The tight schedule for the last week seems to have paid off. A week ago I spent the day frantically applying terra sigillata to the bases of all my pots. With the plates painted by those artists on the previous Thursday there were 43 pieces to cook. On Monday I had my flu shot and then spent all afternoon unloading warm pots, waxing, glazing and reloading. After a slow start to make sure all the moisture was gone I turned the kiln up late at night. It’s the fullest glaze kiln I’ve had in quite a while and I really noticed the difference in evenness of heat. By the afternoon of the next day both witness cones melted to the same extent with the nice 20 minute soak at 1922 degrees F. With a smaller kiln load I sometimes have colder pots at the bottom.

On Wednesday the pots took all day to cool so we had to postpone taking any photos until Thursday morning. Eric Metcalfe and his friend David Barnhill arrived at 11am to collect the finished plates and tiles. David took a look at all the new pots but had set his heart on a chickadee – and there were none this time! Eric brought out 2 more plates which he’d painted with underglazes at home. So with David’s chickadee, Eric’s plates, a bird teapot order and more flickers and woodpeckers I need to get back to the wheel right after the weekend and fire by Dec 11th.

The photos are of the plates the 4 artists painted, as well as a triangular dish by Allyson and tiles by her and Colette.

I was pleased with the glaze on all my jugbirds – mainly medium and miniature jugbirds destined for the ‘Crackerjack’ crafts show this weekend. There are terra sig mugs for Gallery of BC Ceramics and Red Cardinals which Ron Kong has said are needed in Circle Craft. And our carpenter ordered a large birdmug for his wife. Slightly hokey, this one is its twin. Let’s see if anyone likes it! And there were 7 candlesticks which are destined for the Amnesty International fundraising dinner next Tuesday.

On Friday morning, yesterday, I took 16 assorted jugbirds to ‘Crackerjack’ at the Music Box Art Gallery in West Vancouver.

Another whole story to tell, perhaps tomorrow, is my bus ride from there to downtown to go to the big Circle Craft Christmas show in the new Convention Centre. I’d won a ticket! Bus ride back to W Van for 7pm to attend the show there and then a rainy drive home to Port Moody – 3/4 hr.