A Busy Day

A Day Of Jobs And Roast Dinner


   Well, another Christmas gone and I hope all of you had a great day, it was a very quiet day here, just the two of us and I have to say I only managed a couple of short visits to the barn.
    Today is a day of many jobs starting with washing up, oh yes I am house trained and do my bit, this will be followed with an hour sawing wood ready to stack in the dry for use on the wood burners both in the barn and here in the cottage and then I have some glazing to do in the clay room, god knows what I'll be up to this afternoon but I have a feeling it will be in the barn, I so need to get the place tidy again.
    Boxing day is our day for a roast dinner and for someone who can take them or leave them I'm really looking forward to it, nothing special, no giant turkey or huge lump of beef but we will be having some nice local veg roasted and gluten free stuffing for the first time, not sure what that will be like.
   No rain here this morning in fact we have some bright winter sunshine at the moment, the village seems so quiet with hardly a car passing through, I think boxing day is the only slow day here in the fens, I guess most are recovering from Christmas day and others are visiting family but one thing is for sure, it's great to be living here in the countryside on days like this when you can take notice of the nature around you, I pray that I never have to live in a city of large town as I would sorely miss this life.
   Ok, I better get started on that washing up then the chain saw calls, I hope your all taking it easy today and  recharging those batteries.

Merry Christmas

Festive Greetings To All


   Another christmas day and I sit here with the memories of many christmas's past going around in my head, the people close to me who we have lost and the festive customs that seem to have been forgotten, they still live inside my mind and never fail to bring smiles to my face on this special day.
   I guess we all remember those christmas days when we were children, the great gifts we were lucky to recieve and the family party that always warmed christmas evening. Today we are grown up and Christmas effects us in so many ways, but still we harbour those little children inside and whatever we are all going through in our lives we still get that festive excitement on the morning of the 25th of December and always will.
   From me to all those who know me, buy and use my beads and those who just read this blog, I wish you all a wonderful christmas and I hope you enjoy this very special day.

Merry Christmas
Rob x

A Very Wet Christmas Ahead

Will It Ever Stop ?

   What a few weeks we have had here in the fens, rain, rain and yet more rain, this morning we again wake to the sound of rain lashing down over the lands of East Anglia, dyke's are full, fields are under water and water meadows are, well just a inland sea for as far as the eye can see, so all in all one very wet Christmas it will be.
   For us a quiet Christmas is in one way a very welcome one, a day or so off work  (tho I'm sure I'll still find something to do in the barn), but in another way I wish it was a family Christmas, holding a nice family get together like those when we were kids would be a special way to spend the festive season, uncles and aunts sitting telling tales of Christmas's past and kids playing with new toys, to sit and watch this happen again would make this bead maker a happy one.
   But this year those dreams still lay a year or two away and it's just time to recharge the batteries, today I'm sorting beads in my etsy store and adding more new sets, a good tidy up is needed which is becoming a regular job for me this time of year.
   It's funny really, I've never been the sort of person who can just sit around at Christmas, I can't spend hours watching tv and eating, I guess I still carry that excited little child around with me who loves Christmas so much and although it's not happening for us at the moment, he still wants to run around opening gifts and wants to smell that cigar smoke as uncles sit chatting about the past year, he wants to watch his mum making Christmas sweets and I think most of all he wants to be out riding that new chopper bike around the lanes of Ashwell again with that huge smile on his face, maybe that's why the many Christmas films just don't do it for me.
   Well, I have had a little fun baking gluten free sausage rolls and mince pies this year, so one up on last year and even if I say so myself they taste ok. I remember the first gluten free pastry I made in the summer, boy was it hard, I made a few jam tarts and I swear if you had dropped one it would have cracked any kitchen floor tile, but now I really have managed to produce soft buttery pastry that I'd be happy to serve to any visitor.
   I have lots of clay ideas to try this holiday and have lots of mugs awaiting glaze as I write, I even have my first teapot sitting drying, god knows how it will look when finished, but it's all a new experience and one that I'm enjoying.
   Well I guess I better get these beads listed and sorted, then I need to get my work bench in the barn in a more tidy state, how I get it into such a mess I'll never know, glass ends everywhere, tools and trial beads all over the shop and reams of paper with bead idea scribbled on, oh for the life of a bead maker.
 
 

To Fight On

   A year of fight but here I stay, we made it to another Christmas, they said I wouldn't but how wrong they were. Me, give up, never ! yes there are times I want to and days I feel the world owes me, but the only one to blame is I, the old sod in love with his glass.
   Scared of stopping and losing all I trudge on, tiny steps not strides of old, but steps forward along those lanes, watching, learning, hoping that day will come, the day it all joins and lady luck welcomes me into her world for that second, that's all I need, just one second of luck and it may all change.
   I'm tired at times, dark mornings when cold barn is my only friend, but every day she does breath life back into this aching body,she knows there lay a mind of a million ideas just waiting for a reason to work in the flame, wishing they were still wanted and one day they will be so.
   People talk of giving up this life I love, this addiction of fire and glass, watching magical tricks produce beads that live for a thousand years. And in my heart I worry that day will arrive, my fight is running out and cannot last forever, but I'll keep on and if still I'm of no interest I will fall upon my flame, not to pester. Barn door will stay shut and winter cold will pass through while glass stands and flame dreams hide in dark corners.

Foods Of Festive Feast's Do Gather

Christmas Past

   Pickles are bottled and sweets are formed by hand while yule logs are decorated with holly and cone from Christmas fur.
   Winter game is hung and hams boiled in salted water while paper chains place smiles on children's faces and cut tree green with needles are placed in candle lit rooms both large and small.
   Evening kitchens with scents of spice and hot mince meat will leave memories never to be forgotten.
   Clementines, nuts and dates do gather on tables that wear embroidered cloth and tins of dusted turkish delight chuckle at chocolate brazils.
   Children listen for sleigh bells as santa's helpers hide gifts from little eyes, Christmas dreams dance in the fire as holly looks down on all.
 

Wood Burner Working It's Magic

Nice Warm Start To The Week


   Yes, you guessed it I was out there at dawn lighting the stove in the barn so we get another nice warm day to work in, dark fen skies and ice filled rain here in the east this morning, just what we need to start a fresh week. I sit here with a hot cuppa watching the winter weather while my head is full of bead and ceramic ideas, oh how different it was a few months ago when I was sitting out in the garden watching the early garden birds and planning the day so as not to be too warm in the summer sun, now it's all about keeping warm and dry, getting ready for the snow and ice and wishing spring was just around the corner again.

   A busy day ahead for this bead maker with beads to clean, string and photograph ready to list, beads to make and this afternoon my first couple of teapots to assemble in the clay room, all this plus a trip to the bank so at least we escape for an hour into the real world. I enjoy our trips to Downham Market, a cute little town with lots of small shops and none of those giant stores where the customer is just a ring on the till, in Downham everyone seems to know everyone and you see old folk sitting chatting, putting the world to right while watching the world pass by.
   I've had a quiet few days on the pottery side of things with the bead making taking up a lot more of my time this past week, I guess the reason being the barn is now so warm and the clay room is still bloody freezing, but saying that I have been happy with the pieces I produced last week a couple of which were cream jugs like the one seen above. Nothing fancy, just me trying new shapes and designs plus the more handles I make the better I will become.
   I have more mugs to make this week and yipeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee, I have a commission for mugs too, to be honest I never thought the day would arrive when someone asked me to make some pottery for them, I must be improving !
   Well, cuppa time over and I need to brush up ready for trip to bank, by the way I've been writing about Christmas past and would be nice to share some of the pieces on here with you so maybe this evening I'll list one. Ok enjoy your day and keep warm.

