Blog

Every Morning

Every morning I see you,

but I don't know you.

Among others waiting to be noticed,

the kettle boils.

 

I see you, I need you,

the comfort, the joy, the ritual.

Holding you in my hand,

makes you mine.

 

I see you, I know you,

your strength, your warmth, your soul.

Every morning,

my favourite time with you.

~by Joseph Panacci

Fringe Benefits and Kimchi

by Joseph

Homemade kimchi, thank you Una!

Our friend Una Hill came by on Wednesday, along with her daughter Adriana, for a visit and to pick up some mugs for a fundraising drive.

Adriana is in the Hamilton Children's Choir and they are raising money to pay for a trip to Korea this summer. Being a potter, Una came up with the idea of asking her potter friends to donate mugs to help other kids that otherwise couldn't afford the trip. I was delighted to help out and donated some of my mugs. I encourage other potters to help if possible.

Una brought along some of her kimchi that she made as a gift. I love kimchi, especially in a peanut butter and kimchi sandwich! Yes it sounds awful, but try it one day, YUM YUM! Thank you Una and Adriana~


Work from our latest firing~

Getting started early this morning, we braved the elements and wonderful Canadian weather, and opened the wood kiln. With a lot of work hopefully destined for show applications, we were anxious to see how everything turned out. Much to our delight, the copper reds and oxides came out beautiful, without almost none of them oxidizing or washing out. To get these kinds of results, and keep them consistent, in a wood kiln is something of a nightmare. A lot of potters would wonder why even try to do gas firing-esq glazes in a wood kiln, but for us, it's a matter of necessity and love. We're simply not drawn to the heavier forms and glazes of a traditional wood firing and maybe we're too stubbornly routed in celadons and copper reds. It's a love hate relationship as the ash fluctuating in the kiln, the flashing, and the uneven temperatures that are bound to flare up, wreck havoc and ruin on some of our best pots. But sometimes, just maybe, the results can be magical. We've had some beautiful pieces in this firing, especially my fathers large jars and plates, which came out stunning. I wasn't over the moon with my brush work, but then again, I didn't have to throw half of it into the garbage either. And there were some fun pieces in there as well with some elephants for good measure. Here are some of the results :)