Pottery. Photography. And All Things Handmade.
What better way to welcome the month of December? Snow! Squirrel was quite happy to see me set out peanuts! Just as I turned to go into the house, squirrel leapt off the tree branch and bounded toward the pile of peanuts on the back porch. The birdbath, filled with leaves and water, froze over... Continue Reading →
Winter is on the way. I can feel it. Yesterday's storm brought high winds, rain, cooler temperatures and a double rainbow. We are to have our first frost this week but the flowers don't seem to know it. Delicate pink nasturtium caught my eye. Looks as if it is a watercolor painting. I strolled through... Continue Reading →
The calendar says it is autumn but the Cosmos say otherwise! Click on each image below for a larger view. Be sure to notice the pollen dust on the busy bee! Sunflowers are finished. I harvested their seeds for next year. Left a few for our resident squirrel. 🐿️ We had two special guests this... Continue Reading →
As summer comes to a close, so does a chapter in my life. My childhood home will be empty for the first time since we moved in forty seven years ago. Though my Mom and Dad passed away some time ago, my little brother continued to live in the house where he raised his two... Continue Reading →
Summer is here! Things are heating up on my back porch . . . in between rain showers, of course. I've been working on dragonfly mugs for what seems like a long time. Now they are glazed and ready to fire. As I was rolling my kiln onto my back porch from the garage, the... Continue Reading →
Finally! A slight break in the rain last week! Three days of glorious sun! 🌞 Which means I have been busy in my back porch studio and back yard. The first job I tackled in my back porch studio was cleaning my kiln shelves. As a potter, keeping kiln shelves in tip top shape is... Continue Reading →
I am back behind my wheel throwing things! Because my back porch studio is open to all the elements and whims of Mother Nature my production is determined by the weather. We have had rain and thunderstorms just about every day for two weeks which is slowing production down quite a bit. Meanwhile, the squirrel(s)... Continue Reading →
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 →
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 😳
Last day of July?!? 😱 Summer seems to be zooming along! Foxes have moved on. Rabbits have moved back. So, I resorted to growing lettuce in a bucket near the house away from little bunnies. I think my bucket of home grown lettuce is coming along nicely. The squirrels finished off my sunflowers and have... Continue Reading →
The Sciurus carolinensis, otherwise known as the gray squirrel, is THE reason why I cannot grow sunflowers! While I was enjoying my morning coffee on my back porch, I spotted the little varmint in the garden. And grabbed my camera, of course! The squirrel discovered that it could leap into my little fenced off sunflower... Continue Reading →
Survived weeding over the weekend! Flowers are thriving! However, I noticed the geraniums leaves had turned red. I have never seen that before. Thanks to the internet, I learned the red leaves can be a symptom of over watering. We certainly had a wet and soggy week last week! In-between weeding, I was able to... Continue Reading →
I've been scurrying around cleaning out garden beds and prepping the yard and back porch for winter. Pottery wheel, kiln, clay and tools have been put away for the season. My pottery has been photographed and listed in my shop. Traded my clay covered hands for mud of a different kind. Our resident squirrel has... Continue Reading →
Another humid week last week! I don't mind the heat but when the air is as thick as pea soup and there is no breeze I start to feel a wee bit uncomfortable and grouchy. Luckily, my attention has been on things I can do inside in air conditioning! As I mentioned in my previous... Continue Reading →
The sunflowers made it despite the critters of early spring and summer. This pot houses my 3rd round of sunflowers. I decided not to transplant them to the back yardand keep them close to my back porch. Glorious results! Close up of the potted sun flowers next to the back porch. Such a sunny delight!... Continue Reading →
I spent the day weeding yesterday. Wore myself out and ended up going to bed rather early. I woke up to an array of wild life this morning! A praying mantis hanging from a sunflower bloom munching on a wasp. A very hungry caterpillar feasting on what is left of dill. Luckily, I harvested the... Continue Reading →
Life has completely turned upside down since the changing of the clocks back in March of 2020. At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if the dinosaurs returned. Today, the dinosaurs have, indeed, returned much to our grandson's delight! I am delighted the dinosaurs prefer lettuce over sunflowers!
UPDATE: 24 Hours Later! Delicious! Family says 'not quite Claussen but close!" In other words, they are a hit! Taking a short break from pottery today to make pickles. I do not like canning in the late summer because, well, it's just too hot! So I have been searching for "easy" refrigerator pickle recipes and... Continue Reading →
Gardening is how I relax. It's another form of creating and playing with colors. Oscar de la Renta
Back Porch Studio 