Another Sunday, Another Fen Wind

Winter Winds Return


   How quick the weeks seem to roll by when your enjoying yourself and man did I enjoy myself this last seven days, the ebay shop was cleared out and the start of the new trios and orphan sets were listed, with a lot more to come this week I may add, the new interest in my etsy shop is growing by the day thanks to a little hint on sale techniques from a friend and with the barn now being warmer due to the wood burner stove I installed, it's a delight to be in there working once more.
   Yet again those fen winds are rushing over us this morning but I guess we are lucky it isn't the snows or the rains, tho there are warnings of snow in East Anglia this coming week so lets see if any arrives here in the flat lands. Those remarkable little gold finches are riding the niger feeders again feeding on the last of the seed, I hope I can get more this coming week as the wild bird seed feeders have now gone over a week without being filled and if only you knew how much I hate that, fingers crossed we can buy a sack in a few days and my little mates will forgive me and return.
   So lets get on to the subject of the wood burner and working in the warm. We were so lucky that a friend who comes from the same village as me and who grew up in the years I did, well a few years younger maybe, knew of a guy who makes wood burners from old gas bottles, well, now a few weeks later we have one sitting in the barn keeping us warm and I'll always thank her for her help, we would have been facing yet another winter working with hot water bottles on our laps is she hadn't of known this guy.
   We managed to obtain most parts for the flue and a few we couldn't I found parts that did the job and now the barn is a very nice warm place in which to work, it makes the thought of going to work every day one of excitement again and just showed us how much the cold was getting to us both. We had been searching online auctions etc looking for a wood burner for nearly two years but the prices were just out of our reach and I must admit it was beginning to seem that we were to face the cold months wrapped in layer upon layer for years to come but now sitting at my torch without my feet freezing and knowing the roof is water proof again makes this bead maker one very happy one.
   I know we have gone without to make this happen and there is a very good chance Christmas won't happen here this year but it's so important that we can work in a dry warm place and in the few days we have had the stove going it has given me so much love back for bead making, to be honest those cold dark mornings unlocking the barn and walking into that freezing work place was not that great and it's no wonder in my eyes I was making less than standard beads, in the last four days this silly old sod as returned to making what he makes best, the beads he loves and the beads that others love too, a born again bead maker  haha !
   Ok I better get off to my torch, I'll try to get a picture on here this evening of the stove and some beads I've been making, I hope you all enjoy your Sunday and look out for that snow !

Cold But No snow

Dark Cold Mornings But No Snow In The Fens


   Another freezing cold dawn here at the barn but so far none of this talked about snow that some parts of Britian are getting, to be honest with you, tho I love the snow I'm glad it hasn't arrived here yet, it will be a while before we get and heat in the barn and already fingers are cold when we work, please mother winter let us off for a few more weeks !
   Already I feel a big disappointment for not being able to fill the bird feeder this week, the finches are still happy with niger seed still in there hanging larders but the last of the wild bird seed was polished off Saturday and we can't afford to replace it yet this week, I hate not having bird seed and people say I'm silly for feeling this way but I do, these poor little guys bring me so much pleasure through the year the least I should be able to do is keep their feeders full. I often say bird seed come before food for me and it has done many times over these last few years and will again this month so I'm hoping they will get food in the next week, fingers crossed.
   Yesterday was spacer day for me and I hope to list some this evening in the etsy shop, today I'll be making all sorts at my torch followed by a few hours in the clay room this afternoon, now that is one cold room, I find by adding boiled water to my water bucket on my wheel I can still throw away happily for an hour or two even when the temperatures are low.

   Last night I listed a few Christmas bells in the etsy shop, I made some and thought they were worth at try on etsy, not sure people will like them as they have no glitter to speak of, I love the old Victorian type colours and the simple bands they used to place on decorations in those days, I guess we will find out if I'm the only one.
   I've had some interest in the apple bakers like the one shown above, people seems to like the thought of baked apples in the colder months and I must say we are planning to have a few this winter, so easy to cook and great after a cold day working in the barn.
   Right I better head off back to my flame and try to warm up next to the kiln, I have some Christmas gift tags to photograph this afternoon ready to list so maybe they will be of interest to the odd customer, it's a real miss match here at the moment, so many ideas I just need another three or four hours to the day.
 

A Taste Of China

Sake Sets And Rice Bowls

   I've been listing a few of the latest stoneware pieces from this week's ceramic firing, a I'm really happy with the results, the rice bowls are just the size I wanted and I'm really pleased with the Sake set I listed last night which includes four of the small button collar drinking cups, there is something I like about these little cups I like and I've had some great feedback about them.

   I also listed a few more of the button collar tumblers as the last couple sold and to be honest I enjoy making them which as good an excuse as any, I made a couple with zip collars just to try something different so it will be interesting to see what people think of them.

   One customer emailed me a picture of one she bought from my etsy shop, she uses it as a pen holder on her desk at work and I must say it does the job really well, maybe I should list them as pen holders in the future.
   For once this morning we have no rain yet the temperature as dropped a great deal and there was a good layer of frost over the fens this morning, now the sun as arrived so I'm hoping it may warm up a little in the barn today, hot water bottle and extra layers are called for today will I'm at my torch.
   I have a few pieces to retrieve from the ceramic kiln this lunch time then it's an afternoon throwing on my wheel, I need to make a batch of mugs plus a few Christmas presents for family and friends tho what, I'm not sure !
   Ok, back to my torch and lets hope the day warms up a little of my fingers may drop off later when throwing on my wheel.

Rock And Frit

  Back Playing With The Designs I Love

   You all know by now that I'm making more of the beads I love and this week so far as been no exception with more of the mythical beads being produced and listed in my etsy shop, I've been playing around to see which colour matches will work best alongside the rock base bead and boy am I having fun trying them all.

   I must say some results just don't work and go straight into the loose bead bowl but most are working out well and colours that I least expected to marry with the stone effects have proved to be the perfect pairing, I'm finding the brighter colours work best of all and even white seems to have something special going on, a colour I would never have dreamt of putting with rock before, just goes to show how long one can make beads without working your way through all the thousands of designs and colour couples there must be.

   Well, no rain here yet this morning but I have a feeling we'll be hearing that sound of beating rain drops on the barn roof before the days out, I can't recall such a wet November or indeed autumn as this one, every field I past seems to be holding it's out paddling pool in the odd corner and the drain levels here in the fens are higher than I've seen while being here this last ten years, touch wood we have no flooding in this part of the flat lands so lets hope we get a dry windy spell before the winter snows arrive.

    Today is a mixed day for me, no torch work today as there are jobs to do in the barn and things to sort, this will I'm hoping be followed by a few hours in the clay room this afternoon glazing some of the Christmas items ready to fire this evening.

   I need to throw some mugs too after wasting half a dozen in the last glaze firing, it was all my fault trying some silly idea I had about mixing glazes, needless to say it all went very wrong and these six very poor excuses for mugs came out of the kiln, but as with all trials you learn from your mistakes and this silly old sod won't be trying that bright idea again !

More Rain

Another Wet Day In The Fens


   Was another early stat for me this morning and yet again I was sitting at my torch when the morning light uncovered the dark soil of the fens, now I sit writing this blog with my morning cuppa while watching the rain falling from grey November skies.
   At least those gales have moved on and touch wood no damage was done here at the barn. The new roof felt is holding up satisfactorily and for the first time in a few years no drips are landing on or around the work area, so that's great news. I must admit the dyke's are high at the moment so lets hope we get a few weeks dry weather for that water to soak away or head off to the river, I know its a good sign to see the water being channelled away like that but I always hate to see the water rise to higher levels, I always think if they reach the top then flooding starts, at least the old fen tigers with their webbed feet will be happy.
   It's to be another busy week here with so much to do, last night was going to be a listing evening but it was so late when I finished packing the kiln for a bisque firing that I decided I wanted to spend what was left of Sunday relaxing with my feet up.
   Today it's bead making for another five hours before I make my way to the clay room so no Monday morning blues for this bead maker. This evening I start to sort through the etsy bead shop with some sets being taken out and placed on ebay and other new sets being listed, I want to start moving more stock around and all the new sets will from now on be listed in the etsy shop, yes there will still be sets at sale prices placed on ebay plus of course focals too, but as I said last week I want my etsy shop to be full of bead sets that I enjoy making not the mundane ordinary sets that to be honest are just not as exciting to produce. The aim of the etsy shop is that by the new year it will hold all new stock of sets, beads that include silver glass, mythicals etc etc plus a wide range of spacer sets, in the ebay shop will be more of the every day sets such as gravity beads, focals and frit etc plus all the sale beads as and when they arise, if I can get the two shops sorted like this by the new year I'll be happy and able to work on a new bead website to show off the more unusual beads that I produce.
   Well the rain is still dancing on the surface of the pond and I need to get back to my torch as there is a lot to do, I have a feeling I may get back on here this evening with a couple of pictures to show, if not it will be tomorrow morning, hope you enjoy your Monday and don't get to wet in this great British weather of ours.

Gales Batter The Fens

Violent Winds Still Raging.


