Fresh out of the Kiln! Wild Things

These great new designs came out terrific. The middle picture shows the pendants before the final glaze firing. The colors are just intensified during the firing process as well as becoming glossy. My daughter was pleased with her designs. She wore the green today to school and received many compliments even from students she didn't know. I just can't wait until I get the opportunity to make more in all the great colors we have planned, turquoise, pink, orange, violet, and a royal blue.

Remembe to check out the websites at www.TGLdesigns.com and www.TGLdesigns.etsy.com for more of our designs.

Spring has Sprung

Spring has sprung here in North Carolina. Look what is blooming at the studio. Several of my orchids are in bloom right now. I love orchids. I have been growing orchids for over a decade. The orchid pictured on the right was bought back in 1996 at the Miami International Orchid show. It is named phalenopsis Plantation Imp 'Forever Orchids'. It is a cross between Phal. Rousserole 'Plantation' and Phal. Gladrose 'Plantation'. The orchid on the left is also a phalenopsis orchid. It is named Phal. Kaleidoscope. This orchid is a cross between Phal. amboinensis and Phal. Red wine.

Today, I also received a new shipment of glazes. I now have 33 new glazes to test. Some will go in the kiln this weekend when I fire the animal print beads and pendants that I have been working on over the last several days. The new pendants that my daughter designed will be in that bunch. I think I counted over 110 pieces that will be fired. Keep checking back to read and view pictures of those new designs.

Stepping out on the Wild Side!!

Over the last several days, I have been glazing my animal print beads and pendants. On Monday, my daughter was home from school sick. After she was feeling better and quite bored of being home, she came into the studio and using the pictured bathing suit she found online at one of her favorite stores designed the porcelain extra large donut pendants. These are glazed in spring green(left) and pale yellow(right). We were so excited about this new design that we added more colors to my glaze order from Bracker's. In the future, we hope to have this design in violet, turquoise, orange, chartreuse and pink. I will plan on posting these pendants again, after their final firing.

Good Morning,

I have started the kiln this fine morning. This is a bisque firing of porcelain snowflakes, beads, pendants and a stoneware bird feeder. The kiln is fired to cone 04.
It will take about 4 to 5 hours to complete.

Last week was a crazy week. We started with about 4 inches of snow on Monday, I was sick with a terrible cold and could not even enjoy the largest snow fall in.. like, oh, I don't even remember how many years it has been since we have seen that much snow. The kids were out of school for two days. They loved the snow. Monday night the temperature was hovering around 12 degrees. Now, today, what a fine morning. The sun is shining and the temperature is going to be in the high 70's. Can you believe that. In one week, our temperatures have spanned 60 degrees. We have gone from winter to early summer time temperatures.
I hope to get some gardening done today as well as the kiln firing. My daughter, being the teenager that she is, wants to go shopping today, we have to see about that one...
Well, back to the kiln. I have some great new designs of snowflakes in there, as well as some new oval hollow pillow beads that I have ordered new sterling prong bails for. In the picture, you will notice that just about everything is laying flat. That is ok since no glaze is in the kiln that would cause things to fuse together. One of my bead trees is in there with pendants hanging. I fire these on nicrome rods to ensure that the holes don't shrink. I will have to hang the pendants in the glaze firing and if I allow the holes to shrink during the bisque firing I would never be able to get them back on the rods.
I have so many bisque fired jewelry components that need to be glazed. I have to get busy glazing. The next time I run the kiln it will be a cone 6 glaze firing. I will get some pictures of the before and after. It really is an amazing transformation.