Pottery. Photography. And All Things Handmade.
It was a busy week last week now that spring has definitely sprung. The dandelions are thriving IN the garden bed! I thought they looked so cheery and left them there. In fact, I decided to not plant a vegetable garden this year for a several reasons: Squirrels and rabbits eat everything and I mean... Continue Reading →
We are finally witnessing nature awakening with vibrant buds and colorful blooms. The secret garden bloomed and bloomed and every morning revealed new miracles. Frances Hodgson Burnett Meanwhile I am eager to get my hands back in clay. The temperatures for April, however, will be a little too cool for me to start throwing on... Continue Reading →
Snowed in. Under the weather. I picked up my camera and started shooting pictures of our resident squirrel and neighborhood song birds. These were taken through the sliding door with me sitting on the dinning room floor. LOL Kindness is like snow. It beautifies everything it covers. ~Kahlil Gibran
The first day of the Winter Solstice ~ the shortest day of the year here in the Northern Hemisphere. Chilly but no snow today. A sigh of relief and joy as parcels and packages have reached their destinations! I've made my lists and I'm checking them twice, three times and more! The house is quiet.... Continue Reading →
Our resident squirrel invited a friend over to dine on pumpkin. Whatever is left of the pumpkin, it will go into the compost pile tonight. It is growing a little stinky!
The days are shorter. The nights are longer. This summer's end we find ourselves gathering pumpkins! Grandson found the largest pumpkin. It weighed forty pounds! 😳 I picked up a teeny tiny pumpkin weighing in at one pound two ounces. Once home, the carving of the Jack-O-Lanterns began! We had enough pumpkin and pumpkin seeds... Continue Reading →
Time to pack up my tool box and put my pottery wheel away. I have a couple more firings to do of larger pieces that take up a lot of room in the kiln such as plates. I love making plates but because they take up so much room I just don't make many ~... Continue Reading →
Because . . .Squirrel! Well, the cayenne pepper did NOT discourage the squirrel from eating every single tomato. Except THIS one. Now, the squirrel is after the zucchini 😳
I've been behind the camera for a few weeks photographing new pottery I made over the summer and behind the computer writing item descriptions. The scene of Elaine Benes writing for the J. Peterman Catalog comes to mind. The Urban Sombrero, Seinfeld, Season 8 Episode 1 "It combines the spirit of old Mexico with a little... Continue Reading →
All creatures great and small. From my back porch, I see them all! Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul. ~ John Muir
Cat Number 1 and I have recovered from the other morning. The weather is blissfully warm and sunny today! We were sitting on the back porch when I saw something furry out of the corner of my eye. First, I thought it was a squirrel BUT it was too big to be a squirrel. Then,... Continue Reading →
Spring is here! Flowers are popping. The trees are budding. Weeds have gone wild. In between rain showers, I've planted peas, radishes, lettuce and spinach in our garden. Because we have three wild very hungry rabbits in our neck of the woods, we have had to add fencing to our raised garden beds and cover others with... Continue Reading →
Much has been going❗️ I have yet had the time to blog. I have been glazing, firing, photographing, listing*, glazing, firing, photographing, listing, aaaannnnnd glazing, firing, photographing. (*Listing: writing descriptions and pricing of my new handmade pottery for my BackPorchStudio shop on Etsy.) In the meantime, enjoy our neighborhood hawk who frequently stops by! 😍... Continue Reading →
JULY UPDATE!!! In May I blogged about this weed that took over the garden and I mistakenly identified the weed as heal-all. The plant that over took the garden beds this spring is NOT heal-all at all. It is Red Dead Nettle instead! For more information about Dead Nettle scroll to the bottom of my... Continue Reading →
It does not feel like summer. 😟 It's has been cold, windy and humid. So cold that even my mugs are bundled up on my back porch studio! 🥶 The odd combination of cool temperatures, high humidity and 18 to 20 miles/hour wind has led to uneven drying for the mugs. The rims drying too... Continue Reading →
Hooray! Spring sprung! The much anticipated warmer weather, blue skies and tons of sunshine has arrived. Nature rejoices and so do I!!! Spring training on my back porch studio. Warming up with a small lump of clay (about 1/2 pound) this week. Spring training on the soccer field. Our grandson behind the ball and me... Continue Reading →
Traveling. A window seat is a must. The view never fails to take my breath away. “How sweet to be a cloud. Floating in the blue!” - A. A. Milne
Feeding birds through the winter has been a family activity for over 25 years. It started as a homeschool project where we could observe wildlife first-hand. We learned about bird identification, social behavior (pecking order on and around the feeder), and which physical characteristics of birds dictated food choices (sunflower seeds, thistle, millet, nuts, berries... Continue Reading →
Waiting for me in my splash pan this morning! Gray Tree Frog The frog wanna-be-potter was placed just off the back porch onto a nice cool shady rock. The frog climbed up onto a fern frond. The frog watched me for a seemingly very long time. I honestly thought it was contemplating whether or not... Continue Reading →
Due to the rain and high humidity, the weeds have taken over. Daisy, Purslane & Thistle Yellow Woodsorrel (sour grass) Spotted Spurge/Prostrate Spurge creeping into the cucumber bed Largest Dandelion Ever Crab grass, purslane and yellow woodsorel making a home among the dill, basil and oregano I'm reading a lot about common weeds. Why? Because... Continue Reading →
. . .because EVERYTHING is in bloom! Always take time to smell the flowers.
Our resident groundhog, or something, never made an appearance today due to abundant snow and sunshine. But official word from Punxsutawney Phil in Pennsylvania is we will have six more weeks of winter. Punxsutawney, PA – This morning, Pennsylvania’s own world-famous groundhog Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow, predicting six more weeks of winter. https://dced.pa.gov/newsroom/punxsutawney-phil-predicts-six-more-weeks-of-winter-for-2021/ Six more... Continue Reading →
Back Porch Studio 