I'm very excited about this new line of tableware we're making. Here's a place setting (dinner plate, salad bowl, ice cream bowl) of blossomware in turquoise/lime, photographed in the September sunlight with fresh picked blackberries and heirloom English table linens and silver. This tableware is lovingly handmade in my studio. Check my ceramics blog for lots more photos and purchasing details.

my island home

engage with the season

The change of seasons is such an exciting time. My favourite way to connect with the seasonal changes is to take daily walks and observe the subtle, continual flow of change through the land, sea, and vegetation. Above are some scenes from my walk a few days ago. Right now there is rain, there are moody skies, busy frogs, fallen leaves, impressive flocks of geese, crows battling over the last of the berries. There is more darkness, and home is warmer. Smell of smoke in the air. Change can always be celebrated. Here are some simple ideas for celebrating fall:

• Buy a new journal and set down your goals for the season. Ask a friend to help keep you accountable. Be sure to have fun goals as well as dutiful ones.
  
• Take a knitting class, knit a bright and cozy scarf for yourself.
• Get out your slow cooker and make a delicious exotic vegetarian stew from this book, or try this beef stew recipe. (Thanks Kate!) The house will smell wonderful all day.
• Get some pumpkin spice soap and body oil here. It's so yummy.
• Host a wine-tasting party with only rich reds or dessert wines.
• Make a simple change in your livingroom to prepare for winter - make or buy new cozy bright throw pillows, paint one wall a rich warm colour, display earthy pottery, big bowls of apples or pomegranates, a vase filled with seasonal branches.
• if the blues creep up on you on a dreary day, spend the afternoon at a spa or aquatic centre where you can bask in warm water and have a sauna. I do this often in fall and winter and it is so healing.
• book an appointment with an acupuncturist or ayurvedic practitioner who can help balance your energies to align with the season.
• post a comment here with your favourite special fall celebration!
  

Art Journalling Workshops Coming in October - Live and Online!!

Above are some of the results from this summer's "Arts Bootcamp" mini-workshop in art journaling. It was a glorious warm August Sunday, and the grounds of the Arts Centre were festively adorned with tents and booths with a variety of art, crafts, and yummies. Ten students gathered in the shade of a big canopy, and we spent two hours sampling many different journaling techniques - with just 15 minutes for each page! What fun! The mini-workshop was so popular & such a success, that we decided to offer a 6 week course this fall, on Tuesday evenings at the Denman Island Arts Centre. In conjunction with this "live" course, I will be offering the same course on-line, and I'm really excited about opening up this fun and empowering course to a wider range of students than I can on my little island. Each week we'll be exploring a different type of art journal:

WEEK ONE: handmade watercolour journals

We'll learn super-simple techniques for putting together your own journal using watercolour paper, found and decorative papers, and your sewing machine! Once the journal is complete, we will learn simple pen & watercolour techniques for recording daily sketches or on-the-spot travel memories - whether or not you think you can draw. PLEASE BRING: pencil, technical pen, watercolour set and brushes OR watercolour pencils and brushes, a container for water, and some photos/memories of a recent travel experience or other meaningful event (holiday, wedding, new pet, new house, party, etc.) These photos are for reference only so feel free to bring originals. Journal will be provided.

WEEK TWO: beyond scrapbooking: creative play with photos




Using copies of our favourite precious photos, we'll create unique pages that communicate the beauty and drama of our memories. We'll learn various mixed media techniques for backgrounds and layering, and experiment with materials like metallic foils and water soluble crayons. We'll explore creative ways to incorporate text into our pages. Fun journal prompts will help us to compose images and text from our authentic selves.

WEEK THREE: altered books as journals









Using a variety of exciting altering techniques, we'll create a decorated journal with plenty of space for future writing on each page. We'll play with collage, random text, acrylic layering, creating pockets and inserts, and adding embellishments and personal ephemera. We'll have a mini "round robin", giving the other artists in the class a chance to contribute to our books.

