I had a problem with my wheel that had been growing for a few months. My wheel is a Bailey ST-50 that I bought in 2002 (now sold as the Bailey PRO-50R), which had been a wonderful problem-free workhorse until then. It wasn't spinning smoothly, it would start with a "jump." At one point I realized I could wobble the wheelhead. So I dug out the long-handled allen wrench that came with the wheel, which is designed to reach the set screw under the wheelhead that secures it to the wheel shaft. The set screw was a little loose, and after tightening it up, the wobble was solved. I thought I was good to go. Not so fast. The "jump" was improved but it was still there. Over the next few months, the "jump" grew into a "lurch." The wheel began making a knocking sound. Then one day I realized, to my horror, that all of my pots had a high spot on the rim, that would hit my fingers exactly when the knock would hit my ears. Every week or so, I would reach under the wheelhead with the long-handled allen wrench and try to tighten the set screw some more. I finally admitted that wasn't the answer. So yesterday, I turned the wheel upside-down and removed its plastic housing. The problem was immediately apparent ... there is another set screw under there that secures the wheel shaft to the belt system. And sure enough, that little S.O.B. was loose. Then I encountered another hurdle, the long-handled allen wrench did not fit this set screw. But I was not afraid. I have so much furniture from IKEA, I knew I would have the right allen wrench. Now my wheel is spinning smoothly and solidly again. Relief! I fixed the problem for free. I'm also feeling good about my decision to buy a Bailey wheel, since it turned out to be so easy to open it up, diagnose and fix this problem. Now I am only left to wonder, did this problem start because of the earthquake we had last August?
I'm only two weeks away from my first art festival of the year (Downtown Silver Spring Fine Art Festival, May 5-6), so I've been busy preparing some fun new gear for my booth.  I got some awesome new weights for my canopy! I need to thank Mark Cortright, from Liscom Hill Pottery in California, for suggesting this idea on the Ceramic Arts Daily Forum ... to make canopy weights out of steel bar stock. I googled the term "machine shop" and my town, and after a few phone calls I found a machine shop to make them for me. Steel bar stock is sold by the inch, and the machinist can tell you how much it weighs per inch, therefore you can design the weights to exactly meet your needs. I made mine 37 pounds each, for me that is heavy enough to hold the canopy down in just about every weather situation, and light enough to transport them by myself. They are 2.5 inch round bars, 28 inches long. Note the can of Rustoleum, these need to be painted to thwart rust. btw, I used 2.5 inch round bars because the machine shop had lots of it in stock, therefore I saved about $100 compared to having them order new bars for me. Overall, these weights cost me $220. They are so much more space-efficient than the dumbbells I was using before. And I have to say, they just look cool! I also made some reusable price tags. This is not my original idea, I saw another potter using these, and I don't remember who it was. I rolled out long coils of clay, then cut them into 1.5 inch nuggets, with one end cut at an angle. I glazed them with my glossy liner glaze, and now I can write on them with a dry-erase pen. Unlike the paper tent cards I used before, I don't need to tape these down when outdoors. And now I can easily change prices in the middle of a show.
And that's not all, I'm also working on new booth curtains, made from a fabric that won't wrinkle even if I'm trying. Plus a booth sign with a QR code (I'm so modern). And I'm setting up a MailChimp account for my email announcements, so watch for some way more attractive emails from me! ( click here to sign up for the emails)
Last month, I arrived at my Friday night pottery class complaining of hand pain. I had spent that afternoon trimming pots that were a little too dry, and all the joints in my right hand ached from gripping my trimming tool so hard. I said that I wished OXO Good Grips would make trimming tools. The best idea I could muster for making my tool handles wider and softer was "ace bandages." But Alan Dowdy had a better idea.
"Pipe insulation."
"What's that?" I asked.
A few days later, I spent a whopping $3 in my neighborhood hardware store on a package of pipe insulation, which is basically a tube-shaped piece of foam. It's perfect. Some of my trimming tool handles fit snugly inside the tube without any fasteners. For tools that have skinnier or wider handles, I made lengthwise cuts in the foam to make the diameter smaller, or allow it to open wider, then fastened them on with rubber bands. I've been using these for over a month now, with no pain! I get excited when I think of all the wear-and-tear I just spared my hands from, over the next 20 years or so. That $3 bought me so much more foam than I needed, so I brought the rest into my Friday night class, and we all made our trimming tools more comfortable!
The work of being a full-time potter is physically taxing on any day. Every so often, I get to have a day like this, when one ton of clay gets delivered onto my driveway. Right after taking this photo, I moved all of this clay, one 50 lb box at a time, down a flight of stairs into my basement studio. At least it wasn't up a flight a stairs. My arms and legs feel like jelly. Tomorrow there will be pain.
