staging obsessions

The most basic goal of staging is to tell a story about the object such as scale, function, style. Since I am one of those curious people who must push the boundaries, the staging of my pottery requires many props that get moved around and regrouped until something intuitive inside me says its right. This nesting bowl set is in  my Valentine collection. The heart formed in the negative space of  bits of winter garden finds and pieces pinched from a bouquet alludes to VD. I like to use bits from my own life. My husband surprised me with flowers. It was an exceptionally warm day so I enjoyed scavenging the garden. I've been scouring Pinterest for a dessert treat to bake and send to my college girl. So the story of my bowls is richer than size and color. It is about the love transmitted in cookies and gardening and getting something delightful that was unexpected.

Each staged picture is a small collage of the everyday magic in m life.

thoughts for the new year

For 6 weeks I poured every ounce of myself into mugs, bowls, hand formed tree branches, owls,and jars. Let'a not forget the Birds Nest casseroles,which shipped in large batches the same day they came out of the kiln. Packing was never finished until midnight. Emails poured in from around the world from happy buyers. I admit that there is a buoyant trancelike high that comes with intense focus,hard work, and success. Doing something well is very satisfying. Getting recognition for that is a sweet intoxication. I didn't hit the wall of burnout this year but I wound up exhausted in that braindead bone weary state where you can't really sleep because stacks of orders and unread emails haunt your dreams.

My husband and I took a short trip over the weekend to soak in the mineral waters of Hot Springs NC, just an hour north of Asheville. We stayed at River Dance B & B, which has one of the most spectacular views. We watched the stars come out over a steep gorge where the Laurel River makes a sharp bend. We hiked, and visited artists' studios in nearby Marshall. We also treated ourselves to an herbal body wrap, massage, and facial before soaking in the mineral water. I want to spend some time doing creative projects that don't involve clay, making long slow meals and having conversations that do not involve electronic devices. Just for  a few days. I do have new designs in pottery brewing. My New Years goals are the same as last years. THIS time I will be fully prepared for the 2013 holiday buying spree. One can dream.... Maybe I need to book my spa weekend in advance. Crazy has away of putting on a new face and slipping in my back door no matter how many times I kick her to the curb. At least she has good stories, and the best jokes.

Its time to find that perfect balance between crazy and peace.

the home decor outside your door

I have gathered dried stalks, seed pods, fallen pine cones, and twigs. The many shades of brown are as remarkable as a rainbow now that the loud autumn has gone. There are also green textures, bright berries, and a few hearty asters. Here are some arrangements I've made with my daily finds. First, here is what I've gathered today:

I like to add some drama with gold, silver, and a bit of neon paint.If you do this sparingly,  it looks like natural pops of color in bright natural sunlight.










Here are some arrangements I've made:

I used this for a diner party:

When guests compliment my work I can talk of things made by hands and how I found a hollow log, a perfect pine cone, or cluster of purple berries; all that I find exquisite. One free thing can set you free. Occasionally.

Wisdom of my cat

This is Wally, who was born in my closet, manages my studio, and has shared with me much wisdom.

Everything is simple.

Love is like a war. Easy to begin but hard to end.

Treat everyone to the same affection you show a cat. 

I advise everyone to follow their dreams. Except the one where they forget to feed the cat.

Unless you are absolutely sure, sleep on it. And don't be sure all that often.

There are only 2 philosophies. Hiss and purr. Mine is purr

Beauty

Bird plates

Two things have influenced how I see beauty lately- age and TM meditation. Something shifted in me as I turned 60 this year. The voice that mourns for my youth and freaks out over the size 8 jeans that don't fit no matter what I do shut up. Thank you! It was getting on my nerves. I have also resumed TM meditation, joined by my husband and daughter who learned for the first time last month, so we practice as a family now. Twice a day, 20 minutes of the deepest relaxation imaginable. My husband's blood pressure went down and he no longer needs medication for insomnia. My daughter said, after the first week, "I feel happier." I have resigned my position as micro-manager of whether he sleeps or she smiles. I feel calmer! Freer.

Beauty is becoming more like wisdom in my eyes. It is a graceful sway to the silent music around us.

two kinds of flowers

flower bowl nesting bowl set in Organic Soul

Each day begins with meditation, then coffee, then  a look at the lists of undone tasks and unreached goals. Meanwhile the garden calls to me with unspeakably solemn lilies, wide open. I have planted my entire life, in one way or another. Why should I not merely sit all day and enjoy it? The bills are paid, the children are grown. 

Meanwhile requests for my pottery overflow my inbox and compound daily. They come in faster than boxes go out. There is a second successful garden I've grown, and this one has flower bowls. Unlike the lilies, these call out "Fire me!" "Glaze me!" "Photograph me!"

I'm learning to let both flowers have their way. It has dawned on me lately that there are also 2 gardens. One is what I have made and the other is what I am. A life of prayer and meditation have turned my jagged inner rocks into rich soil. Something else plants in this garden. 

It occurs to me that I have been enriched by the experience of making the flower bowls more than the experience of smelling the flowers. Pottery has always been my passion in this life, and perhaps my calling as well. I have hired an assistant to help me with the overflowing inbox, and plan to hire others to meet the demand. I'm not doing this to grow my business, as in profiting from the labor of others while I stockpile more cash. I am growing my business as a way to pass on the privilege it is to make beautiful shapes in clay, to master the skills, to refine one's attention to detail. I don't know yet how big it will be. I am excited to find out.

hiring in the New Economy

If we had written a prediction way back when I was in art school that a time was coming when artists and potters would be thriving while accountants and business majors suffered, it would have been considered a  science fiction farce. It's funny how things change.

Last week I interviewed a woman for a packing position in my start-up business, Lee Wolfe Pottery. It started up in 1976, and became something you might recognize as a business in 2009. Suddenly everything I've ever loved about pottery is wildly popular, and demand for my work since I discovered internet sales is way up. I've managed this growth by making multifunctional work stations in my home such as ping pong table/pack and shipping center. Dining room/order processing.

While this now looks entirely ordinary to me, I could see the interviewee, a 40ish woman, trying valiantly to hide  her disbelief that she was even in a place of business, let alone one in a rapid growth phase with opportunities for advancement.

When offered an hourly wage projected to double in the first year, she decided she was better off with her Plan A, which is to pay for more courses in Excel, tax preparation, and accounting. My husband kindly pointed out to her that these jobs are now easily outsourced to India for $3/hr. She gave another dubious look, matching the one I saw as I said "here is my studio," which looks like someone set up a summer camp in the 2 car garage. I know what she is probably thinking. Her kids are grown so it is time to resume the life she gave up to raise them as a single mom. She will go to college. She will take the practical courses.

So much has changed! Little internet home based businesses just like mine are doubling our numbers every 3 years. We are hiring, while 65% of recent college grads are unemployed. You might just want to learn what it takes to process shipping from someone's ping pong table while we find something on Hulu to watch and take breaks in the backyard garden. Welcome to the new economy.