January Technique Workshop

WOW! Here it is, 2020 already. Not only a new year but also a new decade.  We had the first of our monthly technique workshops today with Let It Snow. We painted David Hoff’s Snowman with Friend. Used clay carbon to transfer the pattern, floated in a light blue wash around the design, blocked in colors and detailed with two darker shades, and outlined to finish the picture. Then we stenciled snowflakes around the rim, splattered over the snowflakes, and added a band on the outside of the rim to frame the picture. There’s lots to learn. Most of us had not used stencils before, some had not spattered nor floated. Here’s the group who came today.

MVCT January meeting

We are having a business meeting next Sunday, January 12th at 1:00. It will be followed at 2:00 by a Duncan University workshop by Larry Knight that is open to the public. Cost is $25. We will be painting “Classical Christmas on a triangle plate.

February Technique Workshop

The next workshop is scheduled for Sunday, February 2nd at 2:00. It is simply called “Valentine’s Day Workshop”. We will be using our new Valentine Silkscreen with the Old Truck and several sayings to choose from.  Painters will make both a plate and a matching coffee mug. Kids can do this technique but toddlers would need a lot of help. Cost is $20.

Future Workshops

Here are some ideas we are thinking through. Your interest and other ideas are appreciated.

• MUD on Easter eggs, either on a half-dozen actual size eggs, or on a larger egg, or on an egg box. Can offer a choice at the workshop. Note that some of them have jewels added to the design.

• Appli-Kate Technique

• Glaze Raking

• Slip Trailing (using cake-decorating bags and tips)

Carol’s Carousel Creations
Where having Fun is why we come!

So please help us out with ideas for our 2020 workshops.

Happy New Year
A Vision for 2020

We have already shared the list of things to do in the studio.
Here are some of our goals for the New Year, 2020

Construction

complete remodeling in the “kitchen”
complete rearranging the “studio”
create packing & shipping station
finish the bathroom

Promotion 

• Party Van workshops — goal is 2 to 4 every month
• Technique Workshops — goal is one every month
• Carousel Collection
  • make samples of small & large horses
  • update the Etsy shop & Facebook page
    to include other fantasy items.
• AfricanAmericanKids Etsy shop & Facebook page
• Gardening — arrange ceramic items in the gardens to promote using ceramics outdoors

Finances

• maintain dealership status at OCS
• establish Fashenhues dealership
• make a profit — we have yet to be out of the red 

Carol’s Carousel Creations
Where having Fun is why we come!

How you can help us reach our goals:
bring your friends to class
share our business cards 
refer us to nursing homes
Thank You for your Support

As many of you know, our studio has been a disaster for a very long time. We have been trying to get the studio organized while still continuing our regular schedule of classes, technique workshops, Party Van workshops, and Etsy orders. We have been especially busy with the holiday  season and extra gift orders.

This year we did not schedule any events for Christmas Break. Probably should have for those teachers, bus drivers, and children who are on vacation and looking for something to do. Perhaps we will plan some activities for the 2020 Break.

So, you ask, what have we been up to?

• The kitchen sink and cabinets are now completely down and the new wallboard is up.
• Jim is working today on the mudding of joints and divots
• We may get to painting today if dry enough, else tomorrow (green like the office side of the wall)
• White shelf units are assembled and ready to move into place when the kitchenwall is finished.
• Two of the five-foot tables have been removed from the front wall of the studio and replaced with black shelf units for bisque and samples. Some bisque has been moved to this side of the room.
• Mixed-color shelving that was on the inner wall was replaced with black shelving — so far one unit holds Fashenhues supplies, bisque, and samples; the other holds Azure alcohol supplies, bisque, and samples.

What is there still to do?

