Listen.

This past week has been a whirlwind, a good whirlwind. I shared time out of the studio with friends and future family which directly impacted the rest of my time with clay. I’ve got lots of ideas and projects in various stages of production for an upcoming group show and a wonderful shop in the South. Special orders were finalized and shipped, new ones were begun.

I received two surprise and considerate gifts this week. My former neighbors were in town visiting and stopped by. They now live in Arizona and brought me a mug from my favorite coffee shop! They know me well! The hat/scarf set was sent to me by a friend from Hilton Head. We have spent yarn time together stitching and talking. Her out-of-the-blue gift and note were so thoughtful! 

When I work, I generally listen to programs on National Public Radio. It’s a habit that started in my first home studio when Diane Rehm (now retired) was on the air daily. I learned something each time I listened to her broadcast. This exposure introduced me to other interesting programs offered by Public Radio stations across the country. 

I revisited this stacking bowl set based on a request for an upcoming group show. I really like it and am glad to have the opportunity to make it again.

Sometimes I listen to music when I work. It’s easy to play what I like on my ITunes playlist. Emotions, memories, sing-alongs and occasional dancing break out when music is my studio background. 

Do you have a listening suggestion for me? What song inspires you? Have you read a good book lately? What other listening opportunities am I missing? Any podcasts you'd recommend? Click on the photo to tell me your suggestion!

Occasionally, I’ll listen to a book. My friend Whitney has offered to help me with a sewing project. We spent an afternoon at an incredible fabric shop in Virginia picking out material and a pattern for me to make.  While we were together, she suggested  I read, The Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert (who also wrote Eat, Pray, Love). I downloaded it from the library and listened throughout the week. It’s about the concept of creativity and creative thinking. It resonated. I’m going to listen to it again. I know I can learn more from a second ‘reading’. 

Look who else was attracted to this coneflower in my garden. The beauty and colors of nature often stop me in my tracks. 

I think I’m a good listener, but I know I can improve my skills. When I listen, my mind sometimes jumps around and I lose concentration on what is being shared with me (especially if I'm multi-tasking). I could blame some of that on my creative mind getting sparked as information is fed to it, and fear I’ll forget those inspirations if I let go, but strong focus while listening is important too. 

One Good Turn...

This lazy susan is part of a glaze kiln I just unloaded this week filled with some custom order creations and last minute inventory additions for a weekend craft show. And the phrasing “one good turn deserves another” couldn’t be more apropos to sum up the experience of a craft show vendor.

I’ve visited many a festival as an attendee. Participation as a seller gives you a whole different perspective and peek behind the curtain. There are several constants that occur in every sales event I’ve worked. 

It begins with unloading and unpacking in a new ‘store front’ location. Sometimes you bring all the tables and props along with inventory, other times you work within the show’s designated display arrangement. It’s a busy, frenetic time of creating a community. Each vendor is focused on setting up, unpacking, arranging and re-arranging their temporary quarters. Introductions occur with immediate neighbors. Some have worked shows together before, others are new to the neighborhood. 

Once the vendors are set, there may be time to venture beyond your own block of neighbors and get a broader picture of the other show participants. Once the show begins, there is often little time to get this overview perspective. 

The sense of immediate community with other creators happens quickly. Show neighbors are helpful to each other, share past show experience advice, swap some personal insights and become new friends. 

This past weekend’s festival was an outdoor event so weather played a determining factor on attendance. We were clipped by a torrent of rain on day-one which cancelled some of the planned music and libations, deterred attendance and soaked some of the vendor’s art. We had better weather-luck on day two, so the music played and the food trucks could serve. 

As a vendor, the range of emotions you experience during a show vary wildly. Excitement, trepidation, delight, satisfaction, disappointment, elation – they are all part of the journey. But the constant I’ve found throughout these shows is the generosity and like-minded spirit of my artistic neighbors. Their helpful and encouraging attitude make me a better artist and person and truly embody the motto “one good turn deserves another.”

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Upon Request

The commission process is a back and forth collaboration between my customer and me. Good communication helps turn the discussion into a successful outcome. The proposed project can be as simple as making a specific color of an existing item from my current gallery repertoire or involve a whole new journey to create a brand new shape or item.

I have made this popular tray and bowl set for many years. Each one is a unique combination of pattern and color. The serving bowl has evolved over the years into the current circle form. If a customer sees a piece of mine that has been sold at a show or is out of stock in my inventory, I can easily make a new one!

When I work on an unfamiliar request, it takes time to formulate the final clay art piece. I sometimes research the creations of other artists, experiment in the studio with various clay combinations and then create a paper template to achieve the final results.

Totems are one example of creations that combine familiar and unfamiliar forms. This special address post was created for the author of the children's book KeeKee's Big Adventures. I knew I wanted to include an image of KeeKee, the hot air balloon and an image of a book along with the address numbers. I studied drawings of KeeKee and then got to work in the studio figuring out how to incorporate the images into a three dimensional format. 

This set of mugs uses a company logo as the basis for the decoration and colors. It took a couple of tries to get this commission to completion, but that's part of the process!

These memento boxes were created recently to hold special personal trinkets to honor the memory of a loved-one.

I love it when I see photos of my creations in their new homes! Here is a custom lazy susan I created ready to 'pass the...!'

Keep in touch and let me know what I can make especially for you!