Small Things

 Barbara Donovan did a mini fundraiser to aid the victims of the Pulse nightmare.  I was fortunate enough to be able to buy this little whisky cup.  Usually I become aware of fundraisers and sales after the fact!

Needless to say Barbara's imagery really speaks to me.  I love the way fox is loving his tail.  For years we had a red fox living in our woods.  We would see him on the driveway.  I can only describe his attitude as disdainful!  From the way he flaunted his tail I would say that he was just as proud and in love with it as this little guy.

I finally managed to get a good photo of Mrs. Hummingbird.  I had to wait for the right light and lean out the window to get it.  Toes crossed that I can get some shots of the babies when they hatch!

The caterpillars are pupating so the poop rain is slowing down.  I am going to try to get the pool open this week.  Proge has begun work on clearing the fish pond.

Aloysius aka Helpercat thinks summer means it is time to bite my feet until I remove my sandals and give him belly rubs.  If I slow down he gives me a nip to get the action going stronger.

It's a gray, humid day.  I'm going to transplant some petunias that reseeded themselves from last year.  I think there are snapdragons coming too.  Even though I don't like gray skies very much, it's excellent for gardening!

Enjoy the days ahead and as always, thanks for stopping by............*s*

Little Bowls

Little bowls from the last firing!  I originally made these as kitty dishes, but they more often are being used as small desert bowls, and little condiment dishes.

I painted them with Mason stains and frit #2134.  Fired to ^05. 

I am no longer going to once fire.  The terra cotta I am using at present does not seem to like the process.  This is not really a hardship; it was more a matter of testing convenience .  I do miss my old Miller #25 which is no longer being made.  Once I use up all that I have now I may do a special order.

We'll see grasshopper........we'll see.....

We are beginning to get the yard back in shape.  I am looking forward to a long, warm fall.

As always, thanks for stopping by...............*s*

Full Moon

Last night was a beautiful full moon to celebrate the Summer Solstice.  I planned on photographing it early this morning, because I like the way the moon hangs over the trees.  Alas!  A thunder storm put an end to that plan!

Here is the little teapot/ cruet that I was working on last winter.  I'm reasonably happy with it, but I haven't checked how it pours yet!

I have an eye doc exam this afternoon.  I'm hoping I will have time to stop at one of my favorite nurseries after.

Meanwhile, I need to put some laundry out.  I've been using my indoor drying racks outside in the garden as my lines are under trees which means I would have caterpillars and their poop all over my clean clothes if I hung them on the line.

And so it goes!

As always, thanks for stopping by.............*s*

Magical Reality

In the middle of the mess of trees being devoured and caterpillar crap falling there are small, magical  moments.  Proge found a hummingbird nesting over our driveway this morning.  I took this rather foggy photo through an upstairs window.  Toes crossed that I can get a better one in days to come.

We have had hummingbirds coming to the petunias I have hanging outside my bedroom windows.  I guess Mama Bird decided that close proximity to food is a benefit.

I did this little test dish when the hummers first showed up.  I wasn't thinking about the subject so much as wanting to test some Naples Mason Stain on this glaze.  It burns out pretty quickly on some glazes but seems to be working well here.  This is my old standby Spectrum #799

We got the lawnmower back so we can get a start on the hayfield we call our lawn.

Happy Fathers' Day to all the great daddies out there.

As always, thanks for stopping by.......*s*

Teapot

I had a fairly successful firing this time.  It was sort of a catch-up load.  I'll be posting various items as I photograph them.

I handbuilt this teapot based on a CAD post on quickly building teapots over a form.  I got a little more complicated because I pulled the handles and spout.  I also punched holes instead of cutting a hole for the spout attachment.  I generally use a tea basket when I brew tea, but I still can't bring myself to cut a hole when I am making a teapot.

This is terra cotta glazed in Spectrum #251 Satin White.  This is not an easy glaze to paint on.  Spraying with hairspray gives the glaze enough tooth so colors go on without rubbing off.  The colors are all Mason Stains.

The base is glazed in one of Spectrum's low fire metallic glazes.  Of course I did not make a note of which glaze.  It could be wrought iron or a misfire.  I need to work on these!    

Here is the kitty whistle with his mended ear.  If I had been willing to take the glaze off the broken area and done a refire it would probably be an invisible mend.

I have been looking for a substitute for my favorite Mason Cobalt  CORRECTION!  I MEANT TO WRITE CERULEAN 6379 which is no longer available. (Cobalt is another story.  It's a very dense dark blue that I use in very, very small amounts!) I can't even find a formula so I can mix my own.  I guess at some point I can call Mason.  This is Mason 6738 Zirconium Vanadium.  I don't particularly like it as a background color.  It's too dense and almost metallic.  I just need to keep testing; white may do a lot for it.

I was going to rant about how the Forest Tent Caterpillars are destroying my white oaks and making it extremely unpleasant to be outside.  However, I decided that ugly caterpillars and stripped white oaks do not belong with the happiness of my firing!  The rant will have to wait!

The weather is beautiful if a little windy.  It's nice on the deck under the umbrella.

Enjoy the day and, as always, thanks for stopping by...........*s*

Tyrion Tortise

I finally managed to get Tyrian into the kiln.  Below is the mandala design I did on the bottom shell, and his feet and head too.  If you look carefully between the front feet you can see where it came apart in the bisque firing. 

The next two shots are the top from the head and tail.  I was fooling around with a tree of life design.  I like the idea but I need to do a lot more drawings before I do it again.

I have some strange blend of Yggdrasil and Discworld going on here.  Inspirations comes from strange places!

I used Mason Stains over Spectrum #799 Majolica White for glazing, and fired to ^05.

We are having sun with wind after a rainy Saturday.  The yard is beginning to resemble a hay field.  I hope our mower is fixed soon!

Have a good Sunday.

As always, thanks for stopping by.................*s*

HOW TO...

Turn a salable into an unsalable whistle in one easy lesson:

Drop it on the cement floor and break the ear off!

I glued the ear back on using white spooze because I have hopes that the white will blend with the glaze.  If you look carefully at the second photo, you can see the mend .  I didn't bother with the full decoration, just did a few stars in a new yellow I blended.  I want to see how the color will look over the blue.  It will probably be slightly greener once it's fired.

This is a little petunia that grew and bloomed under our doorstep.  It's a reseed from last winter.   I moved it as under the doorstep is a most unsafe place.  Petunia seeds are hardy.  I have a bunch of them coming up in planters.

I find that the plants I grow outside, from seed are always stronger than the plants I buy, even from the very good nurseries we have here.  It just takes a bit longer for them to bloom.

Someday I will have a kitty proof place where I can start seeds indoors.  Someday, grasshopper...

Enjoy the day, and as always, thanks for stopping by................*s*