merry christmas...

merry christmas everybody...

i'm surviving....

okay, i know i haven't blogged in a couple of weeks, but you have to watch this video. after the last few busy months, i think i'm finally finding my christmas happy place. if you're having a hard time surviving the holidays, check out the clip... more blogging soon, i promise.

check 'em out...

here are just a few of our friends from the cdc show this past weekend...there was so much more great work that i couldn't get photos of, but here's a few:

this is jen mecca (she's on the left) and our friend trish, in front of jen's booth. if you haven't already, check out her blog. i love, love, love her pots...she does beautiful work.

here's betty mckim and her husband george--betty's jewelry is absolutely gorgeous! you can check out her work on her website.

here's ronan peterson in his booth--he makes really great pots. he's in chapel hill, and you can see more of his work here...(i also just added a link to his blog on our bloglist, so be sure and check that out too)

this is sandra mcewen's jewelry booth...it's hard to see the jewelry in this shot, so you have to look at her website. you'll be blown away--seriously...her enamel jewelry is amazing, she is so talented.

here's kathrin weber's booth--she's an incredibly talented weaver. here's the link to her website--check out the "process" section, there are some great photos of her dyed yarns. we were lucky enough to trade with her a couple of years ago, and absolutely love the blanket she made.

well, that's just a few of my favorites from the show...so much great stuff!

going, going, gone...

well, the cdc show has come and gone, and today I got home and finally had a chance to relax for a little while. it's always such an exhausting weekend, with being at the show, having the shop open, and judson being completely off his schedule. Anyway, the show was beautiful--i had some good sales, and caught up with lots of old friends. i'll post pics tomorrow of some of our very talented friends' booths. for tonight, though, i thought i'd post some photos of what it looks like when breaking down. i've always wanted to take time-lapse photography of an entire show setup/breakdown, and then play it back really fast...(if you want to see what it looks like when we set up, just watch it backwards!)

hope everyone had a wonderful and peaceful thanksgiving weekend. 

the life of riley...

i couldn't resist posting this pic from last night--the sweet puppy riley, all tuckered out from a long weekend of greeting customers. what a life!!

celebration of seagrove potters...

haven't blogged about the celebration show yet, and i'm still not sure i can find the right words to describe what we experienced over the weekend. six years ago, when decided to open a shop and studio here, i looked at several different areas before settling in Seagrove. I wanted more than a place to live and work--wanted a community, a place where you can form lasting friendships and be near other folks who love clay as much as I do. if we ever questioned whether I made the right choice, the past weekend made it all crystal clear. It was amazing the way everyone from the community, both potters and non-potters, came together to produce an amazing weekend. i think it far exceeded any expectations any of us had, and in the midst of the planning and preparations, we all got to know our neighbors a bit better. i think we created the first seagrove traffic jam--customers told us that cars were lining the sides of hwy 705 in both directions! it was incredible--we had around 400 people there for the friday night gala, and i think around 5000 people came through on saturday and sunday. the shining star of the auction was the luck's bean pot that sid luck made especially for the event--it sold for $2100!! throughout the whole show, there was an excitement in the air--the positive energy in that building over the course of the weekend was so strong you could feel it, and i think the customers could feel it, too. 

so strange to feel so excited about the show, and so horrible at the same time. our friends chris and lisa lost their shop, studio, and sweet dog in a fire on saturday night. i can't imagine what they are going through right now--it just makes my heart hurt. they are two of my best friends--they're amazing people, and don't deserve to be going through this. i wish we could help them start rebuilding tomorrow. i know that our community will surround them with more help than they can handle, and that they'll feel support and love from all of us. i just wish i could do something more right now..... 

here are some pics from the weekend...one of the auction crowd on friday night, one of our friend cynthia, an avid pottery collector, helping watch fred's booth, one of our booth, and one of the famous bean pot. with the success of this first show, i can't wait to see what we will be able to accomplish next year......

some salt beautiful day...

we've had such amazing weather this last week--this first pic is one taken out across our field the other day. it's been so beautiful out...

the next photo is part of the dozens of salt & pepper sets I been working on this week--hopefully they will all be ready for the weekend. I am also working on a new batch of french butter dishes, vases, and apothecary jars that will hopefully be ready for the weekend and for next week at the cdc show. 

one week and counting down...

one more week to go to the celebration of seagrove potters....we're definitely getting down to the wire, and trying to get everything finished up. i've fired a couple of glaze loads so far this week, and hope to get two more out before the end of next week. I'm still working away down in the studio tonight, trimming and trying to get handles on the last few pieces. i'll try and get some photos up tomorrow.............g'night for now!

the smell of wax on a cold november night...

it's been a hectic week around our house, i'm trying to keep working while dealing with a bad cold... feeling better today, and finally got a good amount accomplished. my kiln is loaded and ready to go...nothing like that smell of the wax burning off as it heats up! i'll be firing this kiln, and hopefully two more before the celebration the weekend of nov. 22. i'm down in the studio tonight, throwing a ton of salt and pepper sets to top off the kiln. 

