Everything's all packed---

some of these boxes go back a ways....

new pattern and mug shape

 All the pots are loaded into their boxes, and Bruce and I will pack them into the van this evening.  Tomorrow our neighbors, Jared, Steven and Raymond Bieber, will help us unload the van, and then unload the pots.  I'll have to decide where they go (something I never really know!  It always seems enough that I get them made.  Now, I have to arrange them on the shelves in display, too!!!...)

unloading the kiln; a little 4-legged tub decorated by Juliana

First Fair of the Season!

matted mini tiles

shakers

candle holders (finished, in front, glazed but undecorated or fired, behind)

succulent wall tile

Yikes, am I ever ready?  The Toledo June fair, locally known as Crosby Gardens Festival of the Arts, http://toledogarden.org/content/events/ begins this Friday evening at six p.m., though there are always early arrivals---I am unloading a kiln this evening, and packing all the pots in the studio.  Tomorrow my friend, Pat Ligibel, will come over to help finish the unloading, sanding of the pots' bottoms, and pricing.  Today, Pat McGlauchlin helped Bruce and me set up the tent and shelving.  And more help is on the way!  I'm really grateful for all the help, Thanks, everybody!!!!  since, this year, I had hip replacement surgery about three weeks ago, and, though I no longer walk with a rolling gait, I still am not fully recovered!  I've been working on some different ways to present work: little tiles have been matted, and I took advantage of an idea being marketed by Aftosa--hanging succulent boxes.  We'll see how they go---more photos, tomorrow.

the image revealed

Finally,  carefully lift the inked paper from the tile, and check to be sure that all the ink has transferred.  If not, you may want to replace the print and continue to rub.

transfering the image---

Next Step:  carefully place the inked and wet (thus, fragile) piece of xerox paper onto a glazed surface--a tile, in this case--and smooth out.  You can also rub the surface with a blue rubber rib--gently, and with a little gum on it--since the paper has a tendency to tear. 

Inking the print

The next step is the inking of the gummed xerox---(I'm using another drawing in this stage; you'll see both transfers at the end).  The 'print' can be washed off inbetween inking by flooding the drawing with water into which some gum has been splashed in (about 1 Tbsp.).  I find this easier to do in an old bucket, rather than on the table top.

First stages of planographic printing on unfired glaze

Here are the first steps to making a transfer of a drawing onto the glazed surface of a pot:  put a little CMC gum onto the surface of the xeroxed drawing, then rub it around.   A little of the gum under the drawing, as well, will keep the paper from slipping around.  The mixed ink  (linseed oil and mason stain) is already mixed, and is now in a little puddle on the glass plate.

Printing on glazed ware

a mask in progress, with a transfer, on the left, of Bruce, and, on the right, of a student jumping rope

linseed oil and mason stain (peacock)

                It's February, already; where is the winter going?  I'm working with xeroxed images of some of my photographs, and glazed mask shapes, trying to put them together.  Online, I've seen a process which uses linseed oil mixed with a colorant/mason stain as the 'ink'---it's a planographic printing process, (as is lithography) using gum and water to cover and protect the areas of the xerox which do not have any ink.  But the demonstration, online, is showing the printing taking place on leatherhard clay, not on an unfired glazed surface (here's the link:  http://ceramicartsdaily.org/ceramic-supplies/ceramic-colorants-ceramic-supplies-2/photo-lithography-on-clay-a-surprisingly-simple-way-to-print-images-on-clay/)  The mask is not yet fired, not even yet finished.  The tiles to the right are tests, and fired.  More on this as I continue with the testing---

a visit to Rovin Ceramics

Rovin Ceramics, formerly of Taylor, Michigan, is now located just to the west of Ann Arbor.  My friend, Pat Ligibel, and I went out in November to pick up some clay and glaze chemicals, and a few brushes--Juliana was at the desk and helped us with our order---

the Holiday Sale

Denise's handiwork sets off Margaret's jewelry!

Margaret arranges pottery--her work is the beaded jewellry

We're halfway through the always interesting Holiday Sale---how wonderful it is to see friends, and to talk about our work!  Denise and Indigo stopped by today with plates full of delicious treats--dates stuffed with cream cheese, and mushrooms stuffed with a pesto mix, and pumpkin pie squares and chocolate angelfood bites  (who knew there were such wonderful delights!  More photos tomorrow!

pots from one bisque load

work, work, work!  the sale approaches!!!!

