Tool Talk - Stamps

I decided to start Tool Talk today. This will be a reoccurring topic of discussion where I share interesting tools and techniques. Ceramic artists love to brag about their newest 'found' tool. Finding a new use for some piece of junk in my studio is often the highlight of my day! Sad isn't it...

So my perfect find today came from a box of stuff that I had forgotten about. A friend cleaned out her studio and gave me a box of ceramic glazes that she did not use anymore. So today, I thought I would finally throw away that old cardboard box when I happened to find a tiny fishing lure box.

Now you know that my business is called lurearts (a story for another day) so I can't resist looking inside. And what a find. There were a variety of little antique letter stamps from an old fashioned printing press. It is not a full alphabet but I was able to put together a few short words.

The stamps are the perfect size for my new idea to make fridge magnets! If anyone out there finds a full alphabet of these babies, please let me know! There is something much more lovely about using antique letter stamps than those boring plastic ones that can be made to order.




Check out the fishing lure box too.

I love old design and typefaces. In another life I would have loved to be a designer...

Fav Artist - Ray Caesar

Its about time I shared this fabulous artist with you! His work is not only rich, beautiful and creepy, but has so much meaning wrapped into each piece. Check out his website http://www.raycaesar.com/ Trust me, its worth a look!

Squashed Rice Bowls

I just love making Rice Bowls! Recently I have been altering the rims to give the bowl a more oval mouth. I like the way that it gives each bowl a personality. I alter the rim just after I remove it from my wheel head but before I trim the foot. I have to alter is quite drastically while it is wet because as it dries, the mouth tends to creep back into its original round form. It is always a surprise once its been fired because the clay has a memory and keeps changing even into the second firing. Here is an example but it is difficult to photograph the subtle variation of the mouth.

Photoshop

Photographing artwork may be one of the most difficult jobs for an artist. Luckily, I have a fabulous husband that knows everything about cameras, lights and computers. Not so lucky, he is super busy and enjoys seeing me figure things out for myself. So, I thought that I would share my process with those of you who are not very computer literate (like me).

I love Photoshop. It makes it so easy for me to correct my photography errors. I know that light is the key to getting good photographs but I do not have a professional lighting set up yet. So, I have fallen in love with a few simple tools on Photoshop.

Once I pull an image into Photoshop, I try to keep the touchups to a minimum. I would rather be in my studio than stuck on the computer. First I crop, then I go to Image, Adjustments and adjust the Levels to get rid of empty information.

Then I tweak the color by using Image, Adjustments, Color Balance. I push up the Blue in the Shadows, the Green in the Midtones, and the Red in the highlights. This gives my work a richer look, more true to the real-life colors.

Then I tweak the Image, Adjustments, Brightness/Contrast if necessary. That is usually it. I shrink the image size and Save to Web. It usually takes only a few minutes to make a dramatic difference.
Here are some before and after shots.

Mastering Cone 6 Glazes - a review

Here is a great book that focuses on Cone 6. I keep this nearby in my studio when I am mixing the chemistry for glazes. It discusses not only the basics but how to create accurate glaze tests, fitting the glaze to your clay body, and approaches to develop your own stable glazes.

The book is full of beautiful photographs and is organized thoughtfully. Glaze recipes are included with corresponding images on various clay bodies as well.

Find more info at mastering glazes

A Good Week

It has been a great week. I found myself in 4, count them, 4 Etsy treasuries yesterday. I love being part of the EMT (ETSY Mud Team). There are so many inspirational ceramic artists out there. So, before I dive into my studio, I thought I would post some new olive trays. I am wondering which color would work the best. Any Suggestions on your favorites? From the top: Mint
Blue Hydrangea
Dark Olive
Brilliant Blue