Craving....

This morning I woke up with a craving for pancakes. Too lazy to go out I thought I would make some but I didn't have any eggs. I bought eggs at the farmer's market the last time I was there and they were so good we ate them all up and I'm holding out for more farm fresh rather than the regular market eggs. I needed a recipe for bread, preferable something I could put the fresh butter and pear,cardamom and sage jam that also came from the farmer's market all over. I wound up finding a recipe for drop biscuits that took about 20 minutes from start to finish including bake time. Sold! Michael and I savored the fresh, warm biscuits slathered with fresh butter and homemade jam. I no longer crave pancakes:)
Click here for the recipe.

Playing catch-up

Clay shavings from all the new pots:)
(above) Bowls drying, hand thrown slabs formed over thrown bisque molds. (below) Rows of new rectangular dip dishes and salt and pepper pots.

Well I hope you got out to check out Pile of Craft because it rocked! It also left me pretty out of stock for most things. Not that I'm complaining (at all) but it has caused me to be locked away in the studio for the last few days. Michael and I did make it out for about an hour last night to check out our new local farmer's market and get some ice cream. We will be making it a weekly trip since there was some seriously tasty looking food there that we didn't get to eat since we had dinner before going. I did buy some tasty looking beets and a couple of grass fed, all natural pork chops to throw on the grill later. Anyway, I thought I would take a break today while some slabs are drying to give you a little peek at what I'm working on. The studio is a mess so don't look too close:) I also figured out what went wrong with that glaze a few months ago...I just looked up the original recipe in my sketchbook and when I copied it down for the studio I left out an add-in ingredient. Doh! I will be remixing and retesting later on so I'll let you know if the results are any better.

Pile of Craft TOMORROW!!!!

Having fun...

I'm having fun setting up my new computer, I love all the features! It's going to make posting pictures everywhere so easy. Now iphoto has a direct upload to flicker and facebook, how awesome is that? I also got the new photoshop elements so I can edit all my pretty pictures:) I can't wait to figure that out. Oh, and like how Mexi Cat has to be in my face whatever I'm doing? It's hard to type over big furry kitty. I actually have this same picture from last year when I was setting up Michael's computer...cat in my face. Ahh, cats.

New Computer:)

Well it's finally here. The last day of school is Friday (wooohooo!!!) and tomorrow I will have to give back my ibook that I've been using for the last 3 years. It was so nice to have it but it will be even nicer to have my brand new Macbook pro! Michael and I went to the mall last night to pick out my new computer. I can't wait to see how the new laptop works. It's supposed to be more environmentally friendly and keep a charge for 7 hours. It's also really pretty and silver. Unfortunately I was so tired after moving stuff out of my classroom yesterday that it's still sitting on the couch in the bag it came in. So my assignment for tonight (after I finish glazing) is to crack that baby open and get it started! I'll let you know how it goes in case anyone is thinking about a purchase:)
p.s. The photo is a concept pic from last year but it's the best one I could find:)

Farmer's Market Trip

Onions and Potatoes in a Naomi Cleary Bowl I bought at Art Star.
Fresh Basil that made my car smell delicious on the ride home.
Asparagus and English Peas sitting in the fridge.

This morning I had to drop Michael off at the Hon Fest in Hampden, for those who do not know what a "hon" is just think big beehives, spandex leopard print, cat's eye glasses and John Waters. You'll get the picture. Since I was up and out of the house early I made a stop at the Waverly farmer's market which is on my way home from Hampden. This was my first trip there this season and oh how I missed it! I'm glad they only take cash because it helps me limit my spending, I go crazy for fresh produce:) I have a system for walking the market, I have to do a lap around first so I can see who has the best stuff and the best prices. Then I get the stuff that looks like it's going fast, like strawberries and asparagus. Followed by the heavy stuff like potatoes and squash and finally... anything that needs to stay cold like butter and cheese or delicate like lettuce. The market seemed to grow a little this year and is extending out into the main street a little so I had to walk it about 3 times to get all my goodies. Since this week also brought me a new camera lens (so excited!) I thought I'd take some pictures of my veggies to share here. I'll be cooking like crazy this week to use up all that I bought! Do you have a favorite market near you?

