Yet another glaze-firing!

Here is our new porcelain bowl. I say our because Mike made it on a potter's wheel and I decorated it. It is now in my shop. Two more to be listed soon! Watch the space!

Porcelain bowl made by Mike and decorated by me. 

After loading the kiln about eleven o'clock Wednesday night, I caught a cold. Ah, it was predictable. I had stayed in the sick bed for one and a half day. I wanted to stay longer, but in the next room, Beaper, the grey parrot, was wolf whistling as well as whistling the tune of  the Merry Christmas song so loud that I gave up on napping. Since then, I have done more glazing in the studio (and remotely loaded the kiln and started another glaze-firing!). A strange thing about glazing is that I usually reluctant to start, but once it is started, it is difficult to stop until all are glazed. I kept at it for two days, and now only three pieces left.

I still get a sore throat and headache when I go outside; it has been cold lately. I put all pieces on kiln shelves in the studio last night, and politely asked Mike to carry them to the kin in the garage. They are mostly re-firing pieces.

Lower shelf

Top shelf

I had a small rabbit mask to be fired, but forgot about it. That's why the lower shelf has space!

When I am doing glazing, I feel a small kiln is more suitable for my work than a larger one. I like to fill the kiln quickly and see the result soon so that I can get feedback from what I have done. If my kiln were a bit taller it would be perfect. But I can't have it all.

Although I have been indoor bound, Mike has been out and about.

Ducklings

River Stour in the city centre

Moorhens

Our animal family are also doing well.  

Pumpkin is bathing. 

Dogs are sleeping in tandem. (Pearl chews her blanket!) 

 In the garden, apple blossom is in bloom.

Apples

 And Camassia is showing its beautiful blue spike.

Happy Easter to you all. We finished our first Easter Chocolates on Friday, and we are working on the second one. They come from Madame Oiseau chocolaterie. You can get her lovely chocolates in either Canterbury or Selfridge.

 

Raindrops and Mike making bowls.

Hello everyone. How are you today? It has been grey and drizzly today here in Canterbury. But I started a day with a very good news. The little chameleon and a white mug with a rabbit on the handle travelled safe and sound to USA. I felt such relief. And Sandra is very happy with them. This is even a better news!

Rain on dandelion

May is the busiest month of the year at my day job. Even so, I try to do some ceramics after dinner as often as possible. Making something releases stress, but also uses the unused part of my brain. So after doing ceramics, all parts of my brain becomes nicely tired, and I am able to sleep well.

Raindrops on poppy flower bud

Mike has finished turning his bowls. He is happy with them, and will pick the best of them to be fired. I will probably decorate them with cobalt oxide.

Mike's bowls were turned.

     

Girl's head, bluebells, blackbird chick and the book I always wanted to buy.

Hi everyone. This morning, I have worked on a female model I was talking about yesterday.In order to take photographs, I used this little vase. I like it! This could be a source of my new work!

I like this composition.

Mike has thrown more bowls and he turned three of them this evening. They look good.

Mike's bowls

Every rain eventually stops. Ours stopped this afternoon. We went to see bluebells on campus with our dogs, Pearl and Topaz.

Bluebells after rain

That was a mistake. They found a bunny and started barking very loud! So I went to see flowers alone whilst Mike held them somewhere else. They are so beautiful. There are usually faint scent, but there wasn't today. It might be because of the heavy rain.

Our blackbird chick

There is a good new today. I was reunited to the book I have wanted to buy since the day I saw it in The daily Telegraph three years ago. Unfortunately, I misplaced the information and couldn't find it nor search for it on Internet neither. The lovely artist couple I visited this afternoon showed me some books I might be interested in. Imagine my surprise. 'I know it! I have always wanted to buy the book, but lost the details!'. It is called 'Natural Fashion, Tribal Decoration from Africa' by Hans Silvester(2007 Thames & Hudson).

As the title suggests, it is the photograph book of body decoration of African people. They are very artistic. The first time I saw the article on it, I was deeply fascinated. I will get an order from Amazon tomorrow. I can't wait for it arrive!

Alison is a very good at baking, as well as lots of other things. She treated me with wonderful cheese scones. I love cheese scones. They are my most favourite at tea time. I was also given some lovely chocolate cup cakes and cheese scones for Mike, as well. Of course, Mike was delighted. She promised to give me a recipe. It would be lovely to reproduce her taste at home!

Our new blue and white bowls.

Good morning. I have worked long and hard on a ceramic sculpture for three aftrenoons and evenings. Finally I thought it was done last night. But, when I woke up this morning, I thought some parts should be changed. So I will re-work on it this morning after a dog walk.

Here are some photos of our new pots. They are semi-porcelain, and Mike threw them on the wheel a month ago, but he couldn't decide how to decorate, so I took over them. I love them, and they look just as I wanted. Happy!

I love this. Darker cobalt.

This is paler.

The crescent and a rabbit.

The full moon and a rabbit.

Inside-darker one

Inside-paler one