Moving On

Yesterday was my last outdoor show of the season. Rain had been forecast all week but Friday night and Saturday morning, the forecast changed to partly cloudy and cool. No rain within 40 miles.Great weather for an outdoor show. Full of joy and expectation, I headed to Beech Acres Park for the Anderson Affair of the Arts.With the word "Arts" in the name of the show, how could I miss? Well, as soon as I got the tent up the rain started. It rained for 40 days and 40 nights. At least it seemed that long. We had a few dog walkers and die hard soccer players come through but really just a handful of people who had come for the show and most of them were relatives of other artists.The rain finally stopped about 1pm and the sun came out at 2. We closed at 4.I would be surprised if we drew more than 200 people all day. I sold enough to pay for my set up and gas but the trip to the concession stand probably put me in the hole for the day. Friends did not seem to fare much better.I'm not blaming the park board. It was a nice site. They were open when they said they would open. Set up was easy and parking fairly convenient.They had real restrooms that worked and smiles on their faces.It just boiled down to the fact that a small show in a cold rain is not going to draw a crowd.I shared this because we all have bad days. Part of being an artist is how we deal with things like this. We can worry that nobody loves us and crawl into a hole as we try to change directions or we can dust ourselves off, stand up straight and move on. Me? I'm packing up my donations for empty bowls, clearing out the old and making way for the new, and getting ready for Christmas sales.Thanks for listening.

New Shelves

Here a a couple of shots from last week's show that give you a look at the shelves I added this year. The free standing unit some of you have seen before.The table top unit in the back of the booth is designed for an indoor show or two I am doing this winter.Total space 30x72 inches.The shelf unit should let me double the space. I just need to decide what to take with me to use it effectively.Some of those big jars are going to have to stay home.

The consensus from Blog comments, Facebook, and direct comments is that the jury is still out on my singing on the web. Actually they are out looking for a rope.Don't expect a repeat anytime soon.If you are around this Saturday, stop by Beech Acres and watch me try to sell pots in the rain. It is my last outdoor show this year so there should be some clearance bargains available. Thanks for stopping by.

They Love Me in Loveland

Now that we all know why I didn't sing on the first musical post, let's get back to pottery.Yesterday was the 15th annual Loveland Art Show. Packet pick up opened at 7 so I was there at 7. I'm no longer a fan of getting up at 5 AM but I hate to rush in the morning so I always arrive early and take my time with setup. It was still dark so I needed a flashlight to findmy booth number spray painted on the grass.My booth was 50 yards or more from the unloading area but they had a crew of high school girls who carried every box to my site and came back at 5:30 to reverse the process. I could not have done it without them.

The day was mostly overcast with an occasional sprinkle of rain.It could have been better. It could have been a lot worse.Sales were off and on as usual. I always worry that I'm not doing well but when I get home and tally things up it turns out I did pretty well. Also as usual, when I went to get lunch, I came back to a booth full of people who actually bought stuff til my burger was nice and cold. I sold a fair number of mugs and a few small bowls, but as has been my pattern this year, I sold more $40+ pots than I have in the past. Jars, big bowls, and baking dishes made my day.Here is a picture of a big batter bowl the my friend Mike let me glaze and fire in his big gas kiln. It lasted about 45 minutes. I might have to make more.

One More

After yesterday's post, some of you insisted that I completely embarass myself. Here is why I don't sing in public.

Exposing Myself

I feel that every now and then we bloggers should go off topic and reveal a bit about ourselves no matter how ugly. Have a great weekend and stop by the Lovaland Art Show Sunday.

Bellevue Review

Morning came early on Saturday and I headed South to Bellevue Ky. for Art in the Park.The show site is right on the Ohio River and couldn't be prettier. They have a great bunch of volunteers down there. They don't just hand you a slip of paper, they walk you to your spot! I got the most convenient spot I have ever seen.I was able to back the truck in about 6 feet behind the booth and LEAVE IT THERE ALL DAY. I could have sold off the tailgate! (Jody if you are reading, I want the same spot in perpetuity. Just put my name on it.) They passed out snack bags in the morning and brought drinks around all day. There were folks to tote and carry, there was music all day, in short, the organizers and volunteers could not have worked harder to make Artists feel welcome and appreciated.

To get down to the nitty gritty, sales were good but few. I sold a few mugs and small bowls but also a fair number of jars, a nice baking dish, the big blue bucket, a set of plates, and a piggy bank. I was worried when I went for about an hour and a half with no sales in the early afternoon but with the help of some bigger tickets, it all worked out in the end. Several friends were showing and many of the Clay Alliance members stopped by as well. It's nice to see people and really nice when they watch your booth while you go to the bathroom! Here are a couple of pictures of the departed.

Going to Kentucky

This has been a busy week. I started two great kids classes at the Middletown Art Center, started making some little price point items for Christmas sales, Fired the electric kiln and boxed sorted and loaded pots to take to Bellevue Ky. for Art in the Park tomorrow. Bellevue is always a nice show for me. I sell pretty well and I really enjoy being right on the Ohio river.The river boats go right past the show and it makes for a very scenic setting.

 I am posting some of the warm pots that I got out of the cone 6 kiln yesterday.I am very happy with how it went .The non- potters can skip ahead to the pictures at this point. Potters can keep reading. I have gotten a question from GZ about the Ketchup Red glaze.It is from Ceramics Monthly March 2011 and attributed to Jayne Shatz. Thanks for all the comments last time, that's how we know there are really people out there.

Gerstley Borate 31
Talc                  14
Custer               20
EPK                  5
Silica                 30

Spanish RIO      15%

Another Day, Another Kiln

Here's a quick glaze making tip, then some pictures. When mixing glazes, weigh the water you add too and record it .For a simple example,  lets say you mix 1000g water per 1000g solids.If you want to adjust something later or just do a test it's easy to dip out 200g of mixed glaze and know you have 100g of dry materials in your sample. Then it is simple to add the desired percentage of material . You can also weigh everything in your bucket (even if you have used some glaze) and make adjustments to the whole batch.