Polar bear jugs and fluffy clouds

That's it - all my slip decorating this side of Christmas is finished.  Now I just need to get everything  dried out and into the kiln over the weekend for a glaze firing next week. In the 'Feral Choir' we have been singing lots of cold wintery songs, maybe this was what made me in a Polar bearish sort of mood. Actually these poor jugs were abandoned for way too long as other priorities took over. I had them in the outside damp cupboard (an old fridge - not on of course), but then forgot to bring them in one very frosty night. I lost three of them, it was quite interesting how the ice got into the leather hard clay and split them open.

There are four large name plaques drying out too. One poor person has been waiting nearly a year, but hey - they are on their way at last.

I started to pack the bisc this afternoon. I got the monster cellist dish in, just, after a few experiments At least I could squeeze a few other pots under the slant as well, and hopefully she will have shrunk sufficiently so that by the time I glaze her I can actually close the kiln door with her on a flat shelf.

There are now a whole troop of squirrels using our feeder. What a joy to watch them. The cats just stare in amazement, usually through the window,

then go back to sleep.