WEEK FOUR: the memory painting






This week we'll create a stand-alone mixed media art piece based on a special memory. Working on light weight wood panel, we'll use layered papers, acrylic paint and inks, encaustic, and several types of photo transfer to create a richly layered image.

WEEK FIVE: life narrative: making a personal fairy tale



Using the skills we learned in the altered book and memory painting classes, we'll create an illustrated fairy tale about an important event in our lives. This can be a powerful technique for exploring and sharing our feelings about life's challenges.

WEEK SIX: the dream journal and collage as self-exploration
This week we'll explore the power of collage to reveal the inner workings of our minds and hearts. Emphasis will be less on technique and more on play and exploration. We will learn a few tricks for making your collages smooth and professional looking.
If this course sounds like fun, you can sign up here for the in-person version. For more information about the online course, drop me a line at info@linguaterratile.com, and check this space for updates. To see more of my own journal pages, check out the slideshow in the sidebar.

The quality of light has been so amazing these past two weeks or so - witness the late afternoon sun filtered through leaf shadows illuminating this little buddha in my livingroom... somehow I am having trouble soaking up the light, I'm longing for ease and focus, but these qualities elude me. I know what I need to do to feel better and regain that precious focus and creativity. I need to walk through the forest then all the way out to the end of the spit and breathe in the sea and sky, hear the voice of the water, see how the land and sky change day to day. I need to do this every day. I need to move my body, some gentle yoga with lots of breath, even just 15 minutes. I need to do this every day. I need to light a candle while I work and take little steps towards bringing peace and order to the cluttered corners of my life. I need to not yell at myself about how I am not doing these things. I need to spend mornings in the studio, with a cup of strong tea, some great music or inspiring podcasts, just dig in and get orders out, but also dig in and make all those cups and bowls and cake stands that are rattling around in my head. I'll let you know how it goes.

If Etsy were a real-world place...

Maybe you don't already know about Etsy. Etsy is wonderful and unique. So.... imagine this place, a HUGE building that is very easy to get around in, hip and beautiful, beautifully designed, built by some brilliant, artsy, but friendly young people from Brooklyn. In this building are a multitude of tiny storefronts, full of all kinds of art and hand made things. The tiny store fronts are all pretty, and are all staffed by the friendly and fascinating artisans who created the goods within. Said artisans are happy to stop and talk to you, barter, exchange life stories, talk about their creative process, or maybe make you a special custom piece. You might stumble upon some adorable miniature sock monkeys, then turn around and find, just across the hall, a jeweler reproducing exquisite Renaissance designs. Next you might come across some handmade chocolate vegan soap, a custom fitted retro dress, gorgeous throw pillows, and an amazing art photo, or just something odd and magical that you've never seen anywhere else! You'll find there is a real story behind each piece, everything is priced fairly, and there is something for every budget. Wanna go? Maybe you'll be so inspired that you want to open your OWN adorable little storefront, and you'll discover that you can, its fun, there is no overhead, you'll make new friends and feel welcome, get lots of help with promotion, and pretty soon you'll start selling your things. Etsy rocks. Please go see for yourself.

This is a piece I created in May, for my show at the Summer Gallery. It is a small, heavily layered piece with acrylic ink, photo transfer and encaustic on board. It is part of a series based on childhood dreams and memories. This is one of the only joyful pieces in that series; it draws on my memories of the rich internal life of the imagination I had as a small child, and the freedom and sense of belonging I had when I was alone in nature. The starry sky above me speaks of that freedom and sense of magic. I'm posting it now to participate in this week's Mixed Media Monday challenge, "Stars."

celebrations: two birthdays

my daughter turned sixteen yesterday, and my friend turned 32. I got to attend both parties, and spent the evening before making cupcakes.

cupcakes on blossomware:


Ondine looks for a cupcake recipe:

making caramel-pear batter:


Katarina & Ondine check the fire grilled halibut:


moondancer:


an angel in the fire:

sweet sixteen: bouillabase & champagne:

more cupcakes on blossomware: