Cyber Monday Sale Going on NOW

These are pictures of some new listings in my Etsy store this morning for the Cyber Monday Sale which will go on all week. 25% marked off all pieces.  Price shown is the marked down price.   USA Shipping is $2.00 for entire purchase.  $4.00 elsewhere.

Hope you will stop by.  I will be adding more pieces later today and through the week.

And the Winner is.....

And the winner of my Take Your Pick Giveaway is Sweet Tarragon who was the lucky number 35 from the Random generator.  Congratulations!!  She picked number 5 which is the wheat shaft pictured above.  Please send  your address to me at maryatmaryhardingjewelry.com

I want to thank all of you for  playing along.  And most especially thank you  for sending me so many positive, encouraging words about my work.  You are all so wonderful.

Since there were so many entries, I decided to offer a second prize so I used the random number generator again and got

#1  and that was Stregata.  Congratulations!! She picked  the Thistle pendant pictured below, as her favorite.

Again, many, many thanks for all your wonderful comments.  I will certainly do this again.

Happy Thanksgiving

This necklace was made a couple of years ago as part of a charm exchange with friends on the Internet.  I like to wear it this time of year as it is about blessings.

I have so much to be thankful for.  Thank you readers for all your encouragement, support and sharing of your lives with me.  I appreciate your uniqueness and your humanness and thank you for that gift in return.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving Day.

Take Your Pick Giveaway

GIVEAWAY

I am having a Giveaway.  You can pick which piece you would like to have.  Just enter a comment below and include the number of the piece you want.  This is a follow up to my What's in the Kiln? post.  All these pieces were in that kiln load except Number 2 which is an earthenware, gloss glazed pendant.  All the others are stoneware that has been fired to Cone 5, over 2100degrees F. and they have been tumbled.  They do not have any gloss glaze.  They are soft, smooth, and rustic.

You may leave your comments through Thanksgiving.  I will annound the winner on Friday Nov. 26. 

Good Luck and thank you for reading my Blog

Re: 2nd Saturday State of the Studio

MarshaNealStudio on the Beads-of-Clay blog posts a 2nd Saturday State of the Studio every month.  We can link to it and show you how are studios are humming along.

This Saturday I am working on some hot pepper beads made from one of the jalapenos I grew in my garden last summer.  It has dried and is now very hard.  So I am trying out the 2 part quick molding compound I have to see what I can come up with.

In another part of my studio I am drying part of my 100 hearts order.  These are in the food dehydrator that is my current favorite tool.  These 2 shelves have about 60 hearts on them.

Here on a piece of plaster board some hearts are getting just hard enough to place in the food dehydrator without the ribs in the shelving making marks in the clay.  That white powdery stuff is baby powder I dip the cutter in before I cut out the heart.  Helps some.

And in my outside studio, my veggie garden, I have recently planted garlic for next summer. It is safely tucked into the ground with a nice covering of straw.

And here is the sunflower I have been photographing off and on all summer and fall.  It is looking truly magnificent on this very beautiful sunny Saturday.

I think we are having a 2nd Indian Summer here in the Northeast while Detroit and Chicago and the Twin Cities are getting an early winter storm.  I am working very fast this weekend to do all those things that need to be done before winter.  This won't last.

Beautiful Sunday

We have full sun today.  Yeah!!!

Of all the pieces that were in the kiln this week fired to cone5 this is my favorite.  It is a short and stout little thistle with lots of personality.  I already have it started in a necklace for my friend MaryAnne in Arizona.  Today I will make some more of these.  I didn't have any good feelings about this piece until I opened up the kiln.  Actually I thought it would be a dud.  And then it just started chattering and I couldn't help but love it.

These are some more of the pieces that were in that kiln load this week.  This is how they look after they were tumbled for about an hour.

Here are some that were also in that load but have not yet been tumbled.  Overall, I think the colors are a bit drab and I may brighten them up and refire them.

This is from a different kiln firing.  It is earthenware and is gloss glazed.  I added it to my website.  Quite a difference from the others.  I love these subtle browns. 

Would love to hear what you think about any of these.  Good or bad.

