Will You Be Mine?

Clay, silver, semi-precious stones with a message inside. Perfect for a Valentine's Day gift.

Join the Seagrove Potters of Historic Busbee Road on February 8 for a Valentine's Day Celebration. Refreshments, lots of new work and surprises await. You can find the brochure and map at www.potteryofbusbeeroad.com. The shop at Jugtown Pottery opens at 8:30 am this Saturay.

Live in the Moment

sterling silver, cone 10 reduction fired pottery cabochon, garnet, labradorite
$268

Live in the Moment
sterling silver, cone 6 oxidation fired pottery cabochon, labradorite, amethyst
$265

Everything Comes to You in the Right Moment
sterling silver (hand drawn and etched), cone 10 reduction fired pottery cabochon, garnets
$150

 

 

 

Just a preview!

Back in the Saddle

Sterling silver with a pottery cabochon and garnets

Finally I am back in the studio full time! I had my sketch book with me over the holidays and it seems that I want to stay on the botanical theme. I am also finding that I want to add lots of texture, and that is not new for me either. This piece is based on mums and is hammer textured and finished with a patina. So same theme, but totally new piece!

I am still working on shows for 2013, some applications are not yet available. First show will be at the end of March in Hickory: Catawba Valley Pottery Festival. I have slots open for home shows, so if you'd like to earn some jewelry credit, give me a call and let's plan a party.

I hope to be a better blogger and photographer this year. And to not find any more abandoned animals. On Dec 2 I found two abandoned pups not far from our home one night. They were about 13 weeks old. It took a little while, but we found a good home for one and decided to keep the other. I had totally forgotten what having a puppy is like, and this one doesn't seem to be grasping the concept of not peeing or pooping in the garage or house. She is adorable, Bacchus our dog seems to like her and she adores him and loves the cats too. Wes named her Gracie. All my pictures of her are on my phone. So picture to follow.

Happy New Year All!

Cookin'!

One of my jobs every other morning or so is to make lunch for 5. My sister and I trade off on this chore, and we all eat lunch together. Three of us are gluten free and so I thought I might start doing some food posts. I love to cook (most of the time) and I am always altering or inventing my own recipes.

Today I made a Vegetarian (and could be Vegan without the HB eggs) Garbanzo Bean Salad.

I soaked chick peas over night and put them on to cook this morning, along with some eggs for extra protein.



We have a lot of peppers and cucumbers from the garden right now, so I chopped them up with some onion and spicy B&B pickles. I added some crushed roasted garlic (This is so easy to do, and saves a lot of $ over buying roasted garlic at one of the olive bars. I have been doing this out on the grill but you can do it in the oven....we love garlic in this house and I put handfuls of peeled garlic in an open foil tray with olive oil and roast it while I am cooking dinner on the grill. More on that later, probably cedar plank salmon, a favorite, but I digress).

 Mix together all the veggies, eggs and chick peas. Stir together a little olive oil (I used organic Tuscan Olive Oil), a fresh squeezed lemon and some mustard, sprinkle in cumin, salt and pepper and mix it all together. Taste and adjust seasonings.

I toasted some pine nuts to top it, and some dried craisins.

 

Mound it on some organic lettuce and serve. 

 

 In jewelry news........................I am now doing in Home Jewelry Parties. This is a great way to have a fun party, and earn credit towards jewelry!  Besides getting ready for a jewelry show, I am gearing up for Art in the Park in Blowing Rock on August 11 and the Potters Market Invitational at the Mint Museum in Charlotte on September 15. Stay tuned for new ideas and designs, as well as Jennie cooking!

How Do I Know What Size??

You can print a pdf of the actual size of this from my website, www.jlkjewelry.com. It is an easy way to know what your ring size it.

These on the other hand are one size fits all!

 

 

Stay cool and safe, and hoping for rain to fall in Colorado and our own backyard.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/JLK-Jewelry/76468514481?ref=ts

Giving Back for Valentine's

The Seagrove Potters of Historic Busbee Road will once again present a weekend experience designed for enjoyable Valentine’s Day shopping on Friday and Saturday, the 10th and 11th of February. Refreshments, decorations and Valentine’s colors and festivities will greet shoppers and give them an opportunity to talk to the potters and craft people.

