Hey Teacher...

Teaching students to fish.

2012-02-11T13:08:00.001-08:00

There is an old saying "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man a fish and feed him for life." That is what we are trying to do. No, not teach students to fish, but with the DVDs we are giving them access to the knowledge of how to work with clay anytime, anywhere and as often as they like. When students work with clay freely and often, the focus of the workshop becomes education and not the finished project at the end. The fun is in the making and doing. The curriculum states forming clay is to be taught, but no one can learn anything with only one hour a year or less to practice. The curriculum doesn't say collect keepsakes. Clay is cheap as dirt....I wonder why..... a box of clay weighs about 20 kilograms or 44 pounds and costs about $20 here in Alberta. That is about fifty cents a a pound. Most projects will use only a pound or two, sometimes even less than that. One box is more than enough for one and most likely enough for two workshops. When the clay is dry, add water and use it again.

We did about 5,000 air dry projects last year. A lot of them were repeat customers. We do more air dry workshops than we do fired. We have gone to Sheldon Coates in Grande Cache and done air dry projects with the entire school three times so far and are going back this month for the forth.

We would really like to get clay in every classroom and have every child working with it as often as they like and make as many things as they want. Wouldn't it be wonderful if every day was Clay Day?

For more information on air drying clay and not "air dry" clay please read the last two posts. Thank you.

Until the next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

Every day is Clay Day!

More about Air Dry Clay.

2012-01-16T07:36:00.001-08:00

We are in our second year of offering Air Dry Workshops. Teachers that booked Air Dry workshops last year are doing the same again this year. We do more Air Dry workshops than the fired ones. Teachers that have booked us fired first then Air Dry, always rebook Air Dry. When we are at a trade show, everything in our booth is Air Dry and we never fire anything before painting. All sample pieces we do as The Clay Teacher are not fired. Houses are made from unfired clay. Entire towns are made out of unfired clay from the Adobes in the South West, to Africa, Israel and India

One such dwelling is the "Musgum clay house". Named after its creators, the Musgum, an ethnic group in the far north province in Cameroon. The house is created from compressed sun-dried clay.

San Miguel Chapel, Sante Fe, New Mexico is the oldest church structure in the US. Original adobe walls built in approximately 1610 AD.

When making projects with the Air Dry method, you have to be familiar with clay and know how to work with it in order to have success. If the projects are made properly, you will not have problems with them later. When you follow the instructions of The Clay Teacher and the DVDs all pieces are sturdy and will last as San Miguel Chapel, unless dropped of course, then all fired or unfired clay will break.

When students make something out of clay and paint it, it is notpottery, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pottery it is only decorative or sculpture,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sculpture. The pieces are not intended to be used in the kitchen as pottery, so there is no reason to finish them as a piece of pottery. However, the Air Dry method creates a very sturdy project.

Here is a little dish we put through the rinse cycle in the dishwasher. We sure do NOT recommend dishwasher safe, but it certainly survived and we still have it.

Taking the kiln out of the picture opens up clay to anyone, anytime, anywhere.

Every day is Clay Day!

Until the next time.

Cindy

What is Air Dry Clay

2011-06-19T07:18:00.000-07:00

I have been playing around with different clay bodies to see what ones work best with the air dry method and painting with acrylic paint. We use Plainsman Clay and in the class room we always use Buffstone. It is very good clay for schools. It has a low shrinkage rate, it’s economical and the light grey colour doesn't stain hands or clothes. Buffstone dries very hard and it is easy to work with. I made a sample project with M370 and the M390. Those clays shrink a lot more when they dry and are not as forgiving as the Buffstone in the drying process, but after all the samples were painted, you can't tell one from the other in look or feel.

I will continue to use other clay bodies, but I really don't think it matters what clay you use. Laguna has one that sounds like it would work like Buffstone. Next time we are at Plainsman we will pick up a box and I will let you know. I will get some pictures of the samples and put them up here.

Everyone thinks that clay has to be fired. Everything that you make out of clay has to be put into a kiln and kept forever. I hear all the time that someone made a little something in school out of clay and their mom still has it or they still have it. Clay is seen as this mystery substance that you get to work with once or twice in your childhood, the firing process, well that certainly is not for the faint of heart. Everything that is made is priceless and must be kept forever.

How many pictures does a child draw in their school years? How many cut and paste “somethings” are made and as soon as they are off the wall they go into the recycle? It is making the piece, learning to use the pencil, the glue, and the crayons, that is the fun. Like everything else, the more work they do, the better the work gets. If clay gets into the classroom and is used like cut and paste, or pencil crayons, just think what the kids could do after years of clay experience in school. If all the focus goes off the end project and goes to learning how to work with the medium, clay looses it mystic and awe and gets back into the hands of children where it should be. For about a dollar, a student can have enough clay to make just about any project they like. If they don’t like it, roll it up and start over. If the clay gets dry, add water and use it again.

No, a piece of clay that is not fired is not a sturdy as a fired piece. However, both are very hard. If you drop either one, they will break, and both will last for years as a decoration. The big difference between fired student work and air dried student work, is that with air dry, all you need is a ball of clay and a willing student. The fired piece is a bit more of a challenge.

So what is “Air Dry Clay”……….. clay that is not wet anymore.

Until the next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher has left the building.

2011-06-17T15:32:00.000-07:00

Wow.. what a run. Today was our last workshop for this term. We were at Grandin. A beautiful old school built in 1915. Another school that we have been at a number of times over the last two years. Great school and great bunch of kids, but I do wish the school had an elevator. Everything goes up, and down, three flights of stairs. We finished off with Big Mouth Frogs. The kids had a hoot and made some wonderful frogs. There is nothing like mid June, Friday afternoon energy in a classroom. Add to that, our last workshop energy and it was fun..... rule number one....Always have fun.

We had a few things to do after work and were driving in the city. Stopped at a crosswalk for a mom and her son to cross the street. The boy looked at us, gave us a big smile, pointed, waved and showed us to his mom. We had him in a classroom sometime, somewhere and he recognized " Mr and Mrs Clay". It was cool. After 9,000 plus faces, we didn't recognize him, but waved anyway.

It feels good to be off duty....... we are never really off duty, but now we have no time frames, no schedule to stick to. ...... Summer time, and the livin' is easy........

Until the next time.

Cindy

I moved back.

2011-06-14T20:52:00.000-07:00

I quit blogging and moved to Facebook for a few reasons . The main one was that no one was reading this. Jim does all The Clay Teacher Facebook, and it is easier for me if he does it. Facebook is great, but it does't give you much chance to really talk about what you are doing. A blog has more freedom. For whatever reason, people have been stopping in to read this blog, only to see that it isn't here anymore. So.... I have started again. A lot has happened since I last wrote. I am not sure where to start, but I will have material for the summer.

The video is done, well not actually done done. We are waiting for the glass masters and then printing. It should be done...done.... in a couple of weeks. Just in time for school to be out. The timing is not the best, but hey... we did it. It is the only thing like that out there. We are very excited to see how it will be received.

We had a wonderful year as The Clay Teacher. We worked with about 115 schools and 9,000 students. As it comes to an end, only three workshops left, I can't help but feel a little relieved. Like all teachers, we are glad to see June roll around. Also, like most teachers, we look forward to next year. This year was awesome, to use the language of most of the students we worked with. We call ourselves Mrs. and Mr. Clay, after we tell them our real names. Mrs Clay is name everyone remembers. We get almost rock star status when we have been to a school. It is really cool with the high fives and hugs. We have such a positive and rewarding job. We bring clay to the classroom, something everyone wants to work with, teach something everyone wants to learn in a simple way so everyone a project and is proud of their work. All the time they treat you like a rock star. Not a bad gig!

Today we go to St. Mathew's for the third year in a row with the same grade two teacher. It is a good feeling to have clients repeat like that. We went to one grade two teacher at Windsor Park three times this year alone. The kids are experts now. I hope to have them again next year and look forward giving them more and more advanced work. .... So do they....

That is what we want to do with the DVD series, make it so kids don't only get to use clay once or twice a year, but once or twice a week, or a month. Ideally "Every day is Clay Day!"

Until next time.

Cindy

Moved to facebook.

2011-02-06T21:08:00.000-08:00

We have moved the blog and much more to facebook.

The Clay Teacher http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Clay-Teacher/100203753378510 has I have started a new facebook site called The Clay Ladies http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Clay-Ladies/123730754365828. It has taken off and there are a number of followers the first day out. Anything clay or pot related that isn't talked about on The Clay Teacher will be shared on The Clay Ladies.

Please stop by and see what we are up to and let us know what you think.

Cindy and Jim

Return of the Samurai

2011-01-09T19:41:00.000-08:00

We are taking a couple of night off shooting to make some vases. Every year for the past six or seven years we have made trophy vases for the Dave Schultz Memorial International and USA Wrestling. http://www.themat.com/events/default.php?page=default&EventID=24076 We put their logo of the samurai on a large vases and they are presented to coaches and directors of trials from around the world. We are not entirely sure who has the vases or where they have gone, but we are happy to supply them.

The video project is larger than we all thought but we hope to be finished this week. We have been saying that for two weeks, so one of these weeks we will be right. Once we are out of the production studio there is still a lot of work to do to be ready for the Teacher's Conventions starting in February. We are still very excited about this project! I will keep you all posted.

Until next time.

Cindy

Taking Pot Shots

2011-01-02T18:52:00.000-08:00

I just had to say it....taking pot shots....

We spent the Christmas Holidays shooting our video series and, yes, there were shots of pots. We shot the Introduction to Clay and the first one of the set, but there was a shot with pots..... so...yes ... we were taking pot shots.

It was a fun and busy way to spend the daze( not a typo, or spelling mistake) off. It is so very different to walk into a class room and lead a workshop than to walk into a production studio and make the video. The first video, of course, was the hardest. One, it was the intro and two.... well... it was the first one. The introduction was mostly script with the teleprompter. I, but mostly everyone else, was very glad we had the teleprompter. After a while, it almost got to the point where I would have had to read my name if someone asked me..... maybe not quite THAT bad but it was at times, a challenge. Now that it is done, I can say it was fun, an education and yes... a bit stressful. We will finish up the first set this week. After that one has been out for a while, we plan to start series #2.....then 3 etc....

Tomorrow we are back in the classroom, Mills Haven in Sherwood Park. We have 109 students making Big Mouth Monkeys, Big Mouth Beavers and Grecian masks. It will be a busy day. Tuesday is back in front of the camera.

This is going to be a great year for The Clay Teacher. We are booked almost solid, we have the new logo and the video series. We are looking forward to this year and we wish everyone all the best in 2011.

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!!

Cindy and Jim

The language of clay.

2010-12-11T07:31:00.000-08:00

We did Inuit Igloo scenes with grade one and twos at Rio Terrace yesterday. It is a great school that offers both French Immersion and a German Bilingual program.There was an Asian boy in the last class of grade two that did not speak English, French, or German, but he speak "Clay".....fluently. All I had to do was take a little extra time to show him what to do, not on his work but with another piece of clay, and he took off on his own to make a very good project. He understood exactly what he was to do and he did that and more. By the end of the class he not only had the igloo, sun and person, but he had an Inukshuk and the Inuit person was making a snowman. He also understood the big smiles he got and the pat on the back. It must be so scary to come to a country where you don't speak the language. This little guy will do fine. He a bright boy and easy going.

Did I bring the camera like I said I was going to do??........ NO....... They were an air dry project and did not come home with us. Yesterday I don't know where my head was. Not only did I not bring the camera, but I didn't bring Jim's apron or the paper bags we provide to take the projects home in.

People have been using clay since we have been people. Every culture, I think with the exception of the Inuit, have clay in their history and clay in their daily lives. Almost everyone likes to make things out of clay. You hand someone a lump of clay and they will make a.......something. With this boy yesterday, clay and the love of working with it was the common language that we all could speak. It was a good day.

Until next time.

Cindy

Winding down...

2010-12-09T19:56:00.000-08:00

We had a couple of days off this week. I made a mistake way back in October when someone booked Monday and later changed that booking to another day. I forgot to unbook Monday and realized Friday that it was open. We had a last minute cancellation for Thursday, so it was left open as well. It was kinda nice to have some time. I did get the basement tidied up Monday, but Thursday was just a decadent day off. I did very little and took the whole day to finish. It was nice.

We had some intense workshops this week... what a rush...a real hoot. I really do love my job. With the two days off this week, we still worked with about 225 students. We worked with a scout troop Tuesday night. We were a little late because we were given the wrong address. It sounds odd to say, but we googled the scout troop on the blackberry, got the correct address, put it in the GPS and were there just in the nick to time. How did we ever get anywhere without technology. We were making snowman winter scenes. Getting 35 children from the ages six to sixteen to focus on the project and finish it in only an hour has a certain amount of intensity. Wednesday was fun as well, we had walked 93 students through a fairly detailed angel. Three workshops of 30 ish students. We met some great kids and they did some wonderful work. I wish we had the camera. We, meaning Jim, will have to start bringing it and taking more pictures.

It always feels so good to give the students the freedom to do what they like with their work. I tell them they can put anything on the work that they think that I would like to see. They have some great ideas. I get a lot of "my" ideas from them.

Tomorrow we have about 45 grade one and two doing Inuit igloo dioramas. We will be done by noon. When we get home we will load the last of the pottery for Christmas orders. We have fired and returned all The Clay Teacher projects. I sure do like the air dry method! Monday all the Christmas stuff will be shipped .... whaa whoooo....

Until the next time.

Cindy

Do Pay Attention!

2010-11-25T20:39:00.000-08:00

The hardest part of The Clay Teacher's job is not teaching, but making sure everyone is listening. When we give instructions they are very strait forward and easy to follow. We were more than surprised today when we learned that some of the teachers were the ones not listening and not following instructions.

We have been offering air dry as a method of finishing. It is more economical and the teacher has control of the timing of the project. We tell the teachers how to finish them and then give them detailed written instructions from when the project is first made and the clay is wet, how to dry it and we provide the plastic. The instructions tell the teachers how to tell when it is dry, what paint to use, how to apply the paint, how to seal the project after it has been painted and we provide the sealant. We thought we had it all covered.......However.....if the teacher will not listen or read the instructions provided what can you do. Today we were back at a school we had worked at a few weeks ago and we met the teacher from that past workshop. She hadn't even uncovered her projects so some were still damp. She didn't know what paint to use and when I told her, there was not enough paint in the art room and didn't know how to apply it if there was. At that point I gave her a set of instructions in the staff room at lunch break before her class was starting , she didn't listen to me when I started telling her how to finish the projects or read the instructions I had just handed her. Later on in the art room, I took the instructions from the finishing kit we provided weeks ago and told her to read them. She wouldn't read them and still didn't listen to my explanations. At that point I suggested that if she didn't have enough paint, she didn't know how to paint them if she did and some were still damp that maybe today was not a good for finishing. She didn't agree, so she any went ahead and painted them anyway. She mixed all the paint in the art room to get a swampy beige brown to paint Christmas wreath picture frames. These kids are giving the frames to their parents for Christmas. They worked hard and deserve the proper paint and procedure to make their work the best it can be. They listened it was the teacher who did not.

Now if the projects are not what the teacher had in mind she will see it as The Clay Teacher did not provide a satisfactory service..........Bummer.....

Until next time.

Cindy

We Must be Blessed

2010-11-13T16:24:00.000-08:00

We finished a week with St. Maria Goretti School. Now we have a basement full of Angels and baby Jesuses or is that Jesi? I am not sure if I can say that, but few people have in their possession as many little sons’ of God as we do. We did a bunch of Christmas projects with the Catholic school so we have 62 Nativity Scenes and 121 angels. The rest are snowmen and for reasons we are not sure of, we put the snowmen off by themselves in a back room to dry.

It was a fun week. For the most part we are the only three dimensional art experiences the children get and only an hour and half a year. I was there last year and everyone who was there last time remembered me this year. One girl even noticed that my hair was shorter than last year, but she was nice enough not to mention the additional grey. The workshops leave a huge impression on the students and they enjoy the clay so much.

We did little Nativity Plaques with the Kindergarten children this year. I didn’t talk at all about the Nativity Scene or what it stood for. The teacher gave a little lesson. I was not confident enough to teach a religion class in a Catholic school. Some of the little guys were not sure of the name of the project or just what it was about, but they had a general of idea of what we were making. I met one little boy in the hall the next day and he remembered me and making the Nativity, but again he forgot the name of the project. So he just asked me if I was back doing “the God thing” again. I didn’t have time to explain, so I just said…yes I am, smiled to myself and felt extremely powerful for only a brief moment.

We are making more Nativity Scenes on Monday, so there will be even more Jesi in the basement so with so many Angels and Jesi in the house how could we not be blessed?

I wrote in my blog last week that I was done all my orders…… well… that was short lived. The next day the orders started again. I could say no but I don’t want to. So I have more orders, I will probably always have an order waiting to be made….

The deadline for the Vasefinder competition was October 31, but I asked and Charlie gave me some more time. So the vase is drying and I will still be able to entre. Thank you Charlie!

Until next time.

Cindy

The Jury is Still Out.

2010-11-13T16:15:00.001-08:00

I have been playing with the sculptures some more and working with different finishing techniques. This morning when I peeked in the kiln at 500 F I saw this lady and her “skin condition” and I thought she was a dud for sure. When the kiln had cooled to a frosty 400F I took her out and, like a cancer, it kinda grows on ya. At first she was a definite no….. but now…. I am not so sure……

I think the finish deserves some more play and experiementation.....but the jury is still out ...

Until next time.

Cindy

Wrinkles

2010-11-07T16:12:00.001-08:00

I finished the forehead of the pot head. The nice thing about pictures are, is you get to see what you have done in a whole different light or perspective.The first shot of this guy, which is not this one, showed me that he had way to many wrinkles. So unlike my own face, I just got rid of the ones I didn't like and published the second set of pictures. I think he is done now. Or done as much as I have the time, or choose to have the time for him. He was fun to make.

Until the next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

A bit of a busy week.

2010-11-07T06:54:00.000-08:00

The Clay Teacher is back in full swing. We finished a wonderful and busy week. Jim has been coming with me to all the workshops and it is much easier for two people to do a job than one. The kids get so much more as well. It was a fun and full Friday. We did four workshops at a school that I had been to for the last 3 years. We worked with some kids with “learning challenges”. Those kids remembered me, my silly one liners, and most of the demo from the past. They may have some difficulties, but if they want to learn something they can. They just don’t want to learn the same old same old, and they don’t think the same way most do. One boy was in grade 6 and he works with his dad driving a bob cat. He may not grow up to be a rocket scientist, but he will be fine. I think the hardest thing for most children to learn, when they are working with clay, or anything else, is that they CAN do it. When I hear “I can’t” I tell them you can’t lift 600 pounds, but you can learn how to work with clay. There is a big difference between I don’t know how and I can’t. After they start working and what they are making starts to look like the project, their confidence soars, they do their best and the work is good. They are always sooooo pleased with what they have done. It is so cool to see their faces shine with pride!

I have finished all the pots for my clients … WOOO HOOO…..I like potting but I also like having no responsibility other than The Clay Teacher when we are booked solid. I have been working on a Pot Head for a competition on line called Vasefinder. I don’t have any fantasies of winning but it is fun to play. I want to add a few more wrinkles to his forehead and then he is done. When he is, I will put some pictures up.

