Love to Ayumi Horie.

"I love calling myself a potter; the word itself has no airs or smugness and carries with it a sense of timelessness. Nearly everyone, in every geographic place and at every point in time since human beings created settlements, has understood what a potter does; I feel I am part a meaningful continuum." -Ayumi Horie

Great quote from this amazing potter. Her philosophy and style are inspiring and ring-true. HUGE FAN!

(Plus she just raised $10,000+ for Obama/Biden by arranging a "Obamaware" sale with other potters on eBay.)

Interview here, in American Craft magazine.
Ayumi Horie's website.

***world GO VEGAN days***

(Sarah Kramer and a mug! Check out page 42 of the Nov/Dec VegNews!!!)

I don't really talk about my veganism or my politics in my blog. I just stick to my pottery. But that doesn't mean I'm not passionate about these things too!
In conjunction with IDA's "world GO VEGAN days", I'm having a sale in my shops. 20% off all stock (not including shipping.) Simply checkout, and I will send you a revised invoice reflecting the discount.

Several members of the Vegan Etsy team are doing a promotional event from October 25 - 31 for World GO VEGAN Days.
**To see what other stores are participating in this
event, please visit our blog at www.veganetsy.blogspot.com.
***For for information about veganism and World Go Vegan Days, go to: www.worldgovegandays.com or
www.govegannow.com

Wax resist. A studio favorite.

This wonderfully orange liquid is multi-faceted. Not only is it great for glazing...keeping glaze away from where you don't want it. But it is really helpful in controlling the drying of pieces.

I used to get cracking at joints and handles when I tried to dry quickly. The uneven drying was just not good. Handles would dry quicker than the mug, and cause the handle to crack at the point of contact.

One way to solve this is to dry slowly. But, I'm not a fan of that technique.

This is where the wax resist comes in. Apply to the joint/handle after it has dried under plastic for one night. After that, the piece can air dry. So much faster than leaving it under plastic for days on end.

Yea! Wax!

Easily distracted.

I am quite sure that if I could just buckle down and focus on the pottery that I already make, I might be more successful. However, I just can't help it! Ideas pop in my head and roam around and have to be executed.

I made some lino-cut stamps awhile back, and have wanted to do some clay items with the stamps ever since. I also needed something to use up some colored recycled clay.

So I made some sweet little dishes. Took me several tries before I figured out the whole printing on clay bit. And I ended up with some really warped dishes. But a few of them came out really cute!

Available in my etsy shop!

Corn starch. A studio favorite.

Seriously, now that I have discovered corn starch for the studio, I am one happy camper. I don't know why it took me so long to figure out.

Sometimes, when handbuilding, the clay is too wet and can get sticky. Causing it to stick where I don't want it to stick. A little sprinkling of corn starch and I'm good to go.

Perfect for achieving clean stamping before the clay becomes leather-hard. Or working with a slab on a bat, before making the final form.

PLUS it is super cheap and re-usable!