Potion Making

My kids, my son especially have been really into potion making which mostly entails water, food coloring, baking soda, vinegar and occasionally salt and other spices I allow them to play with.

I like the look of the creations after he's done.

Mini Bud Vases

Small bud vase

My daughter and I went around the house this morning with scissors in hand and cut some flowers and then placed them in glass jars and stoneware vases and pots. I love keeping them in groupings on the kitchen windowsill and in various places in the house.

I love keeping the mini bud vases in groupings on the kitchen windowsill and in various places in the house.

  

Ready to jump in again!

Four mini green stoneware bud vases

It feels so good to be doing my thing again! I've had a lot of changes in the past year; moving, family health emergencies and small business challenges. Sometimes putting things aside for a while is healthy. Now I'm ready to jump back in. Check out my Etsy shop for some new additions to Dirt Girl Pottery. I've had some fun with my newer cone 6 glazes.

warm brown and burgandy soap dish

can also be used as a jewelry catch-all

Construction and 7 year old photography

This is a daily site that my neighbors and I get to see while we are going through a major contruction project. The city is doing the right thing by having all the sewer and stormwater pipes separated from the regular water pipes. But for us, it has lowered the quality of like since the end of March. Hopefully they will be done next month.

Here are some pictures taken from my daughter's point of view of her world. Her focus at this time pertains mostly to still-life arrangements, as you can see here in these two examples.

Hostas and Clouds

Three years ago my generous uncle spilt his hostas and gave me some. They are doing so well in my back yard with partial sun/shade. Right in front of them we have a bird feeder with a family of black and white warblers nesting inside. I haven't heard any peeping yet, but I felt the bottom of the house and it's very warm. I don't want to peek anymore in fear of the parents taking off.

I've been working on drawings of clouds in preparation of clay sculptures in their likeness. This is an idea for a four-panel painting/sculpture.Here is drawing for a landscape with clouds and trees. I'm am really looking forward to summer vacation when I can devote more time to my personal art.

Issues with Privacy

It's been months since I've blogged! To be honest, once you've taken a few weeks off from blogging, it's so hard to get back into it again. I had originally intended for my blog to be used just for Dirt Girl Pottery and my personal art, but sometimes that gets kind of old. But, I have promised my husband and mother-in-law that I would never enter my kid's names or publish their photos. Then, blogging about my personal life can be tricky when I have so many privacy issues. I am so happy that I have never put their pictures or names on my Facebook or here on my blog. I would love to share with all of you my life with them, but with all the crazies out there, that will not happen. I will not take the chance with my kids, and since they don't have a voice....I am their's. So, here is my little guy with an etch-a-sketch drawn by his dad.

NYC trip

I went to NYC this weekend with two Portland friends. We stayed with a college friend of their's, so the trip was much cheaper than it could have been. We went to the MOMA and I was able to see in person the pieces of art that I most admire. Works from Kandinsky, Klee, Picasso and Matisse made my mouth drop open seeing them in person. Here are some highlights:

Jackson Pollack

Wassily Kandinsky

Magritte