on a completely different subject......the other night, was woken up in the middle of the night by a big pack of coyotes out in the woods just behind the kiln shed! i wish i could've gotten a picture, but i wasn't about to go outside. it sounded eerie and exciting at the same time--enough to make the hair on the back of your neck stand up! gotta love living way out here!!!!

kiln opening and other stuff...

well, thanks to everyone who came out to our kiln opening last weekend...it was so much fun to see old friends and make some new ones. The new space is perfect for openings-- have so much more open area for people to move around in, and space to put out snacks...we really enjoyed it. this week I'm getting ready for the acc charlotte show this weekend, and i'm going to be working on getting a couple of glaze loads ready and in the kiln. couple of weeks and then it will be time for the november craziness, with the celebration of seagrove potters, the carolina designer craftsmen show, and hopefully some crazy busy days in the shop! love this time of year!

ps--i'm including a photo of the inside of the shop--wouldn't you know, i forgot to take any pics during the whole kiln opening!! 

that perfect moment...

well, after a hectic day it's that perfect moment when the little one's in bed, the dog's at my feet, and i can finally relax a bit. i was able to swing by trader joe's on the way back from raleigh, so my beer tonight is a pumpkin beer i picked up there, called kinnebunkport pumpkin ale. i love pumpkin beers, and i wait all year for them to come out. this one is okay, a little on the cinnamon-ny side (but, hey, it was only $5.99)-- my absolute favorite is still post road pumpkin ale from brooklyn brewery--expensive, but oh, so good. 

anyway, judson and i had a great afternoon at the museum, although i couldn't show him my favorite sculpture because they moved her into storage temporarily. the museum is under major construction, and everything is a mess, but we still had a great time. judson said his favorite was this sculpture, the blue dancer, which, i have to admit is my second favorite of the collection. all in all, a busy but great day...i'm looking forward to getting into the studio tomorrow to work on finishing up some things for the kiln opening this weekend.  i'll close with a cute kid pic...happy pumpkins everyone!!

fa-la-la-la-la.....

christmas ornaments coming out of the kiln--so many, and i love the way the colors all look together. -- judson and i are going to the museum of art tomorrow to deliver them. i'm really looking forward to showing him the museum... took him to the monet show when he was tiny (he slept through the whole thing!), but now he's getting big enough that i think he'll really enjoy it.

i'm still working like a madman getting kilns loaded, unloaded, reloaded for the kiln opening and the acc charlotte show next week. here's a shot in the studio of just a few of the pots he's working on...so much still to do--

meanwhile in the studio...

in between building projects, it's been crazy busy in the studio, getting ready for our open studio next weekend, and several shows coming up soon. i'm getting ready to fire the salt kiln with some great pots in it.

don't ya love the smell of concrete in the morning...

well, the porch is done--yea! it was a big job, but it turned out really nice. the guy in the second picture is jerry, otherwise known as my new best friend. jerry's the concrete truck driver, and all he was supposed to do was drive out, pour the concrete, and leave. instead, he jumped down, grabbed the float, and helped float the whole porch...he was a huge help. people around here are great--throughout the whole house-building process I have been fortunate enough to work with people who are willing to lend an extra hand or give a little extra advice. judson pitched in, too, and had a great time playing with the trowell. next up, a cover for the porch and then on to the kiln pad..........

I'm tired

well, i spent several hours tonight online, sending out press releases and updating our community webpage. if you haven't checked it out yet, take a look: www.discoverseagrove.com  it's a really great overview of the seagrove area, and there's alot of great information there. now i'm off head to bed. tomorrow i will be mixing glazes, loading a kiln, and pouring a 10'x25' porch pad for our electric kilns (yea!)...hopefully all before we have to go get judson from daycare. should be interesting!!!!

100 BOTTLES OF ORNAMENTS IN THE KILN!!!!

There are 100 mini  bottles  in the kiln, give or take.  I was asked to make 100 of these mini bottles for the NC Museum of art in Raleigh. They are going to tie rafia around  the neck and use them as ornaments  on one of those crazy upside-down Christmas trees in the museum store.  When they  approached me about it I thought it was the coolest idea. I love pottery but have never thought of using it as a Christmas ornament!!  If it goes well they may carry them year round.  I should have them glazed and fired by the first of the week and they are picking them up on friday.  To give you some prespctive  they are between 3-4 inches tall.

--Blaine

fall open studio and sale...

