July fest…..

Left the house Friday at 5am to begin the setup at July fest in Binghamton, NY.  It was a pretty thrilling day, and the promised rain showers showed up only a few minutes before the end of day which was good timing :)  I know so many people related to this show after 7 years--you wonder how 12 months could have disappeared and here you are with the same customers, the same artists, it is fun!

In 2003 the wife and I developed an acquaintance with another blogger, an illustrator, who lived in Pennsylvania.  We moved from NH to NY and became Facebook friends and have been in touch 13 years…and yesterday I turned around and there were THOSE eyes, that face I had seen in a thousand photos.  I met Sunny K in the flesh for the first time ever, after 13 years and it was a thrill…. that has happened a lot over the years, so many nice people met on the web who make the effort to meet face to face.  I wish we all lived in the same actual town! But yesterday was very special indeed….

July fest Friday-Sunday

Yes, yes, I am an early riser and will soon be going to Binghamton, NY July fest…our weather outlook is OK, typical for this week, maybe a rain shower here and there, hot, in the 80s (not TOO hot), so come on over!

And here is my cat walking the dog….

July fest this weekend in Binghamton, NY!

I am at Binghamton, NY July fest Fri, Sat, Sun, DANG, why don't you come see me?  Madly packing and preparing, see you there!

the millions of odds and ends it takes to make a pot….or at least, get it in front of YOU

There are a million odds and ends in pottery (and being a self-employed artist.)  People ask "how long did it take you to make that mug?"  And I will say something like total of 30 minutes or whatever, although what they SEE during one of my open studio demos is it takes about 2 minutes to make the mug body on the wheel.  BUT OH that is just one little part of the whole thing, although customers don't know it: yesterday I both mixed glazes and packed a zillion pots for fairs occurring this weekend and later this month.  (of course, there is also buying clay, preparing clay to throw, trimming that mug, firing that mug, glazing that mug, driving to the craft fair…time adds UP).

It is all so dang fun, but I always say potters make less than if we worked at Starschmucks….

underdog…..

The wife and I had a great 4th weekend, although I need better earplugs, I think….anyway, I was busily finishing a few more pots for the upcoming weekend show and the wife was making some reusable gift/shopping bags….wicked cute, eh?

rain on the parade...

I thought fireworks were illegal in NY but heard recently they are allowed this week and New Year's.
I have become an OLD MAN and dearly wish that the EVENINGS around July 4th featured heavy rains, thus driving all the late night partiers and their noisemakers inside. I am not sure where humanity got the idea that LOUD NOISES are a good idea….

in other, more soothing and enlightening news, a new elephant teapot by me! Have a most excellent day and week everybody!

princes and dragons….

I dreamt I was friends with 2 young guys…Harry and William, the princes of England.  They were teens, and acted like teens BUT THEN the weight of their destiny came upon them and they realized they needed to settle down and produce little royals… put that dream into the category of SPACE JUNK, pointless dreams that amuse me all night long ;)

SO, you have seen some dragon mugs from me, well, how about a bowl for your cheetos or cheerios????

you need a thick and heavy wool scarf in July….

As I said some weeks ago, the wife began knitting me a scarf for Christmas, only half a year away! It is done but for the little odds and ends needing to be worked in, which the cat is happy to help with….have a great weekend!

gluten-free apple bread, just what you were dying for!

I was tinkering around with some recipes and whoa nelly! This one turned out nicely!  Brown rice is the only flour used in this gluten-free quick bread, and you could use blueberries instead of apples.  I had some elderly apples, and made two loaves…recipe follows pictures *****….also some pics around the studio--you have NO idea how nice it is to putter around in bare feet when you have been so cold for so long…..




*****

Gary's gluten-free apple bread (or blueberry!)

Preheat to 350, grease a medium loaf pan

-dice an apple into a bowl, sprinkle on 1/2 teas. sugar and half teas. corn or potato starch, then sprinkles of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, stir to coat nicely

(OR just measure out one cup of blueberries)

-stir in large bowl:  2 1/4 cup brown rice flour, 3 TBS. sugar, 2 teas. baking powder, dash of salt, MORE SPICE!

-bowl 2, beat 2 eggs, then add one cup milk (I use soy), 1/4 cup cooking oil (I use canola) and 4 TBS. apple sauce, stir

-add wet to dry, stir to combine nicely, then fold in apples or blueberries, stir to combine evenly

-pour batter into loaf pan

-bake for about 50 minutes---check with a knife or toothpick stuck in--if there is wet batter, not done, give a few more minutes, dry crumb is OK

-pull out of oven, let cool five minutes then remove from pan and let cool completely on wire rack then slice--can freeze!