• Purchase additional black shelving units for both side of the studio.
• Remove last five-foot table to accommodate more shelving
• Shelve bisque and samples on new shelving.
• Make labels for the shelving.
• Hang sample plates and other flat items on the walls above the shelving.
• Reorganize supply boxes (to accommodate what was in the kitchen cupboards) and locate where more accessible to students.
• Put the “kitchen” room back in order.
  • even though no longer a kitchen, this room will hold bisque and samples that are used in a kitchen and need to be glazed — that is, plates, cups, steins, decanters, teapots, cookie jars, canister sets, etc.
  • organize student shelves
  • organize and label the glaze shelves
  • find location for two glaze craft carts and four bisque craft carts
• dust and vacuum studio
• dust and mop kitchen

Still on the to-do list

• store seasonal bisque and samples in closet bins
• reorganize closet
• clean desk — move stencil, silkscreen, and decal books to shelf more accessible to students
• install two ceiling fans with schoolhouse lights
• install additional track lighting past the fan/light
• install bathroom wall; hang towel rings, mirror, and bisque
• make and hang curtains in bathroom
• build spray booth with fan exhaust hood

Deadlines

• We want to have as much as possible finished by Saturday, January 4th.
• We reopen on Sunday, January 5th with our Let It Snow! workshop. This is a Free workshop we are doing for our students as a Thank You. We will be painting David Hoff’s Snowman with Friend on a dinner plate.
• Open classes resume on Monday, January 6th at 6:00.
• First Party Van workshop is on Tuesday, January 7th at the Inn at Ironwood

Whew! That’s quite a list. We will get as much done as we can.

Carol’s Carousel Creations
Where having Fun is why we come!

All the changes we are making are for the benefit of our students.
Making things more comfortable, more accessible, and more available!

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas!

Yesterday we held our traditional Christmas Eve Day Brunch where we celebrated with the family. Unfortunately, several of the younger generation did not get the day off so we were missing Amber & Dylan, A.J., Brittany, and Andy. Brent came later after he got off work, but didn’t get in any of the pictures. [Jim called me “Mrs. Claus” this morning because of my white hair and red shirt. LOL]

We opted for ham and scrambled eggs and tater tots this year instead of the traditional strata (which we may go back to as some were looking forward to it). The table was laden with fruit and veggie trays, cookie trays, Christmas breads, cobblers, and pies (we never even cut the pies).

Jeremy did a great job shopping at Dollar Tree and picking out gifts for everyone. He even signed the gift tags while Mom wrapped the items to put in the gift bags. Joe and Vanessa got everyone socks! Bombas socks, that is. It’s like saying we got gourmet socks and I am wearing mine right now. Picture is Jim with his Bombas socks.

Decorations were limited to part of our ceramic Christmas tree collection. However, I only took pictures of the people opening gifts, not the trees nor the brunch table.

Christmas Pictures

Joe & Vanessa & daughter Jessica; “Jessy” with her cat plate.

Joe opening after shave from Jeremy; Vanessa with her garden Ziggy;
and Deana with a firehouse for her Christmas village.

Deana opening perfume from Jeremy; Jesse & Tom with the dragon teapot.
Courtney and Killian in the foreground. We gave her the giraffe sunset plate.

Jimmy with a hand clapper toy from Jeremy; John with sparkling cider & a glass;
Jessica giving Jimmy a gift (and general chaos of the room);

Alice opening hand soap from Jeremy (she is like a sister to me).
Jim in the middle with a winter scarf from Jeremy;
his best friend John (nearly a brother, born a day apart).

Jim opening an organizer box from Jeremy; Jeremy with his Star Trek shirt
and with his Cleveland Indians shirt, gifts from his brothers.

Killian is our great-grandson, Jimmy’s & Deana’s grandson, Courtney & Brent’s son. He is 18 months old now and a ball of energy.
And he loves his new “K is for Killian” cup with the Hershey kisses inside.
Killian playing with his trucks; one was left at great -grandma’s house!

Despite missing a few of the family, we had a nice day, and sent them all off to the next phase of their family Christmas rounds. All had family parties Christmas Eve and more family to visit Christmas Day. It leaves Christmas Day anticlimatic for us but that’s ok.

Today is a day of rest and recuperation from all the preparations. I find that at my age I need a day off after every “eventful” day, just to recharge. So it’s work and play on the computer day, and maybe read another book on my tablet. Everything else can just wait until tomorrow, then it’s back to work!

