Getting the Magic Going!

Load-in to Scare LA went pretty well today! It turns out I have way more stuff than I have space, so my dad and I are borrowing another table from a neighbor to bring in tomorrow. I'll set it up before the show floor opens.

 This guy came by while we were setting up. Look! It's me! :D Totes legit, now! W00T! (Now, if I could only find my doggone banner!)

And my dad and friend Lola were there to help set up, and will be my booth monkeys this weekend. I am so relieved to have extra hands to help out, I can't even tell you! And Lola is a huge fan of all things Hallowe'en, so having her boundless enthusiasm bouncing around in my booth will be great. I'm still nervous about giving my presentation, but by and large, Hallowe'en folks are pretty supportive, so even if I suck, they probably won't throw tomatoes!

Well, off to bed. Big day tomorrow!

So, lots of stuff going on! Throwing a bunch of jacks, cups, bowls, etc., plus doing a little handbuilding, too, to give myself a break.

I fixed the overfiring problem with my old kiln and did another decal firing, which turned out beautifully! It was a very satisfying test run, and now I have a clearer idea of what I need to do to get some decals done properly and speed up my production a bit. I've got too little time left before Scare LA, and I need to focus and maximize it as much as I can!

I've been making some big candy bowls, too. I'm looking forward to underglazing these guys and making them super Hallowe'en-cool. Stay tuned!

Speaking of Scare LA, I'll be speechifying there. My class will be on setting up a home haunt (so very much to cover in an hour!), and I've been sending out emails to various haunters to ask permission to use their pictures and videos in my lecture. I sent one out to a YouTube user who did a great Pepper's ghost illusion in his front window. We emailed back and forth a couple of times, and it turns out "the guy" is Paul Lasaine, of Lord of the Rings visual effects fame! And? He said I could use his video! Woo-hoo! After our conversation, he got around to posting his how-to on getting the illusion up and running properly. See his Pepper's ghost how-to here. The original video is here.

The brewing tanks came in at Oak Park Brewing Company this week, as well. Step by step, things are coming along, and it looks like our opening will be somewhere around mid- to late-August! We're really excited at the progress. (If you're interested in tracking the progress of the brewery, follow them on Facebook or Twitter.) I sat down with them on Saturday to start planning for the Hallowe'en season, and man, am I tickled at some of the ideas we came up with for this year and the thoughts we have on what to do next year!

OK, that's it for now. Back out to make some more Hallowe'en fun!

Busy, Busy!

This week was a continuation of the whole, "Good news, bad news" streak I seem to be in. I got some stuff underglazed this week, and ready for firing. I'm trying out some new designs, so things aren't to the autopilot stage, yet, but I still felt good about the progress.

 Unfortunately, these guys got overfired, a problem I've had for the last couple of kiln loads in my old Cress kiln. I finally tracked down what I'm 99% sure is the problem yesterday, and I think I've got it licked! Yay, me! I'm not sure if I can save the work, which is somewhat damaged, but we'll see. At the very least, I know how these underglazes behave!

I'm off to L.A. for the weekend, and was going to catch a screening of "Jaws" at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, but it looks like it's sold out already! Dang it! Oh, well. I'll have to find something else to do. It's always a great chance to catch up with my L.A. peeps and my dad, so how can it be anything but great?

Well, back to work. Have a great weekend making cool things, kids!