It's been quite some time since I made gnomes. I was really feeling like making them lately for some reason.




I started with some normal size gnomes making half male and half female.




Then moved on to some smaller gnomes, also male and female, that can be used as wine topers.




One of the females ended up with Princess Leia buns!




I also had in my head to make some mushrooms.




And before I knew it 2 birds and a fish happened too. This has gotten me thinking about the menagerie of animals I made a couple of years ago that never got glazed. I wonder how many could become wine toppers!

I am nearing the end of weekends that are taken over by wedding events. There's only one more at this point which is the actual wedding in 2 weeks. I did manage to sneak in some clay this weekend. I didn't have time to make mugs, but was feeling a bit more abstract and made leaf forms.

The more I make these the better I get at them. I made these rolling the leaf forms into the clay and then trying to soften the edges before making the shapes. I think it's going to make a difference in the final product. The small vase is a new form.

I ordered some new texture from an Etsy Shop in Europe a few weeks ago. I have one more I haven't used yet, but loving both of these textures.

This is a repeating star texture. I think it's going to be really nice to hold once fired.




This is a leaf pattern that has really nice veins. I'm trying it out with the 214T Mugg Plugg which I think is going to make a really nice cup.

I saw a demo of the Mugg Plugg on ClayShareCon a few weeks ago. I saw a demo a year or so ago on the original Mugg Plugg, but they've expanded to tapered forms and that caught my eye.

I decided to take advantage of the deal and I am really glad I did. This is the 3T and according to Mugg Plug with a 5" tall slab, this will hold between 18-20 ounces of liquid.


I decided to make them upside down because that's how I freehand my mugs. I rolled the slabs out and let them stiffen up a bit before putting them around the wood. I made my own template ahead of time using a pencil and rolling the form on some craft foam. Before wrapping the clay around the wood I made sure to use a lot of corn starch, but one time I forgot and was still able to wiggle it off pretty easily.




Here is my almost finished mug, just need to do the rim once the form is leather hard.

I went to the American Craft Council show in Baltimore last weekend. It's definitely gotten smaller than it was a few years ago, but I still found some amazing things.

First up - the pottery! It was Sam Briegal posting in the morning that made me realize that the event was even happening. I love her work and wanted to get a mug. I tried out her tea cups, but am definitely too clumsy to use one of those so ended up with this beauty.




The colors frm Three Wheel Studio caught my eye from afar. There were people in the booth, but I saw this mug from afar and knew I needed it. It is the perfect shape for my hand and I love drinking out of it. I want to make more mugs this size and studying it is curating some future designs in my head.




I loved the simplicity of the colors and shapes in Shalya Marsh's booth. It wasn't until I was home and studying the cup that I realized I saw a session she did at NCECA a couple of years ago. I love the shape and size of this cup.




Not pottery related, but I indulged in some jewelry as well. Lakestone Jewelry was the most unique jewelry I have seen in a long time. Most of it was made with small rocks. I was already checking out when I saw the mismatched earrings that I had to add as well.




I've purchased a few things from Amy at Sun Ah Blair Jewelry over the years. I love how light and flexible her jewelry is.




I should have taken a booth shot of Glitter Limes because while I could not resist these purple sprinkes in resin - the food in resin at this booth were incredible.

Apologies for the unintentional hiatus. Work has been insanely busy the last two weeks. My sisters bachelorette 2 weekends ago was fun and everyone loved their cups. Last weekend I went to the American Craft Council show in Baltimore and picked up some cool things I'll share later in the week. I feel like I blinked and both January and February are gone!

Coming up in March and April is my first gallery show! I will be a part of the All Fired Up show at Off Track Art in March and April. This weekend is our opening Saturday March 8th from 3-6pm and I'd love to see you there. If you can't make it, but are still local then you should definitely find time to swing by.




Here's my setup