Love and Good Wishes from Carol & Jim Warneke

Oh My Gosh, it’s Christmas and I’m not ready!

• It’s already Monday and I haven’t done Sunday’s blog,
• Didn’t clean the house and everyone’s coming tomorrow for brunch!
• Didn’t bake the banana bread (but Walmart had some I can buy).
• Didn’t get the tree up — but why bother now for just one day?
• Didn’t get any decorations out this year.
• Didn’t help Jeremy make any Christmas gifts

But let’s look on the bright side:

• We got all the AfricanAmericanKids Etsy orders done and shipped.
• We did get students’ items fired, some yet to be picked up as everyone is busy.
• We bought the food for tomorrow and the ham’s in the oven now.
• We took Jeremy shopping and helped wrap all his gifts.
• We made couple’s gifts — all are fired, painted, wrapped, and under the tree.
• We decorated the house with the ceramic trees that were on display in the studio.
• We hosted the Pinochle Club Christmas Party.
• We hosted the Annual Cookie Exchange Christmas Tea (Jim made pizzelles)
• We hosted two Party Van workshops where seniors painted mini trees.
• We hosted the November MVCT meeting and all-day banding workshop.
• We poured plates for the December MVCT meeting here next Sunday

So, why am I tired?

• Maybe because I am almost seventy-five years old!
• Maybe because Jim has lots of health issues this year, leaving more tasks to me.
• Maybe because I schedule too many things to do.
• Maybe because we are trying to reorganize and redecorate the studio, as well as run the business.

I remember the first year I didn’t bake Christmas cookies and how that made me feel. That’s when I realized that it is actually Okay to not get everything done.

I was reading my Facebook messages this evening and was referred to my friend’s blog. She writes so much better than I do and her topic is “Lowering My Expectations as a mom during the holidays.”  BearHavenMama.com

Carol’s Carousel Creations
Where having Fun is why we come!

And we will be back in the studio next year.
Sunday, January 5th, at 1:00, Let it Snow WS
Monday, January 6th, at 6:00 Open Classes 

Some time ago we posted about underglazes. As  the name implies, they are used under a glaze. Today we talk about overglazes. Again, as the name implies, they are used over a glaze. A third firing is required: first the bisque firing, then the glaze firing, and now the overglaze firing.

Metallics

Duncan has gold, premium gold, and white gold (which looks silver). When applying overglazes you must be very careful to remain clean. Use alcohol to wash your hands and to wash down the piece. Use a new clean brush for each color and save it separately just for use with that color. Apply the color evenly but not heavy as that will cause runs and drips. Each of these metallics is a different color in the bottle: gold is brown, premium gold is red, and white gold is green. They come in very small 2-dram bottles and are rather pricey, depending on the price of gold when you buy it.  Jim made me a small wooden block to hold the bottle so it doesn’t tip over. Cover your painted piece with a clean cloth, preferably a piece of sheeting or a pillowcase, to keep dust away until it is fired. Fire to cone 018-019.

• The vase is painted completely with gold, after use of a specialty product called brocade to make the design. Note that the finish on the vase is satin, with gloss only on the brocade. This piece was part of out Duncan certification training in 1974.
• The swan candy dish was clear glazed, then premium gold was added to the beak and around the edge.
• The dragon teapot was finished with white gold on the spikes, the horn, and on the ball.

Mother of Pearl

Like the shimmery, shiny, colorful inside of a pearl’s shell? That is what you get with Mother of Pearl. It comes in a small bottle (but not as small as the gold) and is dark blue in color. Again, use a new clean brush which you save only for this product. When applying use circular motion to bring out the colors. Keep clean and fire to cone 020.

Mother of Pearl is often used on white trees but can also be used over other colors.  Here we also see a tiny ballerina and a lamp base. It is difficult to capture the rainbow of color in a photograph but the lamp shows it best.

