Seasons Greetings!

The craft fairs are done for the season but I still have some stock is anyone is looking for some last minute gifts!

The 3 craft fairs were a success! The last one at the Brackendale Art Gallery the most interesting since we lost power during the wind storm and had to resort to candles but it made it quaint and Christmasy!

Enjoy the video below. The video consists of myself, Greg, little Lucy, Big Jake and an unknown elf! Seasons Greetings!

Howe Sound Inn & Brew Pub Craft Fair

A photo from yesterday's craft fair at the Howe Sound Inn & Brew Pub (click on to the photo to enlarge)

Thank you everyone for stopping by and visiting!

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I have two more craft fairs coming up:

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Saturday December 6 ~ 10am - 3pm
Brennan Park Recreation Centre** I will be selling off all my SALE items for both pottery and crochet. Most items are $10 and under **

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Saturday December 13 ~ 10am - 6pm
Brackendale Art Gallery

Integrating Techniques!

I crocheted a fern from the book Crochet Bouquet - Easy Designs for Dozens of Flowers by Suzann Thompson and pressed it into a clay plate. This particular plate has been sent to the author of this book!

To learn more about Suzann Thompson, please visit her website.

Upcoming Craft Fairs

This holiday season will be busy with the following craft fairs:

Sunday November 30 ~ 10am - 4pm

Howe Sound Inn & Brew Pub

Saturday December 6 ~ 10am - 3pm

Brennan Park Recreation Centre
** I will be selling off all my SALE items for both pottery and crochet. Most items are $10 and under **

Saturday December 13 ~ 10am - 6pm

Brackendale Art Gallery

I will have an assortment of gifts that will appeal to all people of all ages.

Pottery - Lanterns, bird houses, pitchers, and tea pots

Crochet - Organic wash cloths, dolls, retro coasters and bags

Hope to see you there!

Happy Thanksgiving! Happy Halloween!

I absolutely LOVE Halloween!

I have been busy in the studio making many new pieces for the upcoming Xmas craft fair season as well as crocheting in the evenings. Check for more updates soon on the items I will be selling at this years craft fairs.

Random New Items

New Stuff

A couple things I just finished this week. I love this brown tea pot and one that will come to lots of use. I guess I better start drinking tea!

My newest Amigurumi Monkey. I plan on making more amigurumi creatures to sell at the craft fairs with my pottery this Christmas season. I will list the dates of the shows I will be in once them.

I have been experimenting with bird feeders and plan on making more bird houses soon too.

And of course I had to sneak in a recent picture of the dogs so you can see how big Jake is getting. He is 7 months old in this picture. Lucy is 4 years old. Aren't they the best looking dogs?

Butter Dish Story

When I started making pots 2 years ago, a butter dish was one of the first things I wanted to make as the one we have is just down right ugly. They were either too small or too big and for some reason I just couldn't get it right. Until now! We finally have a proper butter dish.

And then there were 6

I made 3 more lanterns because I loved how they turned out. They take a long time with the lids and the holes. The blue one has a hole in the bottom for a light fixture.

Putting it all in Perspective

Life is a wonderful thing as even when it throws us some curve balls, it also gives us the opportunity to learn and change. These last 4 months have trying but has helped me put things into perspective and has refocused my life into realizing what is important to me. Starting a business, having to do reno’s on the house, bringing another living creature into our home and almost losing a family member, twice, can really make you think which is always a good thing.

Unfortunately I have to work and that has to come first. No work = no food, no house, no anything. Fortunately I love what I do and I am good at it. I guess it helps that I am my own boss with my own company but there is also a lot financial stresses that goes along with it.

So what does all of this have to do with my pottery and crochet? Absolutely everything! I cannot be creative unless I am enjoying what I am doing. I could set a whole day aside to do pottery, but if I am not passionate about it at that moment, I will no longer force myself to do it because what I will create will not make me happy. I am no longer going to get caught up in what the public may like or trying to meet deadlines.

I do pottery and crochet because it allows me to create, it relaxes me, it makes me happy and I am proud for my accomplishments. Period. It is a hobby, not a job. I have a job. The items I have made recently have been above and beyond anything I have made in the past. Although it is not a huge amount because there are only so many hours in the day, I am very proud of my creations and vast improvements every time I pick up a piece of clay or yarn.

So remember “We're here for a good time. Not a long time. So have a good time, The sun can't shine everyday” Trooper 1977.

Visuals - Squamish Valley Artists Rack Card

Click on the image for a larger view

Back at 'er!

I finally got back on the wheel after a 7 month hiatus! Sometimes life and work just get in the way! I hope to make more lanterns and bird houses over the next 3 months leading up to ArtWalk in September.

You can purchase my crocheted Sunflower Pattern: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=12341120

Foyer Gallery Group Show - June 3 - July 7, 2008

June 3 to July 7: Foyer Gallery Group Show, "Summer Synergy". Squamish Public Library. VISUALS Squamish Valley Artist Society will be presenting a group show at the Foyer. Mon, June 2 to Sun, July 6. Foyer Gallery Group Show "Summer Synergy" – Our warm weather exhibit. Combined effort being greater than parts! Mon – Thur 1:00 pm to 8:00 pm, Fri – Sun 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.

Winter 2008

A picture from the Brennan Park craft fair above - December 2007

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Lucy (4 years old) & Jake (12 weeks old)

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With the arrival of our second bundle of joy (Jake) a couple of weeks ago, I have decided not to attend the Wild at Art this year. Even if I had adequate time, I would be scrambling to make new pieces and cleaning up my glazes which froze over the winter. My pottery and crochet are supposed to be my passion/hobby and when they start to cause stress and worry, it is time to remember what is important. I do both of these things for the joy of it. There are more shows and more time!

Still cold - still crocheting

It is still way too cold to get out in the studio and I need a good two weeks at +5 degrees in order to thaw out my glazes and work on some new pieces. It doesn't look promising that I will have any new pottery for the Wild at Art in March. Hopefully the weather will warm up soon. In the meantime I continue to crochet!

Crochet, Crochet and more Crochet!

It is still too cold outside so I continue to crochet! I am itching to get out in my pottery studio but I think it will only be a matter of weeks now!

A Year (and a bit) in review

Considering I have only been doing pottery for 15 months, I would consider 2007 a great success. I have my own wheel, kiln and a great little space to create. I have accomplished making my own glazes and continue to tweak my skills and take courses. In 2007 my pottery was in 5 shows and one craft fair and I have also sold quite a bit of pottery online.

So what does 2008 hold? This winter has been extra cold which hasn't allowed me to spend time in the studio. It has been hovering around the freezing point which means my clay freezes and my glazes are a semi-frozen disaster. So I am waiting for the weather to warm. In the meantime, I taught myself how to crochet and have been branching out into selling accessories such as hats and bags. I will also be selling these items online via http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5081673

My next show will be Wild at Art March 14 - 23, 2008 and I will be displaying dozens of birdhouses of all shapes in sizes utilizing the wheel, hand-building and extruded clay. For more information on the Wild at Art Festival, please visit http://www.wildatart.ca/

Please take the time to fill out the poll in the left hand column to provide feedback on what items you would like to see me make in 2008.