There are many reasons why I'm glad I studied graphic design in college. Even though I spent years dreaming of quitting my design work and making pots full-time. The fact is my education comes in handy, on a daily basis, for my pottery work too. The obvious advantage is my grasp of the term branding, which means I can choose how I want others to perceive my business (this might be the topic of a future blog post). But this post is about something more important ... a bedrock-level way of thinking that I learned in college and have been using everyday since ... the design process. The design process means that the first time you execute a new idea is just the first draft. A finished design requires cycles of revision and refinement. There are too many details and decisions to get them all right on the first draft. You must be willing to see the process through. Every successful potter I've met understands this. I've also met plenty of wannabes who don't. I always give credit for good ideas. Last year, my dinnerware design consisted of a square dinner plate, a round salad plate, and a flower-shaped dipping bowl. Phyllis Castells, owner of Heart of the Home in New Hope, PA, said that she'd rather have me offer two different sets ... all squares and all circles. I knew immediately that she was right. A year later, I finally finished the design of the all-squares set, which actually evolved into rectangles. I'm hoping to finish the all-circles set by next year.  This is something I've never liked about my square plates. When I drape a square slab over a mold, the clay bunches up in the corners, and a protruding lobe develops. It doesn't bother me that much, just a little. Enough that I decided I wanted to eliminate the lobe.
 I thought the answer was to cut a slab with a rounded corner. Wrong. It still made a protruding lobe, only now it was shaped like a duck's bill.
 I realized I needed to shave clay off of the corners, but still maintain a point. Here comes another benefit from my design background ... I can use softwares like Adobe Illustrator to draw precise shapes and curves. The three orange lines represent my first three attempts to figure out the correct curves and angles. They were duds, resulting in weird lobes in other places. Ugh! Every time I turned them over from their molds, I felt defeated. I thought "hey the lobes in the original design aren't so bad. I can live with them." But then I would wake up the next day realizing I was not satisfied, and I was ready to give it another shot.
 On the fourth try (the black line in the above image), it worked.
 Here's another benefit I took from my design office ... the perfect material for making the final cutting templates. These have a glossy surface that can withstand getting a little wet. I have a stack of these that I haven't needed in a while.
 Now I'm satisfied.
Mostly, I don't think it makes sense to idolize other people. And mostly, I don't have a problem taking credit for my own successes. I earned them. But I will declare openly, with gratitude and devotion, that Steve Jobs was my hero. I don't even own an iPhone or iPad, the newer revolutions. My hero-worship began long before that. My life would not have traveled the same path without his vision. Years before Apple overturned the music industry, the Mac did the same for graphic design and printing. When I graduated from college in the 90s, a design studio involved a large office, including a darkroom, heavy equipment, and toxic chemicals. Remember the smell of the wax machine, then cleaning our hands with Bestine? Within a few short years, all of these things fit into an elegant little box. This changed everything for self-employed designers. An almost zero overhead business. The design business was a satisfying career. But more importantly, it carried me to what I'm doing now. It subsidized my growing obsession with pottery, with money and a flexible schedule. And the know-how to run a small business. Oh, and it bought the house that holds the pottery studio. Another almost zero overhead business. A blessed life, and a dream come true. "Dear Steve, I couldn't have done this without you. Your magic changed my life. Wishing happiness for your soul. -Mea"
 If you only knew what potters wear to work everyday. It is not pretty. This is what counts as an advancement in fashion for us: new Crocs! And yes, I am really stoked about them! Tickled orange, you could say. The salesperson at the Crocs store talked me into these "Bistro" Crocs. They were designed, with help from famed orange-clog-wearer Mario Batali, for restaurant workers. They are less squishy, and more supportive, than standard Crocs. And they have a high-traction sole. I got them last week, and so far my feet like them better than the standard Crocs I used to wear.
Do I ever have days when I don't want to be in my studio? Absolutely! There are days when inertia is very hard to overcome. Say my shoulder hurts from throwing large pots the day before, or my legs feel wobbly from a long run. Combined with some oppressively humid weather, and maybe I've fired the kiln the night before, which means the studio is basically a sweat lodge. And the studio to-do list contains a lot of chores like cleaning the floor, or mixing glazes. And I've started a good book. On days like these, I might sloth away the entire day on the sofa in front of the air conditioner with the book.
Then there are days when inertia works in my favor. Like when there are 75 lbs of pugged clay waiting for me, the glaze buckets are full, the brown truck just hauled away six large cartons of pots, the weather is not too humid, the Orioles are actually winning the game that is coming through the radio, etc. On days like these, I might finish loading the kiln, then start jotting down the date, firing schedule, number of shelves in my kiln log. I'll look up at the clock to note the time, then go back and cross out the date, because it is technically the next day.
my shoulder and wrists remember
wedging all they could withstand
drove 400 miles with a dozen benjamins
to buy you secondhand
took practice to get to know you
at first too messy, sticky, or dense
years later your virtue is measured in tons
my gratitude more immense
recycled is better than new
perfectly soft and already round
easy to center, easier to portion
two inches equals one pound
a potter's work can overwhelm
mindful of fatigue and morale
a little help from heavy machinery
my indispensable pal
This is what springtime looks like in a basement pottery studio. If only I could get my outdoor flower beds to be this plentiful. And if only I could put these in the veggie garden to attract pollinators!
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