Decals

Decals are an easy way to apply a detailed colorful design onto a glazed piece. You can even buy your ware at Dollar Tree! Make sure to purchase ceramic water-slide decals that get fired. Cut apart the pieces that you want to use and immerse in warm water. When they move easily, slide off of the backing paper onto the ware and smooth out any air bubbles with a small squeegee. Let dry 24 hours to make sure there is no moisture. Then fire to cone 015-018.

Note that decals are placed on white glazed bisque. Putting decals over other oclors distorts the color. On the tea-for-one with the yellow rose, no other color was added. On the second tea-for-one and the personal teapot, underglaze colors were chosen that match the decal and that part was painted before the piece was glazed.

In the ginger jar you can see the effect of using a decal over a color. The snack set was puchased for only $2.00, then the decals were added. The last is a mini child’s tea set. We had a Mommy & Me Tea where the little girls added decals to their tea sets.

Note that these three overglaze products can be used on the same piece.
However, since firing temperature are different you must start with the hottest firing and move to the coolest; that is, decals (015-018), then gold (018-019), then Mother of Pearl (020).

Carol’s Carousel Creations
Where having Fun is why we come!

So, start the New Year off right by learning how to
add these special finishing touches to your pieces.

Technique of the week is Shading, more specifically, bringing out the detail in a piece.

Acrylic Stains

There are two ways of “shading” or bringing out the detail on a piece.

Here we see a blue cap and skirt. It is painted with a light blue, then shaded by adding a thinned dark blue, and wiping it back with a cloth so that it remains in the detail.

A similar effect could be achieved by painting the dark blue first, then drybrushing the light blue horizontally over the detail, To drybrush, use a stiff brush and make sure there is very little paint on the brush. Dab excess paint onto a paper towel or brown bag.

Usually one prefers the darker color in the detail. So paint light & wash dark OR paint dark & drybrush light.

Below we see a Santa beard painted white and washed with grey.
The Mill at the right was painted dark and drybrushed light. Notice that the shadows are all darker.

When sewing with my embroidery machine, I noticed that the best-looking patterns were the ones that used three shades of a color. For example a flower painted pink, washed or shadowed with rose, and drybrushed with light pink. Whether to do both depends on the effect you want and the amount of time you want to put into it.

Cartoons

If you think of a cartoon as a coloring-book picture, you don’t see shading within each section. To detail, simply outline and add detail with a liner brush, usually loaded with black.

Fashenhues

Fashenhues is a technique where you base coat, then antique with a dark brown, and finally add the color. In other words, the shadows are painted first. There is another post on Fashenhues.

Underglazes

Both of these pieces were “antiqued” with a dark color. Notice the white background. If you want a light blue background on the cup, you need to paint and fire it before antiquing, Otherwise the background color would come off.

Brushwork

This is a term usually applied to painting detailed designs with underglazes. It can be done on bisque and glazed later, or done on unfired true matte glaze before firing. This technique is called majolica.

The leaves in the holly wreath were painted by fully loading the brush with light green, then side-loading in a medium green. When brushing, the darker green was kept to the outside of the leaves. Then a third, darker color, was used to outline and vein the leaves. This was painted on a white matte glaze.

The daisy eggs were painted on colors. Rather than double loading the brush, a light color was pulled in for the petal, then a medium color 2/3 of the way from center, then a dark color 1/3 of the way. Each color overlaps the one before.  Leaves were painted by double loading greens on the brush.

Glazes

Some glazes are designed to fill in the detail as can be seen in these pieces. Look for “semi-translucent” or “semi-opaque” on the jar. Opaque glazes will tend to cover up the detail.

Detailing

Shading is just one form of detailing. You can add facial features and add patterns to fabrics, even make a plain base into a flagstone walk. You can add specialty paints such as metallics, snow, and glitter. Also, accessories such as ribbons, bells, and jewels. The only limit is your imagination. The fine detailing is what makes a piece really special.

Carols Carousel Creations
Where having Fun is why we come!

So finish up those Christmas gifts… then
come learn some new techniques in the new year.

Here’s a thought —
why not give a gift certificate
to a friend or family member.

