Winged Suitor

A hermit thrush peers in my bedroom window each morning, as soon as I wake up, then he dashes up and down on the tree branch, batting his wings. I've painted his portrait on the scalloped soap dish, and there's a few other bird pieces in honor of birds in general. Did you know when you find a feather on the ground that you've received a letter from a bird?

needle and thread

Blue day cuff .

The blue button below was grandmas. Every time I look at it I remember how her closet smelled. Cedar, lavender and tussy powder.
When we unpacked our things in this house, I realized the moving gods took my sewing basket, threads and even a silver thimble that fit my finger as snugly as my wedding ring. It's taken awhile, but I've amassed almost everything I need to make myself a few new pieces of clothing. I've ordered Irish Linen for a blouse, and made buttons too. I started with a cuff . See? Flying things appliqued in blues of Liberty of London, and old American cottons. The blouse will be all linen with a few bits of blue too. The other cuff, in reds, shows one of my new poem buttons. I was going for a piece of paper from an old letter kind of look.

The old buttons are mostly from Bonnie's, at Birds of a Feather, here in Cambria. I visited her yesterday, and not only found these wonderful buttons, but a new basket for my embroidery thread, needles and pins. I'm still looking for the thimble!

Staffordshire Rules

Does Anyone else out there tingle when they see Staffordshire pottery? I especially like the 1790-1820 period when they started to make pieces that reflected current events, and customs. These pieces are a part of what I'm working on for an upcoming Rabbits in Love grouping. Not exactly like the eighteenth century, but in the spirit of that tradition.

About Flowers

Mid-August and I might as well admit it, my garden is a dud. Its a forest of green: Rosemary, leggy lavender, mile high juniper and fir, and geraniums which have been denuded of thier bloom by the herds of deer that chew their way through the neighborhood every night.

So I long for blooms, especially when my friend from Mass., Liz, (Hi, Liz) sent me photos of her vibrant flowers, including heavenly blue morning glories slithering up and over a birdhouse.

All this leads me to painting flowers in the all over pattern , then when I open my kiln its sort of like a little greenhouse...........

A Forest Visitor

Company coming from the woods. I hope he likes pizza, because that's whats on the menu tonight.

Flock of Buttons

Button cards. Now for sale at juliewhitmorepottery.etsy.com

Smoke and Ash

Its been smoky and ashy here. Up the road about forty miles is Big Sur, where a fires been raging for weeks, and a couple hours south there's another one in the mountains above Goleta. Some wonderful firefighters have come to help us in California, so we can kill the dragon.

We live right up the street from Otter Cove. It's the funkiest and oldest house in the neighborhood, and you can barely see it for the trees I've planted. I'd dig a moat too, if only the town would allow it.......My stepfather and uncle were telling me one day they counted 124 otters in the water. I didn't have the heart to tell them those were the top bulbs of seaweed, which appear each summer and do look remarkably like otter heads! You can see them in the photo. The otters do like to feed in the kelp beds, sometimes you can hear them hitting shellfish open with a sea stone.

The other pic is the fruit stand on Santa Rosa Creek, where we buy our oranges and avacados. An honesty stand, where you take what you want and leave your money in the piggy. Its good to mosey out there after being in the studio for hours. But as soon as I put the fruit in bowls and check the animals, I remember there's just one more thing I have to do out there. I see that the front orange box in the picture is empty, that's cuz we cleaned them out!