Silent Night

It's always so festive in the Plaza at Christmas time! I hadn't yet been out walking the Plaza at night this December... it's been a little chilly for an evening stroll and I have to admit I've been a little partial to staying home in the evenings with a cup of hot chocolate! But after a bit of snow yesterday, I figured it would be the perfect time to get out for a little photography. So glad I did!

Wishing you all a very, very

Merry Christmas!!!

:)

Dreaming of a White Christmas...

Well, according to the weather forecast, it won't likely be snowing here on Christmas... but we did finally get a little snow this week! Not the 4-6 inches that was predicted (we started the week off with rain!) but enough to dust everything in a wintery white... a beautiful day to go out walking... and as luck would have it, I had the day off to do just that! 

 I walked around town for quite some time, in awe at the beauty of it all... smiling a goofy smile. It was one of those days where you just feel happy to be alive... and thankful to have the leisure time to enjoy it!

:)

It's Beginning to look a lot like Christmas... :)

Ok, perhaps this doesn't look like Christmas to most people, but to a clay loving Chica such as myself... it looks a whole lot like Christmas to me! Not to mention the fact that when you've been waiting in anticipation for weeks to see how your crazy glaze-dipping concoctions have turned out... well, It's kinda like that feeling the kids get waiting for Santa... hoping they get something from their Christmas list, and not for example, a lump of coal. Metaphorically speaking, I got both.

:)

I experimented with 4 different clay bodies and numerous glazes, which resulted in a large range of results, from super cool, to so ugly I'm glad I took good glaze notes so I'll know never to do that again!

Above~ a random sampling, and below, some of my favorites pieces.

This mug was my # 1 fave. I love the shape, size & glaze, but I especially love the handle. Have you ever notice how mugs fit in your hand? Some handles are two finger holds, some three, some four. The handle to hand fit often determines my favorite mugs.

The mug on the left was hand built & funky & I love it. The mug on the right was wheel thrown, way too small to be a proper coffee mug, but I totally dig the glaze combo.

Two of my favorite bowls.

:)

These? Well, I'm not the craziest about them. I've found with all the pieces I've gotten out of the kiln so far, the ones I like the best were made with darker clay bodies. These were done w/ a white clay, & I'm just not super excited about the way the lighter clay bodies interact w/ the glazes, and I tried a lot of different glaze combos! The feel to me is just not as earthy & natural as the effects achieved with the darker clays.

Above, a darker clay with a couple of different glazes works for me... a much more earthy feel.

And the finished bears~ I totally love them! 

:) 

 I tested different glazes on each one & came up w/ about 3 combos that I would definitely use again. 

My favorite!

:)

I've still got 2 larger bears & about 12 or so pieces (both white & dark clays) yet to glaze, which I'll get in to finish later during the week~ though those likely won't be out of the kiln 'til 2012! That's fine though, because I've got plenty to get started on for gifts... and have been as busy as a Christmas elf packing them up w/ goodies to ship "home" for Christmas!

Hope you're all having a wonderful December!

:)

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

Well, not quite the Winter Wonderland that was predicted by the weather service, but enough to give us a fresh dusting of snow, and w/ temps in the low 30's today... perfect hiking weather! I took these while out hiking Picacho Peak today with a friend... it was a beautiful day to be out & about. Thankful for heat right about now, as our lows by monday night are predicted to be in the single digits & more snow on the way!

Hope you're all staying warm out there!

:)