After the visit to warmer climes. . .

After a visit to Texas, where temperatures were moderate enough to wear a dress and dog-walking shoes. . . ONLY. . .we're back in Maine. We had a couple of days in the 50's and 60's, but now were back to our normal 30's, and 40's if we're lucky. March in Maine. Not so bad, though I was glad for a couple of days reprieve.

And it was time, at last, to face the kiln opening. Things turned out ok. I made this oblong vase by throwing the top-without-a-bottom, and then forming it into any oval when leather hard. I like the form a lot. And the glazing is ok, though not what I had expected. I sprayed on the two glazes rather than dipping because I wanted a white liner on the inside. This is the speckled brown clay, and it is definitely a rustic looking vase. At 6" tall and about 7" long it will be perfect for some of the shorter spring bulbs. I should call it "Waiting for tulips". 

I was happy with the results of these Calla Lily mugs, too. Neither quite equal the Favorite Mug (referred to in an earlier post). . .one is larger and the other smaller, but they both feel good in my hands. The clay is also, again, the Speckled Brown. I'm out of that clay now, so it will be white stoneware, porcelain and terra cotta for a while. Funny how I approach my clay bodies the way I approach cooking. "What do I need to use before moving on to something new?"

And then there were the three rice bowls. Daddy, Momma and Baby bears. The two on the right are close in size, but the far left bowl, which I threw last, is noticeably larger. It's ok. This was a skill building exercise. And once again, I'm so conscious of waste, that I didn't want to cut down that last bowl to make it equal in size to the others. Notice also that the clay body (seen on the bottom unglazed rim) is white stoneware for the outside bowls, and the brown specked for the middle one. I like the less stark transition of the darker clay, though its roughness can be felt. Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses.

This mug was an attempt to make a previous mug (also in an earlier post) smaller. This really highlights my perhaps ridiculous search for the Perfect Sized mug. Oddly, I thought I had reduced the size of both the circumference and the height by 1/2", but the mug remained stubbornly slightly larger than I had hoped.

 Perfection really is the enemy of good.