Saturday, February 28, 2009

My Blogger Profile

Do you have a blog? Is your blog profile updated? Do you know how many people view your profile? Possibly a lot more than you realize. I recently switched over to a new Google/Blogger account for a more professional email address, something separate from my personal email, but I didn't bother to update my new Blogger profile. I just realize today I've had 3,700 profile views in the past month since I've switched, and I've had nothing on my profile, not even a link to my lovely website. So there it is, now a fully updated profile. Enjoy.

P.S. Where are these thousands of people coming from? What do I need to do to keep them around?

Examining Denver Galleries

If you're a Denver resident or close enough where you're interested in the gallery scene, look me up on Examiner.com. I just started writing for them as the Denver Galleries Examiner and I'll be writing about anything & everything related to galleries in & near Denver. If you're in Greeley, CO, there will be an opening reception at the UNC Art Galleries, Mariani & Oak Room, on Wednesday, March 4. Stay tuned for an article & more info.

Second, if you or anyone you know in Denver would like to be a writer for Examiner.com, care to use me as a reference? Let me know if you're interested & I'll give you my contact info. I'll return the favor and spread the word on your articles (yeah, we get paid for page views, and a bit for any references of course).

I'm now on Twitter in two places! Holy moley... ceramicerin & DenverGalleries. DenverGalleries is very straightforward - I update when I post an article. As for my personal Twittering, anything goes, whether it's related to galleries, Examiner.com, ceramics, food, cats, etc.

Now for the blogging... It's on my mind. The other night I was glazing pots at the Guild and I asked a member, "Are all of these glazes food safe?" and she replied, "Yep, they are all lead-free." Well my dear friends, we all know lead-free is a good thing, but that isn't the only quality of a glaze that makes it food-safe. I'm no expert when it comes to glazes, but I do know that there is more to food-safe glazes than lead. I plan to research and post my findings soon. If you want to read about what makes a durable glaze, Mastering Cone 6 Glazes is a good start.

Thursday, February 19, 2009

the rikrak studio

We all love giveaways, especially when they're pretty handmade things... one of these days when I get a line of pots going that I'm really pleased with I'll giveaway one of my own. For now I just like finding other giveaways, like this one from the rikrak studio for their 2 year "etsy-versary."

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

New Tools

I've just returned from an adventure in colorful San Francisco, but it's late and I haven't got time to tell that story tonight. For a short bedtime story I'll tell you about the fun tools I bought at the lovely Mile Hi Ceramics - a throwing stick, hole cleaner, sponge and, best of all, underglaze. The underglaze is what I need most of all. I've dabbled in different ways of decorating my pots with bicycles and other odd things like dinosaurs and balloons using engobes and inlays, but I think painting with an underglaze might look nice. We'll see. I'm excited to get in the studio tomorrow!
One thing I would really like is a nice wire cutoff tool. Something handmade that isn't going to fray or break, and something that isn't ridiculously long like my current one is. I figure I should just make one, but I haven't gotten around to it. Do you make your own tools?


Though I haven't been blogging so frequently lately, I have been twittering. Mostly unrelated to ceramics, but if you're interested in my little quips about anything and everything look for ceramicerin on Twitter.

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Nic Collins and Flopsy Pots

Nic Collins -



I am in awe at how quickly and simply potters like this work, especially after times like tonight in the studio - I was terrible! I'm not sure why. I was on a roll making basically the same thing during the throw-a-thon last week, but tonight I attempted 10 large cups, with a big pile of flops and only 3 standing in the end. I was out of it. Maybe it was the clay - I decided to try some new clay, "half & half" ... I don't even know what the two halves are! It's quite groggy and I thought I could get it pretty thin. It's thin, but not any more so than throwing with porcelain. So I've decided to just go wth the porcelain next time. So what if it costs more? I like it!

What kind of clay do you use? Do you have trouble when you switch clay bodies?

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Etsy Sale

The sale is now official! I've just uploaded some more pots to my Etsy store and marked everything down 25%. Get 'em while they're hot - sale runs only 24 hours!

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Pots for Sale!

I have one too many boxes of pots crowding my space, so I'm having a one day sale on Etsy. Check it out on Monday, February 9th - 25% off everything in my Etsy store. I'll be uploading a lot more pots between now & then, so check back for more.



Pastels for Sale

While I was drawing this I realized pastels aren't for me. Would you like some? I'll sell my 2 sets of pastels together for only $30. I found on DickBlick.com the set of 24 Prismacolor NuPastels for $18.54 and the set of 48 Conte Crayons for $45.73. Though some of mine are broken, they're close to full sticks. I obviously don't use them much... If you would like only one set, give me an offer.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Ceramic Jewelry

Kristen Kieffer just made some gorgeous ceramic pendants -


Last week I visited Annie Chrietzberg's house for the first time and we talked ceramics for a little while, saying what a ridiculous art it is to get into. She has a friend who's a jeweler who just carries a little suitcase of work around to shows and galleries... just this little thing, full of beautiful artwork worth thousands of dollars. Pots on the other hand are big and bulky comparatively, especially with all of the special equipment. Well here's a wonderful example that includes aspects of both clay & jewelry. This one is my favorite (*hint, hint*). What do you think? Are you a fan of ceramic jewelry?

Sunday, February 1, 2009

Who needs a real job anyway?

What have I been up to? As always when I'm tight on money, life gets in the way of my passion. Looking for a job is a full-time job in itself, then add to that looking for roommates... In this economy. In this city. Life is tough at the moment, though I'm trying to stay optimistic. This month will be one of our worst yet financially, but I think it'll get easier come March. Anyway, I've started mystery shopping as a part time job. It's an odd job, but a friend suggested it, so I'm trying it out. No interviewing necessary... makes it easy to get started.

Oh, I'm sorry, this is a ceramics blog isn't it? Alright, back to that... in between all the job-hunting I've found a few hours this week to make pots. One thing I'm excited for are my berry bowls - medium-small bowls with holes to rinse off berries in, with small plates to sit underneath, so you can rinse your berries and eat them too, all in one attractive dish. Lovely!

Today I helped my friends back at UNC with their annual "throw-a-thon" ... We started it a few years ago in response to Hurricane Katrina. We invited students & local potters to join us in making pots for a weekend, then held a sale at the University & donated all the proceeds to benefit the hurricane victims. We decided to make it an annual event and donate to a different charity each year. This is the second year that the proceeds will be going back to the ceramics students to help them go to the NCECA conference. It was like a reunion with everyone in the ol' UNC ceramics studio, it was great!
 
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