Nutella Ice Cream

This past Sunday we had a little BBQ to celebrate my leaving teaching (no, not yet, June 19th) and because our friend Andrew was in town from La. One of the things I made for dessert was my friend Karen's recipe for Nutella Ice Cream. It was a big hit and there was only a little bit left for an afternoon snack today. The pictures are not great due to a bit of freezer burn on the still delicious ice cream but I wanted to share anyway. You'll have to visit Karen's site and check out all her great recipes:) And I promise to post more than just food soon, but I have been cooking a lot lately and who doesn't love food?

Nutella Ice Cream

1 jar (13 ounces) Nutella (chocolate hazelnut spread)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/4 cups whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Using a hand or standing mixer, mix the Nutella and sugar until smooth. Add the milk and mix on low speed until the sugar is dissolved, about 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the heavy cream and vanilla.

Turn the ice cream machine on; pour the mixture into freezer bowl, and let mix until thickened, about 25 to 35 minutes. The ice cream will have a soft, creamy texture. If a firmer consistency is desired, transfer the ice cream to an airtight container and place in freezer for about 2 hours. Remove from freezer about 15 minutes before serving.

Melt in your mouth cookies

Today I spent some time in the kitchen making a batch of melt-in-your-mouth cookies so I could update my recipe card that I give out to my customers. I am trying to practice my photography skills (for a new top secret project I'm working on) and since I don't have any new work left from last weekend's show I will post my pictures of baking day until the next kiln load. Let me know what you think.
For inquiring minds, these cookies are a vintage recipe that produce a very delicate and buttery cookie. Somewhere between a shortbread and a sugar cookie? They were some of my favorite growing up and I still love them! The only problem is that all I ate today was cookies!!!

Miami Egg Salad

I was browsing IKEA the other day looking for some props to use in my photographs and I stopped in the cafe for a quick bite to keep up my shopping stamina. I have long been a fan of their shrimp and egg on rye toast (that's what I ate while most kids gobbled chicken fingers and fries. Not me.) and I wasn't too hungry so I sat down with my sandwich and a diet coke. As I sat realized that the sandwich was kind of nostalgic for me, it really reminded me of my grandparents home in Miami Florida where I spent many summer holidays. I don't know if it was the cheap shrimp or the rye toast but something took me back. As I nibbled the tiny shrimp I started to think that there was no reason I couldn't make an even better version of this at home, in the form of egg salad! Here is my first attempt at the "Miami Egg Salad Sandwich" although I haven't bought bread since discovering making it myself so this sandwich is served on homemade sourdough instead of the rye that I think would make it complete. Next time.

Miami Egg Salad
1 cup cold cooked shrimp, tails and veins removed
6 hard boiled eggs*
2Tbs freshly chopped dill
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
1/4 (or less) cup of mayo
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

*To cook a hard boiled egg first place the eggs in a saucepan and cover with water by about an inch. Bring to a boil and turn off the heat. Cover the pan and let everything sit for about 10 minutes. Transfer the eggs to an ice bath to cool and peel!

Chop the shrimp and eggs into smaller pieces and place in a medium bowl. Chop the dill and add it to the eggs and shrimp. Add the lemon juice and mayo, mixing until combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with rye bread and spring mix.

This weekend in Philly.

If your in the Philadelphia area this weekend be sure to check out the Art Star Craft Bazzar happening Saturday and Sunday in Penn's Landing. It's sure to be a great time with music, food, the water and really nice crafts. It's supposed to be a beautiful weekend and this would be a great way to spend it outside enjoying the sunshine. If you make it by be sure to stop by my booth and say hello!

Memorial Day Fun.

Yesterday we celebrated memorial day in true Baltimore fashion. We went to our friends row house BBQ, grilled, drank Natty Boh and played some poker. It was a nice way to spend a Monday. I hope you had a nice memorial day also:)

New work up!

New work posted on etsy, go check it out! I will be posting more throughout the week hopefully:)

Wedding Platter

I just made a platter for my friend Annie to give as a gift to her friend who are getting married. I think I might offer the design in my shop. What do you think?

Meet my family...