Celebrations With Words

Wreath of Hope  Toggle Clasp by Mary Harding

HOPE

In keeping with the ABS Carnival Bloggers November theme of Celebration, I am using some of my art bead toggle clasps to tell of what I celebrate.  I also added some photos of food and plants to celebrate life.

Love Toggle Clasp by Mary Harding

LOVE

Honoring ART toggle clasp by Mary Harding

ART

JOY Toggle Clasp by Mary Harding

JOY

Noel Toggle Clasp by Mary Harding

NOEL

Iced Raspberries

Baked Apples

Iced Brussels Sprouts

What's in the Kiln?

An assortment of stoneware pendants, toggles and heart charms are spending the day in my kiln which is firing to Cone5 about 2100 degrees F.  These will look a little darker when they finish firing.  Also on another shelf which you can't see in this picture I am trying an experiment of firing a green ware pendant with stain on it.  Never bisqued.  I put them in the dehydrator to get them really dry again before I started the firing.  I have never fired a greenware pendant with stain without firing it to bisque first ( about 1850 degrees F).  I was fearful the stain would dissolve the clay and soften the image too much.  Stoneware seems to work better for this.  I'll know tomorrow morning when the kiln has fired and cooled down.

New In My Etsy Shop-Sale Extended Thru Thursday

Thank You Thank You all for coming to the Beads-of-Clay Bloggers Open Studio tour and for shopping in my Etsy Shop.  Your appreciative support means so much.


I am extending my 40% off  Sale through Thursday, Oct. 28, 2010
I have added some new pieces, see pics below and will be adding some more on Wed. and Thurs.

Thistle Leaf Toggle Clasp

Art Toggle Clasp

Wild Burdock Tassel Pendant

Wild Flower Cabochon

Delicious Fall Food

And the Winner of the toggle clasp and $25.00 Gift Certificate to my Etsy Shop is

For My Sweet Daughter   Congratulations!!!!  My husband picked your name out of my hat. 

And now it is time for a little cake and coffee

Delicious Apfel Kuchen

 

In our social circle this is a favorite and I think we get invited to Potlucks just so we will bring it along.  My husband is the chef here.  Quite the good cook.  And here is his recipe, straight from a cookbook his mother used when he was growing up.  It has been modified for the new world cook who uses measuring cups and Fahrenheit.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 pound butter (2 sticks)
1 cup sugar
4 eggs

4-6 apples, peeled and quartered (Macintosh and Empire work well since they soften as they cook)

Topping  to sprinkle over the apples before baking
1 tablespoon Cinnamon
5 tablespoons sugar

Directions
Cream the butter with the sugar
Gradually add the 4 eggs and vanilla

Then mix in the flour, sugar and baking powder mixture and
beat until nice and smooth and fluffy.

Put the batter into a greased Springform pan about 9 or 10 inches in diameter

Arrange the apple quarters artfully on the top.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 45-50 minutes

Sprinkle on the sugar-cinnamon mixture

Let cool to warm and serve with vanilla ice cream, or whipped cream or just plain
Enjoy


Thanks so much for coming to the Beads-of-Clay Bloggers Open Studio Tour.  It was fun to have you.
You can get back to the Beads-of-Clay Blog by clicking here.

Welcome to My Studio

It is now 3:00 PM  and I am announcing the winner of my first Giveaway  It is Erin of Tesori Trovati.  My husband picked the name out of my hat.  Congratulations Erin!!!!!

Second BOC Open Studio Blog Event Giveaway

                  Earthenware ceramic heart pendant with drenched metal toggle bar
                                plus a $25.00 Gift Certificate to my Etsy Store

To take a chance on Winning just leave a comment on this post.

To get back to the Beads-of-Clay Blog to go to other artists' studios and see their 2nd giveaway, click here.

There it is.  The door to my studio.  I am located in a very old barn.  Old like the Maple trees that grow along this driveway.  In fact the house and barn are one of the oldest in the area, circa 1850.  About the time James Fenimore Cooper's father was up here.

Once you open the door you will go through a hallway, and down some steps into my studio.  It is kind of below ground level which is good for the clay.  Not so sure about anything else in there.  But we have a wood stove in the part that my husband inhabits and it helps dry things out.  I have an electric heater which I try not to use too much.  Here is what you will see.