I've unloaded the bisque kiln and am about to wax the bottoms of all the pots (and the lidded areas), so that I can glaze everything.  Here's the procedure:  before I glaze, I wax, then wait for the wax to dry, (the longer, the better), then dip everything into a bucket of cool water (don't want to re-soften the wax), then wait til the pots dry a little and can accept the glaze, and then I glaze.  If the pots are too dry when they're glazed, they absorb too much of the glaze water, too quickly, and the glaze builds up unevenly on the surface of the piece, sometimes pinhole-ing and leaving areas that are too thick. In addition, I single-dip, so I can't re-dip where I think there might be a problem. On the other hand, if there is a little moisture in the pot (just cool when held up to your cheek--as you would a bone-dry piece, to see if it's dry enough to go into the bisque), then the water from the glaze enters the porous, bisqued walls a little more slowly, and the air exits less precipitously, and I don't have little pinholes all over the glaze (which have to be fixed before firing, so they won't show up, later.)  hmmmmm.  If you have questions about this  (better as a demo, I think) just ask.

the tiled chair circle

Here's the final look of the round piece of durock used in the chair seat---tile was set onto the durock using thinset, and then, when the tiles had dried, they were grouted.  It's one of those 'ice cream parlor' chairs.  P.s:  there are two entries for the "my father's T-square because I don't yet know how to move a previously started draft (started in October) to the current head of the list, so I simply copied and pasted it--thus, it appears twice....(and everything I do the the first's title automatically appears in the second one---conjoined twins......Oh, well....back to the studio where I am decorating many pots, in my usual frantic effort to have enough work for the studio sale in December.  Is everybody as behind as I am?  HAPPY THANKSGIVING, EVERYONE!

my father's T-square (cutting more cement board for tiles)

marking the durock for the first cut (with my father's T-square)

This is a lot of visual reference for a fairly simple procedure, but since the earlier post about cutting cement board (durock, and other trade names) has had a number of views, I'm repeating the process, here.  I also wanted to say a few things about my father's tools.  Before he died, one month shy of 94, he had passed on to me his tools--he was a heating and cooling engineer, and also made beautiful wooden furniture and smaller wall pieces (out of orange crate).  He had memory loss which began to affect his everyday work for about 10 years before he died; still, he was able to physically do a lot of different things, and was the main person helping me paint the old tables that I was tiling and taking to fairs to sell.  Here, I'm using his T-square to cut up a thin sheet of handyboard or durock (a cement board with fiberglass thread reinforcement).  I want to cut a circle, so I begin by cutting out a square, and then cutting off the 4 corners, and then nipping the extra with the old pair of pliers he gave to me.  I think the yellow cutting knife was his, too.  The cuts are made by scoring the surface of the board with the blade of the knife (fresh blades are good!)--pressing the blade against the metal ruler edge while dragging it across the surface of the board. Then I break open the cut by laying the cut along the edge of the table and whacking down on the part which hangs over the edge.  It won't be cut all the way through, so you need to score the back side, as well-----along the inside of the now folded line.  Once the cuts have made the circle round enough, able to fit into the chair circle, the circle of durock can then be glued down/or in to the chair form with some Liquid Nails.  It's also held there by bolts that come in from the outside of the round metal form.  I will post the final 'look' of the tiled chair on the next post. 

Breaking the board open after scoring the top side

marking for the second cut

cutting away the edges of the circle

nipping off the curved area between the straight cuts

fitting the circle into the chair base

similarities

gifts from friends!

attaching the clay for the knob

throwing the knob

I was just noticing the similarities between all the squash I've been given, of late (from Rickeye Heffner, Fritz Gehring, and Indigo Fleming-Powers) and the look of the handles I'm attaching, and then throwing, for the lids of all the honey pots......

Some of my new work at the Schaller Gallery in St. Joseph, Michigan

http://www.schallergallery.com/exhibition-list.php?id=73

Fall Haul Wayne Branum Linda Christianson A Blair Clemo Guillermo Cuellar Ursula Hargens Sam Scott Andy Shaw Ann Tubbs  See the Show  Think handmade for Christmas  Schaller Gallery 210 State Street Saint Joseph, Michigan 49085 269-983-7404

More from Rickye's garden--

starting the black outline

black outline and shading completed

In addition to the garlic that Rickye Heffner brought to me (and which I planted behind the studio   see link:  http://anntubbsmaiolicapottery.blogspot.com/2011/10/behind-my-studio.html), she also gave me some of her squash--she's a master gardener, and I decided to try one of the ornamental squashes as a decoration on the maiolica.  Here are two photos:  the first one is after the color, and just at the beginning of the black outlining; the second is after the outlining, and the additional color shadings.  I'll do more of this before I load the next glaze kiln, and then show the results.  (I also have a little tea cup that Sheri's mother-in-law, Flora, who was born in Canada, bought on one of her trips back to see her birthplace--and it will be the inspiration for a table----)

my father's T-square (cutting more cement board for tiles)issued twice..

