Waterlilies

Waterlilies are gorgeous hey? They look so delicate floating on the water...
I made these ones with white clay and recycled glass in the bottoms. The bases are curved, so that they look like they're floating even on a table.

Nice weather for ducks...

I think I am in the eye of the storm - simultaneous thunder and lightening and the biggest raindrops in the history of raindrops. Mmmmm, I love a good storm, very dramatic!
Today was going to be summery outdoor activity with friends, but... So anyway I have taken the opportunity to upload a few things to my shop...


This one's inspired by Tudor architecture, and has little piercings to make it extra pretty if you use it to hold a candle.

Next up is this droplet bowl in watery colours with a recycled glass pool in the bottom... seemed appropriate for today's climate.


And then, speaking of birds that like water...


here's my little love bird soap dish! All of these activities (including blogging) have provided me with a great excuse not to make a final decision about which shiny hunk is to become Kenny, King of Kilns!!!!! I can no longer avoid the decision, so I'm off now to do the maths...

Time for some cuteness!

The first of my new range of little bird bowls have come out and are gorgeous! Not very modest I know, but there you go, I love them!
The first one to be uploaded to my shop is this one, Little love bird. It's a little tiny one, so I would use this to keep rings in or use it for a tea light candle. It has little hearts stamped into the surface to create little wings which have been filled with my favourite glossy pinky red glaze.
As ever, feel free to share your opinion!

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...

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!