Update on Hours listed in last post:

The MVCT meeting scheduled for Sunday, December 8th has been changed to Sunday, December 29th

Sunday, December 8th will be the last Tree Time starting at 1:00

Stencils

Whether cut from vinyl, cardboard, paper, or other material, stencils can be used in several ways:

•  Remove the cut-out design and use the negative space as your stencil.
  Trace the design onto the ware, then paint inside line with a brush. If stencil is paper or cardboard this way is best.

• Again, use the negative space as your stencil.
  Use a sponge to apply paint directly onto the stencil. Wash stencil immediately when finished. If stencil is plastic or vinyl this way is better and stencil can be easily cleaned
  

  

   

• Adhere the positive cutout to the piece.
  Paint the entire piece with a brush or sponge. Remove the stencil and the design will be the color of the background. In this picture the plate was marbled and the stencil is white.

Silkscreens

Silkscreens are similar to stencils but much finer in detail. We have a large selection of designs in our silkscreen library. Directions for applying silkscreen designs are different and are explained in another post.

Carol’s Carousel Creations
Where having Fun is why we come!

Some come on over and learn a new technique.
Experiment and play around with designs to
create a ceramic piece that is uniquely yours.

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Some interested painters do not have Facebook and thus miss my posts. To keep up-to-date with the website blog, enter your email address in the box where it says to “follow” and you will get an email whenever I post.

Sunday afternoons 2:00-5:00 Special Workshops
see announcements, Open Class if you don’t want to do the workshop.

• November 24 is MVCT November meeting, if interested in the project please inquire

• December 1 Tree Time
  order big trees ahead of time
  

• December 8  is MVCT December meeting, if interested in the project please inquire

• December 15 is Annual Cookie Exchange Christmas Tea, if you want to come please ask for an event invitation for details

• December 22 Open Class finish up projects or paint with stains. Firing not guaranteed for Christmas.

Monday evenings 6:00-10:00 Open Class

Wednesday mornings 10:00-2:00 Open Class

Wednesday evenings 6:00-10:00 Open Class

Friday afternoons 2:00-5:00 Kids Krafts

• Black Friday, November 29th 10:00 am to 10:00 pm
  Kids Krafts and Baby Prints,
  $10 includes one piece, paints, lesson, & snack
  great for making Christmas gifts

• Christmas Vacation, December 27th, 2:00-5:00
  Kids Krafts,
  $10 includes one piece, paints, lesson, & snack
  aprons & tote bags available for painting, mugs, snowmen, and much more

Carol’s Carousel Creations
Where having Fun is why we come!

So come on over and bring a friend.
Make your own unique, personalized gifts for friends and family.
Let the kids make their own gifts this year.
After Christmas let them paint something for themselves.

Technique of the Week

The box can be either glazed or stained on the inside. In order to use the container for food, however, it must be glazed. If stained, you can only put wrapped candies inside. The outside finish is a non-fired technique. It can be rinsed under water but not soaked or put into the dishwasher.

1. First lay out a sheet of waxed paper long enough to bring up around the sides of the piece you are painting.
2. Squirt a layer of shaving cream onto the waxed paper about a 1/2″ thick.
3. Spread evenly with a palette knife.
4. Choose two colors of stain for your piece. Here we used red and green. On small pumpkins we used orange and brown.
5. Drizzle one color stain over the shaving cream in an up-and-down motion. Drizzle the second color in a side-to-side motion.
6. Using a palette knife swirl through the paint and shaving cream so that it looks like a marble cake. Do not overmix or you will get mud.
7. Bring the waxed paper up around the sides of the piece and press firmly in place, making sure to cover the entire piece. It will be messy and the shaving cream will squeeze out.
8. Take the entire piece to the sink.  Toss the paper into the trash and rinse the shaving cream off the piece.  Pat dry with a paper towel.
9. Using a small brush, add some streaks of gold throughout the piece. Also paint the hanger on the top of the box.
10. Let dry and spray with a gloss fixative.

Carol’s Carousel Creations
Where having Fun is why we come!

What a very fun, messy technique that the kids will love.
With a little assistance from Mom even toddlers can do it.
What a beautiful gift for a loved one this Christmas
something that they made themselves.