It was Jim’s birthday yesterday and I am so mean, that while I was finishing up the pots in the basement, he had to make his own birthday dinner. He made some smouldering chili. We, John, our son, Kaileigh, our daughter that doesn’t live at home and her boyfriend Andrew had a birthday dinner for Jim. It was good. We had chilli, cheese bread sticks, beer and cake. It was a good day. We all get busy with life and sometimes let little things, like a family dinner, slide.

I am going to go downstairs and put some frown wrinkles on my Pot Head.

Until next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

A bit of a slow week...

2010-09-23T21:15:00.000-07:00

Clay for Kids wrote on the main page of their Edmonton website that The Clay Teacher was using their materials and ideas. They went on to say we were passing ourselves off as them. With our many years of experience with clay and teaching, I really want everyone to know who we are. I wrote in my last blog that we are very much The Clay Teacher and put a link to this blog on our front page so anyone that might have been confused or had any questions could read it. What I find interesting is that very few people read it. I guess they are not too confused. We are almost booked solid for the upcoming year and it is only September. Teachers know we are The Clay Teacher and they are booking us. We are looking forward to a busy fun year.

I played this week. I did make some new projects earlier in the week, some of them are online and we will get the rest up Sunday morning. Then I took some time and I played in the clay. I have joined the sculpture group at Harcourt House. We meet every Monday night and just sculpt. I really enjoy it. Here are a few pictures of what I was working on. When I made the Indian I was thinking about New Orleans and Mardi Gras and the lady is just a lady that is not all that happy. I will play tomorrow then I have to get to work before The Clay Teacher kicks in. We have two large wholesale orders to get out and three weeks to get it done because once we start Clay Teachering I don’t want to do the production after supper. … "The old grey mare just ain’t" …. well you know the how the song goes. I enjoyed playing with the faces, but they are not quite there yet. I have ordered an instructional DVD from this fellow, now he is a sculptor. http://philippefaraut.com/ Take a moment and check out his site. If you would like to see him sculpting, click through as if you were going to buy a DVD and you will find a series of little movies of him working. It's great to see.

Until the next time.

Cindy

The start of year two.

2010-09-15T12:50:00.000-07:00

There is a rumour that we, The Clay Teacher, have been telling people we are Clay for Kids and that we have been using their materials. We have never said we are Clay for Kids and we have nothing that belongs to them! Before anyone believes everything they read on the internet they might want to get to the truth. Look at both companies, look at both web sites, talk to both sides, ask a few questions and form their own opinion.

I started playing with clay as a child, made my first pot when I was 12 on the potter’s wheel, worked and studied at that young age and started teaching adult night classes when I was 18. I have taught all ages from preschool to seniors for decades. In 1999 I became a production potter. My husband and I built our pottery business up to a studio that had almost 50 retail clients and we were producing about 10 tons of clay a year. It was hard work and now we have moved on to The Clay Teacher. We are potters, artists and teachers. Please check out our website http://www.outofthefirestudio.com/ and for a look at some of our art, please see our gallery page http://www.outofthefirestudio.com/photo_gallery.html .

Teachers who want to hire an artist to teach art to their students should consider The Clay Teacher. Again, check out the instructors available, their qualifications and clay experience, then choose the instructor that they feel is most qualified. We think they will choose The Clay Teacher for their clay education workshops.

Year number two as The Clay Teacher is well under way. We have a number of bookings and we are looking forward to a new year. This fall we are excited about our new air dry method. The projects are constructed and finished in a way that the finished product is both sturdy and water resistant. I ran a project through the rinse cycle of the dishwasher and it came out fine. It looked the same coming out as going in. The pictures taken for the website were taken AFTER it came out of the dishwasher. Don’t get me wrong, we are in no way recommending dishwasher safe for this method, but it just goes to show that end product will stand up for years as a decoration. This method offers a number of advantages to the teacher. First is price, it is $1.50 less per child. The actual workshop where we come in and the student works with the clay remains unchanged, but the project never leaves the classroom or the art room. This gives the teacher control over the timing of the finished project and the student is more connected to what they have made. They see and learn the drying process, how the clay changes from wet to dry and how it is controlled. After a week or so depending on the project, they are finished and ready to go home. There are no more weeks to wait, possible damage in travel and the student doesn’t for get about what he or she has made. We provide all the information required to finish each project, we are available if anyone has any questions and we provide key elements of the process. The teacher provides the paint.

The post below this one has pictures of the little white plate that made the run through the dishwasher.

Until next time,

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

Before and After

2010-09-15T12:31:00.000-07:00

Here is the little dish that went through the rinse cycle of the dishwasher. It's hard to tell before and after, but they are in order. The top is before and the lower is after. The new method works as a viable option to the kiln.

On the road again, I can't wait to get on the road again.

2010-07-27T07:58:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy six weeks… six weeks wow time does go by quickly. We finished up our first year as The Clay Teacher. It was a good year and we are looking forward to an even better one next year. After Clay Teacher was done we had a large order for a client in the east and a wedding registry to get out by the first week of July. We are venders again this year at the Folk Fest and I have been busy trying to get a large inventory of smaller items ready for that. We should have about 400 to 500 little pieces, mugs, plates, cups, bowls, etc for that. If we only could sell them all…….We had to take a week off and go to Ashcroft BC. My mother lives there. She is 96 with a lot of help of my two sisters we put mom into assisted living. Not quite the home, but close. She is happy there, they take care of her. My oldest sister has been the primary care taker for the last few years and it was a bit much for one person to do. It will do both sis and Mom good to get some distance from each other and my sister will be able to get on with her life without having to check in on Mom two or three times a day.

After the festival Jim and I are going on a road trip, just the two of us. The first holiday we have had just the two of us since 2001. It should be a blast. We are going south through Saskatchewan, into the states heading for Hannibal MO for a night then after a short visit we are in Nashville for a three nights. After Nashville down to New Orleans for three nights and then we are going follow the coast of Texas to Corpus Christi through Galveston, staying a night in each city. Then head across the dessert to Santa Fe for two nights. After all that it will be time to come home. We will just head north through Montana and Calgary. Each city along the way has such a different flavour it has been fun searching out rooms, clubs, music, food along the way.

We are excited about this. It will be great to get away and out of my basement. I have spent so much time down there working lately I have started taking vitamin D pills….not joking… Away from the kids, they are great kids, but kids just the same and adult kids in our home. It will do us all some good to get away from each other for awhile. If we are away from work and kids, I truly am on a holiday. No one to look after, no meals to make, nothing I have to make out of clay and no dead lines…. Off duty….Two weeks from right now we should be 2 hours down the road on our first day, but if we plan to get away at 7:00 am we should be gone by 9:00 at least……hopefully…..

Until next time

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

A little of this and that.

2010-06-05T07:24:00.000-07:00

My son John went to Australia three months ago. He got a car, a place to live, some sparse furnishings and started to look for work and look and look. He applied at about 30 places before he figured out that with his student visa no one will hire him so he is coming home. He had a real adventure, saw some of the country learned a bit about life, himself and now he is returning the middle of June. Today is he is on his way to Sydney just to see what he can see for a few days, then out to the outback to have a look at the red Australian dessert and then home. What a wonderful experience it has been for him. I would rather have him a little closer to home. He will stay at here for a few months then probably move to Victoria BC. It is easier to visit him there than Brisbane.

We rented a dumpster this weekend for a major spring cleaning. We got the garage done yesterday, today we start on the basement and tomorrow we will do the rest of the house. I don’t know where all the crap comes from. It is like it multiplies when you are not looking. It is fun to throw out all the crap once you get past that ….I might need this one day…or…this is still good ….stage. If you haven’t even looked at it in years you really don’t need it. If you have a garage sale you work for a week or more getting it all sorted and priced, sell it for 25 cents or throw it out after the sale because no one will give you a quarter for it. It is easier and more satisfying just to chuck it. Monday morning we will be junk free!

Monday I start potting…..in my clean studio…We have a large wedding registry to have done by July 3^rd. It is a lot of pots, but with the Clay Teacher done for the summer, it is good to have the work and I am looking forward to being a potter for awhile.

Yesterday we started getting bookings for next year. We had a great first year and with the bookings starting so soon we should have an even better second. I really enjoyed the kids. For some it was their first attempt and three dimensional art. We worked with a grade one class on Thursday making dragons. The students and their work were awesome. They made some of the most imaginative dragons to date. We had dragons with up to five eyes, dragon riders, dragons with their eggs curled up in their tales, lots of horns and no horns at all. They had the freedom to make their own and they did. It was a large class so Jim came. We work well together and have fun. The kids pick up on that and it sets a good energy for the workshop. We will do more sessions together next year. It is easier for me to have the help and the school gets two teachers for the price of one.

It’s time to get to work and get rid of some crap.

Until the next time.

Cindy

Not a Holiday Weekend

2010-05-23T10:22:00.000-07:00

Today is Sunday but not a day off or a holiday. This May long weekend is cold and rainy as it is every year. It has warmed up to 3 C so far today. Those who were silly or brave enough to go camping or other long weekend plans, have my sympathies. We didn’t get snow here, but we had some very light rain. Light, meaning it floated very slowly to the ground but didn’t turn white. There was snow all around us, just not here in Edmonton.

Yesterday we loaded the kiln with Clay Teacher projects. Today I will glaze some pots so when the kiln is cool tomorrow we can unload the kids work load it right away with the production stuff. I am looking forward to getting back in the studio and making some pots. We have two wedding registries to get done and the Folk Fest to pot for. I am going to do some funky stuff. Most people don’t like my fun and funky pots, but I don’t care it is fun to do and it makes me happy. Jim is going to build a site called Cindy Clarke Pottery and it will be for the non production one of kind schtuff.

Gotta get to busy. Until next time.

Cindy

Taking my own advice.

