Lion and Owl

I didn't have to ask the boys on these.  I love the owl but I'm on the fence about the lion.  I like his face but I'm not happy with the mane.

What do you think?

Three Out of Four Isn't Bad

I question myself.  Who doesn't?  Sometimes, when I'm working on a new design, I'll know immediately that I've hit the mark.  Mission accomplished.  Next.  However, there are those times when I'm too close to my work and lose my objectivity.  Then I question.

I spent the afternoon in the studio while hubby took our boys and nephew to pick up a fridge for his shop.  I had a second go at creating a hippo bank and thought I'd gotten it better than the last attempt but there was that question. I've kinda gotten into the habit of presenting a new animal bank or birdhouse design to my boys and asking them to identify it.  So when they got home I unveiled him and just asked "What is it?".  To my delight 3 out of the 4 said "It's a hippo!".  My middle son, (Mr. Contradictory) said "It's a pig!".  I've come to expect this from him.  He says everything I make looks like a pig.  So I don't count his vote.  But it still nags at me if he really thinks it looks like a pig or is he teasing me again.

What do you think?

My mud mojo!

The cyber kick in the pants appears to have worked.  I got some of my creative mojo back.  I spent most of the day in the pottery room.  Unfortunately, I kept having to take breaks to warm up.  Although the garage studio is well heated and we have rubber mats on the cement floor the cold still manages to seep into my bones.  If I ignore the chill too long it'll take all day to feel warm again. So every couple of birdhouses I have to rinse off and go upstairs to stave off the chill.

In the summer I can play all day long with only food and potty breaks.  The mud mojo flows!  Maybe that's what's been squashing my motivation lately.  My bones are sending silent protest petitions to my subconscious which, in turn, pushes other activities to the forefront of my mind to distract me from potting.  Hmmm.  Me thinks me smells me a conspiracy!  But I'm onto them now and I know where they live, those bones!  Bwa ha ha ha....

A Swift Kick in the Pants

Motivation seems to be escaping me lately.  I had one good day last week when I started several birdhouses and banks.  But that was it. Just a glint and now it's gone.

It probably has a lot to do with my husband.  Somehow, I'm able to blame just about everything on him in some way, poor thing.  He started a new business almost 2 years ago after losing his job and it's doing so well he's now renting space in town to operate out of.  Unfortunately, I ended up being clean-up girl.  The place was a machine shop and it's been vacant for a while so you can imagine the old, black, greasy, dusty man-mess I was facing.  Yuck!

Anyway, that's my excuse and I'm sticking with it.  I've been working on officey stuff in between helping hubby out.  It's not like I've been unbelievably busy, I'm just not feeling motivated to get back into the studio. So maybe writing about it will help or some sympathetic soul will come by and give me that swift kick I so desperately need!

Just try to sit still and focus!

This is something I've repeated umpteen times to my boys over the years, particularly during homework time.  It can be very challenging at times, especially if it's a subject they don't like.  But in order to succeed you must focus and get it done.

You've heard the expression "Physician, heal thyself.".  Well, in this case it's more like "Mother, parent thyself."!  I need to sit still and focus.  The world of pottery is too vast.  The possibilities are endless.  The learning is endless.  Every time I turn around there are more and more ideas of what I want to try being presented to me.  I envision myself on the wheel putting my own twist on different things: bowls, mugs, cookware, vases, etc.  All useful things and I love the idea of someone preparing dinner or enjoying their morning coffee with something I made.  But....

I've learned over the past few years that I'm not a production potter.  That means sitting down with 20 lumps of clay and churning out identical bowls one after the other then glazing them to make matching sets.  This is an impressive skill that I've tried and had a little success with.  But every time I do, after 3 or 4 bowls, I realize my heart's not in it.  I know this is how many potters make a living but it's just not my thing.

Stubby has chickenpox

When I get the creative juices flowing it isn't mugs and bowls that pop into my head.  It's faces of sassy, little critters smirking and smiling at me.  My first sad attempt at creating a functional birdhouse ---> ---> ---> ---> --->
was primitive and useless but pretty darn funny looking!  I think it was the humorous aspect that kept me going until I got it right.  What started out as a daydream during church (shh, don't tell the pastor but it could have been Divine inspiration!) has evolved into birdhouses, banks and garden decor that I LOVE!  I have such a good time creating my critters (I even talk to them!) that when I see someone's reaction to them it makes my day even if they don't end up buying one.  I just think "They get it!"  That's why I'll continue to do craft shows.  There's nothing more telling than peoples faces when they're viewing your art.  My favorites are the people that stop dead in their tracks, mouths dropped open then bust out laughing.  It kills me when I see people walk by my booth, look at my guys and not register any reaction.  But then I console myself by thinking they're distracted and maybe looking but not seeing. Either way they're not getting it.  How sad for them.

