Happy New Year...oh wait. It's April already.

Oh the neglect!  Four whole months and not a word on the blog.  2014 has had it's highs and lows: if you have been following along on Instagram, you'll be pretty caught up with the good, the bad and everything in between. 

Around the 3rd week of January I was in a bike accident and I fractured my right elbow.  At the time, the doctor told me it would be months until I was back to normal and I just shook my head and said no way.  It can't be.  I have too much work to make. But here we are in early April and I just touched my shoulder for the first time in months.  I'm in Physio twice a week and my arm still doesn't fully extend.  So needless to say, I haven't spent long amounts of time typing on the computer.  All my energy has been in making the work that was on order and finishing up my website.  And writing applications, responding to emails and generally trying to keep up with everything that was absolutely necessary.


So thank you for understanding if you have come here wondering where I was.  We managed to take a couple of long-overdue holidays (Palm Springs in February and Portland in March).  I finished a painting commission (above), made 2 more paintings and then started my 2nd painting commission for the year, which I'm pretty excited about.  New work was photographed by Byron Dauncey in the beginning of February leading to the launch of my new website.  The bottle vase grouping image above even made it into the latest Uppercase Magazine.  Orders have been made and shipped.  More orders are in the works, and thankfully I can throw on the wheel again, albeit I'm a little slower and tire easily.  I take a lot of stretching breaks these days. 

That's about all I have for today but thank you for coming by here.  I decided not to include this blog on my new website for now.  Partly because I'm not sure how to add it without losing old posts, partly because I don't think I can keep this space as active as I used to.  The age of blogs seems to have passed, and while I still feel like it's a good place to have, it doesn't feel like I have the time for it like I used to.  I'm trying to limit my screen time while I'm at home- not only do I need to be more present when I'm home for my family, but I need to be a better role model for my boys with regards to how much time I spend online/plugged in and looking at a a screen.

Come sail away with me

 I managed to find a few things to spruce up the mantle a couple of weeks ago.  The oval mirror was a free find, but I picked up the framed embroidery on linen and camera at Value Village.  It's nice to shake things up a bit for spring and have something 'new to look at. 

It has been quite a busy week- thank you to everyone who stopped by my updated website and spent time watching my new video.  As someone who, after 5 years, is still trying to make a living (i.e. not just pay my studio bills) at selling what I make, I do hope you can appreciate the thought, time, and effort that goes into what I make and do.   I didn't launch the video as a 'how to' make ceramics the way I do, but as a bit of insight to the amount of work and care involved.  While the online craft community is a little over-saturated these days, I felt that opening up about my process would validate that there are makers out there that are really working hard to create beautiful, hand-made objects from scratch.  So thank you for your encouragement this week!

We are off to Princeton for the long-weekend to have a much needed break as a family at an amazing camp!  I was able to stock up on Polaroid film to try out an old polaroid camera that I have had for a couple of years, so I'll be back with hopefully some really beautiful images of the landscape!
Hope you have a great long weekend!

dahlhaus web-site update!!

The dahlhaus website is up-dated!

I just want to first off thank Tyler Payne, a great guy that I went to high school and then was at college and the Art school together with who designed my original site 5 years ago! Each year we are able to up-load new images, and add a couple of new features to keep it fresh and original - so I'm really thankful for such a well-designed site to start with!

Thank you to Curtis Hildebrand- who, without his amazing photography, my work just wouldn't look the same!  Please take the time to click through photos along the bottom of each 'category'- the photos at the 'back' of the site start in 2007, working to the most current work at the front of the site.

And of course, these up-dates would be no where without Chris Nott, my web-developer.  It seems like each time we up-date the website, he is off on a new adventure and yet is still willing to make the changes needed in a good amount of time. Thank you Chris!

Now for something that's been in the works all spring: the dahlhaus video!! Right off the top I want to thank Evan Bourque of Wilhelm Films for shooting and editing this video- he is super talented, is just starting out, and is already making amazing films! 

It has been 5 years (!) this summer since I embarked on this journey of being a full-time maker and artist.  To remember this milestone and to celebrate all the work that has gone into what I do, I decided that I wanted to have a video made of me at work in the studio. There have been glimpses of how I make my work here and there on my blog, but the big reveal is now up on this video!  Having a 'trade secret' has been great, the way I make my designs in glaze on each piece is a step-by-step process that I developed on my own and sets my work apart. It has been a total labour of love although my work can look really simple and un-laboured over, almost manufactured.  While not every step of me making my work is on this video in order, it gives you a glimpse of my hands making my ceramics each and every day. 

I hope you will take some time to check out the new site and video! Feed-back and sharing very welcome indeed! Thanks!

Then and now

My mom passed on a photo that she had found in an old photo album of downtown (Hastings Street?) Vancouver from the 50's.  It's always a bit astounding to see how much has changed in this young city of ours and how much continues to change.  This is a city that seems to be constantly evolving.  Every time I drive towards the Fraser Valley to visit my parent's or Dean's folks, the route is a little different.  The lines on the roads have shifted, there are new overpasses, and soon a new bridge too. 
Our little neighbourhood has undergone some huge changes in the last couple of years.  We live in an area of North Vancouver that has a real mix of old, small houses, along with some newer ones.  When we first moved here about 6 years ago there were a lot of elderly people on the street who had raised their families in the neighbourhood. We ourselves are in a cute old home- our landlord has owned this place since the early 80's, when much of this neighbourhood was still affordable. Now the prices in our neighbourhood are sky-high, and the only people who can afford the view are those also with the means to tear down the house and build a brand-new one.  So all around us old homes are being torn down and re-built to be large 'monster' homes.  More then ever I notice all these luxury cars driving down our street, or big boats and RV's in the driveways or out back.  In most cases, I can understand that if you have paid serious coin for a property, you want to be able to live in a house that reflects this.  But I can't help feeling sentimental about the character of our older neighbourhood having changed so much in so short a time. 

I'm very hopeful that my website will be up-dated, along with my video being launched some time this week (optimistically speaking). There has been so much going on studio-wise that is really exciting these days, that I am having to manage so many things all at once.  I've been really thrilled to have a studio intern from Emily Carr University start last week too- a really lovely gal who will be able to come by the studio once a week for some extra hands over the next couple of months.  Training has already started and it's nice to see she is a quick study.  It's my 3rd summer taking on a studio intern from my old art school and it's really been an amazing experience for me.  I seem to always find someone so lovely and keen to learn, as well as someone who fast becomes a good friend.  

Website Up-dates...

While we were away on holidays this past week, my ceramics gallery on my website was being up-dated for me with the new photos from the last photo session! You will notice that some of the photos were 're-shoots' of work that looks similar, but the quality of photos we got this time around is really great! We took a lot longer working on the gradation of grey in the background and also bouncing light off 2 white cards (instead of just 1 or not at all) for each photo and I think the results this time around really look amazing. The photos are really crisp and the work stands out!
Thanks again Curtis and Chris (my web developper)! Now I've just got to get at it to up-date all the print/retail info and my site will be good to go for a few months again!

Up-dates...

Well it takes a little while for me to get from here to here. But it's all up and the site looks all fresh and ready for a little while now, thanks to a few key people. Anyways, go and have a looksy at the new photos- you've probably seen a number of them here on the blog and on my selling site, but still- it's great to see them all together up on the website. (Something about checking this one off my list of things to do in the new year feels like I've really accomplished something, not that I did the photo editing and up-loads, mind you, I just co-ordinated and paid for that effort to get done...)