It still could happen in 2008

So the snow is melting and the posts are no longer frozen together so I made wadding today and started wadding the pots...I know I could have been doing this while the weather was bad, but I'm so lazy...tomorrow I'm going to start loading and I hope I have enough pots and maybe Tuesday we can start tossing wood at this baby!! Cross your fingers for us.

Hope you are all well, happy and healthy
Namaste, Brenda

Postponed

Well, here we sit and wait, but at this point we still have electricity, plenty of food and beer. We scheduled the first firing for the 20th, but mother nature thought we should wait...so we wait. I think I might get into the studio and make pots since I can't fire them.

Namaste...Brenda and Eric

Within a Fortnight

We are finished with the kiln and busy making pots and gathering wood. I'm a flurry of excitement. Our goal now is to load the 19th and firing the 20th. Cross your fingers for us that the kiln Gods are happy and supportive that day. We will take lots of pictures and notes so we know what to do next time and maybe what not to do. Eric and I are nervous, but good nervous. He worked so hard and it's just as much his baby as mine. Our shelves should be in on Monday and we'll cut post between now an the firing and if we can fit it in toss together a pizza kiln with left over brick. See you soon! P.S. This is Eric's very specialized custom made glove drier. He is looking into a patent. He is a man of many talents.

Great Grate

Well, we hope. I guess we will see very soon when we test it out in December. Yes, you are hearing right the Chicken POT Pie fast-fire kiln is finished. We have a few little things around the kiln barn to do to get ready like wrapping kao-wool around exposed wood beams near the kiln, but as far as the kiln itself goes it is ready to fire. I can hardly contain myself and Eric is hard to hold back too. If it was up to him he would have a fire in it right now. We just have to get through Thanksgiving and a Holiday Sale at MHCC and we'll be ready to go!!!!

I hope everyone has a Fantastic Thanksgiving filled with love, laughs, and of course grand food.
Cheers!

Pots

Since I've been posting so much about the kiln I thought I would just post a few actual pots today. Cheers!

As it stands

So here we are. As you can see Eric built himself a cat walk in front of the chimney so he could go through the roof and away he went. Up, up, up and now we are only about 3 ft. short of being finished with the chimney. So what's left is insulating the arch and side walls and putting in the grate for the firebox. We may fire the first time with the hearth open like the original plans, but ultimately I think we will manufacture a door for the firebox and not have to deal with all that heat and air. My goal is still to fire it for the first time during the winter break in December. The final picture is one of our staff members, William. In this picture he is doing his impersonation of Superman.

Busy little potter

Well, I need to update this page, but I've had lots on my plate. I'm heading out tomorrow to fire an anagama style kiln that takes two days to load and 3 day and nights to fire. It's a ton of work, but so much fun and I get to work with an incredible crew of talented potters. To be honest, I go for the food. We have made progress on the kiln since the last posting and I will get those pictures up soon.

Two steps forward, One step back

Eric did another great day of work and got the second, ware chamber, arch in. We took the form out and within an hour we were putting it back because the arch started pushing out the wall. He thought he would have to rebuild the arch, but he just made adjustments and put a rubber mallet to work. It was saved. So now we know before we take the form out we make sure we have the metal frame in position. No problem, Eric is already on it.

I have to say sitting inside the ware chamber was pretty cozy. I may be arachnophobic and acrophobic, but I'm not claustrophobic.

So much progress

I've been neglecting my little blog and I do apologize. Eric has been working so hard on the kiln and it's going pretty well. We of course make time for socializing and other events. Life isn't just work, work, work ya know.

So the pictures here show what has happened in the last month. We got the refractory granola stuffed in tight around the firebox arch and then the ware chamber floor all nice and laid out. Then there is the flu shot, or it is flue shot? And of course the dampers. Things are moving along nicely and at a fairly stress free pace. Eric gets a little frustrated and loses sleep a bit, but that is normal for him and not just that his mind is on the kiln 23/7...somedays he takes an hour for Perry Mason.

Diamonds ARE a girls best friend!