   What a night we spent here in the flat lands, strong gales battered us over night and still this morning we find then racing over the dark soil of the fens, violent winds that I for one haven't seen for a good few years. I must say one thing, I find it amazing that we haven't experienced a power cut yet, this area being known for its electric failures, I can only imagine it's a matter of time before the kiln will need setting again after darkness falls over Upwell.
   One thing for sure is that those tiny gold finches are the most amazing little birds, they ride the feeders in these high winds like little rodeo riders to the entertainment of the row of collar doves that sit out the gales in thick conifer branches, boy those little fellows must be hungry.
   After spending the day at my torch yesterday it's a clay Sunday for me, I need to clean and photograph beads to list this evening but then it's all clay for me. I have so many pieces to finish off and rows of items to bisque fire, it looks very much like this coming week there will be a lot of glazing to do and items to list in the etsy shop and on the website.
   A lot of Christmas tree decorations are to be fired and listed including gift tags, it's funny how making such things sets my mind thinking of Christmas's past and tho I'm really not looking forward to the festive season this year it as made for happy thoughts.
   I sat working yesterday thinking of the first Christmas open day I held here at the barn and how many of those visitors are now making beads of their own, I named around 40 visitors who were there that day and to be honest with you apart from one lady who reads and comments on this blog, not one of them have I heard from for many years, it's a real shame how things change, I guess people move on to new hobbies or new bead makers who's work they like more, some as I said are now makers in their own right, a few of which I myself taught, how different my little bead world as become and indeed the whole bead scene in such a short period of time.
   This is all part of the reason I need to diversify into pottery as well as making my beads, firstly I need to regain a little self-respect and start earning enough to pay the bills without the worry every time the post falls on the carpet or the phone rings in case it's someone asking about a bill that's late being paid, but also I want to be able to afford to keep us warm this winter and to be able to food shop without heading straight for the reduced section, yes I know some of you will say this is just being selfish and that we are lucky as lots have far harder lives than us, but I'm just trying to explain why I'm putting so much time and effort into the ceramics and why I feel so excited when I learn how to make more new pieces,  ok I know I'm a big kid at heart too but it really does make me happy to know I'm heading in the right direction and there may be a better future around the corner and that the hard work may just pay off in the end.
   Well I better head off back to cleaning those beads while we still have power then I get to make a mess in the clay room with sport on the radio and thoughts of those past Christmas's in my head, now that all makes for one very happy bead maker ! Oh, by the way, those poems I mentions will be going on here soon I promise.
 
   

Rain Falls On The Fens

Another Wet Morning Here In The Flat Lands


   Yet again I woke to the sound of early morning rain this morning, one of those mornings when you wish you could sleep in for hours with the patter of rain in the back ground but warm under your quilt, no such luck for this bead maker, again I was up before light as my old friend sleep and I seem to have fallen out yet again.
   It's a late cuppa for me today and I sit here watching my tiny little gold finches feeding on niger seed while the rain still hammers down, I find there strength amazing as they hang in there in all weathers, I see no fighting as they wait for a place unlike this wonderful world we live in where everyone is in such a rush, where on earth did we go wrong !
   Over night I had a bisque firing in the clay room so fingers crossed there will be a few new items waiting for me to glaze when I open the kiln, I'm rather excited to see how the bells turn out, I just hope they are all in one piece and awaiting a design, I can see I'll be having a late finish this evening, but it will be interesting to see which glazes will work together and give a hint of the festive season.
   I guess it's just a matter of finding colours and designs that buyers will like, often I make beads or ceramics that I feel will go down well with customers only to find they prove just the opposite. I made some of the little salt shaker bottles the other week, cute little pieces that I really like but having only sold one it seems these are also one of those ideas that fail to impress, but as I've stated many time on here now, with the pottery I'll make only those items I enjoy producing and just maybe a few will become popular, I guess we have to make a wide selection before we find those pieces and ideas that work.

   On the bead front I'm just waiting for some glass to arrive then I have a few lessons to fit in working more with silver glass, I've always enjoyed working this kind of glass with the addition of silver, rock effects and webbing but there are a couple of things I want to try out this week. In my mind I feel that while sales are so slow it maybe the best time to spend a few hours each day working on these silver glass designs and just maybe I will learn something new to play with.
   Ok I'm off to spend another day searching for that one great bead or piece of pottery that just may help turn our life around again, like some mad inventor in his little barn hoping the next invention will make his fortune tho to be honest no fortune wanted here just a nice relaxing Christmas would be fine and would make this old bead maker a happy one.

A Mixed Day For This Bead Maker

Beads And Ceramics, That's How To Spend A Weekend.


   The weeks just seem to fly by at the moment, every seven days bringing winter closer and any hope of sunshine over the fens a very slight one. Tho this morning is a lot warmer here in the flat lands of east anglia it is wet and grey skies cover us, I've noticed in this last week that more of those fen winds are moving in, a sure sign of winter and the only weather I feel uncomfortable with, the rain and snow I adore but those wild winds and the threat of damage they bring with them, lets say I'd rather not have to worry about.
   Now I need to take a few lines to thank everyone for the birthdays cards and messages I received on Thursday, thank you all so much, it was very kind of you and for someone who doesn't really do birthdays I really appreciated every one, thank you. Now 49 so I guess I'm not quite a grumpy old bead maker yet tho some would strongly disagree about the grumpy bit I'm sure.

   Today is a mixed day here at the barn with beads to make this morning and sets and focals to photograph ready for listing again this evening, I was pleased with the beads I listed in the etsy shop last night and fingers crossed some may find new homes.
   This afternoon will be spend in the clay room trimming pots and throwing more pieces on my wheel, I also have some Christmas tree decorations to make ready to list this coming week, some of these will be small ceramic bells that you can hang from the tree, each I hope having inside a small ceramic bead as a clapper, just another mad little idea of mine but I hope they will look ok. I'm going to try a few with my beads incorporated which will be fun and I hope add a little interest, I have a funny feeling tomorrow will be spent in the clay room with me working like one of Santa's little helpers.
   I've been writing a few more poems this last few weeks, most about my life in Ashwell and the countryside around us, if I pluck up the courage to add a couple on here it will be tomorrow but we'll see, I sometimes feel it must be a bit of a bore for people to read these poems when they don't really know the village in which I lived most of my life but I'm sure someone would have told me by now.
   Oh, by the way I was asked if I would be doing a blog back on my website about the ceramics I'm learning and trying out but I'm not sure yet how I feel about that. I try to show what I'm up to here in this blog and I hope with the addition of more photographs this will help show the path I'm leading on that interesting journey, if any of you have any ideas your comments are very welcome.
   Ok, back to my torch and the warmth of the kiln for me, lots of bead ideas buzzing around in this middle aged head of mine, middle aged, who am I kidding !!
 
   
 
 

A Busy Week So Far

Lots Of Time At My Torch


   It's been a very productive week so far with the last two days being mainly spent at my torch, I seem to have got that old love back in the mornings, I'm guessing a lot of it is because I'm now producing more beads that I enjoy making, beads like the encased mythical's such as snake and dragon skin, I'm playing more with rock effects too which always makes this old bead maker smile.

   It really is enjoyable not having to spend hours making lots of beads that I really have no feelings for, beads that I know will please others but don't excite me the maker and that's one thing I've learnt over the past year or so, I really need to make those beads that please me, those beads that excite me when I open the kiln every morning, if it is to be a fight to make a living then I need to enjoy the extra hours I'm putting in.
   I guess like the ceramics, there is something personal between those using the beads and pottery and the maker and how can that happen if the maker isn't putting his or her heart into it, if it's more like a chore then there is nothing special going into the item they make. This last couple of weeks I feel like every bead I list in the etsy shop is one I like, back playing with the effects I love means I hope that once again I will get that connection with the customer, a connection I have missed for far too long, I'll know when they open that little parcel they will be happy and will have ideas on how to use the beads inside rushing to your head and that is the result I'm longing for when I sit at my flame.

   On the ceramic side of things it's been busy also, I'm enjoying every afternoon working on ideas in the clay room, throwing bowls, pots and cups of different shapes and sizes from tiny bells to hang on the Christmas tree to large salad or fruit bowls and some of the pieces I'm trying are to say the least very unique haha !
   I must admit that I'm having fun with the little drinking cups that I'm producing with the collar and button designs as in the picture above, they are fun and just a bit different, which is always a good thing.
   You all know me well enough to imagine what some items must look like, I remember a while back I made a lot of very strange looking focal beads, nobody really had the bottle to try them, maybe they didn't like them or maybe they just didn't know how to use them, well I'm guessing a few of the ceramic pieces may turn out like that but as I keep saying the ceramics are for me, I make what I want and if a few pieces sell then that's a huge bonus, if they don't, well I'll have a barn full of pottery that in years to come somebody will discover and maybe enjoy as much as I did.
   I hope none of you will mind if I start adding more pictures to the blog only I really feel I want to share a lot more with you and what better way than with photographs.

