The Ceramic Studio at WheatonArts!

The ceramic studio at WheatonArts is one of my favorite places! It houses a group of artists that each use clay in a unique way. One of the most impressive characteristics of this studio is the wood kiln built by master potter, Terry Plasket.

When I was earning my BFA I had an internship in this ceramic studio. I must say that Terry taught me more about the ceramic process in a summer than I learned in three years of formal education. He is truly one of my favorite artists.


Josh Generieux: A talented artist and a dear friend. Josh and I attended the same university and we remain good friends.


Ceramic mugs created by Chris Chariw: Chris is another artist at WheatonArts that I met while in college. He has an amazing understanding and control of the medium. A demonstration by him is not to be missed!



Phyllis Seidner: Amazing. Phyllis is not only an amazing artist but an amazing person. After talking with Phyllis one feels rejuvenated! Her lively personality is one of my favorite things about her.

Phyllis is teaching a ceramic class for teens centered around face jugs. You can register for her class on the WheatonArts website.

Please stop into the ceramics studio at WheatonArts to meet these amazing people. You will be glad you did!

WheatonArts will be open to the public on Thursday, April 1.

WheatonArts

The Beginning of Spring Landscaping

This weekend future hubby and I took one step towards our huge landscaping goals and began constructing beds in our vegetable garden and planting a few perennial flowers!

Future hubby is really enjoying gardening with me!





I've been waiting all winter to get my hands in the soil!







My vegetable garden is beginning to take shape. These blocks look a little rough right now but once I install my wooden picket fencing the vegetable garden will have charm. Each bed is 7 feet by three feet. Once complete, the total garden will be 48 feet by 32 feet. It was going to be slightly smaller but the fence I love only comes in 8 feet panels.





This is a picnic table my grandfather built. It will be a nice resting place under a shady tree for those days in the garden.



After a long day of preparing the ground and planting a few plants it feels good to be one step closer to my garden dream. The next steps are: buy compost, finish the other two beds, install my garden fence and order the seeds!

A New Blanket!

I am so excited to be halfway through making this baby blanket. It is my first baby blanket made with colored squares that will be stitched together. This past month I finally completed a full sized version that took me over a year to complete. The squares were larger, made using a more intricate stitch and I took a long break halfway through because I attended graduate school.

The squares for this blanket were completed in 4 days. Tonight I plan to finish the remaining two and begin the border this weekend!

In the Spirit of Spring, Gardening and Curing Hunger

Image by The Dinner Garden

Hi Everyone! A coworker of mine sent me the link to this fantastic organization called The Dinner Garden. They are a non profit organization that "provides seeds, gardening supplies, and gardening advice free of charge to all people in the United States of America. The intent is to assist those in need in establishing food security for their families. The long term goal is that people will plant home, neighborhood, and container gardens and use the vegetables they grow for food and income."

Please check out their blog! If you are inspired to donate towards their cause there are links on their blog.

Visit their website: The Dinner Garden

Starting Small

Remember this?


Today I took the first steps to achieve my sketched dream above. My father came over with his rototiller and we prepared the ground for my flowers and vegetables.




I truly think gardening is in my blood. Both my grandfathers and my father had gardens. As I was tilling the land for my future vegetable garden I was remembering and reflecting upon the years during my childhood spent in the garden with my grandparents. They had a garden that spanned an entire acre of land. They were lucky enough to own 6 acres of land. It was very meaningful for me to have my father helping me.

For my first crop I plan to plant asparagus, cucumbers, plum tomatoes, lettuce, possibly soybeans, maybe spinach, and maybe sweet potatoes. I would also love to have blueberries, blackberries and raspberries but I do not want to overwhelm myself on my first year of "true" gardening. In addition to this vegetable garden I am also landscaping my one acre property with many many many flowers and herbs!



What is even more special is that today I was using my grandfather's tools. Since we are selling their old house I will inherit all his tools. I am very fortunate to be able to have tools with memories to grow food for my family. Both of my grandfathers have passed and using their tools almost make me feel as though they are working on my garden with me.

Flowers and Friends!

I can not say enough how anxious I am to begin my garden at our new house. I have the sketch ready and this weekend, providing the weather cooperates, I will begin to till beds. The weather in Southern New Jersey has begun to warm up. Today it was in the mid 60's!

The Drexel Art Auction was a major success! The turnout was great and the spirit of the event was lively! These photos, taken by one of my fellow classmates, show the group of us during the Art Auction.

Here is me...


And here is me with the group!

Drexel's Art Auction

This weekend was the 7th Annual Art Auction hosted by the Arts Administration Graduate Association of Drexel University. I am a proud member of this group and I must say my fellow associates did a great job with the planning of this event.

Above is a photo of my donation to the art auction (the pink and white chunky scarf with a cranberry flower broach).

The spirit of the event was great! Attendees supported the auction by buying raffle tickets and bidding on works of art, which ranged from knitted and sewn items to painting and photography. The proceeds of the event help fund the students trip to Washington, D.C. for Art Advocacy Day.

If you did not attend this year, I highly recommend attending next year!