December 25. 2019

Good Yule from the Christmas Dragon

Birds

I have taken to drinking my morning tea in the sunroom rather than lolling around in bed.

We are beginning to get more birds this year.  Last year there weren't many.  I don't know if  there was some reason other than they didn't feel like it.We used to have many house finches; they no longer seem to be in the neighborhood.  Perhaps they will return.

In addition to those pictured we have many titmice, juncos, and nuthatches.

We do let the squirrels come.  After all, they get hungry too.  They love peanuts in the shell  and corn, which we are currently out of.

We are enjoying sunny, cold days.  Much better than the cold, sleety, rain we had last week.

Meanwhile I am cozy and warm enjoying the heat from our trusty Jotul.

Good Yule to everyone!

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

It's Christmas!

The dragons arrived this morning with lights and ornaments.

This is the little penguin whistle I made last week.  He is glazed for a single fire.  The pink is the wax resist I use.  It makes using black so much easier!

Toes crossed I will have a full kiln by the week end.  We'll see grasshopper......

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

Pinch Pots

Here is a rabbit/hare/bunny that I pinched out of a small cylinder of clay.

He was going to be a whistle but I let him get too dry.  I like my whistles to be on the edge of hard leather when I make them.

There is a lot wrong with him, including the mended foot, but he will be fine for design experiments.

Many of my potter friends on various FB pottery groups have been making coiled cone Christmas trees.

I built these two over bisqued cones wrapped newspaper. My clay was very wet and I was too impatient to dry it out a bit.  The smaller one is coils which I then smooshed  to get some surface movement.  The larger one is small wads of clay which I shaped as I applied them.

I remove the forms as soon as the clay has dried just a bit.  The newspaper stays in to provide a bit of support.  It removes easily when the trees are completely dry.

I have glazed these with three coats of Spectrum #799 Majolica White. The green in Mason Stain #6202 Florentine Green.

They will be single fired to ^05

We'll see, grasshopper...

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

Ringo

Our dear orange floof, Ringo, died suddenly of what I can only assume was a heart attack, while we were out shopping.

Ringo... July 1, 2017-November22, 2019

He was a fourteen pound ball of floofy love.  His goofy affection helped me get through Aloysius’s passing last summer.

I am devastated and heartbroken.

As always, thanks for stopping by.............*s8

Sunflowers

Yes indeed.  My sunflowers are coming into bloom.

They sprouted in a birdfeeder after days of rain in September.  I transplanted some of the strongest into a planter so I could bring it inside if it it got too cold.  Here on the south side of the house it has stayed nice and warm.

I think next spring I will scatter lots of sunflower seeds around and see what happens.

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

The Last Rose of Summer?

I thought this was the last rose, but yesterday I noticed two more buds forming.

Autumn is always interesting here because it often wanders along in the sixties even low seventies and then suddenly turns frosty.

The maples and some of the beech have begun to turn.  The oaks are always much later.

 

It's Turkey Time!  These are just a few of the very large flock that has been wandering through our yard at sunrise this week.

I have been reorganizing my studio to make it more conducive to work.

I am debating with myself about doing the Christmas Sale at my Art Association/ Pottery Co-op.

We'll see, Grasshopper.......we'll see......

The sun is out after days of rain and storm.   Enjoy!

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

Detente?

A not great photo of  Friendly and LuckyPeach sleeping together on the much coveted box in the sun.

This happened a few days ago and has been recurring every morning.

  

I can’t tell you how happy it makes me to see Peach starting to come out of her shell and starting to trust just a little bit.

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

Fishy Friday

Here  are two small prototype fish I have been working on.

Both will be glazed and single fired.  The white one on the left has it's base coat on.  The terra cotta one is still drying.  To single fire the pieces must be absolute dry before glazing. 

These are the beginning of an idea I have for larger fish whistles.  Single firing gives me results in one step.

I just realized it's the long weekend so we will be off to do errands, hopefully, before things become too crazed.

Celebrate and remember those who fought so  hard and gave so much for our country.

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

Fish

I started this fish while Aloysius was sick.    Unlike throwing, I could work for small periods of time and easily stop when I wanted to give him attention.

Terra cotta, entirely handbuilt.  I am not totally satisfied with the tail.  Next time!

Although I often single fire decorative pieces I am going to bisque this one.  There are so many fragile add ons that it will be safer and easier to glaze when it is bisqued.

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

Aloysius

Our beloved Aloysius died this morning.  He is missed.

Cat Day

Happy International Cat Day!

August?

Not sure how that happened.  It feels like we were celebrating the Fourth with friends just last week

Here are a few of the new bunnies I have been making to wish all hares and rabbits!

 I have a very few day lilies that have not been scarfed up by the deer.  These are two of my favorites.  They have been sprinkled liberally with chili pepper dust.

I think this Oriental Alba is a surviver from the red beetle infestation of a few years ago.  It's tucked away next to the house.  It's probably a bulblet from the original plant.  The scent is wonderful.
 

And last, 'the littlest sunflower' or 'the little sunflower that could.'  It's growing next to a dead tree stump.  Obviously a bird feeder surviver!

Even though it was late getting started we are now enjoying summer.

Pottery, pool and popsicles!  That's the ticket!

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

You Can't See Mee!

Ringo has no concept of his own size, 12 pounds and lots of floof.  Last night he crawled under the protective sheet of tyvek I have under the litter box. 

Head hidden, cat gone.  Is this a reverse Cheshire Cat?

He does this a lot.  His favorite spot is under my wing chair.  I still find it odd to see that the base of my chair has grown a tail!

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

At Last LILIES!

They are about a month late, but at last the lilies have started to bloom.