 

Up On The Roof

A dry Winter Ahead


   Today I found the time to at last get the second half of the barn roof felted ready for the coming winter months, it was not the warmest job to do this morning but it was nice to get it sorted and now we can at least look forward to a dry winter. Last year I lost count of the times we sat working with drips bouncing on our heads or shoulders, not the best thing to suffer while working but now fingers crossed those days are over for a while.
   We had a problem with my oxycon this week so it meant two days making no beads for me, thank god the replacement one arrived this morning and tomorrow I'll be on that torch until my bum catches light !
   This evening I'm listing focals in the ebay shop then I hope to list a few pieces in the ceramic etsy shop after which I'm going to grab a coffee and relax in front of the tv, see, even bead makers get to enjoy the odd evening away from work.
   Ok off to the pc and those listings for old bead maker, one day when they invent some robot who does all your admin I'll be the first in the queue, hope you all enjoy your evening.
 

Silent Skies Again

The Big Bang !


   Well with last nights fireworks now silent the world gets back to normal and faces the day with the sight of a good frost covering the fens, another of those early winter bright clear mornings that chill to the bone.
   For me last night was spent in the conservatory watching the fireworks rise up over the village, my head full of memories of smoke filled bonfire nights in my grandads garden. Old "R.Whites" lemonade bottles set into the ground with those thick stemmed wooden rockets placed inside ready to fire off over the river.
   The timber post onto which those worm curled Catherine wheels were nailed and bonfires built from pallet wood and gleaned fallen branches from the local woods. The jacket spuds and onions wrapped in silver foil cook until soft, ready for melted butter that drips down your fingers and the smell of those onions as hot dogs are fried and placed in "Days" rolls.
   I remember mum making toffee apples which were never red like those bought from the fair, these were real thick brown toffee and the sticks were sliced from kindling. There was not soup and slices of bread and the grown ups would have the odd glass of alcohol to keep them warm, good I remember those evenings like they were yesterday even tho they were 40 or more years ago now.
   With my grandads cottage being large and thatched there was always a big thing made of the direction the fireworks and rockets were set off in and to be honest I can not remember ever seeing any go near the house, I guess having such a big garden helped. These days people don't seem to take a lot of notice where the rockets head, we always find the burnt out bodies laying around the barn, some as long as four foot and it amazes me how we never look out to see the barn up in flames on November the 5th.
   At least that's another year over and pets all over Britain can now rest free for another 12 months until the next lot terrify them, the poor little sods have no idea whats going on, I can only imagine what they must go through.
   Well it's back to the torch for me, I have beads to make and this afternoon I have pots to throw, I hope to fit in glazing a few pieces to fire this evening also, fingers crossed they will turn out ok. Yesterday was a mixed bag of results from the kiln, some I was very pleased with, others not so, I did list a couple of the little collared tumblers in the etsy shop and already a couple of people have given me feedback on them, you know me, I just enjoy doing something a little different.

First Cold For A Long Long While

Not In The Best Shape I've Ever Been


    Yes it got me, the famous cold that seems to be covering the country at last reaches the fens and this bead maker is not feeling that great with a head full of cold, a nice cold sore and the trusty loo roll stuffed in my pocket, not a great look and one I'm hoping to keep hidden.
   Would be nice to spend the day under a quilt asleep but it's work for me, no man flu here just a warm hot water bottle and a seat next to the kiln while I make my beads. A real wet dull morning here in East Anglia but at least those nasty winds of yesterday have settled.
   I can't believe how quick this year as gone, it seems only yesterday we were all excited that summer had arrived with it's early morning sun and green hedgerows, now we see chimney smoke and grey skies, the blackbirds glean rose hips and every branch on the conifer drips with yesterdays showers, a very different world this time of year.
   Well cuppa time over and I'm heading off back to my torch, today I have beads to make, clean and photograph plus post to pack and post, then I hope an evening doing nothing but keeping warm followed by an early night, maybe if I'm lucky I might even get a good nights sleep, tho maybe that's pushing it a little.

It's A Start

Website Up And Running


   Well, at last the ceramic website is up and running and tho I have loads more to do on it, including listing a lot more pieces, I think it looks ok. There will be lots more pages and a ceramic bead shop added in the coming week plus a lot of pieces that I'm waiting to fire this coming weekend, I just hope some of you enjoy taking a look and watching my travels into the world of the potter.
   I must say it's turning into a good day here at the barn, the website is running, the car passed it's M.O.T and the temperature here in the fens is a touch higher than that of last week, so fingers crossed the day will end ok.
   After filling the bird feeding stations and the finch feeders it's nice to see so many birds using them, I really hate it when we can't feed them and tho this time it was just for a few days I feel so much better seeing these little guys enjoying the seeds once more.
   Every berry in every hedgerow seems to be painting their faces with rouge ready for winter, those sloes hang waiting for the first frosts and the soul remaining blackberries hang like condemned little bodies hanging onto that tight rope before the fatal fall, god I love this time of year, if only everyone took the time to jump off this mad busy world for just an hour and take a good look at the things going on in nature, maybe I'm just mad and we are meant to ignore these tiny theatres of the wild, maybe life expects us to wonder through the years not bothering to learn the magical tricks that only nature can show us, I'm not sure, but one thing I know is I don't want to miss a single thing while I'm here and if that means cold walks on late autumn days then I'll be there !
   Well, here is the website address and I hope you get time to take a look, tho as I said, I still have a lot to do with it.
www.fenlandceramics.com

An Extra Hour In Bed, Who You Kidding !!

Still Up Before Light


   I did think I'd get some extra sleep last night but who was I kidding, yet again I woke to the sound of rain and a very dark Sunday morning so up I got and sat with my early morning cuppa, the barn was then unlocked and the normal early morning jobs were completed, all in the freezing cold and darkness. I guess after waking to a layer of snow here yesterday we should think ourselves lucky it's only rain this morning, the temperature really did drop a today it doesn't seem as long so fingers crossed we will be a little warmer in the barn today.
   Yesterday was a clay day for me with pots to trim, bowls and coffee mugs to produce and glazing to be done, at the end of the afternoon I had a full kiln ready to fire and rows of new items sitting on batts with a few days of drying facing them. I'm playing around with mug shapes at the moment and I must say it's giving me a lot of enjoyment, some a complete failure and others working out really well, amazing really how much thought goes into the correct and most comfortable shape of a drinking vessel.
   Today while the rain falls over the fens I have a long list of jobs including a good few hours painting the walls in the barn, clearing out all the old boxes and tins that home long lost beads and not to mention the opening of the ceramic kiln to see what results yesterdays firing has produced.
   This is all to be followed by a evening photographing ceramics and placing them onto the new website ready I hope to publish later in the evening, there will still be parts of the site I wish to improve and shops for ceramic beads etc that need to be added next weekend, but all in all it will show the kind of thing I hope to sell on there and it will explain my aims. I'm not expecting any sales for a few weeks until I get more of a range of pieces listed and find a way of spreading the word.
   Next it will be the new bead site, which I'm hoping I can start building by the back end of November which reminds me, this year will be the first year for a while that I won't be holding a bead sale on ebay. To be honest with you the prices that I used to charge for sale beads are more than the average prices my bead sets fetch on a normal every day auction, so there is no way I'm giving beads away for next to nothing, I've been doing that for the last year or so and to be honest with you I'd rather they now sit and gather dust, if people don't think my beads are worth anything more than a few pounds then they won't be sold.
   To the many customers who have stuck by me through the years, even though my beads are now out of fashion to some, I thank you all and as soon as the barn is finished and ready for visitors you are all very very welcome and to you there will be of course lots of bargains and lots of "Rob Prices" to be had.
   Now to those who believe my beads are only worth a few quid, well, your invites I'm sure will be lost in the post !
   Right, now I better get back to the barn, things to move, dust sheets to lay and paint to stir, I hope you all have a great relaxing Sunday and whatever the weather in your part of the world just think, only another 7 months and it will be summer yipeeeeeeee !
 

Fire Pit Fun

Bronze Age Beakers


   Yesterday I decided to try a few beakers in the fire pit, these were pieces that had been glazes with the exterior left unglazed, so with the idea being to get some smoke effect designs on the outside I lit the fire pit, I knew it would be fun but had no idea what the finished results would be, maybe I would get a couple of pieces to list on the new site or maybe I would find them all in pieces in the ashes at the end, I had no idea which it would be.
   Well after half an hour in the pit and few minutes sorting through the ashes I found four of the five pieces were still intact and covered in smoke shades, out they came and after a while cooling down they were washed and polished. The designs were to say the least unique and I'm really not sure what to make of them,  are they good enough to list on the website, well I really don't know, I'll let them sit around for a while while I get used to them.
   The results may have been mixed but boy was it fun trying it out and I can see more pieces going in the pit in the future, I guess it's good to try out these things now and then and if nothing else it makes for an interesting hour away from the wheel.
   It was another early start here, I was up and about at 5 and now I sit writing this blog with yet again the sound of rain falling in the darkness of this Tuesday morning, it seems no time since I was waking to the early sunshine pouring in through the bedroom window, now it's darkness that greets me in the early hours.
   Now it's back to the barn for me with beads to clean and photograph, enjoy your day.

