Handmade Gifts $30 and Under

The holidays are upon us! Try giving a handmade gift this year, it's easy and affordable.  Here's a round-up of items in my shop for $30 or under.  I'm even offering coupon codes during the month of December for the first time!  Use coupon code TURKEY20 until midnight tonight to receive 20% OFF your order of $30 and over!  I'll keep dropping the discount down until Christmas.  Check out my facebook page for the latest news.  I ship your order within 24 hours of purchase via USPS Priority mail.  For gifts I am happy to include a note to the recipient.

This handmade tile retails for $24.  It comes with a notch in the back for hanging.  I hang these with two drywall screws spaced about an inch a part for maximum stability.  I even include screws with your order!

These small versions of my square bowls were fun to make and are the perfect addition to a holiday appetizer table.  They make a great hostess gift!

My porcelain tea strainers are one of my most unique gifts and come with a small bowl to set the strainer in after steeping their tea.  If you know someone who loves loose tea this is the gift for them!

I only have two of these sweet ice cream dishes left, for $24 each.  They are the perfect size for a scoop of ice cream, and one my most popular forms.

I have two of these adorable small cups left!

I have several styles of this hand-formed jewelry tray.  Each tray has 5 little divots perfect for jewelry to settle in.

Check out my etsy store for more ideas!

Clay Tests

I've been diving into my clay tests head first. Let's start with the line-up, above from gray to white we have, Sheffield Pottery's #92700 Porcelain Clay, Sheffield Pottery's #108300 Elaine's Crystal Cone 6 (I think we all know which Elaine they mean), Standard's #365 English Porcelain Cone 6, Miller's #15 Porcelain, and Laguna's Frost Porcelain.

My love affair with porcelain began when I was in a college with a grayish slop called SIUC domestic porcelain, the summer I graduated my professor gave me a bucket of well aged grolleg porcelain. After one firing the gorgeous color of the clay body had me hooked. When I moved to Atlantic Beach, Florida for a residency at Atlantic Pottery Supply I didn't anticipate that I would start purchasing my clay. I think it only took one bag of well aged porcelain to convince me that I did not need to mix my own clay. This is the first time that I have tried several clays with similar ingredients side by side, however, and I am a little shocked at how different they can be. Working for a clay supplier can evoke all kinds of conversations about clay, which is essentially mud. These conversations drove me nuts, to me clay is clay. And porcelain is of course, porcelain. WRONG! I can't believe how different these clay bodies are. To begin my testing I am making a large bowl, a cup with a handle, a pot with a lid, and some test tiles with each body. I was having a some trouble with large bowls lately which prompted me to start testing all this clay I had sitting around. The large bowls went pretty much as expected the Frost, which is a beautiful white color and turns to glue when you wedge it, flopped over and the grayer clays had a nice plasticity. I have always been pretty puritan about my porcelain and have never wanted to use these darker bodies, but now I am thinking if they fire white and crack less why not?

After I let the bowls dry a little I did some decorating and moved on to the new forms. In between this time I read some great reviews of Miller's #16 which is the dirtier cousin of the #15 I am testing. I have personally never heard of Miller before, but they apparently started somewhere in New York and their clay is now mixed by Laguna in Ohio. So far I am liking the #15, but the handle will be the true test. I am curious to try the #16 now, as it seems well revered. I am also really curious about Laguna's Frost, after drying the clay out a little I threw a decent bowl with it today, so we'll see where that goes. Standard's #365 has been a vast disappointment. I had really wanted to switch to one of their clay bodies, but this clay is mixed too stiff for me and it's gray and blah so far. I am impressed with both of the clays by Sheffield and they might be the underdog of this group, but the Elaine's has already cracked where I cut the foot and that just won't do. The real test of course will be the firing, and I hope to do some of that this weekend. PS I just put a deposit on a used Skutt 1227 in great condition!!! Too excited about this. And finally some mugs in the studio. Bigger than usual.

Interim!

Hey there...I've been plugging away in the studio. But here are some highlights:
Customized vases for my cousin Brigit's wedding, I didn't know I could do lettering so easily. Meaning I didn't know how well it would show up under my glazes, and my stellar cursive techniques. Although I have to admit, that I am nothing compared to my sister Caitlyn's calligraphy! This girl is seriously gifted.