Each artist  is donating 5% of their sales this weekend to a charity of their choice. I selected the Moore County Humane Society. If you know me, you know what a lover of animals I am. My dog and cats are all rescue animals, all found abandoned and all such wonderful personalities.

The other charities include St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Sandhills Children’s Center, Brenner Children's Hospital, Humane Society of Moore County, Robbins Area Christian Ministries, National Center for Learning Disabilities and Breast Cancer Research.

This is a great way for you to come out and buy a Valentine's Day gift for your special someone, or a gift for any occasion, including treating yourself, and knowing that you are supporting an artist and small business as well as a charity, while acquiring something handmade in Seagrove.

Celebration 2011 Collaboration

Jugtown Pottery potter Pam Owens and Jennie Lorette Keatts of JLK Jewelry at Jugtown collaborated together on this piece for the Friday night gala auction of the Celebration of Seagrove Potters, November 18, 2011.

A large lidded jar mad by Pam Owens.

The lid is a ceramic collar with a copper forged top with copper and pottery turtles by JLK. Pam decorated the piece with all kinds of water creatures.

This is a one of a kind piece!

 

How Time Flies!

It has been a month and a half since I last posted! We took a fabulous trip to Montana-Wyoming-Colorado for two weeks. It was so nice to leave the heat behind and enjoy the wonderful dry temperate climates. We even needed sweaters in the evening. It was great to see so many old friends.

 

The hiking in Grand Teton National Park was wonderful. We didn't see a lot of wildlife...just a two marmots and a duck. But on our drive out of the park we went through a buffalo herd.

August 11, was the NC Pottery Center's auction in Hillsborough at Leland Little's. It was a lot of fun and about 3/4 of the way through, a big bidding war went on over Takuro Shibata's pot, which brought in the highest bid of the night. If you are not a supporter of the NC Pottery Center, please consider becoming a member and supporting this wonderful museum.

Now time to get back to work. I will be at the Mint Museum's Potters Invitational on Saturday, September 10, from 10am-4pm. This is a wonderful show, showcasing NC's top artists. There is always an amazing display of ceramic works.

September 24, Saturday I will be at the Historic West End Artsfest in Winston-Salem, from 10am-5pm. This is a wonderful show held in Grace Court every other year.

Now I better get to work, something I have not been used to doing the past month!

Garden Critter Companion

Still working on garden art for the Garden party at Jugtown July 8-9, 2011.

This fellow is 8.5" tall and 9" long.

The spiraled wire from his belly fits over a 36" long steel rod so that he can keep watch in your garden.

A Summer Garden Party

July 8-9, 2011 Jugtown Pottery will be holding the Summer Garden Party featuring all kinds of things for and from the Garden. I am working on some copper garden stakes, Wes will have some plants and veggies (grown organically) from the garden, hopefully lots of tomatoes, cucumbers, beans and herbs.

The last kiln load of planters and bird baths was amazing, I am pretty sure I am going to want to go home with some of them.

The sale begins on Friday from 4pm-8pm, and we will have goodies prepared from the garden and some fun beverages, plus all the great garden "art"! We hope to see you there!

Back in the Saddle Again

Back in the studio for a couple of days anyway! Working on some new ideas. Hope this one will be well received!!


Sterling silver, turquoise pottery glazed stone, 14K gold fill, labradorite





Multi-fired pottery cabochon in sterling silver, 14K gold fill, opal and amethyst.



Pay It Forward

I was the receipient of a pay it forward event on Leslie William's blog. I have had so much going on in nursing Rusty back to walking, company, shows etc that I am now finally getting around to this! for those that followed Rusty, he can walk, can't jump up onto things, but he is doing really well. And his fur is growing back in, though he may  not want it in this weather.

Pam and I just returned from a great trip to Dataw Island in SC where we stayed with wonderful friends, kayaked, rode bikes and had a generally fantastic time!

Here are the pay it forward items. Everyone that makes a comment on this blog gets their name put into the hat, and Wes will draw the winners. I'll give several days for comments. So if you want a chance at some free jewelry, just make a comment!

Sterling silver necklace with a peachbloom pottery stone and black onyx.

Hand forged sterling silver hoops (1" diameter)

Pottery cab earrings, sterling silver earwires

Pottery bunny cab earrings-sterling silver ear wires

A Little Ruskinism!