New Week

Wet Start


   Another wet start for the new week ahead, the mornings here in the fens seem to be getting grey and damp now with any last signs of summer slowly disappearing and that early winter feel already here to bully autumn into submission.
   Already the warnings of a cold winter are being banded around and talk of snow and ice taking over weeks of the coming months keeps sending the thoughts of a cold few months in the barn to my mind. All summer I hoped we could make enough money to obtain a small wood burner stove to keep us warm this winter but with sales being so slow we just can't do it, in fact we yet again face another year working with hot water bottles tucked in our seats, I look on it as one of the smaller problems in life and to be honest with you it's a bit of a challenge, it got me thinking about the days before electric and how people kept warm, yes the open fire I guess kept the house warmer and stone hot water bottles along with bed warming pans made going to bed a warmer experience but as for working all day in a cold barn, well what would they have done.
   As we chatted about it this past few days I mentioned how lucky I was to have lost weight as now I have so many larger sized clothes to ware which will come in handy as I can wear more layers in an effort to stay warm and by lunch time we find the barn as warmed a lot, it's just those early morning hours that bite, those hours when we sit holding our cuppa to warm our hands up, oh for that wonderful life of a bead maker !
   I sit here with a late morning cuppa watching more rain fall over the fens, those sodden fields of dark rich soil rolling out for miles, the gulls have found another working plough to follow and wood pigeons glen the torn soil, a very different time of year now, one where nature grabs what it can to prepare for the winter months, no shelter for them, no hot water bottles or warm bed, just harsh winter weather lays ahead, I wonder what crosses their minds this time of year, it certainly makes this bead maker feel humble when all I fear is the coming cold mornings.
   Well the plans for a fresh looking barn I hope will come true next week as we plan to get the painting all done and the carpet changed, that should just leave the glass displays to clean and a good all round tidy up, then it's just a matter of making new stock to place in the displays, I think we are looking at around the back end of November before it's ready for visitors but at least we will feel better working in a more cleaner looking space.
   Last night I did a glaze firing in the ceramic kiln so later today I'll be like a big kid opening up the kiln lid to see what greets me, fingers crossed a few nice pieces will be waiting there. This coming week will be the time to fire a lot of the new pieces which I hope will be good enough to go on the website, I have listed the first item and hope to have a few more on there by next weekend when I'll place the website link here on the blog.
   Right, I'm off to my flame and I hope you enjoy your day even if you too are getting the rains.
 

A Late Night Building

First Evening Building The New Site


   It's a later start for me this morning after spending what seemed like half the night starting to put together the new ceramic site, I'm hoping by Christmas I'll have both a new bead and pottery site up and running. After being asked by more customers why I haven't still got my websites and explaining about the problems I had, I thought it was time I sorted it all out, the idea is two brand new sites, both with shops to sell beads and ceramics, it will take a week or two to get them built and sorted ready for sales but at least I'll once again have somewhere to sell items without having to pay all those sellers fees.
   I will still be selling from both my etsy and ebay shops but in the website shops I can just list my favourite sets and ceramic pieces, I guess these sites will be more for me to show off the items I enjoy making rather than making lots of money, but we''ll see how it goes.
   Another really wet morning here in the fens with blustery winds playing with hedgerows and reed beds alike, the last autumn blooms dancing in the garden, hanging on until their winter fall while a pair of gold finches hang on to their feeder for dear life like north sea fishermen riding a storm, god I love mornings like these, sitting here in the warm with my cuppa while watching those wild skies.
   This morning I'm at my torch as normal with spacers and focals to make for ebay, I have a commission order for ruffled discs to complete and I have beads to clean and photograph ready to list this evening. The afternoon will be spent in the clay room trimming salt bottles, salt shakers and some tall slim neck bottle vases followed by throwing pieces on my wheel, maybe today I'll produce the first special piece that I can save for the new site, fingers crossed.
   Ok, back to it for me, I have wild weather to watch while I work away in the warm next to my kiln and whatever your plans for the day I hope the weather isn't too bad where you are.

Wet Autumn Morning

Dark, Wet And A Touch Cold

   Winter is really on it's way here in the flat lands, I sit with my cuppa writing this update while huge black clouds carry rain off towards the coast and fine drizzle falls upon the dark soils so rich here in the fens The conifer trees that edge the rear garden dance that strange dance that only the winds of East Anglia can produce and gone now are any chances of a warmer morning with signs of winter's arrival all around us.
   The golden tree jewellery starts to lay as a autumn carpet that children love to walk in and kick just as I did all those years ago, rusty leaves fall from pear, apple and plum, while coal smoke fills the morning air and street light shimmers in puddles, everything I love about autumn is there outside for me to watch like some massive stage production of which I have a front seat.
   It was another early start for me this morning, another walk across a dark garden to open up the barn, that quiet hour before those early workers start to pass, those first birds singing waiting for dawn as I empty the bead kiln with excitement.
   Today will be another busy one for me, there are beads to make, clean and photograph, there are bowls and pots to trim and I hope this will be followed by more pieces being thrown on my wheel, who on earth ever said the life of a bead maker was a nice easy one !!
   These are the days when I miss my Marley and still I find myself looking down at his favourite space next to my bench expecting him to be laying there sleeping in the warmth of my kiln, a winter without him really isn't a nice thought but I'm sure Sam will be there getting in trouble as normal and I guess it's just life passing by even if it is far too fast at times.
   Ok I'm heading back to my torch and a rainbow of glass rods waiting in turn to help me in my work, the barn is warming and the rain still falling so this bead maker is a happy one.

Goblets In The Kiln

First Goblets Are Firing Tonight

   Well, I guess I'll be like that big kid waiting for Christmas this evening, the first goblets are in the kiln and I will just have to wait until tomorrow lunch time at the earliest to see what I've done to them by adding the glaze. It could be a real disaster and all hopes of ever making those tall goblets again may well be lost forever, or, it may be that I'll be over the moon with them and by tomorrow evening I'll be sitting at my wheel making more, we'll just have to wait and see.
   It's funny really, I know they most probably won't be liked by buyers but to be totally honest with you i really don't care, over the last year or two when I've tried everything to keep customers including making lots of beads that I really don't enjoy producing, I've realised how much I long to enjoy the items I make, yes with the beads I know I will need to continue making beads that customers like even if I don't, but with my ceramics, well I'm not going to suffer that fate, I said from the very first time I came up with the idea that I would only make things I enjoyed making and boy am I going to stick to it.
   These goblets are my kind of item, they have that medieval look, they have that sense of grandeur about them, I see them being used on special occasions of indeed by the odd person who enjoys a relaxing glass of wine in the evening, I think of those who drank from them in centuries past when a glass or silver goblet was out of the reach of even the middle classes and for the life of me I can't think of any good reason why we shouldn't still use them now, after all many of us still use stoneware kitchen ware every day of our lives so why not stoneware goblets.
   Ok, I better get that cuppa I promised Yvonne an hour ago plus there is one huge scruffy dog called Sam sitting here waiting for an hair cut, so that should be fun !!
 

Weekend Sunshine

We Wake To A Sunny Dawn


   What a wonderful feeling waking to find some early morning sunshine pouring into our bedroom, after that dark wet morning of yesterday it makes a great change and I hope it points to a dry day and one full of production work wise.
   Last night I decided to glaze and fire a few bowl sets and a few other pieces to give me a head start on the weekend, this gives me a chance to list the first pieces this evening with more coming over the nest two or three days. I will be loading the kiln again late this afternoon with more items to bisque fire including the first few tall goblets, I'm rather excited about them and I have my fingers crossed that they will turn out ok. I'm hoping they may be seen as celebration goblets or toasting vessels, used at weddings or other special events, I have made shorter examples which I'll be listing but these taller goblets really do have that look of splendour about them, that medieval look where kings and queens would drink wine from them while feasting in some huge feasting hall.
   I have more bead sets to list on ebay and etsy this afternoon, the first auction sets sold last night in my ebay shop so I need to get a few more listed, I'm beginning to think it really was a good idea to start listing these sets on auction again and fingers crossed they will become popular with buyers.
   Ok, cuppa time over and my torch is calling, at least it won't be as cold this morning which always seems to make a huge different on the amount of beads I produce, I hope you all enjoy your weekend and I'd just like to say one thing before I sod off, I take my hat off to the brave family of that little angel April in Wales and I like everyone else wish and hope they are soon reunited with her. The job that is being done by those searching is such a hard one and to those in the search teams I like most bow to your commitment and energy.

