So, How Are You Doing?

 

No, really.  How are you?  I have missed you.  

It has been months since I've updated this blog.  I'm sorry about that.  I suppose I've just been busy trying not to freak out about everything.  Making myself sit down at the computer to write was more than I could do for a long time.  When I don't communicate regularly, I don't know what to write about. That's where I am now I think.  

Things in the studio are OK.  I'm making pots and selling a few.  I'm teaching a few lessons.  We just wear masks so that we can work closely together.  All that is good.  

Actually my sales have been pretty good lately.  I am VERY grateful for that.  If you have bought something from me lately or commissioned work, THANK YOU.  You have kept me going, in more than one sense, during some very uncertain months.  You've helped pay the rent and utilities, and you've given me something to do when I wouldn't otherwise have known what to do.  

Like so many businesses, particularly people who make and sell crafts, I've had to do things quite a bit differently that I used to.  A lot of my sales have come from ONLINE sales and that is a very new thing for me.  I was nervous.  But I tried it.  Thus far, the only online sales that I've done have been as part of the Local Online Vendor Fair on Facebook.  My brilliant friend Anna put this together back in April as a way for craft makers to be able to sell their work since so many in person craft fairs had to be canceled.  For me, it has been very successful.  I'm grateful for the opportunity and the push to try it. 

We made the tough decision a week or so ago to cancel the Carolina Pottery Festival. This is the pottery show that is held the first Saturday in November in Shelby every year.  I hope that we will be able to have a virtual festival since we can't do the in person festival.  To put myself in a position to participate in a virtual festival, I've gotten started getting an ETSY shop set up.  Yes, Susan Jones Pottery will be available via ETSY soon.  Again, this is intimidating and I'm nervous.  But I've got good friends who are giving me good advice.  

That's all the news from here for now.  I could have done all this in a lot fewer words probably, but then you wouldn't have had to scroll through all these pictures of things with leaf impressions on them.  Good by until next time, friends.