And They're Done!

I FINISHED THE BUSINESS CARD HOLDERS!!!!

That's about 47 of the 53 that ended up making it.

I don't really want to make any more of those for a while.

Then there was some glazing.

I'm not sure how it is possible that I've had stuff to glaze for the past 3 weekends in a row, but I have.  My production has slowed way down since I'm back at work, so I won't feel so overwhelmed by the amount of glazing for the next several months. 

I didn't make anything new last week, so I was kind of itching to sit down at the wheel.

I made a couple of pitchers.

And I made a couple of utensil holders.  As you can see, I've been working on texture again.

This week the American Legion World Series begins.  I'm proud to say that I'm a volunteer, so there will be a LOT of baseball happening.  It is also the last week before classes start back at CCC, so there's late registration and the frantic scramble to get ready for the first day.  My sweet niece turns ONE on Aug 17, so I'll be making a trip to Greensboro for the party next weekend.  In case life weren't full enough, this week is my last week of hard training for the triathlon that I'm doing on Aug 22.  I'm not real sure how I'm going to fit swim-bike-run into this schedule.  

What I'm saying is that there will not be any pottery happening in my life for a couple of weeks.  Who wants to make a bet that when I go back, I'll have pots to glaze?  

Get To Know Uptown Shelby

GoCarolinas.com has a picture gallery from Uptown Shelby on their website.  I have been told that the guy was in Shelby to see a new B&B and ended up spending a couple of hours walking around our super cool uptown area taking pictures.

Take a few minutes and check it out at this link.  Get to know uptown Shelby  (The link should open a new window.)

Items of note as you scroll through include several very nice shots of Allen Griffin's studio (photos 34 through 43).  This is where the magic happens.  The handsome dude in picture #40 is Allen.  Look also for a shot of my box-o-pottery-tools in picture #43.  There are also some very nice photos from Buffalo Creek Gallery in pictures 47 through 56.  The piggy bank in picture #51 is mine.

Speaking of pottery magic, I did more glazing this weekend and I loaded the kiln. 

Not pictured above are the bazillion business card holders that I glazed on Friday afternoon.  Here's what they look like in the kiln.  

There's one more shelf of them that you can't see.  Four shelves of nothing but card holders and a few others stuck in between other pieces.  I'm very happy to have gotten them all in, so in a few days I'll be able to figure out how many more I need to make to get the 50 that I have promised.  

One more shot of the loaded kiln.  

The last thing that I did today before I left was to make sure that the last bunch of mugs I made are ready for the next bisque fire.  One way to be sure that greenware is completely dry is to lick it.  If your tongue sticks, you know it is dry.  When Allen showed me that trick years ago, I thought it was the grossest thing ever.  Now, I find myself licking pots on a regular basis.  Its still gross, but I guess I've gotten used to it.

I ALWAYS think, "Stuck, stuck, stuck."  So far, the fire department has not had to come help me.  (Shameless movie reference there.)