Dark Morning

First Winter Morning


   I was up early this morning watching those dark heavy rain clouds rushing over the fens heading towards the East Anglia coast, the first of those winter mornings when I love to sit in the warm and watch the dawn, slowly the darkness makes way leaving those dark skies above.
   Those quiet wet mornings when the odd car passes taking those who have to start early to work, those mornings when I'm happy to be sitting in the warm writing this blog with a hot cuppa while looking out upon the wet fens where the raw winds cause those leaving home to wrap up warm, it's that late autumn season when those golden paths of leaf carpet country lanes all over Britain and that smell of late afternoon bonfires fill the air.
   Today I will empty the bisque firing from last night only to replace those pieces with more this evening or tomorrow evening, this I hope means a busy weekend glazing items ready to list, bowl sets, goblets and I hope the first few egg cups will be among them.
   The fact that weekends such as the this one come along where I get to enjoy myself finishing off new pieces helps me cope with the every day struggles that just seem to be here every week now, the excitement of opening the kiln to find out how glazes or designs look is a great feeling and one that I hope to experience for a long while yet.
   Back to work for me now, I'm on my torch making more sets and a few focal beads today, later this afternoon I'll be on my wheel throwing a few more smaller pieces, I'm now on my last bag of clay so I'm guessing next week will be a wheel free one, maybe I'll spend some time on beads and pendants.

Egg Cups

First Egg Cups Made.

 
    How the hell does making egg cups give me as much pleasure as it did yesterday, who would have dreamt I would enjoy spending an hour making those little breakfast items but I did and I have a funny feeling I'll be making more this afternoon.
   After a suggestion from a friend yesterday in which she mentioned giving egg cups a try, I thought why not, they are small and something that most households need and you know me, I was sure I could make them a little different in shape and design from those we all own. If all goes well and the egg cups I've made dry quick enough I may get to show the odd one or two off this coming weekend along with some of the bowl sets and goblets, it's very much looking like the coming week will see a lot of new ceramics being listed in my etsy shop starting from this weekend.
   This evening there are a few pieces I want to list and more lampwork bead sets on ebay and etsy, the sets I listed this past week have found a good bit of interest and it's with fingers crossed that I'll be adding more most evenings over the next week or two. I got into the habit of listing only focals for auction in the past year or two with most sets always being a "Buy It Now" option, but I think it's now time people had chance to bid on sets also and maybe get a good bargain, it's funny how long it takes buyers to find your new items but since I listed the first sets a week ago I can see a great improvement in the number of page views etc, so touch wood this may help with sales.
   Today again I'm on my torch this morning and I'll once again be working in the clay room this afternoon, I can't stress enough how much more confident I am working on my wheel now and it can only be down to the amount of time I'm spending throwing pieces, also buy spending shorter days on my torch I have that hunger back every morning to get back with my flame, that can fade when you spend so many long days making beads, I don't care who you are and how much you love working with glass, you do get those periods when this happens and you get that lack of luster, so it is often good to spend shorter days on the torch which will help you regain that positive feeling again, believe me, if it can work for me it will work for anyone, I don't think there are many people who spend more hours than I do on their torch each week in fact to say I'm addicted would be an understatement.
   Ok, back to my flame for me and lets see if we can get that bead kiln full again today, each day I'm making the odd extra set to put away ready to fill the displays here in the barn, the last thing we need is to invite customers to visit and the selection of beads here is under par.

Bubbles And More Bubbles

Bubble Bead Fever

   Well yesterday was the first day of this new week and a great productive day it was here at the barn. I had what can only be called a bubble bead morning with some really nice sets of my owl eye bubble beads being made ready to list on etsy this evening. I'm hoping to produce a few more this morning with an hour or two being spent playing with different colours.
   I must say yesterday was the first day I was glad to be next to my kiln with the cold fen winds returning for the first time this autumn, I'm sure it won't be long before these blog updates will written while I sit waiting for dawn on those cold winter mornings and to be honest, watching those wild dark skies is one part of winter I enjoy.
   On the ceramic side of things, yesterday was also a good day, more tall goblets were made and the first few drinking mugs were produced, later today I'll be putting a few more handles on mugs as with most things, practise makes perfect and boy do I need to practise !!
   The aim for this week is to get a full kiln Friday or sat to bisque fire leaving the rest of the weekend to get those pieces glazed. The first goblets will I hope be listed next Monday, fingers crossed some will like them but as long as I'm happy with them I don't mind how many months they sit on the shelf, I'm beginning to believe it's now becoming time for me to once again start making more of what I like and not just what I think customers would buy. Over the last two years I've watched sales drop to less than half and I guess in my mind I'm thinking, sod it, if I'm going down then I'm going down making things that I enjoy making, some will say that's a real "glass half empty" thing to say but I'm sure when things pick up I'll feel differently again, I think we can all fight but even the strongest get to a point when they wonder if it's all worth it and I guess I'm hitting that stage at the moment.
   On a brighter note, the barn is looking empty but with that comes the chance to start getting that lick of paint on and the carpet changed, we were lucky to have saved some carpet from one of the spare bedrooms and it looks ideal to use in the barn. The glass display units need a good clean, old cupboards and tables are being removed and all in all we hope it will look very different and nice and clean.
    We are looking to obtain some peg board on with we can hang a big selection of spacer beads for visitors to look over, we will both have a display unit each with Yvonne filling hers with her frit beads etc and I'll be using mine to display some of my better bead sets. I'm hoping to get an area arranged in which I can show off my ceramics, both beads and vessels, tho the dusting will be one job I'm not looking forward to haha!
   Ok, this late cuppa time over and back to my flame for me, I hope you all enjoy your day, I have more bubbles to form.

A Fresh Week

Hope This Week Is A Better One

   After last week, which lets say wasn't the best week we ever had, I'm hoping this week will bring a little joy and will be a very productive one. This morning I'm on my torch followed by yet another afternoon in the clay room, on the lampwork side of things it's focals and a few sets that I'm producing and with the ceramics I'm trying out more ideas for the Christmas period, over the weekend I made my first couple of ceramic tall goblets and what fun that was.
   A month ago I would never have believed I would be able to make such items but as the weeks pass it all seems to be coming together, most days after working on the wheel I sit and look at the pieces I've produced and it amazes me what I'm now able to turn out. Yes there is the normal items such as kitchen ware but also now I'm starting to try the more interesting things such as the goblets and candle sticks, later this afternoon I have a few handles to fix on some coffee mugs, it's funny really as of all the items I've now worked on the plain simple drinking mug is one I've let slip by. It's not that I don't like them but just that I've been working on getting the basics such as bowls etc right, now I feel I can spend some time working on mugs, plus with resources being so limited and clay being like gold to me at the moment, it means I can practise on these smaller items without using up the little clay I have at the moment.
   I'm very much hoping I can get a few sales soon so I can obtain more clay, I have started recycling my scrap clay and it is coming in really handy, it's amazing what you can learn when you really need to.
   The barn makeover is coming on and tho it's looking rather empty it does show just how much room we are lucky enough to have here, I was so lucky to have been able to afford the materials all those years ago to build it as if it had been now or indeed the last four or five years we just wouldn't have been able to even think about it. Now we need to come up with a way of turning this dusty cobweb filled old barn into a nice clean place to display and sell beads from, a place where customers can once again visit and enjoy an hour or two having a coffee and looking through beads and maybe in the odd case giving bead making a try, I know it's slow going but I feel we have to get this done, it all part of my final try to get sales going again, I don't want to end yet another year with no future to look forward to.
   Ok back to work for me and ceramics and beads to pack ready to post this lunch time, a very damp grey fens today but a nice warm seat next to my kiln awaits me.

