19 August 2016

Mexico Kitty Ceramic Pot


I am so excited to show this little fella to you, he is the first thing I made in my ceramic workshop and I'm so pleased he is finally home. He is named 'Mexico Kitty' as he was inspired by some Mexican art I saw, with the painted design. Isn't he the cutest!


He was made using the snake pot technique; i.e hand built using long snakes to form a pot. I really like the shape of him, he sort of curves in like a nice plump kitty but I think its a really aesthetic shape. I then added four legs onto the bottom. Sadly I don't think I secured them well enough, so as you can see here they exploded off on the first firing but they have been very cleverly attached back on by David when dip glazed. David also put a hole in the bottom of my pot for the water to drain out so I also made this little stand for it to catch any water that drips through. This I just made out of a flat rolled piece of clay which I made dint's in for the legs to sit in so its all nice and sturdy.


The pattern was hand painted on using some oxide and water after I added the blue slip to colour the main pot. I really like the way this looks actually, its definitely something I will try again. I like how delicate the brush strokes are on something which is otherwise quiet chunky. With the face I cut away from the clay and then painted in the gaps but as you can see the oxide has burnt away during the firing process, which is a shame but I really see all this as a bit of a learning curve, there are no errors only happy accidents!


The final shiney glaze was added by dipping him in glaze, this helped to stick his legs back on, but we would normally paint the glaze on to the pot. After firing the shrinkage of the clay caused the glaze to crack which is the effect you can see above. David suggested that we paint over the pot with a watery acrylic paint to show off the cracks it has caused. We gave it a test on the bottom of the plate and it looked really nice so I applied it to the whole pot. I think its a really interesting effect.


I hope you like Mexico Kitty :) It just goes to show just how easy it is to make something amazing. I love this pot and as I said at the beginning this is the first one I made so it just goes to show what you can achieve when you give things a try. I have put David's flyer below for anyone who is local and fancies giving ceramics a go. 

Now I need to go and get on with trying to finish some of my sewing projects! Honestly, I have a pile so high of half done makes that I really need to tackle, they are in the way if nothing else!

http://www.davidwilliamsampson.com/Workshops.html


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12 August 2016

Interview Dress: Atelier Brunette Bettine



This post is going to get a bit personal so please bear with me.

I have had this beautiful Atelier Brunette 'like a dandy' fabric for a while now. Its really lovely and light, it feels a bit like a really good shirting cotton. I had originally thought of making a 50s style dress but since decided it was too delicate for a structured bodice.

I then recently go offered a job interview, but I don't do interviews very often (I think its now 3 in 10 years!) I obviously didn't have anything to wear. I decided to team this fabric up with my recent obsession for sewing the Bettine dress. The lightness of the fabric works really well with the gathers but it's structured enough to look a bit more formal. 


I'm really pleased with how this came out especially as I made the pocket version. Those pockets! they really are a brilliant addition to this dress. Sadly now when I put the other versions on I wish they had the pockets as well! The fabric is amazing as well, I genuinely can't think of a fabric that I've enjoyed sewing with more it just behaved perfectly, I'd definitely recommend giving it a whirl, the extra little expense is totally worth it. 


So now your desperate to know and I'm sorry to say that I didn't get the job. I'm not going to lie about it, I'm thoroughly pissed about that. The job would have been a promotion in my area of work which I believe I thoroughly had worked hard towards but sadly wasn't meant to be. I'm trying to look on the bright side and move forwards but i am still a little bitter. I keep telling myself it will hopefully lead to something better but only time will tell.

(I want to add an extra line to this, I am editing this post a week after i wrote it and I am much less bitter, and feeling ok in where I am at the moment so its not all dome and gloom).


Thankfully this set back hasn't killed the dress, I have worn it twice since that dreaded day without that bitter feeling because it just makes the perfect summer work staple, it really is such an easy pattern to wear. 

So that's it for my little ramble, but before I go, I am sure you've already noticed but can we just take a moment to marvel in my pink and orange hair (excuse to angle!!). I'm torn between it being amazing and really badly executed, and sadly I had a massive allergic reaction to the orange, so its likely to not last long but we can enjoy it while it lasts xx

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