GLAZE NAMING CONTEST

Earlier this year, Betsy developed a new green/black glaze combination. It was a hit at summer art fairs. Food looks fabulous on it....but it doesn't have a name! That's up to you. It combines the rich warm black of Old Black Magic and a new kind of celery green...very like old celadons of ancient China and Korea.

As a starter, some of our other glaze names are, Old Black Magic, Midnight Garden, Tequila Sunrise, Todd Lake, Old Celadon, etc. There could be $25 bucks in it for you. Just click on the 'comments' section below and let us know your idea. Enter as many as you wish per comment.

We'll make our decision (over a couple of glasses of wine down at Zella's (Hutchinson's spiffy new restaurant)) by December 15th.

The Final Show

I've gotten a little behind here with fall production and development of a new line of pots for you.

The last shows were Frankfort (IL) over Labor Day weekend and our local Hutchinson show 2 weeks later.
Frankfort is a blast. It's the first show we ever did back in 1992. Amazingly, we still have some customers who saw us at that first show come by. Since both Betsy and I worked right near by old neighbors stop by, too (well they're not any older than we are).

And last year we came across a photo taken the next summer. This is what we looked like back then. A lot of pots, a lot of good friends and customers. We really do appreciate your support over the years.

Seems like we spent half the summer in rain....setting up or tearing down. At Edina we had the big hailstorm, Highland half a day rain, Evanston set up, Duluth set up, and finally Hutchinson. The first day was perfect, then came the second day....

Packing up wet is no fun. But all in all it was a great year. Thank you!

FOREST CITY STOCKADE

THE FOREST CITY STOCKADE

Every year for the last 10 or so, we (Betsy and Tom) head for a weekend at the Forest City Stockade. This is a recreation of the 1860's Stockade built near Forest City, MN, during the Sioux uprising of 1862. The Stockade was rebuilt in 1976 and has been added to over the years until now it contains a main cabin and trading post inside the fort, and nearly a whole town outside.

Above is the front door of the main cabin during this years' stockade on August 16 & 17. Each year we make a commemorative piece of pottery for collectors and supporters. Below is the side porch with Tom's favorite thing...homemade ice cream in the largest hand-cranked freezer you'll ever see.

The Stockade is staffed for the two day summer and one day winter events by many volunteers serving food, giving demonstrations of 1860's crafts and skills. The key people are Bob and Betty Hermann (immediately below), Chuck and Ann Fuller (further down) and Dale and Mary Root and lots of volunteers. Paul White (of Paul and Pam fame) is shown with his bees and some visitors who get to try fresh honey from the comb.

Chuck and Dale direct and do most of the building at the stockade and, to me, one of the most amazing pieces is a handbuilt watertower and windmill that Chuck built. Clik on this one to take a closer look.

A few scenes around the stockade outside in the village show wagons, a new chapel where Greg Matthews gives a talk on the history that led to the stockade. Chuck and Dale add a building or two (or 3) each year, many of the rebuilt from log cabins that area folks donate (the unfinished one below will be the largest operating newspaper print shop in Minnesota.)

Tom does his little pottery thing on a foot powered Leach Treadle wheel throwing bowls, plates, pitchers, whickey jugs, mugs and other items that might have been used on the frontier. While this wheel itself is only about 50 years old, the treadle wheel concept goes back into the 1800's in Germany. They were brought into the US in production potteries in North Carolina.

Outside the stockade to the east is a full-blown rendezvous gathering you can also wander.

The Stockade makes a fabulous day for kids as well as adults. Plenty of food, interesting exhibits and demonstrations, history, music and family fun.

It's always the 3rd weekend of August and the first Saturday of December (the 6th in 2008).

Forest City Stockade

Seafoam Green

This post is for the readers of the ClayArt discussion group. This platter is glazed in Seafoam Green (turns out it's a Coleman recipe). Lots of running. We're going to try to tighten it up since you can get some great effects like putting some copper red over it.