Hello Stranger! Yep, that's Stranger, our kitty (one of). Stranger is a tuxedo cat who enjoys chasing his food pellets around the house before eating them, catching bugs that fly into the house, plotting to catch the squirrels that run along the outside wires, napping on the heater, torturing his brother and snuggling while I'm on the computer. He is in a very intimate and monogamous relationship with a stuffed monkey named Merlin and his claim to fame is that he once caught a bird....while inside the house (we still have no idea how it happened since the bird *was* outside the house). While I decorate he sits in the chair behind my wheel, I keep waiting for him to make me some little kitty size pots. Sometimes he thinks that my works needs a little something more, or he's trying to sign them and take all the credit but either way I'll come in to a studio of little paw print plates sitting on my shelves. Yes, I said shelves. He likes to jump up on my full shelves and watch my heart leap from my chest as the whole wall of work wobbles while he balances like a little surfer. He does keep me company in the studio and even now as I type this he sits behind me on the couch kneading his paws into my back. Do you have a studio pet? Let me know in the comments:)

2 days in the kitchen

I've been avoiding my studio for the last 2 days. I'm not really sure why, I guess I just need a break. Instead I've been spending my evenings in the kitchen. It's a place where I am just happy. Some people hate cooking, for me there is nothing more relaxing. As soon as I start chopping or mixing my mood lifts and I start to hum and dance a little in front of the stove. My neighbors must think I'm nuts, if not from witnessing that then for other reasons I'm sure. Tonight I made a loaf of bread from my new book Artisan Bread in 5 minutes a day and it was so delicious. The whole premise of the book is to make a wet dough that you can keep in the fridge for 2 weeks and just pull some off and bake it as you need it. I mixed the dough last night and made a loaf while I cooked dinner tonight. It was such a treat to have home baked bread with our meal, I think it was the prettiest bread I have ever made and as you can see there is not much left. I didn't think to take the pictures until after we ate. I also baked a vegan Mexican chocolate cake but it's still cooling so I'll let you know how that turns out tomorrow:)

Double the shows...and the sun came out.

Well the rain took a little break today but the rumor is that it will return tomorrow just in time for the two craft shows Michael and I will be in. That's right, we split up our work and each of us is taking a show, two for the price of one! Wheeee! My momma is coming down tonight to help me with the show in our neighborhood, the Bizzare Bazzar in Hamilton while Michael will be hanging with the mafia at the Spring Art Mart in Mt. Vernon. If your in the 'hood you should stop by and check it out...should be lots of fun. Here is a little peek at my seedlings, they are taking off quite nicely, although there are some that haven't sprouted yet. I'm not sure if they just aren't ready or they are duds. Only time will tell I guess. I hope you all have a happy mother's day and treat mom to something special! Mine is getting to sit at the craft show with me all day:) She is getting a very nice tea set and some other goodies though (including one of those garden dibbles and a scarf from Red Praire Press). We might even go out for crabs!

Rain, rain go away...

I feel like it will never stop raining here. We are having a week straight of rain. My plants are happy but it's really starting to get to me. I want the sunshine! It was such a tease to have those few days of 90 degree weather, I think it made us all crave summer. I'm also getting down to the final weeks of school and full time employment. Yesterday a girl came to interview for my job. It was kinda surreal. I think it made it a little more real for me that this is it and I won't be going back. I start to look around my classroom and make a mental list of everything I have to move out. It's such a mixed bag of emotions....what a ride! Most days I'm like "get me outta here right now!" and then some days it's more like "what am I doing? Leaving a good paying job in a tough economy to start a pottery buisness??" I realize how happy that thought makes me though and I don't know how I can't do it. I might be scraping for some part time work but I'm ok with that. Uuggg. I told you this rain was getting to me! Anyway, thought I would share this little still life of old bottles I made when we first moved into the house and I re-discovered when I was checking on my little seedlings.(I will share those photos later:) I totally have a thing for similar items all lined up, like a skyline on a shelf.

Another Peek...

Some more work just listed in the shop. The bunny plate sold already so I thought I would post some others:)

New work up!

New pots! Get 'em while their hot!

New York.New York.