John Ruskin was the founding father of the Arts & Crafts Movement, a major social movement in England and the United States during the last half of the nineteenth century. The Ruskin Pottery was established in 1898 in a suburb of Birmingham, England. The founder, Edward Richard Taylor,  followed the teachings and philosophy of John Ruskin and admired him so much,  that he named his pottery in his honor. Ruskin Pottery was taken over by Edward's son, William Howson Taylor in 1912, and it was he who was came closest to Ruskins's ideals of arts and crafts.

In the early 1900's, the Ruskin Pottery began producing small round cabochons, which they called,   "plaques" or "enamels". They were made for the purpose of using them as gems to be mounted in metal and wood jewelry. These varied in size from the size of a button to 3" in diameter. They became a major part of the pottery's output. The pottery also made tiles, hatpins, studs, cuff links, scarf pins, and pendants. All Ruskin advertising included "Ruskin Pottery, Enamels and Buttons".

Liberty of London, makers of pewter and sterling silver art pieces, started using Ruskin plaques in place of semiprecious stones. The semi-precious stones had become so expensive that they were no longer cost effective, and the Ruskins cabochons were relatively inexpensive and the colors so beautiful that they immediately gained popularity. These were all leadless glazes and many are similar in color to what I am achieving today with the glazes developed at Jugtown by my sister Pam owens.

Other pottery's such as Moorcraft, Minton and Kensington also produced ceramic cabochons, but they are rare to find.

Doesn't this look like one of my stones!! If you get to see the original Ruskins, they are a treat. I used to exhibit annually in Asheville at the Arts & Crafts Conference at the Grove Park Inn, and had the opportunity to see many fine examples. It just amazed me how close the colors were to those that I have been making using Jugtown's glazes! You can now understand why I get giddy over every single firing!

Shades of Turquoise And Springtime on My Mind (and Lightbox)

Springtime is in the air! Here is a preview of what I am working on. Some of these will be available at Hickory on the 25 and 26 of March at the Catawba Valley Pottery Festival.

sterling silver and pottery cabochons (turquoise with copper); adjustable 17"-20"



Large pottery cabochons in turquoise with cobalt & copper, linked by torch formed, reticulated sterling links; adjustable from 12" to 20"




Pendant in roller printed sterling, formed and forged. Peachbloom, reduction fired pottery cabochon with 2 5mm garnets. Pendant, 3-1/2" long




Pendant in sterling, formed and forged. Mingled blues and cobalt pottery cabochon with a 7mm created opal. Pendant, 3-1/2" long



Spring is in the Air, but March will coming marching in!

Boy is it difficult staying inside! It is so nice out there. We played in the paddle boat on the pond this weekend and that is just what I want to go and do today!  But I am staying at the bench, the Catawba Valley Pottery Festival will be here before we know it. Well, I might go home a little early. After all you can find a lot of inspiration in playing with nature. Today I have been making bird themes...songbird pins and roosters too. They are in the tumbler and will have patina applied and stones set tomorrow. Pendant and pins have been my mode the past couple of days.

Oh, and how could I forget! I am doing bolo ties now too. I have had requests for them over the years and finally have done some. I will make some women's also. You think western wear will go over in NC??

I have a new look on my website now and I hope you will go take a look and let me know what you think of it. I also have an  up to date page of jewelry currently available to purchase now.

I am hoping my new thermocouple will come. My kiln is loaded with stones I hope to be fitting into my Best of Kiln category. you never know till they come out though. It really stinks to glaze, load and turn on the kiln only to have it not work! So stay tuned for some hopefully really cool stones to be coming out to be new jewelry! Now I am going to look for some tutorials on making images go where you want them on your blog!

Some Tips for Your Silver Jewelry

Sterling silver is 92.5% pure silver and another metal, most always copper is used to make up the remaining 7.5 percent content of a sterling silver mix. Copper makes the silver harder, but gives it a tendency to tarnish.Tarnish is caused when your jewelry comes into contact with sulfur compounds, mainly hydrogen sulfide in the air. Other culprits that will cause tarnish are wool, felt, fossil fuels, rubber bands, latex gloves, rubber carpet padding, some paints and stains, and foods (eggs and onions and foods made with them). Tarnish formation is stronger in a humid climate, which is why why if you are at the beach your jewelry may tarnish much more quickly.

