Girl's Night

Aimee and I were able to have a girl's night thanks to my wonderful husband. He kept all four kids while we went to Wildflower Wax to make candles. The store is perfectly funky.

Jennifer finishing the over pour for our mosaic candles. I chose Tahitian Spice for my scent. At least that is what I think it was called. The basement smells awesome and I haven't even lit it.

Besides candlemaking, they have a selection of vintage boots. I was highly disappointed to find none in my size. They also have leather purses, belts, jewelry and origonal art. My pocketbook was not deep enough to purchase all the things I wanted.

Take time to stop in and say hello. You won't be disappointed!

This is a look at my booth for CityFest. I would have loved to have had all the things from the explosion to add another table. But with no one buying, it wasn't a big deal.

Helena's Market Days was wonderful. I sold most of my pieces and received lots of positive feedback. Listening to the water falling from the dam made my desire to by Incahoots even more profound. It would make such a wonderful pottery and pub. I am looking forward to next weekend. Hopefully there will be a few clouds and a nice breeze to make the day bearable in this Alabama summer!

Events

Last weekend I participated in Alabaster's CityFest. It was a HOT day and no one was purchasing anything. Standing on the asphalt was horrendous. I got water blisters on my shoulders and back. How I don't know. I was standing under a tent the whole time. I will post some picts later for my booth.

Today is my first time at The Helena Market Days. I will be attending this every other weekend through September. Thankfully I will be in a cooler place here.

Second and Third Firings

The first glaze firing went OK. I learned that if applied too thickly it will run. I also had a few sharp points show up. I will have to strain the entire batch to try to eliminate that from happening again.

I fired a second load of bisque. I felt constrained for time so I put in a piece or two that needed another day to ensure being bone dry. I paid for it. Every larger more intricate piece I made was blown to smithereens when the water in the not so dry pieces tried to escape. This was my first experience with kiln explosions. I am determined it will be my last.

I have been working on more rolled lip bowls. They really appeal to me. I also started on some bells for wind chimes. Philippa's plate is on my to do list for this week. More pictures will be posted as it comes together.

I fired the kiln for the first time last night. I was completely nerve wracked. I went and purchased a fire extinguisher before turning it on just in case. (have I mentioned I don't like working with electricity) Everything worked, but I am not sure if it reached the proper temperature. Either my kiln sitter cone did not melt enough or I did not place it properly on the stilts, because it didn't kick off. I could not tell if my freestanding cones were bending through the peep holes because everything was the same shade of orange-red. It is OK for now. I think I will have to borrow Dad's thermometer gun thing to test the temperature when I do the glaze firing. At least that way I will know for sure that the proper temp was reached. I didn't hear any popping, so hopefully nothing exploded. The kiln is still too hot to open. The cool down period is the worst for impatient people. Although, waiting on a bisque load is not nearly as unbearable as waiting on a glaze load.