2010-05-22T13:52:00.000-07:00

Almost every workshop has a student that shuts down, puts their hands on the lap and says “I can’t do it” and “I say you’re right, you can’t.” They look up at me with hurt and angry eyes because I agreed and then I go on to say” You quit. You have stopped trying, started looking for reasons why it won’t work. Your hands are not even touching the clay. With a shut down mind and hands on your lap, you are right, you can’t do it. Follow the instructions and just do it. You know how to do it, now you just have to do the work and…..do it. Once have finished, you will be so glad you didn’t quit just because it was harder than you thought it would be.” I don’t know how many times have given that little talk to a reluctant student. Friday was the last time. They always go on to make a great project and they are proud of it. You would think that I could take my own advice.

I wasn’t sure how personal to get in this blog. But then it is my blog, very few people read it and I am a personal kinda person.Writing it down puts it out there for me to read it more so than for anyone else. I have been battling the bulge for ……ever.Anyone who has watched the video we made years ago and the Youtube videos will know I am loosing the battle. I was very heavy about 13 years ago. At that time I joined TOPS and then a gym and lost 100 pounds. Well didn’t actually loose them, I put them in a place where they could be easily found. I kept it off for about 3 years and then they started creeping back just a pound or two here and there. About 5 pounds a year, for the last 10 years. Do the math!

I joined Weight Watchers about two months ago and have only lost 5 pounds. I know you can say all the things like, better than a gain, at least it is the right direction and all that crap. That is just what it is…. crap. I went to a meeting today. Ladies there had lost 5 pounds in a week not 8 weeks. Then this lady stood up she had lost enough last week to put her over 100 pounds lost. She did it. I too had done it, but then I undid it. I have no idea why, and then I thought of that little girl in my last workshop who had quit because her project was harder than she wanted to work. I had told to stop making excuses and just do it. When she was done she would be glad she had done it. She finished her project, it turned out well and she was very happy with her work and the fact that she had not quit. Then I went home from that workshop and all my good advice and coaching to continue do nothing about the weight loss I have been wanting for years. Basically I sat there with my hands on my lap, mind shut down and looking for reasons why it won’t work. I know how to do it. Follow the instructions and just do it.

When I write these blogs they are far apart and I don’t have the time, or take the time to go back and read the last one. I will ramble on through out the summer about the weight loss and getting back to working on pots that make me happy and make some money. We are planning a road trip this summer and I hope to be 25 pounds lighter than I am now. That is only 2 pounds a week, very doable. Take your own advice girl and just do it!

Until next time.

Cindy

Freedom

2010-05-08T20:37:00.000-07:00

The Clay Teacher is winding down and only a few weeks left of our first year. What a rush. We built it and they did come. The best thing that happened in almost every workshop was giving the children the freedom to do what they liked. I was asked so often “can I do….. fill in the blank”….. and I would say “YES”… this is your project you do it your way, as long as it fits the basic guide lines, you have the choice and the ability to make it yours. Children have this flat out honesty that looks you square in the eye when they hear about having freedom. Their whole self smiles and it lights their eyes with a light that I will never grown tired of seeing. I heard a joke once that about a little girl that came home from school and she was upset because the teacher said she didn’t colour in the lines. Her mother told her to colour anyway she liked and when she was done to draw a line around it. That is what we tried to give to the students. It is easier to think inside the box if you create your own box. I used to ask when we first started this, if the teacher wanted to adhere strictly to the project or if they were willing to let the kids go their own way. Most would say let them go, but a few would say they wanted control over the project, so I stopped asking. I learned a long time ago, if you don’t want to hear the answer, don’t ask the question. We will see next year on the repeats if this was a good plan or not. Mind you, the year is far from over. We have a number of students, projects and smiles left to come.

A young lady came to our door last night. She works for World Vision and was looking for people who would sponsor a child. .She showed us a picture of a boy that lives in Mali and it was her last boy to place for the day. She was so young, so much of a princess and so full of passion for what she was doing. She had no idea she was a princess, and there is nothing wrong with being a princess. She is just young. She lived at home and her dad was calling from his car in the neighbourhood that she was working as she went from door to door. He would pick her up after she was done and they would go out together. But the fact still remains, it was a Friday night and she was looking for sponsors for World Vision and not doing what most young girls are doing on a Friday night. She is princess about to grow into the woman she wants to be. She has the brains, the family support and the opportunity to do what she wants. Opportunity is the key word here, so many don’t have opportunities and if we can help this one boy…... We have seen this child almost daily in the schools, or one just like him, but the difference is we see him after his family has have found their way out of Africa or whatever poverty stricken country and found their way to freedom. There is that word again. We see them in the schools with English as their second language, drinking in this new and wonder life. We tried to sponsor a child in Zimbabwe a few years ago. But with all the unrest in the country, it all sort of fell apart. Mali is a much more stable country than Zimbabwe and one of the poorest countries in the world, but they do have democracy. The boy we are sponsoring is named Mamadou Togo, he is five years old and lives with his parents. His father is a farmer and his mother is self employed. We don’t know what she does, but as time goes on, we will. We are looking forward to getting to know this family. We will keep you up to date.

I threw some pots today and it felt good. I have spent a lot of energy teaching this last year and have wondered off from potting. When I spend my days in the classroom, I don’t want to pot. I give all I can to the workshop. I am still a potter and I have to find a way to balance them. I told the City that I quit teaching and then reconsidered, only for the paycheque. They have hired other teachers and my position there is most likely filled and after today I am glad. I always teach the beginners and it would be more fun to teach an advanced class and more fun yet to pick up the production a bit now that I have gotten over the ……I don’t want to make anything burn out,,,,, and not working nights or Sundays that gives me my freedom to be a potter and an artist.

Janice Joplin once said “freedom just another word for nothing left to loose” ……not true….freedom is everything, it lets you be you....

Until the next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

Ob La Di, Ob La Da

2010-04-25T07:38:00.000-07:00

April 25,

Since March 3 ................Life goes on.

My son is sort of settled in Brisbane. He has everything but a job. John has learned very quickly that life costs more and things take longer than you could ever imagine. He needs a job fairly soon, he knows that, but he is a bit fussy. I’m not sure how much long he/we can afford to be fussy. My sister is back at home, coping and moving forward. She will be fine.

The Clay Teacher has been busy. We have been booked every day available since March and we are booked all but two days in May. June is still fairly open, but I am hoping to pick up a few more before the year is up. Jim has been joining me for the bigger jobs. If we have four workshops in a day or if the classes are large he comes along. It is so much easier with two and the school gets two teachers for the price of one. He is good with the kids and we have fun working together.

The last job he came out with me was to Hobbema. We had four workshops that day and had a blast. Working with clay was new to most of the students and they really enjoyed it. They liked watching the pot being thrown, most had not seen it but on T.V. I always throw a vase in my demo and give it (or one that looks just like it) to the teacher with the returned projects. I asked the class, “if your teacher has a vase and there are flowers in the spring …what could happen”? They didn’t say much, so I asked “what if you picked the flowers for your teacher”. One little girl answered “they would all die and if you leave them in the field we all can see them”. She was right and I had never thought of it that way. Kids have such a wonderful way of looking at things. I get many of “my” best ideas for workshops and projects from the students. The kids were surprised that we were married, I’m not sure why. They thought that we were just two teachers working together. One girl asked me if Jim was my real husband or my step husband….not to sure what that means. We all enjoyed the day and Jim and I are looking forward to working with more of the students next year.

Jim and I are planning a trip this summer. Last summer we took a family road trip to Virginia to visit Jim’s son Tory, my step son, and I am sure what that means… The last holiday before that was 2004 our road trip was to New Mexico and then put a toe into Mexico but walked over the boarder and left the van in the US. This summer the kids are old and have their own plans so we are going to go to New Orleans via Nashville just the two of us. Then back up through Memphis and St. Lewis. We like road trips. We can take a three week road trip for about the same or less money than spending a week in an all included hotel on a beach somewhere and see a whole lot of country. We were in New Orleans and up the coast a bit before Katrina hit and we are going to go back and see the coast and the city after. We are looking forward to it.

I am going to make some pots today. I have only made two pieces this year that are not connected to the Clay Teacher. I have some orders to get out and I need to be a potter for a while and not just The Clay Teacher so it all balances out.

Until the next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

Sons

2010-03-03T06:09:00.000-08:00

The convention went well. It was fun, we looked good, made some good connections and got a number of bookings. The company that was trying to shut us down was not there. We thought they would be and it might be rather awkward. They were in the program, but they were a no show. So we looked even better. I doubt very much we hear from them again. We have some new ideas on how to make The Clay Teacher “bigger and better”. I am looking forward to getting that going. I will keep this up to date on how and what we are doing.

My nephew died this week. He has been sick for long time. His heart gave out, then his kidneys failed, his liver stopped and he got an infection in the bowl. He simply shut down. My sister is strong lady. She knew this was coming, but really didn’t want to. I admire her optimism and her courage. She kept a positive attitude for him, his children and of course for herself. She has had a hard go this life time. She lost two of her three sons and her husband. She is hurting and I wish I could do more to help. She has a number of people around her and there is nothing I can do. I will go and spend some time with her when things all settle down. My son John leaves for Australia tomorrow. I am sad to see him go, but not so much anymore. I will miss him. He should be gone for a year or more, but we will stay in contact and he can come home anytime he wants. He is young and starting his life with an adventure. Not quite the same situation that my sister is in.

Today my son and I are packing and getting him ready to go, nothing like leaving it to the last day, then we are all going out for German food. He was going to sell his old car and get it out of the garage before he left, but he didn’t get there yet. I think he might not. We will have to sell it. He has put off a few things a bit longer than I would have, but “things” always have a way of working out for him. He will have to learn to do it on his own now..… or not.