The top photo is a true lily that I have had for many years.  It has survived red bug and caterpillar infestations so it's a real keeper.

I'm not sure where the yellow day lily came from.  I found it in a pot a year ago and stuck it in the ground.  It was just a couple of pathetic leaves so I did not have much hope for it.  It appears to be coming along nicely.  I knew it was yellow, but did not remember that it was double.  Surprise!

This is actually a darker red.  I bought it from Larry the Pond Guy when he was closing his business.  We still miss him.  He was a fount of knowledge on ponds and water plants.  I have yet to find someone in the area who is as knowledgable.

Summer has finally arrived.  We went from early spring temps to summer in the space of two days.  Guess I will open the pool after all.

Toes crossed that all enjoyed a Happy Independence Day!

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

Osprey

The ospreys have built a nest on top of a construction crane by the river in Westerly.  It's a good distance away so I extended my lens to its fullest and then cropped a bit.

In the first photo you can see the adult with the baby behind.  If I had been quick enough I could have shot the other adult bringing food to the baby.

The second photo is a shot of the nest on top the crane.

I have seen osprey nests on telephone poles, and cell phone towers, but this is a first.

Have great weekend, and as always, thanks for stopping by..............*s*

Flowers

The perennials have been blooming like mad this year.  I think all the rain and the relatively mild winter have had a great deal to do with it.

My poppys are the best they have been in years, helped by the fact that monsoons have not beaten them to a pulp as soon as they bloom.

Columbine and yellow flags are blooming by the pond.  It's a very pleasant place to sit and drink morning tea.  The two oak trees that shaded it are gone, but the swamp maples are big enough to do the job.

Clean up progresses slowly.  We'll  see, grasshopper......

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

Spring at Last!

Finally!  After many coy flirtations spring seems to be here.

The hibiscus have been blooming all winter.  It's not quite warm enough to put them out yet, but soon.

Meanwhile my columbine is thriving as is the white bleeding heart.  I just wish it weren't so difficult to transplant.  This one really need dividing, but I hesitate.

The first white violet is a tiny variety that seems to like to hide in the grass.  Shrinking violet?

The white and violet varieties grow all over the lawn.  Some might call them invasive but we do enjoy the way they look.  We also have dogtooth and bird'sfoot varieties, but they are harder to find.

And last, what would spring be without a frog?  We have several, but this fellow likes to pose on the edge of the pond so all can admire him.

My cataract surgery when very well indeed.  I have finally been given the go-ahead to work in my studio and garden.  Of course now that the weather is warm I want to be outside.  I think one reason this feels like it has been such a long haul is that I had to postpone the original dates due to a cold that didn't want to quit.  I was particularly incensed because I have not had a cold in years.

Never get too cocky, grasshopper....

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

Corner

Gwynneth @ https://gzandco.blogspot.com posted a link asking for phots of corners.

This is a quickie taken on my iPad of my reading and drawing corner.  I figured I had better take a picture while it still looked reasonably neat.  I think there are still cobwebs around!

I’ve been away from my blog for a long time.  I have my last cataract surgery tomorrow so I will do a catch up post next week.  Time fugits!

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

So This Is Spring?

I am not a happy camper!  Woke up to snow this morning.  Fortunately it is supposed to be in the 40’s today and mid 50’s with sun tomorrow

We had two of our very big, very dead oak trees taken down recently.  There is lots of wood for next year and a lot of mess that comes with feeling trees.

More yard work tomorrow.

Enjoy the weekend.   Wishing all those who are experiencing extreme weather a good survival.

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

Plant A Flower?

Yesterday, March 12, was National Plant A flower Day.  To which I say HAH!  The only way I would be able to plant anything is with a pick-axe!

Instead I painted another Brugmansia on another tile.

I am not entirely happy with this.  The angle of the flower looks like it's taking off for outer space.   I also need to blend some of the greens a bit.

Another sunny day and the snow is beginning to melt a bit.  At least it is not as bad as last year!

Yes indeed, these are my flamingoes in a snowstorm exactly one year ago.  Cold comfort indeed.

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

Flower Friday

Yes, I do know that today is Saturday.  I posted this in Facebook yesterday then got involved in other stuff before posting here.

This is a purchased terra cotta tile glazed in Spectrum #799, majolica white, painted with my own mixed Mason Stains.  It will fire to a hot ^05.

The design is my take on Brugmansia.  I have grown these every summer, except for the last few years due to our caterpillar infestations.  The population crashed, and we have had a few dead trees removed, so we don’t have to be too concerned about branches falling on us.  I am looking forward to warm weather and redesigning the garden to accommodate all the sun we now have.

1. 

We’ll see, grasshoppper.........we’ll see..........

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

I planted all the amaryllis in one large planter a few weeks ago.  

They are sprouting nicely with a few potential bud stalks showing.  When I grow new bulbs the bud stalk always comes up first.  When I replant bulbs it’s anybody’s guess.

I had one bloom in July last year.  We’ll see, grasshopper....we’ll see.....

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

Never!

This is why I never leave yarn out in the open.  This was a very nice cake that I bought to experiment with bulky yarns.  

Several of the furbies thought it was pretty nice too!

One of today’s projects will be untangling this!  Put it in the live and learn category!

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

Found Mug

Not really  found as I have known where I have had it hidden away.  Aloysius knocked it over almost as soon I took it out of the kiln and chipped one of the feet.  It's a prototype so I controlled myself and did not smash it on the floor!

I like the idea and the way the fish curves to fit the form.The rest of it needs work.
    1. The diameter is too small for the height.
    2.  The handle is too close to the mug, need to attach lower and have a bit more negative
         space.
    3. Feet work but they don’t feel strong enough visually.

Anything else?  I would love some constructive critique on this.

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