Out and about this week

In the garden.
We went to the Tomahawk Restaurant (my first time at North Vancouver's oldest restaurant).  It was quite remarkable being surrounded by that many First Nations artifacts.
A lot of bottle vases came out of the kiln... again. 
I liked this Vancouver graffiti wall. And the scalloped edges on this Vancouver Apartment building.  I might have to paint that one...
Hope you had a great week and a good weekend.  We'll be watching hockey and having a kids' birthday party at our place!

In Process

It seems like my week goes by so fast these days and I am scrambling to keep up by thursday.  I've been meaning to glaze these new wheel-thrown vase forms in a new soft 'satin Matt' glaze that I mixed up in various shades of grey.  Hopefully that can happen today or tomorrow.  Won't they look lovely? Out of the 10 or so vases that I threw last week, I was happy with these three as a grouping.  Must make some more!
I must link today to the Luxirare blog- perhaps you've already found this AMAZING blog- for which I'm blown away by the Cuisine portion of the blog- the Pie Pops are stunning and look amazing, the Parfaits were jaw-dropping when she starts making juice 'caviar'... anyhow- photographer meets scientist meets packaging designer meets chef and I am absolutely blown away!

Making pretty molds

 

 Mold-making is something I don't normally do to make my ceramics, but it's a skill I'd like to develop.  Every now and again when I've done an intense stint of steady wheel-throwing, trimming and glazing and I get that nagging feeling in my wrists and elbows and a sore back I realize that my body has limitations.  I can't always do it all. And yet, the work doesn't just make itself.  

I got into slip-casting last year when I had a master mold-maker make a mold of a bottle vase form that I'd been wheel-throwing and then altering for a while.  It was an investment to get someone else to make the molds for me, however, the molds that he made were... perfect.  With barely a seam to clean up, and with the prototype being exactly 12% (shrinkage rate) larger than my original, it was a good intro to slip-casting for me. 

I've been wrestling with the idea of making other molds, for instance,  making my mug designs into a mold, but I can't really get over the lack of throwing lines on the inside of my mugs that wouldn't be there in a molded mug.  There is something about holding a mug and seeing the hand of the maker and the process that I get all nostalgic about.  Being that I feel so strongly about the work of mine that would be handled the most staying the most hand-made, I decided to give some slip-casting on a 'mini-series' or a little grouping of vessel forms that are outside of my regular work a try.  

So here's the start of this process- I'm working on a little set of dishes for my kids- and most likely other kids out there once I work out the kinks.  A small plate/bowl/cup, all 1 part molds to keep things simple and stackeable.  The molds above are the handle and bowl, I'm working on the plate and then cup over the weekend.  The molds all have to dry out before I'll be able to tell if they worked, but it feels like a good place to start. 

 

About the process: I used a broken plastic sheet from a flourescent light as the forms around my mold. Basically I used clamps to keep it 'round' a plastic bat or base. You have to seal the seams with clay so the mold won't leak when you pour in the plaster, but the pattern of the plastic make your mold look real pretty!  This idea is great for 1 part molds but L shaped forms are best for 2 or more part molds.

To make 2 or more parts to a mold, you can use "Murphy's Oil Soap" brushed onto the plaster approx 3 times (letting layers dry in-between) so the plaster doesn't stick to itself.  I also cast an 'overhang' top- no technical terms here, but a portion that allows the slip to stay above the lip when I'm pouring it in.  I cut off the excess with that top part on and it allows my lip to be even and nice.

a quick note of thanks!

Just a quick post to thank Jan from Poppytalk for including my Vase give-a-way on her blog and for all of you who have come by to leave comments about your favourite go-to flowers! I've really enjoyed reading everyone's fav's- some are mine too, while other flowers I've had to google- what fun! There's still lots of time to enter so continue to pass it along! I'll be announcing the winners on Friday (it will be a random draw) so stay tuned for that!

Vase give-a-way!

It truly is time for a give-a-way on my little blog, partly as a way to recognize that it's been a year since I started my blog, but also to thank you for visiting! While I started this blog as a way to sort through my own journey of making art, along the way I have been able to document the little and big things happening at my studio while feeling like I had some company in the process. Working in the studio in the midst of a busy season can sometimes feel lonely and isolating, but it was always great to come home and be able to know that someone out there took the time to stop by, say 'hi' and be interested in what I was up to!

So to honour this time, and to celebrate some of the little and big things happening at the dahlhaus studio these days, I wanted to give-a-way 2 bottle vases to 2 lucky winners! First off, I am really excited that the image of the 3 bottle vases with poppies (at the top) has been chosen to be published in a new book coming out called, 'Ceramics Today', along with 3 other images of work from my collection! The journey of these vases started on this blog, starting here and then moving to this stage, with the final outcome being quite lovely and a wee bit easier for me to produce! I'm really enjoying experimenting with different glazes and designs, this little bird design is pretty new and I love the softness of the lines and shades!

To enter my give-a-way, all you have to do is tell me your favourite go-to flower when you stop by the florist and want to buy a couple of stems to cheer up your home! Simple:) I'll have a couple of design choices for the winners and will announce it on Friday, September 25th! Thanks for entering and best of luck!

delphinium inspiration...

My new delphinium-inspired vase is ready for late spring and summer blooms in shades of plum and deep purple. Perfect for all those pink and purple blooms from the yard or garden! For more beautiful delphinium gardens such check out the 'Delphinium Stories' website from New Zealand.

Spring Bottle Vases!

Some new spring bottle vases are out of the kiln and available here for $34 each!