Store sterling silver jewelry in ziploc plastic bag. It will protect it from tarnishing

Add a small strip of anti-tarnish paper in your plastic bag to provide additional protection against tarnish. (I have them available if you need them)

Don't wrap silver in any type of tape, it can leave a sticky residue that is hard to get off.

Don't use rubber bands when storing silver, as they contain sulfur and that will react with the silver by leaving black marks that are extremely difficult to remove. Strong black tarnish marks are a bear to remove.

Keep your silver jewelry away from salt, bleach and other strong chemicals, it can corrode or tarnish it.
Don't use toothpast to polish your jewelry. It often contains baking soda which is an abrasive and will scratch your jewelry. This might be ok if your finish is a scratch finish, but if you have a highly polished piece, it will be damaged. Your best bet is to use a silver polishing cloth. If you have a piece with patina on it ("antiqued" or darkened places) the cloth will get the highlights and leave the patina. A silver dip will take it all off and you jewelry will look quite different.

Silver plated jewelry components are electroplated, with a thin coating of silver that is chemically deposited on base metal- a layer of silver so thin that it can quickly wear off with use. Many people that have problems with earrings and silver, have found that it is the nickel used in these inexpensive findings that are the problem. Always ask to be sure you are getting sterling or fine silver in your earring and necklace components, anything that touches the skin is subject to corrosives in the air and oils and acids in your skin.

Silver prices keep going up, now 650% higher (no not a typo!!) than when I started making jewelry in the late 90's, so take care of your jewelry and it will last a very long time!

Ballantyne Magazine and a Teapot of Ours!

I'm sorry I have been too busy to post lately! I was excited to see Samantha's post about the article in Ballantyne Magazine that features pots of Seagrove including one of Bruce and Samanthas of  Bulldog Pottery and one of mine and Pam's, as well as some of our neighbors in Westmoore, Michael Mahan and Westmoore Pottery and one of Whynot. Thank you Ballantyne, and thank you Sam for pointing it out!

Pam and I do collaborations, similar to the one above, on teapots, she makes the teapot and I do the handles and lids in sterling silver, forged, stamped, formed. We've done these collaborations over the years and they have been  very successful and we appreciate all that have supported our efforts! It has been really a nice thing to be able to add my work to the teapots and I appreciate the magazine attributing the teapot to me, but it was a collaboration of both of us, not just me!! Credit must be given to all that deserve it!!

If I could turn pots like Pam, well wow. She is some thing and someone, so creative, smart, fun, interesting, and she is my BEST friend!! I feel so lucky to have my sister be my best friend, and to have someone like Pam be my sis! Life is good, very, very good!

It is cold here, very cold for this time of year and we have had snow-yippee!! Bring it on, but maybe wait till January. We have had the wood stove and fireplace going and the house has been very warm. Kitties in the morning like to stay close to the fire--this is less than 2 feet away from the fireplace. Chester has taken the pillow I made Bacchus, as his own, and Tasha has resisted leaving the heat to letting Rusty hang out above her. This is huge, she is a princess, but she is my princess!

Tis the season, be kind, be loving and make some changes and start the new year on a positive note!

Back from the Mint

Back from the Mint Museum's 6th Annual Potter's Market Invitational. Once again it was a great show, and the selection of pottery was outstanding. I had hoped to get some pictures of other booths but time was not available for that! I did get to visit with many potters and customers that I hadn't seen for a while, came home with a few pieces from Matt Jones and a nice order for the new Mint Museum gift shop opening in downtown Charlotte in a few weeks!

Anna King, Pam Owens and Jennie just before opening

This was my first time with my new booth set up. We have streamlined a lot of it, so we are much more organized, have a lot fewer "pieces" and a much better look. Lighting was not so good in the tent for a photo, it was overcast (which was great for temperatures for the day!).

New Rings and Things

Rings-the 3 on the left are adjustable, hand patterned sterling silver, pottery center cab, 14K GF on two and labradorites on either side of the center stone. Far right is sterling silver with a labradorite center stone.

Sterling silver rings with pottery cabochons.

Hand forged bracelet with center pottery cabochon from a recent reduction firing.

I have about 6 doves left from the Seagrove Potters for Peace sale-they are available to  purchase at Jugtown or on my website http://www.jlkjewelry.com/.