The ClayFormed Blog

To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:(Eccl 3:1) My recently vacated Shed Studio... a little cramped! I promised to tell you the good news, so here I go... Are you a person who embraces change? Or do you like the stability of the familiar? My go to mode of operation is to welcome change. I think being a Ceramic Artist is the longest "position" I have held in my entire life. I am going steady on 30 years now. My usual stint is about

The bat on the wheel goes round and round...lol PATIENCE There, I said it. The bane of every potter's existence and one of the most difficult lessons in life to learn. I am grateful that I grew up in the 60's and 70's. Life was not so "convenient" then. I was not constantly bombarded with information from television, cell phones or computers. While life itself was chaotic at times, it was not this hyper-charged frenetic chaos that infiltrates and destroys a person's inner

This past year has been a rollercoaster ride of unimaginable miraculous highs and painful goodbyes. I will try not to cry as I think about having said goodbye to one of the sweetest souls, I have ever had the pleasure to live with. Age comes to us all, and my little peanut was no exception. Lucy had been with me for her entire life, minus 10 weeks, and she had been in mine for 16 years. I remember the first time I saw her. I was hoping for a Morki puppy but there were none

The First Day in the Studio We have all been there. Starting something new can be daunting. Your first day on the job, freshman year at college—those emotions can be overwhelming. It's crucial to keep things in perspective during these moments. For the past three decades, my daily time in prayer and meditation has kept my priorities lined up. Now, let’s talk about your first day in a pottery studio. That teacher who made it all look so easy? Then it was your turn to try those

I don't think there is any place more intimate for me as an artist than my studio. It is my sacred space. It is the one room that is fully mine, a place where God and I work out details. Details of everything from life to art. This is where He meets me and talks to me and shows me great and mighty things I do not know. (Jer 33:3) Wherever I have lived since 1995, I have set up my various in-home studios It is a must. My studio is an outward extension of my inward soul.

Have you ever heard of Thermal Runaway? "Thermal runaway is a self-accelerating process where an increase in temperature causes further heat generation, leading to uncontrollable temperature rise and potential destruction." Minus the "destruction" aspect and keeping the potential aspect, attending workshops where you learn new techniques have a lot in common with the process of thermal runaway. Let's translate that definition to suit our purpose here. "Creative runaway is

Wheel thrown and hand-built teapot/ Artist: Charlene Randolph I used to wonder what I was doing wrong when I would open up the kiln and find a good 10+% of the kiln with some sort of firing flaw. I use the term firing flaw because most of these issues don't appear until they go through that final intense glaze fire that brings both the beauty and the heartache. I spend hours, yes hours, in my mind before I ever approached the clay, excitedly contemplating how I would bring t

Where to get supplies for your pottery .

As I sit and ponder my life and where I want to "be" in my future, I first take a quick glance at the past. I remember graduating high...

I absolutely LOVE texture in clay! I love seeing a glaze come to life and do all it was designed to do as it flows over the hills and...

December 21, 2018: "Welcome to my Studio" Greetings everyone. Thank you for visiting my website. I am excited to finally bring some...