kiln since then and it gets a workout these days instead

of tackling the gas monster.

 

 

CHRISTMAS IS COMING

 

 

I can't believe it's 1st November already, before we know it, the Christmas season will be here and we'll be frantically organising ourselves buying presents and goodies for the day. I started in January this year so wouldn't have the last minute rush making and firing porcelain decorations.

 

This weekend in Barraba is the bi-annual International Festival  and this year it's the Philipines.  Filipino food, music, markets and an  art exhibition.

I'm participating in the markets,  and have my small Christmas Tree, stand and pottery ready to go.

 

As usual the photos not the best, going to show you anyway.

 

I've enjoyed Mud Colony Blog immensely. Living in a fairly small isolated community,  it has helped me feel that I am not alone with my attempts at creating something out of the lump of clay.

 

I am in awe of the beautiful work shown on this blog and  will continue to follow all my favourite potters - (and that is everyone who has been a participant).

 

Now that I've finished rambling, I'm going to pop over for the last time and check out everyone else on www.MudColony.blogspot.com.au 

 

Wishing everyone a beautiful and happy Christmas

with family and friends.

 

 

 

 



OUT OF THE FIRE

 

A follow on from last week's post - 

After 3 days the cauldron was cool enough to empty the pots,

lots of good surprises and only a few losses.

 

The largest pot was the best, alas it has a fsmall fine hair crack running down from the rim,

but the result with this pot and a few others has urged me on to keep firing this way.

 

Last post I mentioned going to look at a kiln,

looking for it at the sale, owners said it had been dropped,

smashed to bits and taken to tip,

I think someone bought it privately before sale.

Doesn't matter, there are others out there.

 

Searching on Gumtree, found one that might suit me,

going to look at it tomorrow.  Keep your fingers crossed for me.

 

Next project, make a lighting cube, finding it difficult to take decent photos.

 

 

This is the best result, (fine hair crack)
Hand built, white earthenware clay, burnished and bisqued to cone 018
before firing in sawdust and other exciting additives.

Just love the results.

Same pot, other side.

 

  I have been viewing all the posts re last weekend and Open Studios,

check them out on Mud Colony,

there's a lot of fantastic,  creative and talented potters out there.



DILEMMA

 

Had a couple days away with my daughter and her family and came home with a horrible tummy bug.  Have been feeling miserable since came home, so to cheer myself up thought I would throw a few pots with new stoneware clay I have been saving for just the right occasion.   It worked, felt much better concentrating on clay and speed of wheel, thinking of nothing else, with just the radio on in the background.  Then spent a lovely couple of hours this afternoon turning the pots.  It's been a while since I've spent any time on the wheel and had forgotten how much I enjoy it.

 

 

 

So that has brought my dilemma to a head.  I keep bouncing around from wheel to handbuilding,

slab to moulds, creative to functional, etc. etc.  I just don't know where I'm heading and can't seem

to get a handle on just what path to follow.  My problem is I like it all, and I'll end up a jack of all

trades, but not proficient in any.  I love sawdust/pit firing but also like sgraffito and painting on my

pots pre bisque. 

 

Has anyone else found themself in this situation, how do I get myself sorted out???

 

Anyway, enough of my rambling on , must pop over to MudColony and check out what others are up to.    

 



LATEST POTS

These are the latest ones I've been working on

Not much else has happened, except

finally caught up with everything except the garden.

Oh! well, might get out there this afternoon. 

Don't forget to pop over and check out Mud Colony

REJECTS

 

The beginning of my pottery path

which wanders through the garden under a huge tree.

All reject pottery (up to date) has been broken up

and placed on the path in random

which will eventually (I'm sure there will be plenty of rejects)

be a colourful crazy mosaic of pottery pieces.

Like the path, the garden is in it's early days,

waiting for the severe heat of summer to give

all the new plants a chance to grow.

 



JANUARY HEAT WAVE

 

 

I decided I should get off my butt and do something
after the last couple of weeks of extreme heat,
 get the creative juices flowing again,
I have so many ideas floating around in my head,
so

here are the first pieces waiting for bisque firing.

 

 

Tea lights, my first venture into porcelain 

 

 

 

 

Don't forget to pop over to www.mudcolony.blogspot.com.au

and see the fantastic work other potters are creating.