A Dry Morning And A Hot Cuppa

No Rain Here Yet

   More rain on the way we are told but at the moment it's dry here in the fens, looking across the flat lands all you see is that rich dark damp soil that this area is known for, after the heavy rains we have had the last few days everywhere looks so green and refreshed in the garden, the hedgerows are alive with birds and the dykes (drains) are fast flowing and full, everything you expect in a fenland autumn.
   These last two mornings just haven't seemed the same without my mate being there next to me when I open the barn, I wish I had a pound for every time I looked around to see him sleeping in the barn while I sit at my torch. Thank you all for the kind words and text messages about Marley, the good news is that Sam, our Old English Sheep dog looks like he is taking over, he follows me everywhere and has his nose in everything tho I do catch him sitting looking around for Marley.
   Yesterday was a good productive day here with a morning spent making sets for etsy and ebay and the afternoon was a bowl throwing session, I'm hoping to get lots of bowl sets made ready for the christmas period as I'm sure they would be an handy pressie. I was so pleased to see one of the first Saxon disc pendants sold last night, I made some last week and wasn't really sure they would appeal to customers but it seems they will be liked, tho they are large in size there is something I like about them, I love making them as I turn them on my wheel and every one is different in size and thickness, and of course the finish is one I adore, I'm not using any glaze on them just glass frit which means I have no idea what they will look like when I open the kiln. I may mix glass and glaze together in the coming weeks to see how they turn out but at the moment the glass finish gives them something very unique and of course the colours have that natural feel that I love.
   Today will be another morning spent on my torch and yet another afternoon throwing and trimming bowls, I hope to make a few more Saxon discs too but will have to see how time goes. I need to get as much done today as possible as tomorrow I get to visit my aunt in Ashwell which means no work until tomorrow evening.
   Ok, I better get back to my flame and see what magic the glass can show me today.

I Will Miss Him Loads

My Marley Passed Away Yesterday


    It was a sad day here yesterday with my best mate Marley passing away in the morning, I know he was just a dog to most people but to me that black lab was a best friend who was by my side for the last 11 years and I don't mind admitting I will miss him a huge amount, already do.
   It was only fitting that I buried him in the garden yesterday afternoon as the rain lashed down here in the fens, more than anything he loved going out walking in the rain with me, so how better way for me to lay him to rest. However many times you lose a pet, in my case dogs, it still gets to you when you stand and lower them into the ground, however big or tough you think you are that tear always appears when you see them wrapped up laying in that hole, just something we all go through at some stage in our lives.
   I have to say it was nice to think he won't suffer any more now but I will miss the cuddles and him sitting next to me when for some strange reason he always seemed to know I was a little down, amazing how they know when your not happy, yes all in all I'll miss my mate a lot.
   On a brighter note there is much going on here at the barn, new beads are being listed on ebay, not just focals but also bead sets that are listed on auction, most I list in the ebay shop are "buy it now" sale beads so I thought it was about time I started listing a few on auction again, the second batch will be listed this evening.      On the ceramic side of things I'm making a lot of items which I hope to start listing this week, a lot of candle lamps which I hope would be ideal for Christmas gift ideas and there will be more kitchen items such as bowls and tableware.
   I must admit I'm beginning to think more about the winter and how we can work in the colder month without freezing as in years passed, It looks like it boils down to electric heaters this year as the plan to find a small second hand wood burner stove I'm afraid just won't be possible this year, funds just won't reach that far and yes I know it would save a fortune on electric but it's just not possible. Sometimes we just need to bide our time and hope that in the future we can get these things sorted, until then it looks very much like another winter with hot water bottles and extra layers for this bead maker.
   However much I enjoy looking out at the snow and rain, the thoughts of the cold is not one I'm looking forward to, I guess some people are lucky and work from their home all dry and warm, others like us have a great space to work in but have to live with problems like the cold in winter, we can't have everything in life and to be honest I feel that I shouldn't moan, tho working in gloves may be a problem haha !
   Ok, back to my torch and making beads, this afternoon I'll be throwing bowls on my wheel and later this evening it's photographing and listing for me, I hope you all enjoy your day and if your facing yet more rain I wish you luck.

Lampwork And Ceramic Bead Day

A Day Of Beads Here At The Barn

   After a weekend spent photographing beads and trying out new ceramic ideas, it was back to my torch this morning with the sun pouring in the widow what must have been every bird in the fens feeding on the stations outside. It's funny how they always seem to brighten up any day and this last couple of days with the worry of Marley playing around with my head it's nice to take my mind off things by watching the finches showing their second brood how to feed.
   We had a few weeks when we couldn't afford to buy bird seed and the garden seemed so empty without the little fellows, now at last we obtained a sack of food for them and tho it took a couple of days for them to return, at last they are all back, like players in some grand show they make my days pass with such pleasure.
   This afternoon I was in the clay room rolling ceramic beads and forming disc beads, I have bisque pieces to glaze later in the week and more wind chimes to produce, so all in all it's going to be another busy week here at the barn.
   For those of you who were asking after Marley I thank you and I'm afraid it's not great news, he as not been great this last few days and to be honest it may soon be time to call in the vet, the last thing I want is to watch my best friend suffer, at the moment he is eating and drinking but getting very weak, we'll see how things go over the next few days.
   Well it's been a long day and a cuppa is needed while I spend an hour with my sketch book.

Monday Blues, No Way !!

Kilns To Empty And Beads To Make

   Why on earth would I have the Monday morning blues when I have beads to make and kilns to empty, the ceramic kiln will I hope be ready to empty after lunch with some new items in there, I just hope they turn out ok. It's ok making new pieces but after the addition of glazes and that final firing it's really time to cross fingers and see what results I get, as I've said before, unlike the lampwork beads with ceramics you really don't know what the colours will turn out like, yes you have an idea but even small things like the position they are taking up in the kiln can make a huge difference.
   I have a number of beads to make this morning including both focals and sets for the etsy shop, and we have post to pack and post, so a trip to the local post office will give us a treat, I do sometimes wonder if people realise just how important some of these little village post offices are to people, we send all our orders from a tiny post office in a neighbouring village, it saves those trips to the town and those busy offices where your just a customer and often you don't even get a smile.
   Another quiet morning here in the fens with the schools back and the morning rush hour over we can all settle back to work after such a great weekend, the sunshine is filling the garden already and it looks like another warm day for us here in Norfolk.
   I'm hoping to tidy up the clay room later today which I'm really not looking forward to, I guess it's a man thing, we are great at making a mess but so so good at cleaning one up, maybe we need to get back to the caves and days out hunting food, I'm sure most wives would agree. We had another hour or two working on getting the barn ready for visitors this weekend tho we are still not ready to paint yet, it seems to take up so much time sorting out all the treasure we find in every cupboard and box, there are bowls and jars everywhere holding beads, glass and findings, we were hoping to have it done by now but it's a matter of finding the time between working. Often it's gone seven by the time we pack up for the day and after starting most mornings well before eight it leaves you wanting to just sit and relax in the evenings, yes I know I should just get in there and get it done but you have to remember, no work, no money and as most of you know things have never been so slow here sales wise so every hour we get is focused on production at the moment.
   Ok, off to my torch and the rest of the morning playing with my flame tho I'm sure my mind will be on opening that ceramic kiln for most of the time.
   Thank you to all who have asked how Marley is doing, he is not great and is looking very thin and old but he is eating some things and drinking ok, he is loving the cuddles and believe me there have been lots of those.

A Full Day Throwing On The Wheel

Sunday Is Clay Day

   Today I get a full day throwing on my wheel and an evening glazing the bisque fired items from last night, it's all go this Sunday and I'm sure I'll enjoy every second of it. I must say after a night with not much sleep and being up and about at dawn, I'm feeling a little tired so if I'm not still working late this evening it won't be a surprise but maybe it will mean I have a good nights sleep to look forward to.
   The sun is shining over the fens this morning and it's so quiet, the perfect Sunday morning with the world taking it's time to wake before family days in the garden and trips to the coast, there is something about Sunday that makes you feel relaxed, in my case I guess they were always days when my family worked in the garden, when mornings were spent with the radio on in the kitchen and veg being made ready for Sunday lunch, the smell of roast meat in the oven and my mum making stuffing and Yorkshire puddings. My dad would be finding jobs to do in the veg garden and I would be enjoying some kind of game or drawing in one of many sketch books.
   I often wonder how different it would be now if my mum was still with us, I'm sure we would be enjoying those huge roast diners with them, you never ever taste those same tastes when your mum passes and however hard you try you just can't get meals to taste the same.
   I remember spending hours helping her in the kitchen, we made pickle together, me chopping all the veg while mum cooked it adding spices of all sorts, how I sometimes wish those days were still here, but I guess life moves on and maybe one day others will remember me in that way.
   So, it's clay in my hands today and a list of items I'm hoping to produce, after lunch I hope to empty last nights bisque firing from the kiln, fingers crossed there will be a few nice pieces to glaze. I have bowl sets to make and a few new items to try, with Christmas in mind I've been jotting down a few ideas and I think it's time I started putting them into practise.
   Ok, I'm off to wedge some clay then to my wheel, I hope you all enjoy another warn day and get lots done in the garden or better still you enjoy a nice day out with the family.
 