This weekend Michael and I took a trip up to New York to visit some friends who live in the city. We are so lucky to live in an area that is so close to everything! It was a perfect weekend for being in the city, the weather was beautiful and everyone was bearing their white legs for the first time of the season, including me! We stayed with our good friends Laruen and Josh, you can see Michael looking out their window at the beautiful view of the city while sipping coffee on Saturday morning. During the weekend of sightseeing, eating and drinking I made a discovery that I had to recreate the minute we got home. Have you had Pinkberry? I knew the name of the company from the credit card commercials that were out a while ago but didn't realize that they were an actual company. They make this frozen yogurt that is just delicious (although our friends say that it can't compare to the yogurt stand at Bloomingdale's....did you know Bloomingdale's made frozen yogurt? cause it was news to me...) I found a recipe on 101 cookbooks (a fantastic food blog by the way) and gave it a shot in my ice cream maker (which had pretty much been collecting dust until another friend of our introduced me to Nutella ice cream). It turned out fantastic and it's pretty healthy since it's just greek yogurt, sugar (or splenda I guess) and frosty goodness. I also made a Raspberry sauce to go over it...yum. If you have an ice cream maker you should head on over to 101 cookbooks and check out her recipe, and also check out the Melon Sherbet, I plan to make that tonight!

Seedlings

I finally had a chance to try out my new paper pot maker and dribble set that I bought from etsy last week. I have a cute little seedling garden in my mud room now. I can't wait for them to start growing, hopefully I can keep them alive long enough to plant in the yard! It was nice to unwind tonight by playing in the dirt (not like I don't do that every day!). I taught my first workshop today to the lovely art teachers of Howard County and as much fun as it was I am exhausted from stressing over how it was going to go. It went smooth:) There was lots of interest in my process and it was nice to teach adults for once! Now I'm going to relax with the Wire....ahhh Baltimore.

Super Sale!

Check out my etsy shop for super savings! I'm having a studio spring cleaning sale and many items are marked down to half price. I'm making room for new work....just as soon as I scrape the glaze from my kiln shelves:)

Spring Bada Bing, this weekend!

This weekend I will be at the Spring Bada Bing Craft Show in Richmond Virginia. If you are in the area stop by and say hello! It's this Sunday at Planet Zero from 11am-4pm.
I will have some new work out but not as much as I would have liked. I just opened the kiln to find a total disaster. I am so overly paranoid about using new glazes, I tested this one first and it was beautiful so I made a whole bunch of plates with a nicely textured bottom that would look gorgeous under this stony matt glaze. Being so paranoid I didn't want the glaze to run so I made sure to stay far from the bottom and just for a little extra I put all the work on stilts. Well I fire my earthenware pretty high and since I don't normally glaze the bottoms I don't use kiln wash. Needless to say the pots all melted around the stilts, the glaze was not thick enough yet somehow managed to drip on 3 kiln shelves. Yep, 3...with no kiln wash. The pots are beautiful except for the underneath which is a nasty mess of badly applied glaze. Right now I am sitting on the couch, swearing off any more work for the night, giving myself a facial and trying to look at the positive. I really liked the new ice cream bowl set and now they will live in my cabinets plus I think I can make the glazes work. They are really nice when dipped but a hot mess when brushed. I am going to try adding some CMC and Veegum like I put in my other glaze. I really really want them to work since they are a nice satin and dry matt and I want that surface and color in my work! Ok. Enough whining. Shake it off and start again. Anyone have any suggestions for getting glaze off a kiln shelf???
p.s. I will be taking most of my work from the etsy shop with me so if you had your eye on something now is the time to get it while it's still here! I will relist when I get back:)

Spring Etsy Pick

Well I'm back. I had every intention of blogging daily during break but I got all wrapped up in the studio and didn't want to get sucked into computer land so I took a little break from most things computer. So now my break is over and I am back here at the desk typing away. Did you miss me? I missed you. There is something strangely comforting sending your thoughts into the vastness of cyberspace, if your a fellow blogger I'm sure you understand. So let me catch you up on a few things.
1. I have been a busy busy bee working away in the studio trying out some new mold methods and formulating some new glazes. The kiln is full and waiting to be fired tonight so hopefully I will have some pictures by next week to show for all my hard work.
2. If you are in the Richmond 'hood you should come check out the Spring Bada Bing happening this weekend. It's on Sunday and I will share more about that later.
3. In my last post I was tagged to share a few of my favorite blogs so that will also be coming soon.
4. I wanted to share this etsy favorite of mine, a paper pot maker from Wood Elements. I have been debating spending the $25 for a couple of days now. I love the idea of starting plants from seeds and I think this is such an awesome tool. I always have delusions of gardening grandeur at this time of year. I plan to plant veggies and herbs to have a bounty of home grown produce come summer time. Usually I end up with a few herb plants and maybe an overgrown tomato or two. Is it too late to start some seeds?
5. And finally, I have been thinking about re-working my blog to be a little less sporadic and a little more scheduled. It's still coming together though...

