Etched Beads and Backwards Hop Scotch...

In between meetings in the last couple of days,

I've been going on a bit of an etching binge...

I'm loving these rich colors and the satin matte finish...

This piece above on my fingertips has been etched.

So rich in tones...

And here it is at 9 o'clock in the above photo before etching...

I'll have more pics of the other pieces above as they were all etched together.

These porcelain paper clay pieces that my friend Kelly Russell (Beadfuddled) created for me for test tiles a few years back - they got etched too...

See them in March 2011: click here.

And now for a little story about Backwards Hop Scotch.

In my family, there is a bit of a running joke about "Marsha-isms"...

Young Marsha overheard a gossip story about people going to see "shrinks":

"Mom, How little are they???"

Well, my daughter has gotten it honestly from me.

The other day I picked her up from school.

She decided to jump on the Hop Scotch rug, jumping on each number in order:

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

She got to the top and did a funny 4 year old happy dance.

Her little brother egged her on "Yay Chloe!!!"

I asked - Chloe, now that you are at the top, can you do it backwards?

Sure Mom!!! I can do it backwards!

Insert more 4 year old squeals & giggles...

I continue: 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1... in my funny fast voice encouraging her on...

So at first I think she completely ignored me,

which she somewhat did...

But really she just didn't hear me with all the giggles & squeals going on from both of them...

So she went back to the start - and did this:

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10...

And she did it turned backwards!

What a great kid!

She cracks me UP...

New Work - In A Way...

These have been hanging out in the studio unglazed for almost 2 years.

I wanted something different than my normal glazes I use on my pendants.

This application of an oxide under the glaze allows for lots of variations from out of the bottle...

And this isn't the final way they are going to look.

What are they?

Ring Holders? Terrarium ornaments?

To me they are just experiments at this early stage - the beginning of a series of new work...

They have a few more stages to go through before they are how I really want them.

While I was fiddling around with these oxides & glazes for the little abstract organic pagoda tops,

I also decided to glaze up some of my porcelain pendants...

In the photo above, they are the same glaze, but the bottom piece underwent an additional step of etching.

This etching solution removes the glossy surface and leaves a matte, more rustic finish to the piece.

I'm hoping to make a few more decisions on these, then photograph them and put them into my Etsy shop later this week.

Here is a peek at the test tiles for these oxides & glazes.

Three tiles narrowed down from twelve - just for this round of testing.

Here you can see the test tile I decided to start with.

Crazy how pastel the glazes are before firing!

And in the studio itself, I'm starting to have a few more constant visitors down there with me.

Making messes & making art!

I finally have some big artwork with lots of color to go up on my white cinderblock walls.

It is currently just SO drab. Especially in the winter...

And look - Chloe is even helping me paint the exterior of my kiln room door.

Never moved past the manufacturer primer.

Can I tell you how delighted she and I are that she is helping me put color in the studio!?

And on Saturday it was 65 degrees here! 

Unbelievable for January...

On a whim, we jumped into the car and drove to the beach for a couple of hours.

Here are some of the treasures that Chloe and I collected.

Notice the crab claws?

This beach is Lewes Beach, DE. 

Estuary where the DE river empties into the Atlantic Ocean.

The place where I learned to swim (for my life - or rather - for my feet - all kinds of things in that water!)

We were barely on the beach when Chloe started finding shells and such & made herself a little pile.

Dad remembered the buckets, so we were able to gather a few more things to bring home.

And Riley was not into taking his shoes & socks off (too cold for his toes - he likes warm sand!)

But he did sit for a while just checking out all the stuff the beach had to offer.

Overall - a pretty good weekend.

I've got a lot on my mind & some pretty big decisions to make for myself & my business.

Dave and I were just talking last week about me looking for a job soon.

So I've got to get things lined up and figured out for how I need to be spending my time...

Wish me luck! I'm going to need it (my brain will - big time!)

Reviewing Through Photos

I love having a good phone camera. It allows me to be a complete slacker here on this blog or journaling, record keeping, whatever in that category - because I have a visual timeline. Yes I need more memory to keep these, but I'm ok with that.

