Lots of Pots!

Amelia and I survived our first show weekend! More to come on that....it sure wasn't easy! I have a bunch of pots in the studio which I will be listing in the shop this week (lots of mugs and tumblers are already there!). Just in time for the holidays!! Be sure to check 'em out and keep checking back to see what's new. www.pinkkiss.etsy.com

Mugs!

A batch of mugs for the holidays. My first glaze firing since Amelia. I sure hope I remember what I'm doing!

Introducing...

Our little girl, Amelia Rayann Bracco was born on June 20th 2012 (the first day of summer) at 6:29 in the morning. She weighed in at 8lbs, 14oz and is an amazing baby!

 Now she is 3 months old and we are loving every day together! I'm lucky enough to have a mom who lives 1 mile away and is helping me get back in the studio. I've already re-opened the shop, yay!, and plan to start doing shows again this holiday season. Of course we are taking it slow and only doing a couple to start with. Any potter mommas out there have advice for crafting with a little one? I'm keeping her out of the studio to protect her little lungs so no fear there!

Here we are in our favorite wrap (made by my momma) strolling around the neighborhood.

I won the SILVER!

I won the SILVER in the 2012 Handmade Olympics! Thanks for stopping by and voting, you guys are the BEST!I'm so proud of my little Elephant Pitcher (original illustration by my talented hubby, Michael).

Don't forget about my Mother's Day Sale going on in the shop right now. Use the code ILOVEMOM2012 during checkout for 20% savings.

20% OFF Mother's Day Sale

Celebrate Mom with a gift of Pottery!! In honor of my soon to be new status as "Mom" I'm offering a 20% discount in my ETSY shop from now until Mother's Day. Find great gifts for all Mom's (even the soon-to-be kind) right here in my shop.

Just enter the code ILOVEMOM2012 during checkout to take advantage of the discount.

I Need Your Votes!!

Did you know that the world of craft has their own Olympic Events? No? Well they do! The 2012 Handmade Olympics are well on their way over at the Rikrak Studio. There are 7 events and you can vote in all of them!

voting rules:
1. you can vote once in each event.
2. voting closes on friday april 27th at 11:59 EST
3. the top 3-vote getters in each event will be announced on monday, april 30th: when they'll be awarded their amazing prize packs! woohoo!!! don't forget, over $1700 worth of handmade and vintage prizes to be won!

 Please be sure to vote for my little elephant pitcher which is up for a medal in event #4  "your favourite handmade goodie that inspires wellness & loveliness." Paul Lowe, the mastermind behind the lovely online magazine and blog, Sweet Paul, was the judge for this event.

Be sure to check out (and vote for!) another of my favorite artists (and former Baltimorian) Chrissy Prusha Mahuna of Felted Chicken. Her Felted Koi is up for an award in event #1. Chrissy creates amazing sculpture with a needle and felt when she's not creating amazing sets for Hollywood. She's even crafty enough to make her own how-to videos so you too can learn her super felty ways! Head over to her website and learn a thing or two!

I hope you take the time to go check out all the crafty folks whose work made it to the top 10 in their category. I love all the work and am super excited to be nominated this year!

As always, thanks for your support Baltimore! 
xoxo
Shawna - Pinkkiss Pottery

I always know it's spring when I see the bunnies starting to explore my garden. This year they came a little early as did the lovely spring weather. It just makes me realize how quickly summer is coming and bringing a new little girl for us us to play with. For now I'm enjoying the time to myself to play in the garden, celebrate the signs of new life springing up all around and of course, watch the bunnies!

Featured this week

Featured in my Etsy shop this week! Even though I can't enjoy coffee like I used to I have been loving these single serving coffee makers. Perfect for an afternoon cup of coffee or tea with a tasty sweet treat or for those house holds where not everyone enjoys the same blend. An excellent gift for Mother's day!

Big News!

I know I haven't blogged in awhile but I've been a little busy. Michael and I are making a little person! She's cooking in my own personal kiln right now, due to make an appearance on June 21st. I'm taking a break from shows for the summer, hopefully I will be back to it by the Holiday season but I'm leaving myself some wiggle room for the unexpected. In the meantime I'll be stocking the online shop and some local stores with my work. I plan on creating until my belly is too big to throw the clay around:).

Stay tuned for baby updates and new work that I'm listing in the shop. Mother's day is just around the corner and since I am finding the holiday to be a bit more special this year I'm listing some great spring themed pots in the shop that would make a perfect gift for mom.

My etsy shop is finally open for last minute Holiday Shopping! I ship priority so your package will arrive in 2-3 days, just in time for wrapping.

Gallery style photos

Hi all! It's been a crazy busy summer and I know that I haven't been back here in a while but I wanted to share a new project of mine. I have been putting together a new photo studio for taking gallery style pics of my work. The goal is start submitting my work to a few gallery shows and publications. While I think the style of pictures I have been using for etsy (with the green backdrop) have worked for online sales, a gallery just won't take them for review. I will share my setup, which I did for under a $100 (not including my camera which I have owned for a couple of years now), but today I'm just going to post the pics I think look the best. I'm still working on lighting direction and detail stuff but this isn't so bad for a first try! What do you all do to take gallery quality shots?

Tumblers, perfect for summer.

Hi everyone! It's been a super busy summer so far, I hope your all enjoying it. I know it will be gone before we know it so celebrate while you can. My favorite summer piece this year is the tumbler. Not only is it perfect for an icy cold glass of tea or a tall bubbly beer, it holds the beautiful wildflowers you pick along your morning walk. The tumbler is just one of those pieces I reach for over and over again and I know you will too!