Spring Clean Out.

Today is our first real day of spring break, the weekend doesn't count because we would have that off anyway. It was somewhat productive but I can already see the days zooming by with out me getting everything crossed off my list, which is about a mile long. No, really, a mile. I did start the week by going to the gym and having my very out of shape butt kicked around by a young, very in shape trainer. It was my free trial for joining the gym.... Next I came home and sat on the couch drinking coffee and complaining to Michael about how sore my legs were after a whole 20 minutes of workout (he was not sympathetic). Then I mixed a few new test glazes and watched Michael play video games for a while and we ended the afternoon by cleaning the house and opening some windows (kittys are in heaven!) to get some fresh air. The house feels so nice and I'm working on getting rid of some things around the house that don't fit, collect dust or we just don't like anymore. I don't know how we get so much stuff when we hardly ever buy anything. Last night we went to our friends new house for pizza, beer and video games and I brought them a few of these little dippers for the new house. Hopefully this week will bring some new work and fresh ideas for spring. I'll keep you posted!

And the winner is....

Well this has officially been the longest week ever. Spring break is just a few hours away and I'm not sure I'm gonna make it. This years break is later than normal and everyone is feeling it. Tonight Michael and I are headed to the Hamilton Tavern (the H-Tav as we've come to call it) for yummy burgers and some much needed beverages! I will be headed straight to the gym after work in preparation! But I know what your really here for.....

The winner of my March give away! I think this is karma working it's magic because our winner is... Lillyella! A few weeks ago Lillyella featured me on her blog and today I pulled her name out of the hat, well ceramic bowl if you want to be technical:) Ok lillyella, you now have until April 7th to send me your address to claim your prize! (pinkkisspottery@gmail.com) If you didn't win this round don't fret, I had so much fun with this contest that I am scheming up another as we speak.....stay tuned for the next item up for grabs!

Last day to win!

Just a reminder that today is the last day to sign up to win the set of little dippers! Scroll down to see the post about it and thank to all who signed up to follow me, I will announce the winner tomorrow!

New Ideas.

This weekend I was busy at the Baltimore Clayworks taking a great workshop from Shoko Teruyama and Matt Kelleher. They did demos of building over a bisque mold and Shoko showed us all how she gets her lovely imagery on her pots. They were both really interesting to listen to and I'm glad I finally got some hand building lessons! I have been working more and more with hand building but I never really learned since I was so focused on the potters wheel in school. I pretty much feel like I've been making it up as I go but this weekend I learned that I wasn't that far off! Now I just need to find some time to get into the studio and try some of these new ideas out! Good thing spring break is only 2 days away:)

Follow me and win!

If you are signed up for my newsletter you already know about this giveaway and hopefully you have signed up to participate! I will be drawing the name of one lucky follower to win a set of little dippers just like in the picture! All you have to do is sign up to follow my blog in the box to the left. I will be putting the names in a hat and announcing a winner on April 3rd so be sure to sign up by midnight April 2nd. It's a fun and easy game to play and who doesn't like free stuff? Make sure to check back to see if you are the winner, I will need that person to send me their mailing information by April 7th or I will have to pick another name. So what are you waiting for? Go sign up to follow my blog!

Collaboration with The Broken Plate

A little while ago I gave Juliet from the Broken Plate Pendant Company a few little dishes I had in the studio. For those who don't know, Juliet makes lovely jewlrey from old and broken plates. Here is what she wrote about the collaboration....

One of my favorite parts of my job (you can call it that!) is being able to collaborate with some of the many talented ceramic artists of Etsy! This time around, I had the great pleasure of working with some pieces from Baltimore’s own, Pink Kiss Pottery. I have been in love with her work since I met her at a craft show many moons ago, so it was extra fun for me to make these. If you have not checked out her shop in a while, you are in for a treat because, armed with a new camera, her photos are as lovely as her new work!

As with all of my collaborations, $5 from each sale will go to a charity. This time we have chosen Art with a Heart , a Baltimore Charity that provides interactive, hands-on art activities to disadvantaged families and children, and to people with developmental and physical challenges.

I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed making them. They are now available in my Etsy Shop.