Happy Holidays !

Bottles
white lichen glaze on dark clay

Now that the San Diego Pottery Tour is behind me, things are slowing down to a crawl at the studio. I managed to make several simple pieces for a barrel firing in January. They will be drying while I vacation away from home for the holidays. I am leaving the heavy burnishing for later. It's such a chore, but it's so worth it that I drag myself to do a good job of it. No short cuts. The feel of the soft, velvety texture of terra sigilatta on a well burnished pot is to me simply priceless. My customers are always amazed how smooth the vessels are. Hours of elbow grease, that's the secret !
So before I dive back into burnishing pots, Raku-ing new creations, or concocting new glazes, I will enjoy a well deserved me-time under the hawaiian sun. Any potters out there from Hawaii who would like to show me their studios ? Truly I can never hang my potter hat :)

Happy safe holidays to all ! Joyeux Noel et bonnes fetes de fin d'annee ! Best wishes for 2012 ! NCECA Seattle in March !!!!

Annual San Diego Pottery Tour

Pierre, Merle, and Danae in front of Danae's studio

It was a big success ! One of my best shows this year. I am so thankful to be a part of this show. And everyone coming by the studio absolutely loved the idea of the pottery tour. Eleven locations spread around San Diego with 20+ potters. People had the leisure to plan their tour in two days. Some customers said they were starting on the East side and moving westward in a methodical fashion. Some were hopping around in a given area. Others had planned their trips based off the pictures on the gorgeous brochure designed by Richard Burkett or the related website, wwwsdpotterytour.com.

It was an incredible opportunity to reach out to new people and promote our local ceramics community. I enjoy talking to my customers and explain my craft, tell them how I make my pieces, what inspires me, the troubles I run into and how I solve them. Danae told me I am very animated when I talk about pottery. All I can say is that pottery is a passion and it shows. My only wish is that I can pass it along.

So I am looking forward to next year. And maybe we'll have a special Mother's Day tour. It's always a popular time of year for art shows. Stay tuned !