There are two smaller oval pots in there, a couple stacks of small plates, a bunch of prep/dipping bowls made the same way as my kusamono planters but without the hole, and a set of little plate/trays that can be used lots of different ways!
Here's the latest load out of the kiln, my part of it anyway! The big brown oval in the background has been hanging since mid-November, it was a trial for a custom order. That's my story and I'm sticking to it! The actual custom order was an inch or so wider (front to back in this view) and had a terra sigillata and oxides finish that came out a nice muted orangy brown. I'm going to be listing it on Etsy soon, its about 14 inches long, nice footed pot with a matching tray. We'll see, I might be hanging onto it for a while though! I'll be pushing it as an herb pot or a succulent pot, but it'd work for bonsai if someone needed a DEEP LONG pot!
There are two smaller oval pots in there, a couple stacks of small plates, a bunch of prep/dipping bowls made the same way as my kusamono planters but without the hole, and a set of little plate/trays that can be used lots of different ways!
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Unloaded the kiln today! I finally got a big orchid pot done thats been just hanging around, its going up on Etsy soon! Its a red clay, stained with iron oxide and a touch of cream glaze on the top to hide where the seams weren't cleaned up as well as I liked... durf, no shortcuts, I do know better! It looks great now. Also a bunch of kusamonos and the trays I did a few weeks ago at the studio tour. They're pretty generic so people can mix n match, the tan clay with oxide on the outsides and some with color, some with clear on the inside. My thinking was they'll go with most anything, we'll see if they're a hit or a flop! They should also work for kokedama (moss ball plantings) which might be interesting! I've GOT to get a kokedama made so I can use it in photos...
Also fired up a nice matte green DEEP scoop that was a back up for a custom order that I somehow forgot to get fired with the rest of the order, so its a good thing the customer was happy with the other one I did! This one is from a batch I made a few years back, I found these recently going through old boxes! Ooops! This one is very nice, straight sides and the glaze is interesting with the yellow and frosted yellow. Click on it to see the listing on Etsy, it has a bunch more views. Measurements 10 3/4 inches (275mm) by 8 3/8 inches (212mm) wide by 3 1/8 inches (80mm) high (exterior) Another one from that batch, this one is Fern Mist (I THINK, something close to that if its not) and is sort of matte olive green and glossy darker green in some areas. It measures 8 3/8 inch (215mm) long and 6 inches (153mm) wide by 2 1/8 inch (52mm) tall (outside dimensions.) Well, there's a bunch of little kusamonos still out there to get photos of, plus a few other ovals that I've posted to Etsy including another green one with drippies on one side and the ends, then very similar to the one above on the other side. Also a mottled brown one, and a cream one that I still need to upload. Also 3 or 4 triangles! Last time I had these boxes out was at the Bonsai Club Show a few years back, oops!~
I'm also in the process of uploading some more orchid pots, and debating on putting up a starfish plaque. I am working on some changes in the styling on the starfish, so the one I built today will be very different. The starfish have more texture and should be even more realistic than the ones to date. Weee, just torched off the kiln, I've got orchid pots with a few new glazes I'm really excited about- a nice frosted blue that does some really fun crackly stuff where its thick, and an absolutely crazy one that has areas of matte red and gloss brown with hints of purple. I've also got one orchid pot in that's just blue terra sigillata that looks really nice, a nice blue-green that should also do funky things where its thick, and a matte canary yellow.
Also a couple starfish plaques that should be fun! One is designed to wrap a post, the other is flat. These are done with terra sigillata and stains, no glazes, but they should still come out nice. NEXT load should be a bunch of Bonsai pots, two of them are a custom order, the others I'll list on Etsy. Won't be too long, the mudslingers have been busy! Now if I could just convince them to stop ALL channeling tall stuff all at the same time. It makes it really tough to load a kiln and make good use of the space when you've got 3 shelves worth of stuff that needs to go on the top, (oh, yeah, the top of the kiln only holds 2 shelves!) and only another 2 or 3 shelves worth of short stuff to go under the tall stuff! I have ended up firing just over HALF a load the past 2 or 3 firing cycles because stuff is TALL! Oh well, means I've got plenty of room for the shorties! These are some of the little Kusamono pots I pulled out of the last load! Normally Bonsai pots are pretty neutral colors and shapes so the TREE is the center of attention, but with the accent plant - a small plant displayed along side a bonsai in a formal display - the pot can be a bit more radical. Often the plant has leaves that drape down over the sides of the pot somewhat, they flower, have brightly colored foliage, or some sort of attention drawing aspect like wispy seed heads on grasses. So the pots can have a lot more color and variations in shape. These are small, draped over a tennis ball, and a LOT of fun to make! I admit, the pink one is a bit more radical than I was actually going for, but its actually a nice little pot. The yellow is the same glaze I've used on a few bonsai pots, its bright but perfect for something like a maple that has BRIGHT fall foliage. I'll post some more later, they're just too cute. These are listed on my Etsy site.
Well, I survived the holidays, although the obligatory round with the plague is still ongoing! We've got a load ready to throw in the kiln tomorrow, bisque stuff, and I'll have a bunch of kusamono pots to go in. These are little 'grass pots' for accent plants such as, well, grass, or other plants to display with bonsai. These make great little decorative planters! This batch are simple textured slabs draped over a form, in this case a tennis ball, with feet added to let them drain. I haven't decided quite yet how I'll finish them, but they're fun to make and I'll have about 10 in this load and at least that in the next, if not more! Also a stray orchid pot, then a bunch of stuff from the rest of the mudslingers. I did one or two pieced ones too, so there's a lot of variation.
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Maryjane Carlson
Clay has always fascinated me, its many colors and textures, the shapes you can create using it, even the feel of it squishing in my hand. Even after years of playing in the mud I find myself exploring new ideas and I hope my work shows this. Archives
August 2017
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