Better Quit My Ramblin' Ways

Not a whole lot of dirt being spun these early days of 2010. Today was a sawdust day, indoors. I'm wrapping up my wood working projects and making room for clay mixing later this week. I put another coat of bright red paint on the girls new bookshelf and cut braces and bed frames for their loft bed.

I'm getting itchy for some clay work as the spring show and exhibit deadlines loom in the not so distant future. It's hard to think about Spring in this winter wonderland (more snow this morning!). But I was just talking to Robert up at the Builder's Supply and he was flipping through the calendar on the wall to March 14th, the day we spin the clocks forward! Alas, the wood pile are covered in snow and buckets sit just outside the shop frozen solid, and to get the pots to market for the NCECA conference shows and the Catawba Valley Pottery Show in March, I've got to get spinning, and SOON! As Gary would say, "Holy Cats!"

I had a great visit with Tom Turner, yesterday, at his place in Mars Hill. Tom went to Jingdezhen China in November and brought back lots of goodies that we went over before and after a deli lunch in town. I had the cheeseburger and Tom had the B B Q while we discussed the how we would rock the pottery world in the months to come!

After lunch we swung by to visit Matt K and Shoko T at their mountaintop retreat/pottery fiefdom. I'm glad I didn't try to drive the Soobie up that road. I think the grade was just shy of 45º. Shoko and Matt are getting ready for spring shows, too. We're going to both be showing with Ferrin Gallery at NCECA with a few other of the Ferrin stable of studio potters. Here's the ride down the mountain.

Anyway. What was I talking about? Oh yea, Matt and Shoko making pots in their mountain top in Marshal...Here are a couple of shots in their studio of some pots Matt is making for Shoko to decorate.

And here is what keeps there shop so cozy on their windy mountain top.

Afterwards we stopped in on Alex "ain't gonna work on Hewitt's pottery farm no more" Matisse. He was doing some work on the homestead and getting ready to build a kiln shed. No pictures from that visit although we did see some fine pottery on display in his old farmhouse. Maybe I'll get back over there to help raise a post or a beam on that kiln shack he's gonna build and I'll bring my good camera.

Well, this blog has rambled on just like my day in Madison County. Tom's pots will have to wait till I get some more of my wood working done tonight. But I have some cool stuff to show you from Tom's collection of Ohio and Connecticut stoneware as well as his Chinese pots! Check back!

Thanks for reading.