Friday, April 28, 2017

A Week and a Day


Only just over a week left before the sixth...or is it the seventh? annual Maine Pottery Tour! I do the organizing for the tour, but am also a participant, so the last week is dedicated (mostly) to getting my own studio ready. Today I loaded a bisque with the pots that will eventually be glazed for the kiln opening that will happen Saturday morning, May 6th.

Opening the kiln is the most exciting part of being a potter, but the pots are usually not...quite...ready for prime time when they first see the light of day in their finished form. They usually need a bit of attention to the bottoms and maybe a little steel wool to make the unglazed surfaces silky. So I need to have enough pots to fill the display even before the kiln opening. So I have been digging in bins and opening boxes, sorting out the best pots that are ready to go.
Bisque is loaded!

The pot in the photo about is the drawing prize! Visitors can enter to win by filling out a slip with their names & addresses. This builds my mailing list and draws visitors, and someone gets a free vase. Win-win!

My to-do list is dauntingly long, and includes making soap (hot process, so it will be ready in a
week); unloading, glazing, reloading and firing these pots;  spiffying up the yard; and assembling necklaces. And that's all before the grunt work of actually setting up! I've invited my friend Liz Downs of Ditch Lily Pottery to be my guest artist, so she'll be setting up with me on Friday.
If you'd like to come visit me durin gthe tour, you should check out studios near me, too! Click this link to get a printable version of the Central leg of the tour. Or, click this link to go to a Google map of the central leg. 
Hope to see you!
Hours:
Saturday May 6 10 -5
Sunday May 7 11 - 4

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