Little Bird, Big Chip: Vegemite supplies gettin low...

My desk is overflowing!! I looked at it today and thought to myself, maybe I shouldn't make anything else?? Just look at all those root vegetables! I find it hard to believe that we have been here for so long ( a month?) it feels like I just got here yesterday. But, I'm almost out of vegemite, down to my last berocca and almost out of melbourne breakfast; must almost be time to go home.

Last weekend we taught a sand casting workshop which was fun and chaos all at the same time. On the Saturday we took a trip to the Caithness museum which was quite beautiful and full of lots of interesting stuff. The idea was for the students to make a sand casting relating to something that caught their interest in the museum. I really liked the stuff about the botanist who was also a mad keen baker, the stuffed birds were also excellent ( my favourite was the penguin wearing the kilt in the lobby). So then on Sunday they all came to the studio and we ladled out some glass (all the glass actually). It was pretty hectic but I think everyone had a good time.

This week I started experimenting with some beets that have a solid worked body. Am pretty pumped how they turned out. Its always a pleasant surprise when they actually look like something from my sketch book ("it's just like the picture!!" i scream everytime).

Working it solid I can get better lines in although it bumps up the weight, not so good for shipping... Even though this week got off to a slow start, I feel like it really kicked it up a notch and came through with the goods. I can honestly say every morning I have been filled with excitement to see the work come out of the box. It's agony having to wait to see if it is any good. Sometimes you think you have just made this awesome, amazing piece of work only to find the next day in the cold hard light it's actually a total dud and perhaps the ugliest thing you have ever seen. Or it can be the opposite, think it is the most hideous piece of trash that perhaps some chimp constructed, sans opposable thumbs, but then you get it out the next day and whaddya know, it's not that bad. Go figure.

There have been a few hiccups with the annealer and you come in all excited to unload only to find that it is still sitting at 500. Ugh. Its an annealer I'm not used to and if you don't kick it up it will just restart the program and go all the way up to temp again. At the best of times I am not very good with programming kilns (again think dull chimp sans opposable thumbs who just keeps mashing buttons hoping for the best) so I'm quite confident a few of these fuck ups can be attributed to me. Needless to say I think I have been relieved of my kiln checking duties....last night I didn't even have to argue who was going over to check at night, as Jeff subtly pointed out there is no use sending me as he would have to go over and fix it even if there was something wrong so he may as well go and do it. Win?

What I am really excited about is some little bottles with cute stoppers that I have been making.

Can't wait to make some more stoppers tomorrow.

So now begins the mad dash to the end.

Anna is in there firing every kiln possible.

Trish is madly beavering away welding components for her installation.

Then theres this guy.

Perfecting the double headed beer. No thats not true. Jeff is putting together an installation piece too that is going to be super awesome. (i just didnt have a picture of it and to be fair he actually was trying to make a double headed beer glass...)

We also have a small commission to work on as a group which is going to be sweet. Remember how we went to visit that amazing garden with a castle and all that? Well the owner would like a piece for the green house. We are going to make a beautiful leaf inspired piece that will be suspended. F.U.N!!