Jim's Latest Estrusions

I neglected to mention that all the extrusions are Jim's work. He's been working with low-fire clay. First, he gathered up all the reclaim buckets we had for ^04, mixed it all together, and made an interesting clay body that can never be reproduced. He said it was perfect for extruding. I bet it was. Those reclaim buckets have been hanging around for about a year waiting for us to turn reclaim into clay. Lots of mold, lots of organic stuff, well aged. I'm so glad that Jim is having fun working with clay. 

Oh Jimmy Boy, the pipes the pipes are calling .......

More Extrusions

No bottoms - these are sculptures. I love what the glazes did on them. 

More Extrusions

These all have bottoms so they will be used as pencil holders, brush holders, or vases. 

Latest Bead Work

Deb Thuman's Art Page

I now have a fan page on Facebook - Deb Thuman's Art Page. If I did this right, clicking on the title will take you to the page. All are welcome to join. It's where I write about art, post lots of photos, and people can leave comments. 

If clicking on the title doesn't work, here's the web address: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Deb-Thumans-Art-Page/167529715986

Being nearsighted is a drag

If I weren't nearsighted, I'd have seen that thread. It's not on the cuff. Nope. It's attached to the needle. I didn't realize I had left it on the table and so the thread is in most of the photos. 

Anyway, this is the new cuff. I call it Moods. The blue beads are a darker, far less vibrant blue. Sometimes I'm sparkly and happy, sometimes, I'm blue. The purple is for healing. The shell is for my love of bodies of water. 

This time, with photos

Another Glaze Experiment

The bowl with the blue glaze that breaks over texture is ^10 reduction fired. More of Jim's glaze findings. The second is a wall hanging. No, it's NOT a pig. It's a kitty. It's ^04 and I love the low-fire crystalline glazes. 

Peach Bloom

Jim loves searching for and experimenting with different glaze recipes. Here's his peach bloom on my bowl . I think that's tea dust on the back. ^10 reduction using Super Sculpty, a clay designed for ^6 through ^10. 

Latest Dye Results

I dyed bamboo dobby cloth. I love the feel of this fabric, feels like fine silk but has the strength of bamboo. I learned something interesting in the dyeing process. When I dye fabric in mid-summer when the temperatures are in the high 90's, I get more intense colors. Yesterday, we had temperatures in the low 80's so the colors are softer. These fabrics will eventually turned into garments. 

This Time, With Better Photography

City Lights

When I was a kid, we lived out in the middle of nowhere. It was a farming area that would, in about 20 years, become over priced housing with as many houses crammed into a subdivision as possible. As a kid, I longed to live in a city where there would be lots of people (all dressed in Victorian garb) and lots of lights (all street lights would be gas) and life would be so exciting. Even as an adult, when I took Jim to New York City, I took him up on top of the Empire State Building at night so we could see the city lights. We danced on top of the world. 

And so I made this cuff with those magical memories in mind. 

Yes, that's one of my ceramic buttons on the cuff. 

My latest piece on etsy

Here's my latest tile on etsy. This is my original design using slips and glazes. The tile is about 6" square. 

Getting the DVR to Record

I have Direct TV, but my DVR is a stand alone unit and I was told it was simple to use. Hah! I can set it to record, but when I try to play back, I get fuzz. 

What am I doing wrong? Better yet - send me a 12-year-old. I wonder if today's kids have any idea how much money they could make hiring themselves out as tech advisors to the folks like me. 

Tile

Not the greatest shot - but it's my version, rendered in tile, of the mountains out back of my house. I moved the sun from the east to the north to rise over the mountains. I believe that's called artistic license.  

Latest Tile Listed on Etsy

I've listed this tile on my etsy site. Click on the I (heart) etsy logo at the top of the page, and you will be magically transported to my etsy store. 

Terra Sig Doesn't Seem to Like Me

I tried using Terra Sig on two of the bead bowls. While I like the color and the semi-gloss of the finish, I don't like the white edges. No matter how many layers of terra sig I put on the dishes, the white edges  remained. The rest of the bead bowls will have regular glaze on them. I'm done with this experiment. 

I should put a 12-year-old on retainer

I joined Handmade Artists' Forum. I'm trying to put a "badge" on my blog. I'm not sure how to do that. I really should put a 12-year-old on retainer for these "high tech" things.

BTW - anyone know how to get my DVR to record? I know - just send the 12-year-old over.

Hand Made Artists Forum

I'm putting more effort into selling my art. So... I've joined one of the etsy groups - Hand Made Artists Forum. If I did this right, there should be a link from the title of this post to the forum. In case I did it wrong, here's the address: http://handmadeartistsforum.com/forum/index.php

I'd like to hear from any of you who have had success promoting your art. All suggestions and thoughts are welcome.