Come see us if you can....

quick update....

well, haven't blogged in a while, so here's a quick bit of what been going on. I got the chance to attend the utilitarian conference at arrowmont, and came back with some really great ideas about marketing from a workshop given by ayumi horie. the next weekend, got to attend the dwight d. holland ceramics collection exhibition at east carolina university. our friend dwight has donated his entire ceramics collection to ecu--the great part is that it will be a teaching collection, and students will be able to actually borrow and touch the pieces they are interested in. so far, he's donated over 500 pieces, and the ecu show was pots from his private collection. I was lucky to have 2 pieces featured in the show, a peacock vase and a turtle platter. dwight plans to eventually donate over 2000-3000 pieces to the school. there were great pieces in the show from all over the world, from well-known potters, and not-so-well-known potters. i'm attaching a few pics of the show--the fourth one is a huge, beautiful lisa orr platter, and the last one i especially liked--I can't remember the potter's name...anyone out there know who it is????

go figure...

...i was just saying last night how i never seem to have my camera with me when i want it, then this morning i happened to be walking up the stairs, with my camera, and caught this little guy hanging out on the steps. cute, huh? he didn't seem to mind having his picture taken...

what happened?.....

okay, i've been a bad blogger. it's been a week since my last post...there, i said it...i have the feeling that i will be a bad blogger until sometime in mid december so here is a a cute kid pic--judson's first haircut--awww......

down time in charlotte waiting for hanna...

well, no pics to post but a quick update. things are looking good in charlotte as we wait to see what hanna has in store for us. the folks at the mint museum are wonderful, as always, and we got the display set up fairly quickly. priceline'd a great hotel downtown, packed a couple of rain ponchos in my bag, and i think I'm ready for whatever happens. i hope folks will come on out in the rain for the show--from the little we saw this evening, there are some amazing pots here. i wish i had brought my camera to show a little of the incredible pots, but here's the list of exhibiting potters,  

 if you're in the area tomorrow, check it out.....

meanwhile, we're off to a nice dinner downtown, and a relaxing evening.........gotta love it....

separated at birth?....

you decide...I've been saying for a long time that joe lieberman is max wright, otherwise known as alf's dad. (don't ask me how I even remember the show...i don't know useless info bouncing around in my head taking up space) listening to the first few sentences of lieberman's speech tonight, the sound of his voice was a dead ringer for alf's dad. Is there a conspiracy in here somewhere--i don't know what, but maybe the republicans should have put alf up as the vp candidate?

new pots...

here are some of the new pots I will be firing this week. Ive been working on some new decorations...i especially like the willow oak decoration, done on some vases and bowls. i think they are going to come out great, i really like the way the design follows the shape of the vase.

hate to even bring it up, but i'm starting to worry about all of these storms coming this way for the weekend--wonder how it will affect the show. i don't even want to think about it right now, there's still time for hanna to turn and go out to sea, right? right?????..................keep your fingers crossed.

new employee...

okay, i know it's annoying when people post pics of their kids constantly, but please humor me one more time...it was just too cute this afternoon when judson wanted to make a bowl on "that spinning thing". he was not too happy about the clay all over his hands when it was done, but he's pretty excited about making his own snack bowl...okay, that's the end of the cute kid stuff...

taa-daaaah......and some other stuff...

here's the fireplace...all done...what a great feeling to have it finished. i've got a couple more installations that i'm just beginning to work on, and now i can concentrate on them. i think that's one of the things i love about working with clay--the cycle of making, glazing, firing, and seeing how a piece turns out. we had a great saturday in the shop, tomorrow theirs some down time to visit with my brother, who's visiting from new york--will be nice to have a day off.  the rest of next week will be spent getting ready for the mint show, and for a show in blowing rock the following weekend. i love this time of year--the heat is starting to break, and fall is almost here. i always think of this time of the year as that moment on a roller coaster when you're at the top--that second just before you race to the bottom... 

mortar fingers...

what is it about motar and cement that dries your skin out so much?.... my hands feel like sandpaper, but the whole fireplace is set--yea! i should be able to get all the grouting done tomorrow... i've really enjoyed this project--these folks were the type of clients every artist dreams about...they gave me total control of the design. they didn't even see the tiles in person until i'd started installing them! 

blink of an eye...

wow...i can't believe it's been a week since i posted last. this week has really flown by--we've been starting to get ready for the charlotte mint show next week, and working on a fireplace installation. here are some images of the fireplace so far--tomorrow - set the hearth, then in a couple of days start the grouting. it's so rewarding to see it coming together...i'm really pleased with it so far. (the painter's tape is helping hold the center tiles up. i'll get a better photo of it tomorrow when it comes off.) 

nc pottery center tile project...

here's a couple of pics of the tile project through the ncpc with the fourth graders at seagrove elementary. it's going to be installed in the school friday, just in time for the kids first day next monday. the piece is 3' x 14' overall, so it's hard to get an image of the whole thing. i'll have to go back and get a picture after it's hung. we're so lucky to have the pottery center here in seagrove--if you haven't heard about what's going on with the center's funding difficulties, take a look at their website, and at meredith heywood's blog. the pottery center is such an amazing resource, and is really needing some help--check out those sites if you haven't already.