Bigger, Better
I was amused by myself today in the studio because when I first started, I overheard one of the other students talking about how they looked back at their early pieces and thought they were miniature. Adorable.
Now, even just a couple of terms back at the wheel, I'm seeing my pieces grow larger and larger, and also becoming more consistent, more controlled.
And since I'm feeling good about my cylinders, time to conquer the next fear: handles. Oy. Here are 3 that I pulled. Not feeling them, though. So next time, I'm buying a flat foam mat and using the extruder. We'll see what that yields.
It's been such a release to be back at the wheel, and an even bigger relief to know what life is like not being constantly attached to my phone, checking email, checking texts, checking my calendar every 10-12 minutes. (I am sadly not exaggerating with that number.) When I'm at the clay studio, I'm hours–HOURS–unplugged. My hands are covered in clay. I can lose track of time without having to worry about how many emails are in the inbox and how many annoying little tasks need to be finished. So the ritual of it over the weekend has been really transformative. And it's been really difficult carving out time for myself, especially since clay requires at least 3 hour chunks of time to be productive, but even that exercise of making time for something that isn't work has been really enlightening. And part of the ritual is slowing down. Today, I was escorted by my handsome Swede and silly Frenchie (below, she's eyeing a couple of Ewok-dogs comin' her way...) on my way to the studio, and we sat for a while and shared a croissant outside. I had some green tea. Måns had black coffee. The Goose sniffed some butts. Then, afterwards, instead of rushing home and getting back to work and emails, I read. Had some fried chicken by myself. Did a little refresh on Jung and a branding book from 2001 (vintage!), just sat there in the sunlight, soaking it up, and admiring how it goes through the water glass.
It was a little moment, and it meant so much.
I'm turning into such a hippie. Can't wait for next week.