So here is where I've been in the last month (and a bit beyond that):

Finished my 12 week training completed my required hours (although I am by no means close to being done with volunteer hours & advanced training for this year) and I am now a New Castle County, DE Master Gardener. Pretty good feeling...

Aphid Mummies: Makes me think about something Indiana Jones related...

Saw some interesting things through MG Training Classes.

Got to have fun with my new Hipstamatic film & lens (Salvador 84 & Dream Canvas) at the UD Botanical Gardens.

Spending time here in the Native Plants Teaching Garden.

A weekend at the Beach, early morning stroller walk with Riley and my other new Hipstamatic Lens & Film (Buckhorst H1 and Cano Cafenol).

Thought this was a great image for the "rapture day"…

Like the earth was shaking or something.

Hipstamatic again (Salvador 84 & DreamCanvas).

And Loving Riley's hair - it's so wire-y and straight - the styles are hysterical sometimes.

Taking time to show my little ones how to treat nature with respect (even this tent caterpillar gets some love from Chloe and me).

And having fun with my new birthday present. Yes - I did in fact really want a wheel barrow…

One day she'll be big enough to push me around in it.

Had a few realizations about life and where some of my off the cuff frustration comes from:

1. Coffee filters are played with by Riley.

2. Wrinkled coffee filters = coffee grinds in pot.

3. Sipping in coffee grinds can ruin a good cup of coffee & throw off my creative mood.

So - keep wrinkled ones on top of good ones so Riley just can keep wrinkling that wrinkled one.

Also realized that if you go through your wallet and remove a bunch of those frequent buyers cards and any other odd cards & crap that accumulates - you can actually snap it closed and fit in into your bag a lot easier without it feeling like a pair of jeans that are too tight.

These are just a few of my recent head smacking - duh - moments.

But when things are overwhelming, fixing just a couple of these little annoyances makes a huge difference with daily moods. 

It's like dropping 10 pounds of emotional baggage in just a few adjustments.

And I spent some time with members of my dad's side of the family - it's been YEARS since we've all gotten together. Way too long! I love this picture of Dave and Riley with everyone in the background…

And words cannot describe how awesome it felt to meet a few fellow Delaware Etsians for a photo shoot opportunity. I'll be posting about that whole event very soon - this one photo is just a sneak peek into the shoot. I think having professional photos with models will help with the look and feel of my Marsha Neal Studio Etsy shop & the My Mom Pattie Etsy shop. 

Efforts over time will tell...

Hi. I'm Marsha...

Just incase you don't know me…

Hi. I'm Marsha.
Welcome to my blog.
This post is part of the the Beads-of-Clay Bloggers Open Studio.

I've been involved with Beads of Clay since the very beginning back in 2004.

I write a couple of posts a month on the BOC blog & help organize these Open Studio Events.

My business is Marsha Neal Studio, LLC (yes - an actual LLC - legal protection you know!?)

I have an Etsy Shop (clay items are marked on sale 20% off for this event).
As part of this event, for every item you purchase in my Etsy shop until midnight tonight, you get a chance at winning 3 bonus drawing to win a $25 Marsha Neal Studio Etsy Shop Gift Certificate.
Yes, there will be three $25 gift certificate drawings - I'll email the winners on Monday.
Every item you buy is a chance to win. Buy 3 items, get 3 chances.
I also have a website where you can order a specific porcelain textured pendant or individual silk strand.

I'm Married to a pretty cool guy - Dave. We met in 1996.
He is actually pretty funny too - in a wise-guy - cracks me up when he is on a roll-kind of way.

We've got two kids: Chloe, 3 and Riley, 1.
Our life is quite entertaining...

I won't bore you with too much "history" about me here because I have an "about me" page on this blog.

Basically I'm into my family, nature (flora & fauna) and working with clay.

Lepidoptera in Flight taken by Marsha Summer 2010

Did I mention my obsession with photography too.
I'm quite fond of this next picture of a coneflower from my garden in decay over the winter...

Coneflower in Decay, copyright Marsha Neal Studio

This year, my word that best describes my motives is Enhance.