Until the next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

Show Time

2010-02-24T05:55:00.000-08:00

Today we set up the Greater Edmonton Teachers’ Convention. I am excited about it. There are 15,000 to 20,000 people attending Thursday and Friday….Show Time…I teach a couple of workshops this afternoon then we go. We haven’t heard back from the other company since we told them we will not be stopping The Clay Teacher. As I have said before, a little competition is a good thing.

Jim got the painting the projects video on the website. I wasn’t feeling well the day we shot that video so I look like a grumpy old woman, but other than that, it’s good. I would like to reshoot it soon and replace the grumpy old woman with a more friendly me. It will be awhile before we get that done, but we have this done for the convention.

I will let you know how the convention goes.

Until next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

Every Other Day is Friday

2010-02-19T06:53:00.000-08:00

The days go by so quickly, it feels like every other day is Friday and today is Friday again.

We went out to supper for Family Day but the Po Boys turned into mediocre Greek take-out but eat in. We were not the only ones that thought half price Po Boys was a good idea, and most of those people were smart enough to make a reservation. We had a choice of an hour wait or move on to Plan B. Plan B was wander down the street toward the car and see what we found. Not always the best plan when you are on Whyte Ave and don’t want to spend an arm and leg for dinner, but we did come across a little take out/eat in Greek place. It was okay but not the same atmosphere as the Cajun dinner. We will try again next Monday and I will make a reservation.

The company that wants us to shut down The Clay Teacher has finally replied and they are going to try to take it to the next step. It is unfortunate that they are taking this path but we will walk it with them. We have never shied away from…much of anything. I think of a bit of competition keeps us all on our toes.

Next week is the Greater Edmonton Teachers’ Conference. We are looking forward to that. As I have mentioned I do like “Show Time” If we had stayed in the wholesale pottery business we would be setting up the Alberta Gift Show this morning. We would be up and loading or have loaded the trailer with all the schtuff I mentioned before, booth, carpet, shelves, pots etc etc. and then the 12 hour set up time. I am looking forward to the Teachers’ Conference. We have some new projects, the updates to the web site will be online, we are meeting some people and all that and more with out the big booth, shelves and tots and tots of pots. It should be an interesting conference.

I played at bit this week in the studio. It was fun. I will see if I can get some pictures up this week end.

Until next time.

Cindy
The Clay Teacher

Family Day

2010-02-15T07:14:00.001-08:00

When I first started The Clay Teacher I thought I would blog everyday and tell everyone about the kids. It’s really hard and as much as I enjoy the kids the stories start to sound repetitive. Not that I have told a lot of them. But I have worked with almost 2,000 children and the stories and the students do blend. So I thought I might make this a bit more personal and try to do more of a “what I did today” then only The Clay Teacher.

I live with my husband Jim, who is the other half of The Clay Teacher. He does everything but be in the classroom. He does that as well if the classes are large. He will help me in a few weeks. We are going out of town and working with about 200 students in 2 days. The first day is a heavy day. They have booked about 130 students, so Jim will come along and help. That’s a lot of clay and projects to carry, not to mention trying to talk to every student. When I go to a classroom I try to help or talk to every student and our first class is almost 50 students. I like it when Jim comes with me, we work well together. We have been working together since we met in 1999.

My/our Kaileigh lives with us. She is 20, going to NAIT and is in her first year of a two year computer course. She is studying web building, programming and whole lotta things I don’t understand. But her marks are good and she is enjoying it. So I don’t need to know. She has a boyfriend Andy or Andrew depending on, well I am not sure, so we just call him Andyrew. It seems to have stuck. He is a good kid and takes the teasing well. His options are limited, if he wants to spend time with the daughter, he has to put up with the parents.

My/our son John lives with us for a very short time. March 4 he is going to Brisbane Australia for an undetermined length of time. He is 18 and never lived on his own before. It might be a bit of a shocker for him. I told him to hurry up and move out while he still knows everything. If he hits a snag, he will be completely on his own. We can’t come over and fix it, or he can’t come home just for supper and visit like he could if he lived …... in the same hemisphere. He has found a good little car that is reliable and has a temporary place to land, a vacation condo at $700 a week. But that can’t last long and he will find a rental. He is a smart boy and will do fine. And I keep telling him and he agrees, if he really doesn’t like it, come home!

Today is Family Day, I plan to play a bit in my studio and then we are going out for supper. There is a nice little Cajun place on Whyte Ave and they have half price Po Boys on Monday nights, so we thought it would be fun and affordable to go out for Po Boys and sweet potatoe fries. I will have to walk the treadmill for sure today!

Another Month Bites the Dust

2010-02-14T07:40:00.000-08:00

Another month has past since I blogged. If anyone reads these they know I am a very poor blogger. It’s hard to write often. Hard for me, I just get busy and wander off. Then a month goes by.

January we received the email from the other company telling us we had to shut down. We told her no, and we haven’t heard from them since. As I said, there a number of schools out there, more than enough to go around.

We went to our first Teachers’ Convention the first of this month. It was great. We had a wonderful time. Met the teachers from North Central Alberta, were well received and The Clay Teacher looked good. I like “show time”. The people, the promotion and of course the business all crammed into a couple of days is really fun. We will be at the Greater Edmonton Teachers’ Convention next week. I am excited about it. This type of trade show being smaller and only promotion are so much easier to do. One of the best things about these shows is the set up and the knock down. When we did pottery, either wholesale or retail, we would take hours to set up and then tear it all down. We would bring in carpets, lights, walls, shelves not to mention the tots and tots of pots and all the work to make them. We would get home hours after the show had ended. Most venders at the retail show would be home and finished supper and Jim and I would be still knocking down our booth. After the North Central Convention we were home with our three tots and a box, 90 minuets after it ended and it took that long because we had to wait to load the car and drive in Friday afternoon traffic. I doubt we ever do a show again where we have to do the booth, shelves, carpets and all that ever again. I’m too old for that schtuff.

I am really enjoying being The Clay Teacher. It is doing well and I have quit my job with the City teaching the adult classes, as of the end of March. I like teaching those as well, but it is nights and weekends. I work week days in the schools and I was trying to keep a few wholesale clients supplied with pottery and it got to be a bit much. So I have let my wholesale clients go and now with no night classes or the Sunday afternoon class, I am hoping to start playing in the clay again. We will keep the webpage for retail and I have promised a few people to do their wedding registries and we will continue to do those. Clients really like that. We make them their own webpage and their family can shop from all over the world. The wedding is often here in the city, so all the pottery doesn’t need to be shipped and if it is out of town, someone will be going and they can take it with them. It works well. There is one really fun retail show we would like to do this summer, but it doesn’t require a booth and all the other set up that goes with a regular retail show and it is a hoot to be there. Other than that, I am looking forward to playing in the clay again. It has been a busy couple of years.

Wow! That was a fast two months.

2010-01-07T18:15:00.000-08:00

January 7^th 2010

2009 was a good year for the Clay Teacher. We set it up and we took off. It was a busy November and December. I met some great people, worked with some wonderful kids and had a blast. January has taken a bit of a turn. Not for the teaching end of The Clay Teacher, but the people I used to work for have just found out about the Clay Teacher, seven months later, and now they want us to shut it down because they are intimidated by a little bit of healthy competition. I have always thought a little competition keeps us all on our toes. I am only one clay teacher in the sea of hundreds of class rooms. We have different ways of teaching. We target different groups of people. The projects offered in the elementary schools mirrors the curriculum. They didn’t invent pinch pots, coil pots or masks. They didn’t invent sculpting little people out of clay. People have been working with clay since we have been people. One of the first things found made from clay was a woman and it was sculpted about 28,000 years ago.

I was an instructor and potter before I signed on with them during and now after. I have been a pottery teacher since I was eighteen years old. I started working with kids in the schools when my children were small. They are now 20 and 18. I would bring clay into the class, direct the kids on how to make the project, fire them and return them. I used to feel like the Pied Piper. I would always come at recess so I could set up. I drove this huge Dodge van back then and the kids knew my vehicle. As I got close to the school, they would see my van, know who I was and what I was bringing. Half the play ground of children would be running behind me laughing and screaming as I drove me into the parking lot. I was a teacher’s aide. I often would bring clay into my classes, show the kids how make little projects, take them home, fire them and return them. I have taught as a private contractor for over thirty years. First in Dawson Creek, BC, then in Edson AB, and here in the city, first in my studio a few years ago then for the City of Edmonton and then for my last employer.

Yesterday we received a letter telling us to stop The Clay Teacher, remove our website and email address. We said no. We have don’t want to fight with these people; we just want to do the job. There is plenty of work for all of us.

I will keep this up to date.

Show Time

2009-11-15T08:11:00.000-08:00

November 15, 2009

The Clay Teacher has been busy. We are booked everyday for November and a number of bookings for the first two weeks of December. We even have a booking for next November. It has been fun working with the kids, helping them make their projects and watching their excitement as the projects take shape. They really enjoy seeing the vase thrown on the wheel. I get euus and awhhs as the ball of clay turns into a pot. One kid was very impressed when he looked at the little vase I was making and said it was “seriously deep”, meaning he thought it was big. Mind you I get the same excitement after I take the pot off and just move my finger back and forth on the spinning muddy wheel head and make the spiral.

I met some kids last week that stand out in my mind. One little guy told me all about his uncle that died. The boy was very angry and really hurting. He and his uncle spent a lot of time together. They hung out, the uncle bought the boy his Xbox, and they were obviously very close. To quote the boy “He got cancer in his bones, went to the hospital, never came out and died. We always did stuff together and now I will never see him again.” All I could do was give the little guy a hug, tell him I was sorry his uncle died and sometimes sad things happen. He was in grade 2. Another boy told me I came to see him last year. He remembered that I came to his class in Millwoods , what we made and that his name was Riley. He remembered me so he just assumed that I remembered him. I told him of course I did. Just because I meet 50 to 80 students a day, everyday for months doesn’t mean I forget anyone. … Perhaps not entirely true. One little girl was so happy with what she had made. She was beaming when she told me she felt like an artist. I told her she was. You never know, that little ego stroke could be the thing that sends her down the path of an artist….. Oh dear….

