Caversham Arts Trail - 13th to 15th May

The first weekend of the Caversham Arts trail was a great success. We are very much looking forward to opening again this coming Friday 13th May until Sunday 15th May between 11am and 5pm.

You can find me and my ceramics are at Venue 7 along with jewellery by Machi de Waard and knitted textiles by Jules Hogan. Come and visit us if you get the chance, we'd love to see you. 

You can download the leaflet which includes all artists details, opening times, demonstration information and a map showing all venues here.

My ceramics

New porcelain wall art I've just finished

Jules Hogan - knitted textiles at venue 7 

Machi de Waard also at venue 7

Julie Simmonds and David Pope at venue 2

Peter Quarmby, Louise Spiers, Mary Phelan and Sonia Olaniyan at venue 1

Nicola Duncan at venue 9

 You can see more images from last week here.

If you would like to know more regarding parking, restricted access and refreshments at each of the venues please click here.


This weekend you can also enjoy the following demonstrations: basketmaking,  silverwork, chinese brush painting, spinning and weaving,  jewellery making, slip casting ceramics as well as poetry reading. See the flyer for more information.


Five of the artists participating in the Caversham Arts Trail will also be showing their work at the Reading Contemporary Art Fair on 14th and 15th May. Look out for Louise Spiers, Julie Simmonds, Charles Burns, Sonia Olaniyan and Matthew Keeler at the Caversham Artists stand. 

Blue Button Coasters

A while ago I posted some photos of some new round button coasters that I'd just made. I've now glazed them and listed them in my shops. These are denim blue and the next batch due out of the kiln will be green. There are also a few other patterns and new colours too which will be launched for Christmas.

They will withstand the heat from your hot winter drinks, they have four rubber feet on the underside to stop them slipping or marking surfaces.

Time to start making Christmas decorations now or it'll be Christmas before i know it.

Bucks Open Studios 2010

This weekend (19th & 20th June) I will be at Bucks Open Studios at the Pugin Rooms, St. Peter's Church, Marlow, SL7 1NQ. There are 11 artists at our venue with a wonderful range of glass, ceramics, jewellery, sculpture and more. It's th 25th anniversary of the Bucks Open Studios so come along and help us celebrate.

Here is a taster of what is on show at the Pugin Rooms.

Glass by Julia Hayward.
3D Sculptures and more by Oenone

and a range of ceramics made by me!

We hope to see you there.

Product shots - what do you think?

I've been testing out some group shots so that I've got one image that represents my work. What do you think? I'm not a trained photographer and sometime take hundreds of shots before getting the right one. I've tried out lots of different angles, as well as different items in the shot and finally think I've got something I'm happy with.

I prefer this image out of the two shown here. It's amazing how perspective can alter a shot so much.

This one feels a little more traditional. Which one do you prefer, and have you any advice to offer?

I'm so glad I live in a digital age!

Preparing for the Christmas rush

Here are the cupcake holders i got out of the kiln earlier this week. I've been testing out muffin cases too but prefer the cupcake ones.

This time of year i often find i'm having one mad rush after another. Usually after nearly selling out of xmas decorations at every show i spend every night of the next week making more, this year i'm trying to prepare for the Christmas rush. This is this years design, more contemporary than last years trees.

I've also got a top tip of how to dry them flat, place them in between dry plaster, it will absorb the moisture and dry them out quickly too, great when you've got limited time.

I also experimented making some buttons, these are them. I've not put any in my shops yet as i'm still deciding what to do with them. I might sew some on my pots, not sure yet.

Hampshire Open Studios

Last week I went over to visit Alice, Caroline and Penny at their venue as part of Hampshire Open Stuidos. This Saturday (22nd August) is their last day and I highly recommend visiting them. Their venue is very welcoming with a really friendly atmosphere and lots of space to browse. You can see Alice doing a wet felting demo between 1pm and 4pm, it's well worth it. I want to go again this weekend but will be shut away in my own workshop creating new products.

I bought a few pieces of Penny's ceramics which are fab, i want to share a photo but they're for a friend for xmas so i can't risk spoiling the surprise.

You can see more of Penny Spooner's ceramics in her folksy shop, i love this Speckled Pink Pouring Bowl.

See more from Alice (Raspberry) in her folksy and etsy shops. This Natural Linen Tote Bag, with tangerine lollipop flowers looks even better in real life. Caroline Green makes a beautiful delicate porcelain range of jugs, bowls, napkin rings and more. This porcelain petite jug is so cute. See more of Caroline's work in her folksy shop.

Enjoy.

New gallery opening in Tilehurst on Friday 26th June from 5pm-9pm

You are invited to the private view of the opening exhibition of pottery and ceramic art at Bluematchbox on Friday 26th June from 5pm-9pm.

Bluematchbox is a brand new gallery for pottery and ceramic art located at 205 Halls Road, Tilehurst, Reading, RG30 4PT.

Look forward to seeing you there.