Passion Returns

That Feeling Of Excitement Returns

   This week as been a busy one here at the barn with mornings spent on my torch and afternoons throwing pieces on my wheel, still my mind is working over time thinking of working beads and ceramics together, my note books have page after page of sketches and ideas, I just hope I can reach the skill levels that I will need to bring these ideas into use.
   After a few down days over the last month when the joint pain as placed me on the lower ladder of life and    I really struggled to get going in the mornings, it's now nice to have that feeling of excitement back, that feeling  when every evening is spent planning the following days work, when each morning holds the pleasure of opening my kilns, both lampwork and a couple of mornings a week the ceramic kiln, for the first time in months I feel like the old Rob and believe me it feels great to be able to say that.
   Now I just hope with time I start feeling better health wise, it will happen and tho it may take a long while I can cope with it, after watching those hero's who have been competing in the paralympics what the hell am I doing moaning about aching joints, it's just a matter of getting on with things and with winter just down the road I just need to keep warm.
   Today is another mixed day work wise with beads to make, some to clean and photograph ready to list this evening and yet more ceramics to throw on my wheel, I guess the fact that my days are now filled with a variety of jobs helps take away that mundane feel that was at times showing it's head and of course the fact I'm teaching myself another skill always helps, every day I'm learning more, I feel so very lucky.
   This weekend I was hoping we may manage a trip to the coast one evening but I think we may have to put that on hold, I miss my walks along the beach picking up drift wood and other interesting items, you would be amazed at how many different textures you can find when walking along the tide line, I'm sure we will get there next month when sales pick up a little.
   With Christmas only a few months away I'm looking at ceramic items that may be ideal for the festive holidays including candle lamps and tree decorations, any ideas are always very welcome so please feel free to email me any time.
   Ok back to my torch for me and with the sunshine already filling the garden I'm hoping we are in for another warm day here in the fens, I hope you all enjoy your day.
 

Ceramic Bead Day

A Day With Clay

   Today is to be a clay day for me here at the barn, I have so many ceramic beads to make, sand and bisque fire including round, disc and a few new designs. There are also wind chimes to finish and bisque fire as well as a number of pendants, I've been working on a few ways to use glass and clay together so I hope a couple of these will produce some good results, fingers crossed.
   We put together the first three trinket pots last night so I'll be listing them this evening in the etsy shop. It was Yvonne who came up with the idea of using some of my beads to decorate ceramic pots, I was just ordered to make them and I think they are interesting little pots, ideal for many uses as I'm sure you will agree when you see them.
   To be honest I can't think of anything better to do than to marry together my beads and the ceramics I love making, maybe another of those small quiet lanes for me to follow where I can experience many new things and come up with yet more ideas while leaving most to their busy main roads of life. I guess there is the simple idea of mixing ceramic and glass beads together in jewellery pieces but no, that's far too simple for me,  the idea of spending weeks if not months trying out other ways and ideas is one that I'm looking forward to and maybe incorporating the glass along with glazes may be the answer, we'll see.
   I have to continue working on my first candle lamps later today which is exciting, after forming the bases and the globes I now get to cut out the light holes before they are finished off and fired, I love the idea of having a few in our house this winter and I'm sure they would be perfect for the Christmas period, if they turn out as well as I hope I'll be listing a couple next weekend. This weekend will be taken up listing ceramic beads and wind chimes, which points to yet another busy few days.
   Ok cuppa time over and back out to the barn for me, I need to clean glass beads before I start on the clay, they will be listed this evening.
   

Thunder, Rain And A Body That Don't Work

A Busy Sunday Ahead

   It's bank holiday Sunday and boy have I a lot to do, no bead making or throwing pots today, just a long day cleaning, photographing and listing both beads and ceramics, as you can tell by the lack of beads I've listed this week, to tell you the truth, the last four or five days I've been as stiff as a board and sitting for hours cleaning beads was the last thing I needed.
   I'm sorry if this sounds lazy, I'm not I promise, it just seems that some weeks I get the odd period of a few days when my joints hurt more, I'm getting used to it and apart from moving around like someone of 80 I should be grateful that's all I have to suffer when so many people have far worst things to cope with every day of their lives.
   So, today is catching up day here at the barn and I'll be locked to my seat cleaning all day even if it means I can't walk tomorrow haha ! The ceramic kiln is cooling down from last nights glaze firing and I hope this evening to pack it with more items that need bisque firing, I have a feeling I'll be listing ceramics all this week,  lets just hope a few get sold.
   This time of year is always so quiet on the sales side of things, just another negative of being a full time bead maker, most people think we live the ideal life and in many ways we do, but it's not all easy going, in fact I think most of you who follow my blog must know by now just how hard it can be, when things are tough I just hope for that one little piece of luck that we all need in life and maybe ours will come. I must admit sometimes I wonder what I did wrong in a past life to get in such a mess, but then I guess that's just silly and the only reason we are not doing so great is because I need to work harder, put in more hours making those items that sell, I need to look through my past sales and take notice of the best sellers, I am the first to admit I make a lot of sets that in the back of my mind I know won't do that well, I guess it's past experience that teaches us makers just what will be popular and what won't,  still you hope but now I'm thinking hope is just not enough anymore and it's time I started making real beads again, beads I love making and beads I know others enjoy.
   When things are hard my head tells me to make anything, it's more quantity rather than quality and to me that's not how I want to be, yes I agree people like a range of simple beads such as spacers etc but they also like the more unique beads, the beads that made my love for glass grow, the beads that excite you in the mornings when you open the kiln, those beads that you feel proud of when you clean and string them and I know I need to get back to making those, if things stay a struggle at least I'll be making the beads I love once again and not just turning out beads for money.
   So from tomorrow morning every set of beads I make will once again be a pleasure and not a chore, my love for pebble beads will I'm sure mean they will be making an appearance once again in my etsy shop and many encased beads too. Any more simple beads will be listed in the ebay shop over the next few weeks and yes I will still make spacer sets, tho I'm not yet sure which shop I'll been listing then in, maybe both etsy and ebay.
   Now it's off to the cleaning table for me and a trip to the veg garden to harvest some beans and kale for this evenings dinner, the fens are well and truly damp this morning after those wonderful thunder storms last night and tho a grey sky this morning they say it will stay dry. I hope you all enjoy the rest of this bank holiday weekend.
 

Just An Idea

Recording My Poems


   Before anyone thinks this old bead maker is a real show off by recording his own poems I have to say I was asked if there was any way I could record them and place them on here for you to listen to. Well I have started and as a couple of you already know I have been trying to pluck up the courage to place the link here on the blog, to be honest with you the thought of you all hearing me reading the poems I write is one that frightens the life out of me, but I keep getting told to go for it so here you are.
   This link should I hope allow you to hear the first two poems I've recorded and if people don't think they are crap then I'll place a few more on there over the coming weeks.
www.soundcloud.com/beadmaker/evening-garden
   I hope by following the link you should be able to hear both poems that I have so far recorded. Ok I'm off to hide while you go see if I've made a big fool of myself.

Warm Weekend

Back To Work

   It's been a very busy last few days here at the barn, my torch has been burning and I even found a few hours to weed in the veg garden, by the way after years of never trying Kale, I can honestly say I now love the stuff, I'm glad I grew a few rows and they say like spinach, it's full of iron so very good for you.
   Today I get to sit in the garden making ceramic beads, I'm looking to make both round and disc beads so I can do one large bisque firing at the end of the week, I hope to make a good number of sets then I'll have enough to list for the next few weeks. I have some lidded pots to trim this morning, larger sizes, the odd one I'll make into garlic pots and the others storage pots, ideal for use in the kitchen.
   I was hoping to find the time to make a couple of salt pigs today but we'll see, my note book has page after page of items I want to make so slowly I'm trying to work my way through them, many of which I would have had no idea of how to make just a month or two ago.
   It was nice having Nicola my step daughter here for the a couple of days, I guess we don't get to see many people these days, we just seem to work every day then sleep before working again, a trip to the supermarket seems to be our only entertainment at the moment and to be honest that doesn't happen much these days. It never really bothers me, I've always been happy leading a quiet life after years of playing hard when younger, but I do feel Yvonne misses having friends around, maybe if sales pick up we can start to visit family again and get the barn refurbishment finished to welcome customers again then I'm sure it won't be such a quiet life we lead, tho it is nice watching the world fly by sometimes while feeling away from things here out in the fens.
   Well it looks like yet another warm day ahead of us today and I'm sure most of you will be planning a day out, maybe a trip to the coast or the park, a day out in the countryside sounds nice to me with lunch in some quiet village pub and a long walk, maybe one day but until then the weekends stay just as the week and we work as normal.
   Ok cuppa time over and clay to feel between my fingers, I hope you all enjoy a wonderful day whatever way you decide to spend this sunny Sunday and if you get to the coast then take a good walk along the beach for this bead maker.