So, focus!  As we're facing a new year we need to evaluate and set business goals, which is what's prompting this tirade.  I think I've found my niche and I need to concentrate more of my efforts there this year.  Focus!  I have to resist the temptation to try everything that passes through my mind or in front of my eyes.  Focus! I need to focus on the joy, the smiles, the whimsy, the playful spirit that's buried in all of us and just needs a little poke to show it's beautiful face.  I'm living proof that laughter is the best medicine and I don't care how happy you are, everyone can use more joy and that's gonna be my focus.  Through my work I will bring more joy into the world whether it likes it or not!

Year End Wrap Up

We tried different things this year.

We stuck with the tried and true this year.

We questioned our processes.

We were confident in what we have done.

We expanded our horizons.

We played it safe.

Basically, our biggest change is on your screen.  We became much more aggressive in cyber marketing and social networking.  From what I've been learning this is such a new avenue that there are no experts at it yet.  Scary but exciting, too.  I feel like I'm on the cutting edge sometimes.  Not that I'm doing any edge cutting but I'm learning along with the rest of the world and that's pretty cool!  I've also been trying to learn how to take e-shop stats and analytics and use them to our advantage.  Uuum, yeah, I'll let you know when/if I ever wrap my brain around that one!

Last show of the year.

We did a few more craft shows than we (I) did last year and will be increasing that number again for next year.  I'm a big chicken when it comes to shelling out the big bucks for the high-end shows but after a couple of very disappointing shows this year I think we're gonna take the plunge for at least one biggie this coming year.  Again, scary but exciting.

I've made a living in the "real" world doing bookkeeping so I've always had a to-the-penny handle on our finances.  This year I've made an effort to dig a little deeper into sales analysis.  For example, instead of just recording how much I make at a show I now record how much of each item sold. Not that I had no idea before but now it's on a spreadsheet so I can see the whole year at once and start tracking what the trends are at each show, spring vs. fall, over several years, etc.  This should help us determine where we need to concentrate our efforts more and where we need to cut and run.

As for playing it safe the most important thing I've learned very recently:  When working with glazes ALWAYS wear a dust mask!  During my last glazing session I was doing some fussy painting where I have to hold the pot pretty close to see that I'm getting the glaze where I want it.  When I went to blow some of the dry glaze away I actually ended up inhaling some of it.  NOT GOOD!  A fever, serious coughing, trip to the Dr. and I'll live but big lesson learned!  Never again will this cotton-headed-ninny-muggins glaze without a mask!  Oye!

Overall, we had a great year!  Our show sales went up 65% from last year and our Etsy sales went up 35%.  Not too shabby!  Even though we've been selling for a few years now, I feel like I've moved a little more from a hobbyist to a professional artist, at least in my mind, which is where most of my challenges stem from.  I've found people actually seeking us out which is the most gratifying feeling. 

So, my friends, as we close out 2011 

and look into the face of 2012,

learn the lessons life is always teaching,

explore your gifts,

embrace your passions,

be cautious but fearless,

do what you love and love what you do,

and most of all,

be grateful for every little thing.

HAVE A BLESSED CHRISTMAS 

AND A SAFE AND FRUITFUL NEW YEAR!

Just one more push....

I've been going a little crazy (or should I say "crazier") trying to build my inventory back up for my last 2 shows.  I've learned a valuable lesson this season.  Well, several lessons.  But most importantly:  You can never have too much inventory!  The show I mentioned in a previous post was very successful and depleted my banks and birdhouses more than I expected.  I had been a little worried about the next show which turned into a poopy day so my inventory levels, unfortunately, weren't changed that much.  With 2 more pretty big shows left in the season I want to have my levels back up so I have a good variety.

Birdhouses & banks in various stages of production.

I know!  I've had all summer to work on inventory!  What the heck?  My show seasons typically run from March to June then October to December.  So in between is production time.  (I haven't been doing summer shows after the one bad experience I had that involved a 3 day festival, a summer storm, a tent that wants to be a kite when it grows up and lots of breakable pottery.  But that's another post.)  Any hoo, I'm very limited to how much inventory I can store right now.  I have a small one-man studio and a small area in the garage to store finished inventory, tables, displays, etc.  My garage runneth over!

I received several orders at earlier shows that are needed for Christmas and Hanukkah so there's just a little more pressure to get things done asap.  With the super long process from start to finish (approx 4-6 weeks) I've been trying to speed it up the last  few weeks by turning the heat up in the studio.  If you rush drying the clay it will crack so I had to watch very closely to make sure the pots dried slow enough and evenly.  Then I preheated them in the kiln for a few hours to make sure all of the water was evaporated before ramping it up to ^09 (1693 degrees F).  Luckily, my first rushed bisque firing was perfect.  Whew!

A whole bisque load with no cracks!  Woo Hoo!

Now, all that's left to do is glaze like crazy and get them fired sometime tonight so they'll be ready Friday to load up for Saturday's show.

The first layer of the glaze load.

More banks, etc.

Oh, and the second most important lesson learned:  DON'T FORGET TO BRING YOUR CART TO THE SHOW!  Doh!