Firing the Craft Center kiln

We fired the Craft Center kiln this week for the first time since the renovations. The new chimney worked fine. With the new ventilation system and air tight room we will need to do some adjusting to get it right. The day we started it up we had our typical afternoon thunderstorm which meant we had to stand in just the right position to get the kiln to start. Supposedly, we weren't suppose to have this problem with the ventilation system and air tight room. After about 20-25 minutes and a little adjusting of the burners, she lit up. The rest of the firing went well. We played around with different settings on the 2 vents and the intake air supply ......... these vents and intake air supply are for the kiln room. It almost seems like these 2 vents and the air intake can act like another damper for the kiln. INTERESTING. I can see some possibilities here. In the mean time, there is still some fine tuning to get the basic firing down that will fit the whole glaze palate. In this firing some of the glazes were over reduced and some were beautiful. We will see what happens in the next firing.

lsk

07/25/09 at Uwharrie Ridge

Today I worked in the studio for a while, cutting & folding paper for journals. This afternoon we took a ride to Carrboro for a stop at the Open Eye Cafe & then on to Kathy's at Uwharrie Ridge. The hens & rooster had grown quite a bit since the last time I saw them....they are eating well! ( Soon there will be eggs, I think.)
Kath made a fantastic salad with fresh greens from the Farmers Market & tomatoes from her garden.
The butterflies and hummingbirds were abundant in the garden!

dll

Getting journals ready

I spent time today cutting paper and folding folios to match them up with covers. Next they will be marked so that I can drill them. Each folio will get a colorful cover page. Extra goodies will be added to each, then they will be sewn together with the coptic stitch.

lsk

After dinner espresso

After dinner tonight I made some stove top espresso. I should use this espresso maker more often. When I make it I usually put just a little fat free vanilla creamer in the top part. That way it is more like a latte (with out the foam).
Boy was it tasty!!!!!

I used two espresso cups I made a while back.
lsk

Digital Photo Workshop with Joy Tanner and John Britt

Yesterday I attended the Digital Photo workshop at John Britt's Studio http://www.johnbrittpottery.com/. The workshop was taught by John and Joy Tanner
http://joytannerpottery.com/. It was a great workshop. We learned how to make a light box and create a photo set-up. I learned a lot about white balance, f-stops and shutter speed. But what was most helpful to me was how Joy helped me figure these things out on my camera. You know sometimes when you try reading the provided manual ........... it really is a requirement that you are a rocket scientist. Anyway, a lot of valuable information was provided and we were fed a wonderful lunch. Check at John's website to see other up-coming workshops at John's studio.


lsk

Morning trip to the Arboretum

I took a quick morning trip to the Arboretum. Here are just a few photos.

lsk

LuLu's New Ride

LuLu always likes to play ball & go for a ride in her new vehicle! She's not too happy being in the cargo area of the car, but until I get a seat cover/protector for the back seat, she'll have to ride there (with the back seat folded up, so she has lots of room!) I had intentions of working on books this week-end, but never did get to that, although I did work on a few 'tags'. It took me awhile to 'decompress' after making the purchase..... it was difficult to be creative. dll