CHRISTMAS WISHES

 

For the very last Mud Colony for 2012

I have something exciting to say (for me anyway) ,

I often give some of my pottery

away to friends or as gifts, but the long awaited

sale has happened.  Although only a very small

bowl, I sold my very first piece of pottery today.

Woohoo, what a thrill.

 



This is it, not very fancy or special,
but someone liked it enough to buy it.
  

I would like to say thank you to Adriana for initiating this blog,

a late happy birthday wish as well,

and a wish for a wonderful Christmas to Adriana and 

all fellow Mud Colony bloggers

plus a happy and creative 2013.



 

THE BEST OF THE BUNCH

I don't know if  you all are aware, I'm what is called a "Newbie" to the world of pottery and ceramics.  My history with clay goes back some 22 years.  After a disastrous split with my then husband and looking for something to take my mind off things. I joined a local studio and was involved there for about 12 - 18 months.  Life moves on and so did I, and recently found myself again at a local pottery studio in a small NSW town.  A friend gave me a wheel she had catching dust in the garage, a beautiful 91yr. old local potter who was winding down her potting, passed her gas kiln over to me.  I have had no experience with kilns, let alone a gas one, so together with the invaluable assistance of Adriana, my current friend and I have ventured into the world of gas kiln firing.  As our Adriana says "WOO HOO"  what a journey it has been.  The first attempt was a low fire bisqueing of burnished pots with no problems with result other than Don and I had absolutely no idea what we were doing.  Wednesday this week we lit up again and this time a glaze firing.  The results were mixed, some good and some "not so good" in other words, duds.  All earlier photos I have displayed on my blog have been fired at the local studio.  So now, I am about to display a few of the better results.  My photography is crap, so please excuse that as well.

HERE GOES ................

The best of the batch, clear glaze on terracotta clay

Same clay, same glaze but a different result.  Even a changing of
colour that surprised me but quite happy with result.

Glazed this with a matt glaze (didn't know how it would turn out)

This group of three pots were covered in coloured slip
before bisqueing, then glazed with the matt glaze.
What a fantastic surprise and finish, I'm rapted how they feel.

Just happy with this small bowl

Now this one glazed beautifully, except I placed on top shelf
and the kiln fibre drooped down, attaching
 itself to a part of the rim, leaving it rough.  B......g .r

                                                                                                                                                                 

Shame about this one, happy with glaze
BUT it blistered on outside of bowl.





Well, that's about it for me this week, don't forget to catch everyone
else on Mud Colony this week.

TEAPOT MAD

Unloaded the kiln yesterday and here is
another teapot for my collection.  Again the spout is too large (thick)
but overall reasonably  happy with the result.  Except the red did not turn out
as I expected.
But, I will keep trying until I make a teapot that I am
absolutely happy with.

A Happy Accident

I was going to throw this pot out, liked the finish to the pot, but oh! when

coated it with a layer of copper oxide it was black and dark.  The kiln

was being loaded, grabbed the pot undecided to fire it or not.  Was not

impressed at all how  it looked.  In the end thought "why not see how it 

comes out" and TA! DA! here it is.  Was pleasantly surprised with the

result and love the random finish and colours.

Happy birthday MUD COLONY, congratulations on your 1st Birthday and

congratulations and thank you to Adriana for all the hard work you have

given to this Blog.  

Pop over to Mud Colony to see the great work created by all the excellent potters on Mud Colony

I LOVE PAINTING AS WELL AS POTTERY

As well as pottery my other love is painting, so I have tried my hand at painting on some of my pots using underglaze before they are bisque fired.  In case there is a problem with the firing, I photographed them for my records.  

The background is not too hot as it was a last minute decision at pottery on Monday and I didn't have any special backing. 

 With the exception of the two triple sets, all the others have been thrown on the wheel.   The flat ones are plate/dish shapes about 8-9 cms in height.  As a newbie, I was not unhappy with the results, still can't seem to throw anything taller than about 20cms in height, but I'm trying.

Waiting to be bisqued

These are a few of the items waiting for a long overdue

firing - have installed the gas kiln, but haven't

fired it up yet.  

 Flat serving plate

This will be a triple set with similar motiff

I Looove teapots -
 just two of the few waiting for firing 

With Christmas not too far away,
have started to think about Candle holders
Here I am trying out a few ideas

Experimenting with  flat plates -
just a slight upward curve around edge