Today we are at little retail show http://inspiredcreationsmarket.com/ . It is a nice neighbourhood, we are doing … okay. It is the first time for this show so it is a little slow but it has some nice things and the people who are going through came to buy. December 3 through 6 we are doing the Butterdome Craft Sale http://inspiredcreationsmarket.com/ . That show is always very well attended. I am always afraid we don’t have enough pots and we always have more than enough. But this year, we don’t have enough pots. I will be working nights to ensure that we have enough pots. … you would think I would learn. But what if we don’t??... People don’t seem to buy pottery as much for gifts than they do for themselves and people are at these shows, for the most part, for Christmas shopping. We do have smaller lower priced items this time for the show and hopefully they will sell. I’m not sure how many more retail shows we will do. As I get busier with the Clay Teacher, I would like to stop making the production work and play with the clay. Make what I want to make and not what I think will sell.

But today it’s time get busy and ready for the sale. No pot pics today.

Until next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

Making Masks

2009-10-19T05:35:00.000-07:00

I did my second Clay Teacher Friday. It went well. I did masks with some kids from Sanctuary http://www.ecsd.net/programs/alternative_education.html . The kids there have some behavior problems and are not a part of the regular school system. But kids are kids and they responded well to the clay. I learned one thing with these kids, set some boundaries. I like to give students the freedom to make any face, with the clay, they like. So saying that they have freedom, without specifying that freedom is limited to facial features was a mistake. Next time I will say they can make any kind of face they like, but have to keep their project in the confines of social acceptance. A boy put a symbol on his mask that could be very offensive to many people. He refused to take it off and things were starting to slide into a confrontation between him and the teachers. He was not working on the mask and it was affecting the energy and the rest of the students in the class. We were all having fun and working up until that point. I suggested that he could leave the symbol there, just cover it with a small piece of clay. That way he could get what he wanted and it wouldn’t offend anyone else. It seemed to work. I made a very thin pancake of clay, he covered the symbol, smoothed down the little piece of clay, and all was well. What he didn’t realize is that there is no way that clay can be removed, especially after I helped it along and made sure it was stuck. The cover up is there, and after it is fired, it is there in stone. If he tries to expose his bigotry, either real or just put on for the class, he will destroy his mask.

It was an interesting morning. The teacher said that they seldom settle and work for 90 minuets. But these kids did. They tried hard and did some nice work.

Until next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

First Day of School

2009-10-10T10:16:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was my first job as the Clay Teacher. I was a bit nervous. I’m not really sure why. I went to talk to and do some throwing for two grade 10 classes. The first group was interested in what I was doing. . I had some samples that showed throwing a simple form, making it a cup, adding a handle making it a mug. Throwing and combining wheel thrown pieces and then using the wheel to build round slabs, the masks, and then I brought a little sculpture that had nothing to do with the wheel. There were a few students that were excited and anxious to try some of the techniques I had shown them. The next class was not as keen. It was a bit weird. I talked about the construction techniques of the examples that I brought, I threw a cylinder, vase, bowl and a plate. I went on and on for about a half and hour then stopped to ask if anyone had any questions. ….Blank stares and silence….. I asked if they had anything to add…. Blank stares and silence…..asked if anyone had plans of being artists….again…..nothing….mind you they were grade 10, all full of raging hormones and it was the last class on a Friday afternoon before a long weekend. So I didn’t take personally and I enjoyed it, the teaching and not the blank stares and silence. It was fun. I really enjoy being The Clay Teacher. There is no pressure. I just go in, talk about what I know, do what I like, be myself and then leave. I am not the one who is responsible for taking these kids and guiding them near, if not on the path of at least having a respect for art.I think half the kids in that class are only there because they think if you take art it is easy. There is nothing to read, no homework, what could be easier than being an artist? Those are the kids that are the most challenging and I am so glad not my responsibility. Mind you there is always one kid that stands out. There was a boy in the first class. He was very keen and working on a big bowl project that had him very excited. It would be fun to work with him and those like him, for more than one workshop, to help him from start to finish with his bowl.

Winter hit this last week. It came so fast that the leaves were still mostly green and on the trees.With the sudden nasty weather they all froze and fell off. This year we won’t get the pretty colours of the transition from fall into winter. It’s like someone flicked the switch, off with fall on with winter. We are driving to Grande Prairie to visit family for the long weekend. The weather is not that bad that we would consider not going. We are looking forward it.

Pot pic this time has nothing to do with pots. Here are pics of the weather outside our door.

We are the way to Grande Prairie AB for the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend. Family food and fun, who could ask for more.

Until the next time.

Cindy

Put on a happy face.

2009-10-09T05:41:00.000-07:00

Arts on the Avenue Kaleido Festival http://artsontheave.org/festivals/kaleido-festival-2009/went well. The weather was not all that great. The first day we had to shut it down early or get blown away, Sunday the weather was still very windy so the venue was changed to inside. It was well attended and we look forward to next year. Bigger and better!

I do my first Clay Teacher job today. I am going to Victoria School http://www.victoria-school.ca/ to talk to the high school kids about being a potter, making pottery and whatever they want to talk about or watch. It will be fun. I wish someone could have come and talked to me at that age. All the potters I met growing up were hobby potters and they have a different outlook on pottery. I have been both a hobby potter and a trying to make a living potter, they are not the same. If some old fart potter had come and told me to run and become anything but a potter when I was 17, I wouldn’t have listened and I am sure they won’t either. So I tell the good side, show them some techniques and talk about skill, craft and art. The rest, they will have to take their life time to figure it out. That’s what it is, a lifetime/lifestyle choice. Being a full time potter has its commitments. It’s difficult to get started and can take a few years. The money is often not all that great. The work is hard. You have to find your place among all the other potters and stand out to a point where your pots will sell and sell enough to support yourself and perhaps a family. There is a skill level obtained when you make thousands and thousands of pots. You need to be a skilled potter to be an artist, but how skilled? You have to have control over your clay. However while production potters are pumping out the pots, hobby potters have the time to play with the one of kinds. It has been the oldest discussion since there has been a hobby and professional potter, who is the real potter. Is craft art or is it only that, a craft. You are what you think you are. If you think you are an artist, you are. If you think you are a craftsman, you are.As long as you have the skill to control your clay and the understanding and control of the process and you can make the clay do what you want it to do and not just take what you get, it really doesn’t matter what you or anyone else labels you, craftsman or artist. There is some very bad pottery out there that is seen as art and some wonderful work that is overlooked or just seen as craft. If what you make makes you happy, then you are doing it right. Keeping in mind, what makes you happy and feel good about your work will and should always be changing.Tomorrows work is always your best work.

Next Friday I work at a place called Sanctuary.http://www.ecsd.net/programs/alternative_education.html#sanctuary With these kids I will take a completely different approach. They have some behavior problems. Life has not been all that kind to them. We will talk about masks. We all wear them, so we will make some, talk about feelings and what feelings look like. It should be a good time for both me and the kids. I am looking forward to it.

Here are a few of the masks and suns I have been working on. They are fun to make and after winter hit last night with freezing temperatures and blowing snow a warm smile is be appreciated.

Until the next time.

Cindy.

2009-10-01T06:03:00.000-07:00

Mug Shots

September 23, 2009

My class at ACT starts tonight. I always enjoy them. It will fun to get out for a bit. I have been missing teaching. I am looking forward to when I start working with the kids. When I am working with the little ones I am the grown up that comes into the class, interrupts the normal day, and tells them to play in the mud. I do meet some children that really don’t want to get dirty. Sometimes it is a cultural thing and some kids are just cleaner than I ever have been or will be. I still find it hard to understand kids that don’t want to play in the mud. Lucky for me there on only a few of them.

I got up with my kids this morning. I am not sure if 18 and 20 can be called kids anymore, but I am thinking that my getting up with them won’t last long. John has to be at work at 7:00AM on Wednesdays, so if I get up with him at 5:45, work the day and then my night class; it will be a long day. Also at 18 and 20, if they can’t get themselves up, fed and out the door, it is time they learned how.

We are getting involved with Arts on the Avenue http://artsontheave.org/ We live just two blocks from 118^th Avenue we are 40 blocks south of all the events, but we have been in the neighborhood for a long time. They have asked us before but we have always been too busy, or that has been the excuse. This weekend we will go see what it is all about. It will be good to meet the other artists, promote the studio and the Clay Teacher. It should be a good time. Art, music, food what more could you want, oh yeah... drink.

Every few months I make 50 mugs for a corporate client. I am writing this at 8:00 and they are sitting in the kiln at about 600 F. They have to be delivered today. It will be a bit of a push, but we will have them out and sanded by noon, we many not have any fingerprints left, but the kiln will be unloaded.

We got the kiln unloaded, the mugs delivered and kept our fingerprints. That will eliminate that life of crime I had in mind but here are some mugs shots.

On the Road Again

2009-09-05T09:06:00.000-07:00

September 5, 2009

Wow, that was a quick summer!

The show and the Folk Fest came and went. I never did get to the show at the City Arts Centre or hear how it turned out. I haven’t even looked into getting the tea set back yet. The Folk Fest was good. We sold pots, made some money and made some good connections. We would love to do it next year.