I didn't realize I loved diamonds until now. Sure, most ladies like diamonds hanging off their ears...just ask Cindy McCain, but the diamonds I like are embedded into a 14'' circular blade and can cut through brick like butter. Eric has been cutting the channels off of some of the brick to make flats. This is a picture of the little brick crosses we end up with. Get thee behind me Satan.

Romans would be proud

Well, maybe they would laugh at us. We built an arch. We had NO idea what we were doing, but it stayed up when we pulled the form out so I think we did a good job. My arms are killing me this morning from lugging the brick around, but no pain no gain, right? It was around 100° yesterday, but with the shade of the kiln barn it only felt like 95°. We are going to have another hot day today, they say even hotter, but we are going to stay in the shade, cook out with Eric's family visiting from Rockford, and take it easy. It's 8:30 am and I have a ton of things to do, but I'll be honest I want to go back to bed.

Namaste, B

New Toys

Eric has been having too much fun working on my kiln and has used this opportunity to get new toys, I mean tools. We are now the proud owners of a chop saw, welder, grinder and what makes me a very popular person among other potters...a 14 inch blade wet saw. Have brick, will cut! 

We, correction...Eric has laid two layers of cinder block and two layers of hard brick to start the floor. Now the fun begins with the firebox arch and moving forward. We had to take in our hay the other day and a few other farm projects and then we get right back into kiln work. Things are going well. 

Pouring the Slab

They said it couldn't be done, or we were nuts, but the slab has been poured and it looks great!! I need to give a BIG thank you to the crew of friends that helped. Sarah, Brian, John, Patrick and Meredith. Another thank you to those who lent us tools, Geoff for the mixer, Ed for the bull float and Art for the misc. finishing tools. We couldn't have done this without you all. 

It all went together pretty quickly once we got started and although most of us had no experience and other had a little, everyone just stepped up and it went super smooth. Patrick started us in the right direction with mixing and then BAM we had a slab. Now we wait for it to cure and we start building!!!!! Hooray we are on our way. 

John recommends calling the kiln the "Chicken Pot Pie". I was leaning toward Zoshia after my grandmother who was small and fiery. Any suggestions? It's still up in the air.

And after the slab was done we drank some beer, grilled some corn and chicken and played horseshoes. Life is Good!

New MAC

So today was a big day. I've needed a new computer for a while now. I love my old MAC laptop, but it's old, outdated and starting to breakdown. So it was time...and today was the day. I got a MacBook and I think it will be another love affair, with a little learning curve. Anyway, we also spent some time at Home Depot trying to figure out how much bag cement we need to do a 10x10 slab for my kiln. We called a company called Meter Mix that will bring out a meter or two or three of cement, but they only deliver to Portland even though we are less then 10 miles from them and most of Portland is further. It will work out. But we are on the way to KILN ownership...and I have to say I'm scared. I'm not a spendy person, yes, I'm cheap even and spending all this money on little ol' me and my strange addiction to wood fired pottery or pottery in general is hard, BUT I'm sure I'll get over it!!!

Included in this post is a picture of one of the amazing bridges in Oregon. This is along our Historical Scenic Highway. So much beauty and craftsmanship. Let's remember to support local craftsman and hand made art whenever possible. It makes a big difference in our lives and we are all richer for it. Yes, of course I feel this way because I'm a craftsman myself, but I support other craftsman, artists, farmers etc...in my area. Beauty should be in our lives everyday and we should look for it in the oddest places.

Life is Good!!!

My first post

This morning is my first adventure into posting on my new blog. Really I'm considering this a photo gallery of pottery and wood-firing, but let's see where things go. I may enjoy this more then I think. I hope this will be a place that friends, family and friends I haven't met yet, can come and see the work I've been doing, maybe check out any shows or sales I have coming up and learn about the fantastic art of wood-fire and wood kilns.

I just participated in Painting with Fire the special exhibit at the Lake Oswego Festival of the Arts. The two pieces above were in that show. The pitcher is a great example of "spotted dog". This is one of the lucky results of wood-fire when crystals form on the surface. This baby is loaded with them. The bottles I call Three Cheers. They have some lovely flame marks, blushing and natural ash glaze.