My Lil' Tea Squirt: Final

This is why I LOVE MUD! My lil' teapot is finished... fired at a cone 6, this little beauty represents form and color over functionality! This sea squirt was brought to life by watering down color slips and painting them on like watercolors. I especially like the texture that the chocolate brown created on the rocks. I opted not to add a glossy clear glaze thinking that would have been too much.

And to top it off, it has been accepted in the The 12th Houston Area Community College Student Exhibition at The Arts Alliance Center at Clear Lake (TAACCL) and will be on display from April 19 - May 17.

For my 2nd Ceramics II project, we are to create a 3D piece from a 2D work of art. I had been stuck on my initial choice trying to decide how to make it work and finally laid it aside accepting that my brain refused to wrap itself around it. I then chose something a bit more my style.  I look forward with sharing it with you soon!

Life v. Art

Every artist must balance life with artmaking... these past couple of weeks has been one of those unbalanced times for me. I was hoping to update you all on a couple of ceramic pieces that I have been working on, however, they have not progressed as I would hope. So, I'll get back to you on those. Tonight was spent applying watered-down colored slips to my "Tea Squirt" to be fired next week. It's looking good!!! And I have a mixed media project in the works. So much art, so little time!

Subbing has picked up with just a little more than 2 months left to go in this school year and the job hunt is heating up.

My husband has decided to take summer courses to expedite his education, which means me and my kiddos will have a lot of time together... so my brain has transitioned from work to summer planning mode. The current order of business is to make sure things are in order for a lot of fun with them and as much time as I can in the studio. Yea!

Taking Inventory

There are times when doubt tries to creep into our lives and we question the path we are on. This has been me for a while now. I know I want to teach art, but I started this process during the most tumultuous time for education during my life. I have made plenty of teacher-friends who on a regular basis ask me "Do you really want to do this?" I know their arguments. I witness the truth of their statements both directly and vicariously through them. And it has left me wondering... until tonight, when I took inventory.

While my mom attended college courses to become an elementary school teacher, I was old enough to tag along. Her art classes were my favorites. It was here my introduction to the arts really began and time spent waiting on her was often used to draw.  At home, I would watch her work on projects. When I went to college, I knew it had to be art related and was blessed to be able to go for graphic design, as well as a business degree... my Pop wasn't sure I could make a living in art and wanted me to have something to fall back on if it didn't work out. After college, my first "real" job was working in an architecture firm as an office administrator... I did the everyday secretarial duties, but I also was quick to pickup CAD and served to help with the technical drawings that we produced. The software was much like that of the design programs I had learned in college. My next job was as a graphic designer. So roughly 4 years of providing for my family with art. It was during this time that I started a stockpile of art supplies with the greatest of intentions to create project after project.

One of my biggest excuses... I have no space to work where I can leave it out and come back to it as time allows. I now have that. It's not "perfect" or finished, but it allows for me to work on numerous projects as time allows and to utilize the very stockpile that I had built from early on. Here are a couple of shots of my studio space:

I don't believe in coincidences. I believe in a master designer who formed each of us as individuals. I was designed to be an artist, to love art and everything related to it, and to share my love. After taking this bit of inventory... I realized that I have no excuses not to continue on the path that has been laid out for me. Where will it take me, I don't know. The one thing I do know is, it is definitely art related.

I challenge you to take your own inventory today. Compare where you want to go with where you've been and see how it lines up. You may be surprised and encouraged!

Shooting Down UFOs

A lot went on during Jan-Feb 2012, but this human made some ground in shooting down several UFOs. Though not as many as I would have liked, I successfully took out 3 of the 30 that attack me daily. #2, 3 (blue bathroom) & 29 (learn to knit), all fell in a blaze of glory. Others were wounded but still put up a fight and taunt me by saying "FINISH ME!"

The second round of defensive maneuvers are commencing as we speak, by the end of the day another may very well fall to completion. I can only hope and pray that no time will be lost and it will be a much more productive battle over the next 2 months. And continue to pray that your battle with UFOs go so well!

Hand-knitted Scarves

The scarves seen below are my first two attempts after a crash course from my wonderful mother-in-law and a month of practice pieces. The first was made with large gauge knitting needles and is not the traditional tight knit that many are accustomed to. The second one is more the traditional, but I still put a little spin on it.  The matching child's hat was done a knitting loom. Enjoy and let me know what you think!

My Lil' Tea Squirt

The ceramics room where being fired is a really GOOD thing! This has been in the making for a month and I finally finished it. For those interested in how I created it read on. If not stop now and just look at the pictures.

So here goes...4 pinch pots... 1 for the base, 1 for the stem, 2 in a potato shape for the body. Add a couple of tubes on top, a handle and shape them appropriately.  A whole hoard of handshaped strawberries partially hollowed out. A pasta maker dodad (a technical term) to make the roots. Then hours of painstaking acupuncture with the standard pointy tool, a knitting needle and a curved spear tool to carve out the ribbing. Holes made in all the applicable places. And I have a beautiful little teapot that resembles a sea squirt... I LOVE MUD!

WiP: Tea Squirt

Ceramics was not a class I took during my undergraduate work. So I am making up for it now and having a blast!  I spent 5 weeks last summer getting in touch with my inner mudbug and was able to return to it this spring for Ceramics 2.  The first project... a FUNctional piece.  I was determined to create a teapot.  So here it is in its initial form...