In the studio and out of the studio.

I know it has been a while (too long...) since I've posted here. I have been busily working away in my studio and spending time with my family. Life has been good. But something had to give, and it was the blog this time. I've been overwhelmed with blog updates that are only in my head, and way overdue updates to my website. So I've just been hiding from it all. That's the best way to deal with things, right?

Anyway...back to the pots for a moment! Here is a favorite pair of mugs from an earlier firing.

Emily Murphy Porcelain Pottery_mugs_yellow_circles
Creamy yellow mugs with interwoven circles by Emily Murphy pottery. Glaze fired to cone 10, decal firing.


Since I'm gearing up for a busy holiday season, I just finished several back to back glaze firings and decal firings. I've been photographing, sanding, measuring and packing up pots and sending them out to various corners of the country. It's definitely the busiest time of the year for me, and most potters!

And for a non-studio update... This fall I got myself a new sewing machine and decided I should break it in by making some super fun Halloween costumes for my daughter, Ada and nephew, Shiya. I tried to have this post up the day before Halloween, but ended up having to do a big blog overhaul to fix a bunch of things that was causing problems. Luckily it is almost all fixed and working again!

Both Ada and Shiya picked out the themes of their costumes. I present to you: Ada Rainbow (as she called herself!) and Shiya the Most Awesome Viking Warrior ever (also his self appointed name). I love how Ada was mimicking Shiya's fierce look. Does that make her a fierce rainbow?

Fierce Rainbow and Viking Pottery Blog


The rainbow is all felt. It's a mirror front to back. We found oodles of images online and I made up my own pattern to fit Ada. It's basically an a-line dress with straps. And I found a long sleeved red shirt at the 2nd hand store. The awesome rainbow hat was one that we already had from Zulily.

The cutest rainbow costume ever Emily Murphy Pottery Blog


Shiya's viking costume was super fun and came together really easily. We live near the Midtown Global Marketwhere there is a little Swedish/ Scandinavian shop that always has viking helmets! I got a nice neutral shirt and sweater from a 2nd hand shop. He already had a pair of brown pants. The rest are layers of fur, felt and leather. I found some really cool bronze buttons to attach his fur cape together. My favorite part is the fur wrapped boots. I just wrapped the fake fur around his boots and wrapped some leather cording to secure it on. Such an awesome look... I might need to steal it for my own boots! Same thing was done around his arms. Anyway, it was the perfect Minnesota Halloween costume. Nice and warm!
Homemade Viking Costume



And while we're on the topic of handmade costumes... Last year Ian and I made the kids' costumes together. They were both owls. Really adorable owls.

owl costumes at the petting zoo


Ada the owl... She's grown so much this past year! And yes, those are owl sneakers on her feet!
homemade owl costume Emily Murphy Pottery Blog


We made our own owl faces with felt onto fleece hats. And used lots of different patterned fabrics to make up all of the feathers... so many feathers!
DIY Owl costume Emily Murphy Pottery Blog

When I was a kid, we always made our Halloween costumes (except for 2nd grade when I really really wanted a store boughtStrawberry Shortcake). I think it instills a love and excitement for handmade things at an early age.

Ok, back to the pots....Here are some photos from my earlier firings. I realized that I never posted these! Some of these will soon be up in my Etsy shopor are already on their way to a gallery near you!

Emily Murphy Porcelain Pottery_oval_vases


Emily Murphy Porcelain Pottery_squared_platter_with_circles


Emily Murphy Porcelain Pottery_honey_pot_bees


Emily Murphy Porcelain Pottery_square_platter_with_dandelion


So that should catch you up just a little bit as to where I've been during my absence from this blog! And even though I haven't been blogging, I do keep my Emily Murphy Pottery Facebook page pretty up to date! It's a little easier to post a photo as I'm working. I'll be posting more soon now that my technical difficulties are mostly resolved. Hope all has been well in your corner of the world.
Previous
Previous

It's holiday sale time! 20% off on Etsy starting Nov 30... and studio sale the following week!

Next
Next

how-to: make your own colorful t-shirt with freezer paper stencils