We had a wonder holiday and trip this past summer. It was our first real holiday since 2004. The Folk Fest ended August 9, the 10^th we packed up and August 11^th we set out on a road trip. We have family in Chesapeake Virginia. Jim’s son Torrey is in the US Navy and we drove down, or across, to visit him and his wife Carrie. The first day we got to St. Lewis, 36 hours and then the Friday the 14^th we were in Virginia. We spent a week there and had a wonderful time. Torrey gave us a tour of his ship, the air craft carrier Harry S. Truman. It is huge but must be very crowded when all 5000 people are on board. We saw where the USA began. Went up to Washington DC and saw the president drive by in his motorcade. That was a rush. When we got there a number of men in black suits with wires in there ears were all around the White House closing down access. Now there are a bunch guys who take themselves seriously. Then suddenly all roads were blocked and out of the back of the White House sped the President and his entourage. It was cool.

Obama in the back seat.

We swam in the Atlantic, got beaten by the waves and after a week of fun, family and history we headed southwest for Nashville.

The family in the Atlantic.

Torrey and Carrie at Williamsburg VA

Williamsburg VA

We drove through the Smokey Mountains and spent one night in Pigeon Forge. That was a bit of surprise. Dolly Parton came from there so we expected a…. not sure… small town with a monument or something. Coming out of the back woods of the Smokey Mountains into….. well….. Vegas, just no gambling. Lights, nightclubs, restaurants, hotels, shopping, street performing Elvis impersonators. It was more than weird.

It became weirder the next morning when we thought our daughter Kaileigh was in the car and she was standing beside the car leaning in to talk to us and we ran over her foot. It broke nothing, pulled nothing and now, just two weeks later the swelling is gone, just a bit of bruising left and she is walking normally. When we were in the docs office just after it happened I asked her how she was doing,she said the blood pressure cuff hurt more than her foot????

You can see the tire tread marks….ouch….

The holiday went on for almost 3 weeks. I will talk more about it later.

The Clay Teacher is getting calls, emails and bookings. We are confident it will do very well. It is really exciting. I love the building of a business. When we opened a studio on Fort Road 10 years ago, it was a real rush to set it up, get equipment, attend shows, and build the wholesale cliental. We then moved to Jasper Avenue and opened the Gallery. It too was a hoot to get that started. We moved walls, well hired people to work, picked out flooring and paint. Once we were open we found artists, clients etc. A part of me will always regret that it didn’t work out. The much larger part is glad we are free from the daily responsibility of retail. The Clay Teacher gets off work at 3:00 and doesn’t work weekends.

That’s enough rambling for one day.

Until next time

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

Artist's Statements and Schtuff

2009-07-20T07:30:00.000-07:00

July 20, 2009

I am putting a tea set in an instructor's show at the City Arts Centre. They asked me to include an artist’s statement. I have always had trouble with those. I never have been comfortable with long and flowery explanations of how and why I created a piece. I never wanted to say anything like how the elements of nature combined with the elements of the spirit in a single work, represents them both, the artist or whatever. Maybe the work does represent some of that, but not on a conscious level for me. I make pots because I am a potter. I alter them, add to them, give them faces and make them one of a kind pieces because I want to or I have to, and for me, I’m not sure there is a difference. I started playing in the clay before I started going to elementary school. I have had many changes in my life since I was that little girl playing in the mud in my backyard. The one thing that has remained constant for all those years is me playing in the mud. I am not sure that makes me an artist. I have become fairly proficient at throwing pots. I am happy for the most part with what I make and when I take the time to do something more creative than production pottery; I really enjoy how it makes me feel. It makes me feel like me.

Here is the tea set. “Tea on the Run”.

I was thinking that I would rather put a face that I have been working on in the instructor’s show.The masks or faces combine sculpting, slab work and the wheel. They are the most recent and then therefore my best work, but not as good as I am going to do tomorrow. But I don’t want to put a mask in because we are doing the Folk Fest in a few weeks and I think I have a better chance of selling the mask than the tea set. Spoken like many artists, I need the money. I won’t add that to my artist statement. It seems that once you have to make a living at selling this schtuff, the art community will not see you as an artist.

Speaking of selling this schtuff, I have to get to work. I have been making mugs and small pieces for Folk Fest. I was pushing and put a bunch of mugs in the kiln, way too wet. But since I have been potting forever I know how to push… Yeah right. Of all the things that you would think I have learned over the decades of making pots, is that you can’t rush some things. I lost 18 mugs because I thought I could break the rules. Sometimes you get caught. Today is going to be muggy…..

Until next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

Plans for the Day and Family Pics

2009-07-08T07:11:00.000-07:00

July 8, 2009

It has been a while since I blogged. In the summer there is little to do with the Clay Teacher, especially since this is the first summer as the Clay Teacher. I hope the summers to follow have some Clay Teacher activity. I have been potting. The casserole didn’t turn out that well. I was trying to follow the style of another potter for the client. I didn’t like that style and my knock off showed. I did bring one that I liked. They liked it too and bought it instead of the knock off. They said would order more in lots of 10. It was a school and as of yet, no order. I think the teachers, the end of June, might have had more on their minds than casseroles dishes. I have the corporate mug order made but not glazed. I am waiting on more info from them. The store in the east ordered again, that is bisqued and cooling the kiln along with some internet orders and Lilia ordered a bit more. The east order was a good size. More dinner sets. I have made a number of dinner sets this last month or so….about 40….I am working on a dinner set now

About 4 years ago we shipped an order to a store near Toronto. They didn’t order again. We always stamp out pottery with Out of the Fire Studio and Alberta Canada. We received an email a few months ago telling us they had bought one of our tea pots from that store and broke the lid. They wanted us to make a new lid and had found us on the internet because of the stamp. I said I would try and send them a couple that might work. They got back and said that they would be in the neighborhood, could they drop by. They do live in Kenora ON. We didn’t expect them to stop by. They did and placed a wedding registry with us. At first the registry didn’t take off. It was a good size, 13 piece dinner set with a number of completer pieces. We had sold a casserole dish and a couple of trays and thought oh well. They told us last week, what wasn’t sold in the registry, they would buy. Since then it has taken off and they will have to purchase very little, but it has to be done by the 20^th of this month so his brother can take it to the wedding. I have been busy making dinner sets, only because we stamped the tea pot with our name.

Jim has redone Out of the Fire web site http://www.outofthefirestudio.com/ and The Clay Teacher ( I didn’t add the link here, if you got this far, you don’t need it). He has been busy as well. They really look good. Out of the Fire has been online since 2000 or 1999 it was time for the old girl to have a face lift. I’m not sure that time will ever come for me. Need yes, surgery no.

We have some running around to do today. We will get our business license….finally… It has taken this long to get the development permit so we can apply. There is a small wholesale order to deliver to shop down town. Then we will get our badges etc for Folk Festhttp://www.efmf.ab.ca/ we are in the craft tent this year. With the badges we get full access to the festival, even Wednesday and Thursday night when the craft tent is not set up. We hope the sale goes well. 85,000 people will attend that weekend. We should be able to sell something to someone. We will promote the Clay Teacher and the pottery. We are looking forward to it. But I am freaking out a bit. I am doing the “WE DON’T HAVE ENOUCH POTS!!!!” thing that I always do. I get this wedding registry done this week and I can put my head down and make pots. When I do that, I have the ability to make a whack of pots. How many pots do we need for 85,000 people, how many will they buy, what they will buy, and will they buy anything at all? Same questions different sale……..the nice thing about pots is they don’t go stale. They can sit in a tote and wait until the next sale, unlike bread. Also today we have a new client stopping by to purchase what we have in stock and then place an order. It is White Avenue store. We haven’t had pots on White Ave since…..years……When driving on White I often call it Wait Ave, the traffic is bad.

Pot Picks today are Grad Pictures… the pot is in my dress

Jim, Kaileigh, John and me.

Chin Picks

Kaileigh, me and John

King of the World Picks

Superman.

For more pictures of John's Grad see http://www.johnslowinski.com

I have to get to busy.

Until next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

For pics of the family and Grad Day go to http://www.johnslowinski.com

Pot Talk, Roadkill Teddy, Class Pics

2009-06-20T09:20:00.000-07:00

Wednesday I got the studio cleaned up, the glazing finished and we loaded the kiln. Jim and Kaileigh always come down when it comes time to get loaded….the kiln….. Jim loads while Kaileigh and I wash bottoms….. the pots…..and then Jim and I got it on…. the glaze load….. but we didn’t let it get over 200 degrees until Thursday morning. Two reasons, it was a large load and there is a lot of water and if the kiln goes over 212 when the pots are wet, the steam causes the glazes to crawl. Also there is a lot of wax on the bottom of the all the pots and when it burns off it stinks up the house. It’s easier to air it out when we are not sleeping. I don’t like all the doors wide open all night. We will get a ventilation system on the kiln as soon as we can. The pots are now cooling, 250 F. I had wanted to get them out yesterday, but as I said, it was a large load and it takes a long time to cool. We promised to deliver a casserole dish yesterday, but it was sitting at 900 F at noon, so we have to deliver it on Monday. That kiln load will be all shipped out by Monday. Orders come in and pots go out. The store in the east ordered again. I sent them a sample of the Prairies and they ordered, so I will send them a sample of the new glazes and see what they think. I will send Lila a sample of the new red as well.

Jim was messin’ with fonts and colours and came up with “our “font The Clay Teacher which I can't show you here, you'll have to look at the web page. It has only been three weeks since we started this process and already we have our web site, the wheel, projects and a number of bookings. I have emailed every elementary school in Edmonton and all the neighboring school districts in all four directions. There has been a lot of interest shown. We should do well. All I have to do is get the 100 plus samples made. Kaileigh said she would paint them. She does a nice job and seems to enjoy it. We have few done already. There is a learning curve to making the projects. I was trying to make Teddy Bears. I have two that aren’t ready for prime time. I have Psycho Teddy; all he needs is a little knife in his hands and the EEE EEE EEE music in the background. I also have Road Kill Teddy. He too has stay out of the catalogue for obvious reasons. I know what I did is wrong or right depending on your perspective, but now I know how to make cute Teddies that will not give little ones nightmares. We have a few samples done, but we will be over run with little projects by the fall.

