Back in the Saddle

After a successful Studio Tour the kids and I headed off to stay in Nags Head with friends. Awesome weather, food and drink but the fun didn't stop there. Their daughter travelled back to the mountains with us and they joined us mid-week for Independence Day follies. Add another family of four to ours plus the three from Virginia and we had a full house indeed. I'm still buried in laundry.


With all the company gone by Monday morning, I hit the studio hard. I have two arts and crafts shows coming up, and thanks to the TRAC Tour and my almost daily visitors, my stock is dwindling. I have high hopes of firing a cone 10 before Bele Chere in Asheville July 24-26 and a cone 6 before the Mt. Mitchell Crafts Fair in Burnsville August 7&8. I just keep thinking positive thoughts. Besides, I've been told that sleep is overrated.



Meanwhile, I became a member of Toe River Crafts in Celo which is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year. There is a special exhibit of member work and the above basket sold within a few days. I'm so sad to see them go sometimes.



I don't have any shows lined up for the fall but my main goal is to piece together a website. My head is full of ideas, but I really need to keep a slow pace: first make the work, then market it. I already can't keep up with my Etsy site and I feel like a bit of a failure. As for the website, I reserved my domain name 6 months ago and am looking into using some kind of template for the time being. I can always redesign it later, but I just don't have the time nor the inclination to reinvent the wheel.



So it's back to work. With the kids home for summer break, carving out studio time has been a challenge. I've been coaching my kids on how to be self-reliant while I'm working. This means not interrupting to tattle, cleaning up after themselves and making good lunch choices. Yesterday, Allison ate 1/4 of a watermelon and potato chips and onion dip.