Tile Installation Day!

The moment of truth!

And the moment of satisfaction for everyone to finally see these tiles on the wall...even though the kitchen itself is not completed. I will try to get back to this post later, and add pictures from a later date showing the finished kitchen.

I am always very appreciative of the care and intuition that a good tile installer brings to the installation of these custom tile jobs. The tiles in a mural, particularly, are irreplaceable, and each tile has to be handled with utmost care. These guys did a great job.

Click on the images to see them bigger!

To see more of these tiles before installation, and even before firing (interesting) scroll down this blog page to December 23 2007, and January 23,2008.

FINALLY! Tile Project Completed.

This kitchen back splash is finally ready to install! A couple of logistical things slowed the last stages: final measurements for the stove area (shown here) were hard to determine, and the narrow border pieces took a while to source, and to arrive...I wanted to have 2 full kiln loads for the last 2 firings...so I just kept painting sections as they were ready, and keeping it all for firing later. I did some extra little bowls and tiles for fun, and art work proposals for projects coming up now in January-February, while I waited...and now, at last, the back splash is all done. It has all fired beautifully...I am very excited that soon I will be able to see it all on the walls!

Remember! you can always click on the pictures to see them much larger!

Here you can see what these pieces looked like before firing

These smaller tiles are part of the section

that runs under the kitchen window.

Special Custom Pottery

Over the last 2 weeks or so I have had a few special orders for custom mugs and teapots.

This teapot is embellished with calligraphy. The unique shape of the teapot really lends itself to the liturgical theme.

These are two matching mugs depicting

two specific horses. It it always a challenge to portray an individual like this, and it is gratifying when the work turns out to not only look good, but to have captured something really recognizable that is unique to that personality. Apparently that was the case here!

This is a special order teapot, that will be followed in the next few days by some other matching pieces, not yet completed.

Kitchen Backsplash Continued

Here is an interesting interlude. This is the final section of the back splash yet to be fired!
It will go behind the stove.
This is what under glaze painted ceramic looks like while I am painting...The colours are sort of recognizable, but they are mainly shades of grey and pastel...the ceramic painter has to always keep in mind the colours as they will be when fired! Yikes! Its a knack...I have learned to just plain remember, and I also rely on fired sample tiles I have made that show actual little blobs of the colours, and I have printed stuff from the paint manufacturers- some are more accurate than others...I try to be very accurate! Sometimes its hard not to get fooled by whats in front of your eyes...its easy to forget for a moment that the work isn't going to be all soft and pastel. Some big metaphors for the enigma of human existence there.

Then of course, the firing not only brings up the real colours, it softens and blends them, and can even move them around a little. That's almost the best part: the Chaos. The kiln is a big player here.

Tile Backsplash Project

In the midst of all the mug and teapot and plate painting
for the Christmas shopping period, I have also been working on this kitchen tile backsplash project.
In these first pictures you can see my ideas on paper, and some of the supporting materials for the project: kitchen design elevation plans, fabric and cabinet finish samples, etc.
The cabinets are a lovely light lime green colour...and one of the fabrics features alligators, flamingos, lizards, etc, all of which the clients were delighted to see featured in my tile artwork.















Here are some of the finnished tiles. The will run all around the countertops, on the 3 walls of the kitchen, in segments. Some of the areas are only 3 or 4 tiles long, some are much longer; and although most of the tiles are 6''x6'', the section under a window will be made of 4, 1/4'' tiles.

Atomic Holiday Bazaar, December 11: A Big Success!

Well, dear readers and lookers...as you can see, I have not been a busy blogger...but I have been a busy maker.
This event, December 11th, was a terrific success, really interesting and very well attended. There was a line 0f 150 people outside the door when it opened, and that line stayed pretty much the same size for the next 3 hours....it was PACKED inside!




It was a mob. A blur.

I was so sad when it was over!

I cant wait til next year.

There were some wonderful outfits, and lots of good displays, but I never had time to take any decent pictures. Even most of the pictures I took of my own stuff were all blurry and badly composed.

It was a lot of fun to be in the room with a lot of other like minded creative people.