John and I found a suit. He goes for fitting on Monday. We didn’t get the $99 one or the one for $1800 or $2800 or whatever it was. We found a nice one that looks very good on him. It is more than I had intended, (everything is always more than I intended) but he will help to pay for the more than I intended. Shoes, shirt, tie and the little pocket thingy all add up. He is very fussy about his clothes. He has to wear the best, or I should say he wants to. I don’t know where that came from. I have been a potter for years and for me dressed up is clean jeans and it didn’t come from his dad’s side. His grad is next Tuesday, we will take pictures and I will put them here. I will dress up in more than clean jeans and not embarrass the boy.

I have only one adult pottery class left. I am looking forward to not having a schedule for a while. I enjoy teaching, but it is nice to have a break. I will teach two nights in the fall. Here are some shots of pots from last Wednesday night. They are a great group. As I said before, all but one are beginners.

Pot Picks today are all from my students glazing class last Wednesday.

Until next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

Bookings ,Snakes, and a Cow

2009-06-18T12:17:00.000-07:00

I did get the pots made and in the kiln on Sunday. I didn’t make the corporate mugs. He isn’t expecting them until next month. The ones I made are cooling and I will glaze today or tomorrow. She is expecting me to ship Saturday. I like to give me some room. I had a contract with a company that does kinda what we are doing but just does it differently. That contract ran out on Friday. Yesterday Jim and I drove and around and delivered all the projects from that contract. We are free to move on to the next chapter. I like driving around with Jim, but I could spend my time being more productive. I wanted to go this time, it was the last delivery, one was out of town, the sun was shining, I had nothing to do here at home……yeah right….

I sent out emails to the schools telling them about The Clay Teacher. We have four bookings already. There are a lot of schools out there and that’s why I didn’t make Robert his mugs. I was glued to this pc creating a mailing list and sending emails.

We are really excited about The Clay Teacher. I have been making production pottery for years. I like to make pots. When I am down in my little studio throwing, it feels like me, but after awhile of production work…..well… The Thrill is Gone……That’s why the Clay Teacher works so well. I don’t have to do production so when I am in my studio, throwing and feeling like me, I will be making what I want to make and not what I am told to make. I really enjoy the kids and I love making pots and sculpting. What better life can you ask for but to have two jobs and love them both? Unlike some married people that say they could never work with their spouse, Jim and I work well together and we have fun.

I hope to get to that kiln today. It is still a bit warm, 750 F at 6:00 am….. we’ll see. I have to clean up down there. I work with out a splash pan and it’s a real mess from the last orders. I got a rush teapot order last night, so that has to be thrown today. We go see a lady about her bathroom. We do sink and tiles, she is redoing her bathroom and we are making her sink and backsplash. I can get that thrown and in the kiln with the teapot. Delivery on the teapot is June 27.

I saw this joke and thought it was funny.

Last year I had phone call from a minister from… oh I forget now… a very southern state, perhaps Georgia and we talked about God, clay and the process. We worked together on his sermon. It was interesting, I enjoyed the conversation and I was happy to help. I wasn’t any help on the religion side but I was able to tell him about clay. I had forgotten all about that until I saw this joke. With the websites, we get calls from all over. A man from Tennessee called yesterday. We was caught up in the layoffs and downsizing. He wanted to know if a potter was a good second career choice. He is 57 and has no experience. I was truthful and said no. It takes years to get to the stage where you can sell a good product. Then you have to find the market. I suggested that he take some classes, buy our DVD, make some pots and see where it goes. See if he has the passion for it first then look at it as a job. I also told him that the nice thing about working for yourself is you get to choose what 18 hours a day it is that you work.

Speaking of working for yourself, I should do just that.

Oh yeah…. Pot Pick of the Day is a very cool Thai cow bottle, borrowed from Lee Love on FaceBook.

This is what I mean by fun pots, the sort of thing that if I were playing I would like to make.

Right now I will make a tea set, sink and some tiles and play…. later…

Until next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

Suits, Sausage, Wheels and Glazes

2009-06-11T08:10:00.000-07:00

Monday I got Lila’s order thrown and most of the next order as well. Tuesday I got it all trimmed by 1:00 p.m. and then went suit shopping with my son John. I have called him Diddle Diddle Dumplin’ my son John his whole life. He never says anything, but I get the feeling that since we were grad suit shopping he thinks that I could stop at any time. There is quit a price range out there. We saw suits from $1800 to $99. I can’t imagine paying $1800 for a suit, especially for a 17 year old boy that will not be that thin forever, trust me, I know his mom. We still have not found the right suit. Grad is June 30.

Tuesday our daughter came home from a short trip to Dawson Creek, BC. She went there to buy meat. Yes, that’s right, 600 K one way. The Butcher Block (Lawrence Meats) has been there for 50 years or more and owned by the same family. I went to school with the man who runs it now. They make the best garlic sausage …period. She has friends and family up there, but it was garlic and the thuringer sausage that motivated her.

Wednesday Jim and I ran around town all day. We did some banking, bought groceries, registered The Clay Lady as a partnership and got her a business license. I found it interesting that since we store some business related items in a our garden shed, along side the lawn mower and snow blower, we are considered a major home based business. If we had a larger house and stored the stuff inside we would be a minor home based business. I don’t make up the rules, we just follow them. Also we picked up much needed shipping supplies and got her (The Clay Teacher) a portable potter’s wheel. It’s so cute. We got a Shimpo Aspire.

The last wheel I bought was a Shimpo, I bought it in 1975 and it’s the one I still use. I have put a million revolutions on that wheel and it just keeps going. It’s my friend; we have made a lot of pots together. As long as it’s working I can’t see me ever replacing it.

Wednesday nights are my adult pottery classes. What a bunch of great students, all but one are beginners and they are making some really good pots. Not first session pots at all. I will take some pictures next week of their work and put them in my pot pick of the day.

Today I will finish off the pots I didn’t get thrown on Monday for the young couple and I will throw an order of mugs. A local business man, Robert, orders 50 mugs every 4 to 6 months to give to his clients. He has been a good customer over the years and we like to make him his mugs. Friday I will have all those orders done and in the bisque Saturday or Sunday, most likely Sunday. Also today, I will phone Susan who runs a local gift shop and has been saying she will order for the last 6 weeks. She has been busy and it’s on her list. A call might just move it up a bit. We would like to get in that shop for the summer. We sold there a couple of years ago and did very well.

We have been working on some new glazes. That’s Jim department. I never had a lot of interest there. I like to have knock out glazes, I just don’t like to do the work to get them. Jim is good at that and here is his newest. We are very excited about this one. This is the inside of a bowl

Here it is on a Dinner Set.

It’s time to quit talking about what I have to get done today and go and do it.

Until next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher

"In the Beginning"

2009-06-07T09:34:00.000-07:00

This is my first blog as The Clay Teacher. Here I will talk of starting our business, any snags we have on the way, how it grows, or not, how I feel about the business, the growth, or no growth, the people we meet along the way, the jobs we do, kids, my kids, sisters, family… our life as we move into this new venture and it moves us.

I always thought Steppenwolf said it best when starting out on a new path:

"Well, you don't know what we can find
Why don't you come with me little girl

On a magic carpet ride.... "

Words and music by John Kay and Rushton Moreve

Jim and I are in the preliminary stages of starting up The Clay Teacher and very excited about it. One reason is the name; we couldn’t believe that no one had thought of that name before and the website was available. It’s such a natural name for….. well…the clay teacher….Another reason is I really enjoy the kids. I have none of the responsibilities a teacher. I come in, mess up the schedule, the class, and the kids and when everything is dirty, I leave. The kids have a wonderful time and so do I.

Jim and our daughter Kaileigh have worked hard to build this great web site. The day to day workings of The Clay Teacher, Jim will look after, all the web work, correspondence, booking, firing and deliveries, leaving all the clay and fun for me. I’m not sure that’s entirely fair for Jim, I do help him out and we like to make deliveries together. It’s nice to drive around and have a bit of time to ourselves. But between the two us we will have all our bases covered. I am really looking forward to the years to come and being…. well… the clay teacher.

I am going through the curriculum this morning and making a list projects that I think are related, fun and geared for the age of the student. I spent most of yesterday afternoon making pieces that as they are finished they will appear on the projects page. What I made yesterday is online, wet and not finished. If you visit the website often you can watch the progression of the projects. Today, when I am done this, my first blog, I have to throw the last of my wholesale orders. I still do some wholesale pottery just to keep my hands dirty and pay some bills. This lady I am making this order for has been a client for years and she has patiently waited for this order for months. There is no excuse for that and she has been so nice about it. I have been busy and I had cold for months, but I honestly have to say I have been procrastinating; I could have had the order done if I had just …. done it….. Tomorrow I will spend making more projects for the catalogue. When I am done the first catalogue it should contain about 100 different items, curriculum and fun based. I am open to suggestions in this start up stage or any time. With the web builder upstairs and the potter down stairs there is no stopping us.

I have to go to work and make Lila her mugs, plates and bowls. I have another order after Lila for a wonderful young couple. They recently got married, a friend gave them a gift certificate from us, and then they went ahead and ordered a lot more pottery. It is such an honour to have our pots plays such a major role in a newly married couple’s life. These pots will be in their cupboard and their life for years. Everyday they and their friends who come to visit will use our pottery. I have to have them done for the end of the month.

I just got the idea that it might be fun to include at the bottom of each blog a“Pottery Pick of the Day”. I am not sure where to start, but I will start with one piece I made over a year ago, but I liked him. I won’t always show my pots, there is a whole world of potters out there.

Cindy Clarke - "Thinking of Gym"

For more whimsy visit http://www.outofthefirestudio.com/potheads.html

I have enjoyed writing this first blog.

Until the next time.

Cindy

The Clay Teacher