If you or someone you know has an event you would like to customize with handmade pottery, contact me for more details at: tracy@tracymcevilly.com

As for the rest of my studio, I'm still working on inventory and I have been checking out what is available to local potters. I basically stumbled up Clayscapes Pottery in Syracuse, New York. The owner Don is really friendly and helpful, and they have clays by Standard as well as Miller. I am really excited to try out the samples I got last time I was there. On a trip to see some family in Hudson we also went to Massachusets to check out Sheffield Pottery. At Sheffield they mix their own clay and I'm also excited about these samples. So basically I should really be working in my studio right now, instead of sitting at this computer....For the past four years I have been a die-hard fan of Highwater Clay's Helios Porcelain but I know that shipping it in isn't practical, so when I run out of what I brought I will be switching to something available locally. I will post some tests when I make them. I have really been settling into life and getting a new routine. I'm excited about the work I've made, and want to make, but I'm also really happy with where I'm at and with what I have in my life.
I've also been making pancakes:

This recipe comes from potter and foodie, Stepehn Grimmer and it was basically as delicious as it looks. A perfect Sunday morning with pottery made by friends!

The Walk to the Studio

If you've been reading then you might have picked up on the fact that I recently moved to a new studio I am VERY excited about. Here is the moment you've been waiting for, some pictures! One of the things I love about my new studio is the short walk from my apartment to the studio. Here are some shots along the way:

Right now the queen anne's lace is everywhere. I remember it growing along the railroad tracks by our house as a kid, and now it grows near the tracks on the way to my studio. I had kind of forgotten as I don't think it grows much in Florida. After I cross the railroad tracks, I reach the Cortland Corset Company, affectionally referred to as the Corset Factory.

The Corset Factory does manufacture undergarments under the label "Cortland Foundations".

The building also houses graphic design firm Hopko Designs and photographer, Roger Williams and has provided temporary space for sculptor Vaughn Randall an assistant professor at SUNY Cortland and his National Endowment for the Arts project this summer. So the building has already been a really exciting place to be. On a side note in the right hand corner of the shot below is my new car. After several months of being a full time pedestrian, I know have four wheels instead of two. Although I am not sure that these wheels will inspire any blog posts or revelations about function vs. form. Time will tell...

I thought I would miss Singleton's Seafood Shack, but now all I have to do is cross the railroad tracks to get some delicious fried seafood, or fresh seafood to take home. And they have real shrimp! I'm not sure if they supply us with any fuel at the Corset Factory, which is run on biodiesel, but something tells me they have plenty of fryer oil, as that is the only utensil in their kitchen. So up two flights of stairs, through the room of sewing machines, and then the pattern room:

And then I arrive in my studio, when I took these photos they were still in the process of finishing the walls.
So far my studio set up is some carts, a huge table, and my trusty old kick wheel I bought from Keith Renner about six years ago. I intend to put a glazing area in the right hand corner of this photo. Also more shelving will probably be in order.

My main focus right now is building up an inventory of work. I began with a series of dress vases which was really fun, and some larger bowls. I just finished a big quantity of cereal size bowls and big tumblers. I am focusing on making much bigger cups now thanks to a little nudging from Jeff. Next in the plans are more big serving pieces, single serving teapots, mugs, carafes and pitchers, working big, testing new clays, an earthenware project, the possibility of plates, and breathing.

Welcome to my Studio...

For the past four years I have been living and working in northeast Florida at Atlantic Pottery Supply. I think the best way to introduce myself starts in my studio. First, my apron collection, I always pick out an apron when I arrive at my studio, and I usually match it to my clothing....ridiculous, I know, but part of my process. To the left are some of the more delicate and less wearable type. Above are the functional ones, highlights include the rooster with the rhinestone eye, and I saw the apple apron worn by one of the crazy head wives on "Big Love". That pretty much made my weekend! Said apron was also given to me by a student which ups it's special factor. Sometimes I am jealous of my friends who get to dress up to go to work, and I am always dirty, I remedy this with a fabulous collection of aprons, go ahead be jealous!

Besides looking fabulous or fabulouso as my former boss used to say, I do actually make things in the studio. Most of my forms start on this kickwheel that I purchased from a friend while I was still in school. I think I paid about $120 dollars for it, on a whim, I had never even tried a kickwheel. This was worth every penny and more! I've had it for 6 years now. I am considering getting an electric wheel for bigger pieces, and the occasional terra cotta series, this one is impossible to clean, and will always be a porcelain wheel. I like using a kickwheel, because it's much quieter. Somewhere along the line I developed a ridiculous aversion to annoying noises, we all have our quirks I suppose....