Green Beads and a Whistle

These are what came out of the kiln a few days ago.  I have more, but these were the few I grabbed to photograph.  This is outside on top of a kiln.  It sits in the shade which makes it perfect to pose beads on, except on sunny days.  Today is very shady, but usually here in Texas it is very sunny.  That makes it hard to take pictures, even during early morning or late evening hours.  The cast shadows are just impossible to deal with. I probably could figure out how to work around this problem eventually, but for now I'll continue shooting inside.

However .......

When I put these same beads under the 'natural sunlight' bulbs indoors to snap their picture, they come out radically different. See this second photo? They are a different color value, more of a yellowish green.  The first photo is more accurate as to the beads' natural color.   My job is to adjust the indoor lighting so that the beads in the second photo match the beads same color values as in the first photo.  This is how I'll be spending the rest of the afternoon, figuring out the lighting. It is also one of the times I'd love to be in a photography class.

Sprig Wrapped and Pierced Beads

I am in a quandary because I don't know what to call these types of beads I've been making.  I roll them in my hands. I apply a sprig of clay. Sometimes I use stoneware clay. Othertimes I use porcelain. Sometimes I combine the two.  I pierce them. It's fun. It's relaxing. I have to use 'granny glasses' to see what I'm doing. 

The applying of under and over glazes is done after a bisque firing.   The last batch I glazed has a transparent green instead of a transparent red.  I will post pictures of those in the next day or two.

At the moment I'm trying to get caught up with other projects.  I keep saying, "I'm almost caught up ..."

New Bead

This focal bead is made from stoneware and porcelain ceramic clays. The sprig has been pierced with a needle and a black underglaze rubbed into the recesses and glazed with a transparent red glaze that takes on a coral tone on the stoneware clay.

This type of bead is fun to make. Each one is different ... even when I try to duplicate them.

I'm Back!

Howdy!  I've been 'off' the last couple of weeks. I've updated my main website to include the Artfire bead store.  I also had a few other items to update on the main website and was able to finish everything.  Every link pertaining to my pottery, is found on the main website. Well, almost. I left out some things like Etsylove and other self-marketing sites (like Indiepublic and linkLN)  If you have never looked at my main website, the link is nkpdesigns.com.  

I also updated the banners on all the stores, making everything more uniform. I've added a small watermark with my official business name to photos, etc ... I'm trying to use the same avatar on all  the different sites. In short, my goal is to integrate, integrate, integrate!

Because yes, when I took a look around I thought, "Wow, here's a gal with a teeny inclination toward multiple personalities."  Or rather, it was quite apparent I have no attention span.  It is because I make beads AND pottery AND whistles AND whatever suits my fancy at the time that it makes it difficult to market myself.  More than one artist has told me over the years to make what I love and not to worry about the marketing.  That is what I have tried to do.  I create what I feel like making and if I don't feel like making it, I don't.  I am glad to have that freedom.

Above, in the photo, are some beads I felt like making last night.  They are not quite dry enough to bisque fire.  As you can see I am having a lot of fun poking holes in those beads (poke poke poke).  Is that a teapot bead? Why yes ... should I have made a cup to go with it? Probably. But I didn't feel like it. lol!  Have a great day and thanks for stopping by!   Make something you love today!

Unfired to Fired

Here are some glazed but unfired ceramic beads.

These beads are covered with small sprigs of clay.  Some have been textured as well. All have all been rubbed in a black underglaze which I then wiped off. This left black glaze in the small recesses of each bead.  I brushed on some Victorian Red Mayco glaze and left them to sit overnight to dry.


That day I put them on rods, fired them in the kiln, and the next morning opened up the kiln.

The great thing about the blog is that the reader gets to see the result immediately but I have to wait 24 hours. Lucky blog reader!

So these are some of the results.  I normally use my photo set up to shoot pics but the pics I shot did not show up the 'shiny' at all on these beads. They looked very matte, and they are not matte.  So I went outside and placed them on top of the kiln top.

Announcing the Winner

Congratulations to Cindy from Cindy Dolezal Designs who is the bead winner of some of my favorite beads which I created in 2010!

Cindy, just email me (nkp@nkpdesigns.com) the address you'd like me to send it and they will be on their way! Put "Bead Winner" in the subject line! I hope you love these beads worth over $20!