Summer is nearly here...

And there are some really beautiful things going on in my garden! I love the centre of these African daisies, and they gave me a fantastic opportunity to try out the macro on my new camera.
I can't wait for these next ones to turn into strawberries. I always grow strawberries because they taste amazing when they are freshly picked and organic, and with a bit more space this year, hopefully there'll be plenty.
This last one is like a big soft cushion of pretty white flowers - fabulous!

Spring is nearly here!!!

And I cannot wait! To celebrate, I've been busy making some spring themed pots...a forget me not dish and a sweet garden dish...


I absolutely love it when the first flowers pop out in spring, and I've been cooing over narcissi and snow drops all week... The forget me nots won't be long, but I just couldn't wait for the real thing. All I have to wait for now is flip flop weather :)

A pocket full of posies

Welcome to my day.... Things are set to get more and more manic today, I can feel it...
I was lucky enough to be featured in an article in etsy's storque magazine which is shown on their front page, and goes out by email. Read it here.
Great publicity, especially as the piece they picked is in an article where it is suggested in a gift guide.

Here's a new piece I have just uploaded to my shop; a pocket full of posies!

Each little flower was stamped by hand into the clay whilst it was still soft, and then the circle was dropped into a mold.
I am also pleased with the glaze, as I mixed it myself, making it a little more individual than shop bought glazes.
Comments welcome!

I have made...

some more poppy bowls. Is there a name for this urge? Compulsive poppy bowl making syndrome? Some call it OCD, I call it passion...
Anyway, my digression aside, here they are-

I've experimented with a different surface texture inside these ones and think it's quite effective. Also, they're larger than the last ones, so they feel a little more substantial, and are better for holding a floating candle or wrapped shiny sweets. That is if you can bear to cover up the inside! They're pretty just as sculpture too...
As always, don't be shy now guys - what do you think?

My new poppy bowls

came out of the kiln yesterday and I uploaded a couple of them to my shop. Out of the first test pieces, I was happy with these three...


and will be putting a couple more through before the end of the week. They are pinch pots, and each one is created in the palm of my hand from a single piece of clay. No molds or wheels are used. I have loved poppies since my degree show where I grew troughs of them and arranged the troughs as part of a sculptural installation piece. Clearly the intervening seven years in interior design have resulted in a less high brow/more practical object. The texture in the centre is created by drawing into the surface of the clay. I used the same dark pink/red glossy glaze on each, but in varying amounts, and mixed it with various other things to emphasize the detail. All the ones that I was happy with were made using white grogged T material. (mmmm I love that clay!) Unfortunately, the ones I tried on the crank clay were horrible. The glazes just did not look good. I've tried an experiment on the crank again with a more orange red glaze that I'll get out of the kiln in a couple of days, so I'm hoping that will work better.
However, that said, I think I'll concentrate more on the combination above, as these really are quite beautiful with a candle in or just on their own. They're perfect for summer, but with gorgeous colour that would brighten up a winter's night too.

As ever, comments welcome...

Hydrangea flower pendant

For a few years now I have been rolling plant matter into the surface of clay to create texture and surface pattern. It began with plant pots which were slab formed out of two or more slabs of crank clay. This gave good results, but more subtle details were lost. Flimsy flower petals for example were barely noticeable. Recently I began to experiment with looking at these subtle details on a smaller scale for jewellery. Today I got my first hydrangea flower piece out of the kiln. I used porcelain, as it shows the subtle details off far better, and applied oxide for emphasis. The sepia tones created give the piece an antique feel which is brought up to date by the clean, simple shape.There's something nostalgic about using an ephemeral object and capturing its imprint in a more permanent material. I am pleased that the colours here fit in with that feel. I felt that a vintage chain would be appropriate for this one, so I used the bronze one pictured. A matching brooch is coming soon. Each pendant or brooch uses one flower for each, and the flower is destroyed in the process.

It doesn't get much better...

than sitting in the grounds of a Tudor mansion on a sunny May day working on my ceramics. It was an absolutely gorgeous day all over England today according to the radio. It certainly was here; it was wonderful to sit in the sunshine for a while! Days like today make me feel lucky! What a pleasure!

I was working on some small porcelain jewelry pieces and my new range of hooks. Hopefully the first few will be ready and glazed next week, so I'm excited about that!



In the meantime, here's a sneak preview of a few of them...




Whilst I was there today, I took a picture of the roof space, as the building has inspired me in the past to make a small dish...









It's a pinch pot, made from a single piece of crank clay. I pierced holes through it so that when a candle is placed inside pretty patterns are created on the table top.
As ever, if there's anyone out there... comments welcome!