Garden Markers!

These babies will be available at Artfest tomorrow! I've been using the blackboard stakes in my garden and they are super cute. Write with chalk and change your message, use a china marker to make it more permanent! Both are made from terracotta and will last many seasons. Only available through shows right now:)

Boordy Vineyards Artfest

This weekend I'll be at the Boordy Vineyards Artfest! Come drink some wine and buy some pots! It looks like it will be a great day for outdoor shopping. Saturday June 4th 11am-8pm. Hope to see you there!

Hi there!

Remember me??? I know it's been awhile since I've posted here but I'm hoping to get back into it now that school is over, I'm sure your curious as to what I've been working on in my newly renovated studio! The truth is I've been a little frustrated in the studio lately. I started working with the porcelain clay, which I really liked in the forms of mugs and cups but when it came to plates I found that much of the details in my painted surfaces got lost. I tried a stoneware thinking that maybe a little bit of grog and a buff background would help retain the brush strokes but sadly, no luck there either. I just really like the terracotta surfaces. I'm now on a quest to find a new red clay body that I can work with and in the meantime, I've been going through my stash of Stan's Red in order to have work for the Spring Shows. If anyone out there has a nice red claybody that they like working with, I'm open to suggestions! Thanks:)

More Studio Shots

Here are a couple more shots of my studio space starting with my painting table. This table came with our house and was originally an old door. Someone added some legs and it became a table! I just painted it to match the green color I painted the door. These baskets hold my stamps and decorating tools.
Here is where my little kiln lives! I was pretty much sold on this house when I saw that the basement had a small "kiln room" attached. It's the perfect size for my kiln and I love that it's separated from the rest of the basement so I don't have to worry about the cats (or eventually a child) getting too close to a hot kiln.
This is our studio sink. My husband and I share it which is why it's covered in screen printing ink. I didn't bother to paint that wall!
Here is my finished work storage, which I'm so happy to have added to the studio. I can't believe that I had such a crappy system before. Now I have everything separated by what it is (mugs, bowls, espresso cups...) so I can see what I'm low on at a glance. The bottom TWO SHELVES are filled with "seconds". Yikes!
This baby is my brand new work table. Bought from Ikea, it is supposed to be a kitchen island which makes it really sturdy. I have two boards clamped to the surface of the table. One is covered in canvas and one in smooth slab mats for hand building. I have another set as well so I can switch out boards when I switch out clay colors (white to red) and not get everything mixed up.

Today was my first real day of work in the studio and it was great! There is still a period of getting used to where everything is now but once I get into the flow I'll have so much more space to create! Hope you enjoy looking and PLEASE go check out my etsy sale and help me clear out those 2 shelves!! Everything is being sold at rock bottom prices:)

"After"

Hooray! It's finally back to working order. Here is a mini tour of my newly organized studio space. Don't mind the dark lighting, it's really not that dark when your down there but it is a basement and it only photographs so well:)
This is my throwing area. The table is new and I love how there are shelves on one side and space for me to stand on the other. It's super sturdy so I can wedge and throw slabs with no problem!

Here is my packaging area. I hung some tension rods from the staircase to hold my wrapping supplies and it makes it soooo much easier!

This is my glaze table and dry material storage. Through the door is the kiln room. I wound up keeping my old metal chair and giving it new life with a can of spray paint. I'm still hoping for a more cushy chair to use in other areas of my studio.

Here is my in progress work storage and a wedging table. Michael gave me a little radio (above the scale) that I can plug my ipod in and listen to my music:)

I have a few more detail shots that I plan to share later. Of course there are still plenty of little things to be done but I'm just so happy to have everything back in working order. Tomorrow will be my first regular day back to work since the Holidays!

"Before " Studio tour

I'm getting ready to post a photo tour of my newly re-organized and expanded studio space but first I wanted to be reminded of what it looked like before. This is a great shot because I think it was actually "clean" when I took this photo! Yikes!

STUDIO SALE!

Well, I've been super busy this last week clearing out the basement, painting and re-arranging my studio space. I have lots of new shelves and a new kitchen island from IKEA to use as my work table. I love it! I haven't been back to work yet but I did start listing some sale items in my etsy shop. I have boxes of old work that has piled up over the years....pots that didn't sell the fist time around, pots that are from an old clay body, pots that have small imperfections, pots that were testers or prototypes and pots that I just don't like that much! I'm weeding through them and posting the ones that are still totally functional for a big discount in my shop. If you see something you like be sure to grab it since there won't be another one! I'll be sure to post pics of my studio space when it's all set up.

Back from the Holiday!

Hi everyone, I hope you all had a lovely holiday! Today is my "official" first day back to the studio after my holiday break but to be honest I'm seriously considering taking until the new year to fully get back into it. Michael has the week off from school and I'm really enjoying spending some time with him that doesn't involve working, traveling or visiting with family. For the new year I plan to clean out and reorganize the studio. My goal is to make enough space down there to bring on an intern next year. Plus, it's a dingy basement and now that I'm down there 24/7 I could stand to see it a little more cheery. We have a little money saved and I'm going to paint, get some new studio furniture (as of right now I work on a folding table and metal folding chair, yuck) and more storage. Any studio design suggestions from fellow potters working in smallish spaces?
Also, look forward to a HUGE sale in my shop as I clean out a bunch of pots to make room for my new digs:)