Killarney Provincial Park

Hi Everyone,

I haven't been claying the last couple of weeks because I was getting ready for a canoe trip. My husband and I finally decided to go to Killarney Provincial Park. It's about a six hour drive from home and we've never been.
It's famous in Ontario for its beauty, particularly in the fall.

The one thing I was dreading was a 3 km portage which we were going to do twice. I carry 65 lbs on my back which is most of the typical camping gear (sleeping bags, tent, clothes, sleeping pads, first aid kits, etc). My husband carries the canoe and the food. It was as hard as I was expecting and it was a long two hours each way but it's nice to know that I can do it.

The park is beautiful and I can see going back. But I'd double check the forecast before making any plans again for the fall. We had over 35 mm of rain one day which manifested in thunderstorms, high winds and even hail. Fortunately we weren't on the water that day, but only because of the weather.

Overall, not a great trip due to weather and other minor misfortunes such as equipment failure, but not a bad trip either.

I'm sure my husband will be posting more photos and more description on his blog so here are just a few of my favourites.



Cheers,

Sandy

Felt like covering a tin today...

So I did...



Inspiration is from the leaves and a Mike Buesseler technique that Janice taught at Guild a few years ago.



It came out OK, could have been better, but it's not bad. I baked the bottom circle first and then added the sides, but I didn't use liquid clay to cement the sides to the bottom. If you look closely you can see where the sides have pulled away from the bottom in parts in the bottom photo. I've not had that happen before, but it'll make me more cautious the next time I do it.

Not sure who I'll give it to. I think I'll try one with maple leaves and fall colours for my father for when he visits.

Cheers,

Sandy

Tears....

There are things that we don’t want to happen but have to accept,
things we don’t want to know but have to learn,
and people we can’t live without but have to let go.

~~ Author Unknown ~~

taken directly from Renee's blog.

Rest in peace, Sheldon. I wish I had been able to meet you.

A Mirror for a Friend...

Hi Everyone,

Today's craft was making a mirror for a friend. This was about my fifth attempt and I finally got something I pretty much like.

We have cubicles at work where we don't face the entrance to our cubicle. Bad Feng Shui, apparently. One of the women who clayed with us a couple of weeks ago has a mirror set up so that she can see who is approaching her. She liked my happy face cane and kept a sample on the mirror. She's on vacation at the moment so I thought I would surprise her with a hand made mirror for when she gets back.

Wow, talk about difficult for something so simple in concept. I thought to myself when I stole her mirror that this would be a two hour job max. Tried something last weekend, didn't like it. Tried a couple of other things later on in the week, still didn't like it. Finally came up with this design today but it was almost an all day task. Tried several different things even today.

Then it turns out that the thing is also hard to photograph. I guess I've never taken a picture of a mirror before.

There's a fairly thick coat of liquid Kato between the borders. To do it again I wouldn't do that and instead would probably have just used a shiny glaze.

Overall, though, I'm fairly happy with it. It's by no means perfect, but my friend and I were discussing our approaches to crafts before she left on vacation. We're both hackers, perfection and beauty don't come easy to us. Unlike my friends Janice, and now Anoushka, who wants to start claying and, I suspect, will be very much Janice like in her approach.

So I think my friend will like this. It might be a bit gaudy for her and I won't at all be offended if she doesn't want it in her cubicle. But I know she'll smile even if she politely puts it away somewhere else.

Cheers,

Sandy

And the crowd roars as Nick takes the stage...

Hi Everyone,

Years ago I did an exercise somewhere where you'd write down the five senses (sight, sound, touch, taste, smell) and then write down your favourite things within those senses. The idea is you refer to it when you're stressed or upset and it calms you down.

At the top of my list for sound is the sound of acoustic guitar, particularly classical guitar. I'm a sucker for it, within the first few notes I tend to start to melt into relaxation.

So you can imagine my joy when I found out that a colleague (and also, I'm very happy to say, a friend) started taking classical guitar lessons last year. Nick has moved from classical guitar to Fingerstyle guitar and has introduced me to some of the music, which, it turns out, I enjoy as much as classical guitar, if not more.

One of Nick's favourites artists is Antoine Dufour, who is quickly becoming a favourite of mine, particularly with this piece, called "You and I", which you can find and listen to here. Nick bought me one of Antoine's CDs at a recent event and I look forward to getting the CD autographed when Nick takes a lesson from Antoine.

Nick is on the shy side so I was surprised when he mentioned that he put a video of himself playing one of Antoine Dufour's pieces, Glimmer of Hope on YouTube. I asked him if it was OK for me to post it on my blog and he said "sure". Nick ultimately wants to write his own music and give performances. I'm very much looking forward to when I can get an autographed copy of Nick's first CD.

And now, without further ado, I present my friend, Nick, and his first step into fame. Sit back and relax for four minutes as you listen to a beautiful piece of music.



Cheers,

Sandy

I've got the Blues...

Monsters that is.

Hi All,

This will be one of my last Monster postings, I think, for a while. I had created this veneer of cane slices for the demo I did last week and didn't get around to using it.

Turns out veneers and Monsters are a great pairing. I like these guys.

Cheers,

Sandy

Space something or other?

Hi All,

While playing with some scrap black and white clay I thought I'd try the Natasha bead technique. This little piece I had to cut out just to make a separate bottle. The first thought that came to my head was that it was sort of Space Alien or Star Wars type of creature.

I asked a couple of people at Guild what they thought and they were of similar mind. It might help to step away from your computer to give it some distance to see it.

Cheers,

Sandy