YUM. MUNCH.

beauty and the beast...

You know how it is somedays, first you make some beastly T-Rex mugs, then you make some beautiful rose mugs….

dragons coming out of my ears….

The kiln is full of them too…I am quite in the mood for these :)

carved and turquisey….

I started carving some pieces last week.  I have, as I have said, fluted pieces many times (long, parallel slashes down the side) but wanted to try something more free-form that would allow me to make a wavy pattern. And I have this turquoise glaze I haven't used in a awhile that I mixed and
WHOA BABY! THAT LOOKS KINDA AWESOME!

day of the pigs...

I have a banner I roll out at shows and it hangs on the studio wall, it is a drawing I did of a piggy making a pot.  Outside the studio door is a sculpted pot and pig with my name.  Why, Gary, do you love pottery pigs so much?  WELL, in the late 80s I saw my first pottery pig and and realized it was a bottle turned on its side and with ears and feet added, etc, you had a piggy! I still have the third piggy I ever made (on a shelf somewhere…).  I make a different style or 2, different sizes, but this type, about 5 inches tall, 5 inches wide, has been pretty much the main pig for nearly 30 years…I made so many in the 90s and loved them so much they became my mascot.  In the late 90s I began to try sculpting little things on pots and…you guess it, the lucky pig went on there, in that classic pink and green combo…. these are all just out of the kiln yesterday….

some pretty odds and ends...

I am entering a cup competition later this summer and am working on some entries, different ideas.  I really LOVE this sort of cup and saucer.  It is both simple and complicated at the same time.  Same with the blue vases, the flowers and vines are very subtle, showing through the glaze.  I have found a way to add some green leaves there too …. ANYWAY, the kiln is cooling, more new pots to see later today!

dogs and cats at mealtime...

I think our dog and cat figure if they don't play they won't get fed their lunch.  Our guys split a small can of tuna (well, canned cat mystery meat) every midday, but GOSH the ritual play before I can feed them…you see the cat waking up as the dog jumps on him…and jumps and jumps and wrestles…
happy Saturday!

here is a cute frog cup and saucer for all of us depressed and dismayed by Brexit

I know that a high percentage of the British public voted on the EU referendum yesterday, but you have to imagine the leave people were a lot more excited and motivated to vote, the stay side might have been more complacent and didn't bother to get to the polls…and we all wake up and SURPRISE! The sh!t hits the fan, prime minister resigns and the stock market crashes and that is JUST FOR STARTERS.  The problem with people who push for revolutions like that--they might be well meaning but they forget that revolutions make a lot of people suffer, and in my calculations, staying in the EU, maybe pushing it to do more of what Britain wants, would have benefitted the British and the world better.  There is a lot of crazy nationalism in this world leading to this vote, and andy n the US leading Trump to gain the repubs. nomination.  Nationalism can be a very dangerous thing, forgetting that you are part of the world and you have to work together with all people's for a common good….

ANYWAY, hopefully in November the US won't have any such disaster on our hands….I have been hands off with politics and important sh!t for awhile in this blog lately, and maybe it is time to let loose again.

Here is a wicked awesome cup and saucer with a frog to celebrate all that is cute…

speaking of T-Rex...

(YES, little boys like me and Calvin grow up one day to be grown men making dinosaur mugs….)

A couple of days ago I showed you a mug I had made with a dinosaur drawn on it…a cute and cheerful dinosaur!  I quickly made and fired another, and more will be coming, I am pretty pleased with this. THIS particular dude is for sale now at my easy shoppe, click to get it now!

  

carving a pot, the before and after ...

I have a little glaze experiment going today, thinking a particular color might look very good with carved pots, as I showed you yesterday with the teal ocean glaze.  I am entirely new to carving pieces, but have faceted them for years, or fluted them (basically straight lines with a special tool).  I want the same sort of line as fluting but more fluid, so I just grab a loop tool and….wave it along. Not sure what will happen, but I was pleasantly surprised! And think the glaze will look good here…. (this is the rough cut, later cleaned up)

teal...

I love this ocean glaze, dark teal.  It shows off carving and texture pretty nicely.
I have been fiddling with carving lately, just a bit.

polka dots and larceny...

I was having along and strange dream just now--the usual, in other words--that 4 friends planned a burglary in an electronics shop…they wanted my help, but I didn't want to join them…they managed to pull it off, until they were caught….and I woke up.

In other news, spotted bowls and teapot!