marking the durock for the first cut (with my father's T-square)

This is a lot of visual reference for a fairly simple procedure, but since the earlier post about cutting cement board (durock, and other trade names) has had a number of views, I'm repeating the process, here.  I also wanted to say a few things about my father's tools.  Before he died, one month shy of 94, he had passed on to me his tools--he was a heating and cooling engineer, and also made beautiful wooden furniture and smaller wall pieces (out of orange crate).  He had memory loss which began to affect his everyday work for about 10 years before he died; still, he was able to physically do a lot of different things, and was the main person helping me paint the old tables that I was tiling and taking to fairs to sell.  Here, I'm using his T-square to cut up a thin sheet of handyboard or durock (a cement board with fiberglass thread reinforcement).  I want to cut a circle, so I begin by cutting out a square, and then cutting off the 4 corners, and then nipping the extra with the old pair of pliers he gave to me.  I think the yellow cutting knife was his, too.  The cuts are made by scoring the surface of the board with the blade of the knife (fresh blades are good!)--pressing the blade against the metal ruler edge while dragging it across the surface of the board. Then I break open the cut by laying the cut along the edge of the table and whacking down on the part which hangs over the edge.  It won't be cut all the way through, so you need to score the back side, as well-----along the inside of the now folded line.  Once the cuts have made the circle round enough, able to fit into the chair circle, the circle of durock can then be glued down/or in to the chair form with some Liquid Nails.  It's also held there by bolts that come in from the outside of the round metal form.  I will post the final 'look' of the tiled chair on the next post. 

Breaking the board open after scoring the top side

marking for the second cut

cutting away the edges of the circle

nipping off the curved area between the straight cuts

fitting the circle into the chair base

Behind My Studio

the corn is being cut; fall is here!

Rickye's garlic

Peter's ginko trees

....there is a changing area which evolves, year by year, depending on what I have to throw into the ground, and how energetic I feel about weeding it.  It's not the organized plan that our son, Pete, did in the 90's, just north of the sheds, laid out with brick paths and planted with all sorts of cultivars of kale, tomatoes, mesclun, beans, peas, mustard greens, grapes, ( a handful, compared to all that was planted), and whose compost pile has inspired the yunomi pots for the Akar Gallery (see the link:  http://anntubbsmaiolicapottery.blogspot.com/2009/12/getting-ready-to-decorate.html).  This garden, behind my studio, no one sees but me, and the occasional farmer plowing or taking in the corn (and I doubt that they're paying much attention to this little area, while driving).  I planted a wild cherry to the west side, so there is shade, and a sage 'bush' grows underneath it, and some rescued roadside sunflower-type plants struggle, and straggle along the wall, under the window.  On the other side is a viburnum bush, whose berries have inspired decorations, and a tomato patch, with some cilantro that will winter over if I put a semi-clear plastic box over it.  In the spring (this year?  last?  two years ago?)  I planted all the unnamed, leftover seeds that had been residing in a box out in the laundry room. I'd hated to simply throw them out; they were from Peter's plantings!  So I began planting them in the area behind the studio--a sort of 'setting out' garden.  Then, this fall, while clearing the area out so I could plant the wonderful garlic given to me by a friend and customer, Rickye Heffner, I uncovered four or five baby ginko 'seedlings'!  Who knew? (and now, I believe these ginkos were actually from the memorial service for Dr. Robert Brundage, a wise and gentle man from Toledo,OH,  who died several years ago--and on the memorial program was a ginko seed--I collected Bruce's, Pete's, mine, and probably several others--Here's to you, Robert!

Some of the process of making an icon

the first feathering of ochre

applying the gold leaf

 Here are some of the earlier stages of the icon.  We worked on a small surface made from ginko wood which was covered with a sheet of muslin soaked in rabbits' skin glue.  After the glue had dried, a gesso, made from the glue and calcium carbonate, was applied, building up the surface til a polished painting surface was achieved.  The first drawing was with a brush dipped into the yellow ochre (no egg, yet) and feathered on.  After the area for the gold was determined, and the adherant for the gold applied, the feather-light sheets of gold were floated over the area and then pressed down.  In the final photograph (which I wasn't able to turn--it was Juliana's photo, and, though I could turn the others, I failed with this one)--you can see the small shot glasses of colored powder, and a mix, in the mortar, of the egg yolk and the powdered color.  A 'Wallace and Gromit-like' cow keeps watch of my progress.  After this, a thin application of ox gall was applied to the areas of the gold that were to be painted over (edges of the ears, for example).  Finally, I was ready to begin the mixing of colors, and the painting of layers.

gold leaf applied; colors ready to be mixed