Marsha Neal Studio Drawing Lab Cat Drawing (copyright MNS)

I am basically stepping back into educating myself in drawing (drawing lab 2011), photography, and nature (Master Gardener Trainee).

Cat drawing transformed into decal image on my beads.

I am trying to organize my studio and my life in a way that will lead me to find that feeling of balance in every day. Refocusing on my basic skills and inspirations to see where I am going with my artwork...

I've joined a few teams on Etsy: Beads of Clay, Etsy Mud Team, and have become the Captain of the Delaware Etsy Street Team. I feel more complete (and maybe a little overwhelmed at times) to be involved in community efforts and interacting more with like minded artists.

So as you can see - there is a lot going on with me and my studio…
Stop back in a bit for the first giveaway after visiting more BOC Bloggers.

Snow Melts Into Crunchy Ice To Be Stomped On...

This was just the other day. 

Snow. 

Pretty soft to stomp on…

This following picture is Tuesday evening. 

After 2 days of melting temperatures, then refreezing overnight…

Chloe was checking out the areas she had previously stomped in the snow up on the front walkway...

I meanwhile saw some pretty ice areas to capture with the hipstamatic…

Like this one...

Ooohhh… And over there…

Oh, wait…

STOMP…

Never mind…

I do love her little cow girl boots…

And there is plenty of ice and snow to go around!

Want to see more funny with the little ones?

Ok. So we love Dr. Seuss.

Wacky Wednesday is on our read almost every night list of books.

Well, those Sutherland Sisters - they were wacky!

And so were some of the ladies we saw at the store...

"Yook Mom - She has NO feet! That's Wacky!!!"

("l" is pronounced "y" - we're working on that - but giggle at the way things come out sometimes - "can I have some chapstick for my yips?").

"No head! That is Wacky Too!!!"

Chloe, maybe you should put your head up there and I'll take a picture…

Oh - the things she and I are going to get in trouble with in the future!

She was pretending to be a little pig and I was going to blow her house of dresses down…

Lots of giggles were heard in JC Penney's dress department that day…

Meanwhile - Riley was at home with a stomach bug…

Two things here:

1. He will not be going to play in dresses like his sister with messy hands and face like that. Must keep them clean or we would be bringing a lot home with us…
2. I wonder if eating this much home-made gnocchi is what made him sick? He ate a full serving on Friday night, but got sick Sunday morning… So probably not. 

Here is a peek at unfinished backs to some of my "focus" tiles that are ready for glazing.

I just really liked seeing them lined up, face down…

I have a test kiln that should be unloaded tomorrow morning.

Then hopefully a day of glazing will be in my sights and not a day of taking care of a sick little boy…

Not that I would mind taking care of Riley - but I don't want him sick.

And I've got deadlines…

Oh, well - so is life!

Thanks for stopping by!

My To Do List For 2011

There are so many things that I am getting to "deadlines" with. Some are past due, some I've just added, some I have been considering for a while.

So for my 2011 "To Do"

1. Apply to the DE Master Gardener Program (apply like now - due 1/11/11)
*COMPLETED AND IN THE MAIL!!! 12/22/10*

2. Donations out the door and uploaded to my "Specials Blog" (to be done ASAP!)

3. Get ready for the Drawing Lab 2011 (Starts next week!)

4. Marsha Neal Studio Website Updates (Will I ever really get to this?)

5. Have new clay cutters made (I should be able to get to this fast - just need to find that file on my computer somewhere…)

6. Jewelry Making area studio makeover - need to just get my brain around that!

7. Um - new work for Marsha Neal Studio? Well, maybe inspiration will hit me as I am working on learning some drawing skills and hopefully taking classes on becoming a master gardener…

8. Get through the 90+ emails sitting in my email inbox… (sorry if you have not heard back from me!)

I think the alignment last night of the heavens put me back on track to get myself going again…

Got kids from school, had dinner with a surprise visit from Santa at Jakes Wayback Burger in Kennett Square, Christmas lights and flowers at Longwood Gardens, and super happy kids…

Back in alignment indeed…

Merry Christmas Everyone!