no, really

this is supposed to be about my pots. and there are no pics of my pots. and i realize there exist no pics of pots worth posting. i might just write a children's book instead. in the meanwhilst, here are a couple of my pots in Robert Saxby's soda kiln that i was lucky enough to help build, and luckier in that he keeps letting me come help fire. the cost of a few english jabs is totally worth it.

for the faithful, the kiln is a modified Olsen FastFire, that Robt. has modified even more. she is fast, and likes a little wood often. makes for a fun four to five hours, and now that it is really dialed in, i need to throw some soda friendly pots and get over there!

these pots were on the bagwall. luckily, i am the only one that seems to want these special spots, and Robt. is kind enough to put teabowls in there most every firing.

First Friday Indie Market, First Show for me!

here is the setup. i really lucked out on location. my pots should be in lots of people's "let's take our pic by the sign" images. thanks to my friend Robert Saxby.. for the use of the shelves. great design, i plan to steal it soon!

putting black ankle on the signage led to many conversations. one percent of those were with people who had heard of black ankle. by the end of the night, i felt a bit Icelandic..."it's not so great, don't come"...kidding!!!

heaven is yours, where i live

from early fall, a great afternoon "out back". Cyndi took both of these. i love them both, one for the sweetness, one for the perfect composition. both for the memento for will one day.

here we are here we are here we are

from Will's first beach trip in July. Oak Island, of course. In memory of my parents, he had to see the ocean there first, and fall in love with it like I did.

funny, i

for some reason i guess i thought i might make this whole blog thing a daily few minute ritual. once again, life gets in the way of me establishing anything resembling a ritual. couple that with wondering if this is or could be a private notebook made public. dear diary/world....
so now Christmas is three days away, and i am three days into being away from my real job. i have always contended that i am better suited for vacation than job. i guess the things i do or get done for myself and now my family always mean more to me.
yesterday Will and I spent the morning together, eating eggs and building and demolishing freshly built block structures. he seems to get a big kick from tearing down anything i build. that really might come to mean much more than it does now...!!! i have noticed he seems to prefer an architectural cantilevered design, just like dad and uncle Clay. i know two happy grown ups on that tip!
i think we both had a great time. he seemed to know "the schedule" was off course a bit, and i think he sort of fed into us having some time to do our thing. what a perfect little guy he is, sharing Cheerios and wanting his usual after dinner Advent chocolate after breakfast! Cyndi seemed a bit surprised i did not give in; thanks Mom!
today is family shopping haircut day. we seem to keep putting off Will's first haircut. i want to see the little man in him really show with a little man haircut. it seems like such a step to alter the hair he has been growing out so well. if you asked me twenty years ago, i would have never considered a haircut for him until his vision was affected by some crazy hippie mop i would have been encouraging and even fighting for. one day i might be glad there is a huge photographic gap in my life during certain years.
the big news on the pottery end is that my friend Adam Wiley came over and hooked up the new thermocouple in my electric kiln. i found it a daunting task, not hard so much as replacing one thing with something that looks nothing like it scared me out of doing it.
so in addition to the whole Christmas experience this week, i am planning to get cracking on the wheel again, after too long a hiatus.
i learned a few things by doing the First Friday market. i had much fun. for a first show, i feel pretty good about it. a big thank you to all the people who stopped for a look and a chat. two and more thank yous for those who liked and/or bought pots. i hope you all enjoy them. thanks for my dear friend Kim McHone, for getting me to do the market. Her wonderfully fun creations can be seen here...http://terrariumstogo.blogspot.com/

for now, i plan to resist the advice i was given to make soap dispensers. i know everyone washes their hands, but i am new enough to pottery to still have ideals.... NOT that there is anything wrong with a ceramic soap dispenser. i just like a bar of soap. that is my diplomatic response. that is all.

so next up are some random pics i have pulled out to maybe make this interesting. more to come.
given my lack of dedication to this so far, i will go ahead and say Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, etc. to anyone who might end up here.

First Friday Indie Market, December 4 - GSO NC

I will be there showing and selling pots I have made, along with lots of other really wonderful and creative crafty people this Friday night from 4 - 9. Hope to see you there! Get out and support the local artists, and see some Christmas lights; this event coincides withe GSO's Festival of Lights.

First out of the gate

This will be my attempt to document my ceramic journey. I am 40 years old, married to my wonderful wife Cyndi Maness Gardner. Today we celebrate our son James William Gardner turning one year old. This seems like a good time to start a blog, as I have planned to do this for some time now. I have been making pots, or attempting to, for almost three years now. An on again, off again student, I am now starting to set up a home studio. You will see the progression and hopefully some good pots that come from this process. I expect to feature Will in his exploits as a growing baby, and some photographs of the beautiful place we live, Black Ankle, North Carolina.