Everything ground to a halt in the studio during the holidays. Thankfully, they are over and it is time to get back in the swing. I was determined to at least get my metal frames assembled for the tile panels.
I did accomplish that thank goodness.
Of course I have to see how the tiles look in them every step of the way.
However, since I am way behind in making bread and butter pots, I just cleaned up the frames after assembly and stowed them away until the fall. I have got to start making pots for Ohio. While working on the frames, I had a wonderful idea of how to decorate the frames with the silver. If I can even approach what I have in mind, they will be spectacular. And I know I can! All it takes is time and money.
I did get one copper frame- a one-of-a-kinder- completed. I still have to assemble all the components, but it is very close to completion.
I have tons of inspiration for my upcoming making cycle. This winter shot really got me hot and bothered. You can bet this will show up on a nice tall cylinder shaped pot.
Here is another bit of inspiration- Luiz at the wheel. I am the Pottery merit badge advisor for the Boy Scouts. It is always a lot of fun to help someone experience throwing a pot and Luiz was very adept at doing so. It would not take long for him to be making pots with ease.
More inspiration. My son, Chris, on the right has just received his Eagle Scout award. And he does not even have a Pottery merit badge!!! A few of you - a lucky few- have one of his pots. Hopefully he will be making some pots for Ohio.
Finally, I show you this because it has taken a fair amount of my time and I have to fill this page. We had a little spare space in the building and decided to create a party area for Chris so he and his buddies will have a place to hang out. This effort was part of his 15th birthday present. We are fortunate to have a large commercial building for our home and I have another free space this size and I am converting it over to MY party space for poker games. This way I don't have to convert the studio when I have a game!
Just as an aside, if you like oriental rugs, they are practically giving them away on ebay. Jimmy Carter's 20 year ban on Iranian products was lifted and they are flooding into the market. Those rugs you see in the photo above cost maybe 400 dollars each- delivered to your door. In the recent past, I have bought 30 rugs for myself and others- mostly room size- for $7200. That is an average cost of about $250 a rug. Cheaper than Home Depot's cheapest off-the-roll wall to wall. I was in Iran and Afghanistan buying rugs in the early 1970s, and I was paying a lot more then, than I am now. Get 'em while you can.