Love is in the air!

Wednesday I worked on heart dishes. It is the perfect gift for your loved one who likes to cook or burn candles. It is also useful to place your keys, when you get home from your long day at the office. You could even use it to store your favorite jewelery.

Sarah

Goal Number Two Achieved!

Jessica and I participated in The Beauitful Mess A Beautiful Mess challenge of setting Four Simple Goals before 2012 is over with. I have achieved another one of my goals. Goal number two was to discover a new ceramic artist. When I was visiting Connecticut I explored one of my favorite cities, New Haven. I lived here for a year and enjoyed getting tea,walking the streets and visiting the many boutiques in the downtown area.

While visiting a shop I spotted some ceramics I love!

The name of her company is Bella Joy Pottery. I visited her website Bella Joy Pottery and found about the ceramic artist behind the name. Her name is Heidi Fahrenbacher and she lives in Michigan. She works out of a refurbished chicken coop and her studio is absolutely amazing.

I am attracted to her work because of the bright colors and fun drawings on her ceramics. It reflects how I see myself as a person. I would love to explore the use of underglaze pencils that she uses on her pottery.

I love to see other women artist's working passionately in clay! Finding a new ceramic artist's to admire only inspires me to continue with my passion in clay.

Sarah

More Upcycled Journals

I finished four more "upcycled" journals this weekend. I also made a journal as a gift for a friend, and started a new project that I'm pretty excited about. I can't wait to finish so I can share it with you. Overall, I had a pretty productive weekend. I had been falling behind on my bookbinding goal, but I'm starting to get back on track and that's a good feeling.

Upcycled Journals

I bound another ceramic book this week. I love the shape of this one. 

I decided to try bookbinding "assembly line" style. I collected up all the paper I wanted to use for this particular type of book, then trimmed and folded the signatures all at once. I figured out that I had enough signatures for seven books, so I sewed and glued them next. Finally I started covering them. I finished covering three last night. 

I think I will call these "upcycled" journals. They are made from leftover papers like notepads with only a few pages left, and other random papers that tend to collect in a home office or craft room. I even mixed in a few vintage magazine and book pages for fun. As much as I like a nice clean art paper journal, I find these really unique and a good use of paper that would otherwise go to waste.

♥ Jessica

Mug Time

It is finally starting to feel a little like fall. Therefore, I decided to make mugs.

At least at night and early morning I can dring hot tea out of my mugs.

My potter's wheel after throwing many mugs.

Handle time!

My messy self. I love being messy!

Sarah

Attack of the Giant Notebook

When we were in NYC, we spotted a huge Moleskine notebook at Blick art supplies. I was inspired to make my own. It's 12x18 inches of Canson Mixed Media paper. The notebook is covered in brown craft paper and has a black elastic closure.

This was a tricky book to make. Folding and sewing the signatures was no different than a smaller book, but making the cover proved difficult. The craft paper comes on a roll, and the huge sheets I was using really wanted to curl up. On top of that, it was bigger than my work surface, so it was hanging over the sides which made it difficult to measure, cut, and glue with precision. There were quite a few times where I literally threw the misbehaving paper across the room in frustration. 

In the end, I am pleased with the final result and have enough paper to make a second one. 

♥Jessica

Fifth Annual Worldwide Photo Walk

This weekend I participated in Scott Kelby's Fifth Annual Worldwide Photo Walk. I joined the Poughkeepsie NY walk at Locust Grove with my photo buddy Anne. 

There is a contest but you can only submit one photo. Which one should I choose?

Details:

Minolta XG-M loaded with Fuji PRO160S developed with Unicolor C-41 kit.

Minolta SRT-101 loaded with Rollei IR400 developed with D-76

Modified Holga 120 loaded with Tri-X developed in Ilfotec DD-X

♥ Jessica

Together Again

Sarah and I usually blog two timezones apart, but this week we get to do it together! Yesterday Sarah shared her pictures from our day in NYC, so today I'm bringing you mine. 

The Strand bookstore is one of my favorite places to visit in the city. Floor after floor of books. My favorite is the second floor because it has the kids, YA, and art books. 

I think my favorite stop was the Evolution store. It's like a natural history museum that you can take home with you (for a pretty penny). 

Check out this GIANT Moleskine notebook and Blick art supplies. It has inspired me to make a giant book.

The AFA NYC gallery had a Brian and Wendy Froud exhibit. They are the awesome artists behind movies like Labyrinth and the Dark Crystal. My mom and I have several of Brian's books and it was very cool to see their art in person. AFA also had art by Tim Burton and Doctor Seuss.

Purl Soho was so colorful (and crowded). I just wanted to touch all the yarn. One of my few purchases of the day was some Inkodye at Purl Soho. I can't wait to try it out. 

Grand Central Station is always bustling. This is the view from the Apple Store. Soon after we boarded our train and headed home. It's always fun to visit the city.

♥ Jessica

New York City!

Matt and I visited New York City this month and met up with Jessica and Shawn. It was nice to see my fellow blogger and explore the city.

The day started out cold and rainy. Mid-morning the sun was trying to push through the clouds. We started to shed our layers and enjoy the cool breeze.

In Connecticut Mamouns is our favorite falafal shop. Three bucks for the best falafal pita. There is also one in New York City that we had Jessica and Shawn try out. So yummy.

We explored the many aisles of The Strand bookstore. I love bookstores and this is a must if you visit the city.

We headed next to Soho to explore the galleries and shops.

Jessica and I both noticed the cobblestone streets. I love that and the architecture in Soho. 

My favorite shop in Soho was the Jonathan Adler gallery. I love how fun and interesting his ceramics is.

Sarah

Ceramic Research Center

The Ceramic Research Center is located in Tempe, Arizona. It is a great resource in three-dimensional form. I love to explore the aisles of ceramics. It inspires me to work harder at my craft. It is a breath of fresh air to see this amazing collection here in Arizona. If you live in Arizona or are visiting from out of town it is a must on your to do list.

Karen Karnes one of my favorites.

Peter Voulkos, making incredible pots.

Check out there website at Ceramic Research Center

Sarah