baby steps

Thanks for the comments and encouragement! I'm enjoying dipping my toe into the studio these days even if only for little bits of time. The videos help me over the hump of returning to the studio and facing the "what do I do now" questions! Yesterday I talked Kenny into giving me an old belt of his that is nicely woven, making great impressions in the clay--as demonstrated by Sandi on her DVD. I used it to make a band to go around the rim of a box I'm making.

The box (for my recipes) will be a bit of a sampler. Each side is impressed with a different texture design. Have not yet decided if I will paint with colored slips before I bisque it. Or I may just cover with a colored glaze (^04) to see the reaction to the texture.

We are not experiencing the snow and wet freezing conditions that so much of the country is suffering right now but it IS cold here. The low last night was 18 degrees and the high today was in the low 20s--that is COLD for us! It is expected to stay like that for the next 3 or 4 days--we may even get a bit of snow tonight. Significant for me because when I went out to the studio today--after keeping heaters running over night--it was too cold to stay out there. Stimulated by Judy's most recent posts, I brought in my watercolors and rice paper and spent a while practicing my brush work. I am too tight, really want to have those graceful, loose strokes that I so admire--but not there yet.