My Aim 88 Digital Kiln  a wonderful workhorse.  I also have a larger kiln.

long counter on which I cut out my clay

Small table where I do the glazing

Close up of hand painted pendants drying before the gloss glaze is applied

My current favorite tool-- a food dehydrator.  Thanks to LeAnn Weih of SummersStudio for this great tip.  Useful for so many stages in the ceramic bead making process

My husband built this studio for me quite a few years ago.  I never dreamed back then that I would spend so much time in it.  But it is a wonderful place to be.  A great view out over the pasture.  Sunshine in the early morning and later in the day, afternoon sun from another set of windows.

I can close the doors and be in a world of my own.  Or leave them open and chat from time to time with my favorite person. 

Since you visited last year, if you did, we have been doing some renovating i.e. propping up of the front of the bard.  Our Amish neighbors have been helping us.  Part of our summer hay barter system.  My husband rakes and bails the hay for them and they in turn help us with getting firewood, fixing up the barn and providing my veggie garden with ample amounts of straw.  It works out well.

Jacking up the barn.  This tube goes into the ground at least three feet and is filled with cement. My husband has put in quite a few of these.

What the inside of the barn roof looks like

This is an addition that will be for me to expand into next year hopefully. It should be warmer on the feet in the winter since it will have insulation under the floor and won't be below ground level.  And what a great view.

Thank you for visiting my studio.

See you in awhile when you return to find out how to make a great apple cake.

You can return to the BOC Blog by clicking here

WELCOME Let The BOC Bloggers Open Studio Tour Begin

Maple trees that  line our long driveway from the road.  These are very old, maybe 150 years old.  Every year they turn the most gorgeous shades of red, yellow,  orange and green.  I grew up in the Southwest and we never had a Fall.  But we always had sunshine. 

Welcome to the 2nd Annual Beads-of-Clay Bloggers Fall Open Studio Blog Tour. 
I am so pleased that you have come to visit  today. 

oops I am a bit camera shy

a little bit about my studio and what I am doing in it.


I have been making ceramic beads for quite awhile now.  I began making them because I was looking for beads that had large enough holes to string onto the cord I was using then to make macrame necklaces.

This is a picture of two of my first  ceramic pendants.

 I didn't know much about ceramics back then, circa 1998 but had some wonderful friends and instructors along the way.  A little later I had the Beads-of-Clay Yahoo group to help me along.  That was about  the time the group was getting started and everyone was trying to figure out how we could get ceramic beads to be accepted into the artisan bead community.  Marsha Neal Minutella,( MarshaNealStudio LLC) the organizer of today's event, was one of the trail blazers and early founding members of the group.  She has always been generous with her fabulous ability to think and organize and in sharing her creative ideas.  Thank You Marsha for making this happen today.



       I love making beads and pendants because I love color, shapes, texture and natural forms from plants and nature.  And I love the surprise each time I open the kiln.

AT 2:00 PM EST today, I hope you will leave a comment to participate in my first Giveaway, this Maple Seed Wings  Pendant.   And then hop on over to the other Ceramic Bead Artists who are participating today.  You can get there easily by going back to the BOC blog and clicking their name under their thumbnail picture.  You will be instantly transported to their blog.

Come back at 3:00PM to have a look inside my studio and leave a comment to win my  2nd Giveaway which includes one of my toggle clasps and a $25.00 gift certificate to my Etsy Store, and yes, you can use it during my 40% off sale today. Thanks so much for visiting.

And after the second drawing I will share a wonderful recipe straight from the old world for Apfelkuchen and show you pictures of a traditional fall activity we do around here.

Have a great time and lots of luck winning a Giveaway.

Sneak Peak GIVEAWAYS BOC Open Studio Blog Event

Today is my sneak peak at one of my Giveaways for the BOC Open Studio Blog Event next Sunday 10/24/10  2:00 to 5:00 EST.  Hop on over to the BOC Blog to what else and who else is participating.

There will be more Giveaways posted during the week.  And don't forget the Etsy Sale I will be having that day:  40% off.  Just one time a year will I be marking prices so low and this is IT. I will be adding many pieces to my Etsy store for the event.  Look forward to seeing you on line Sunday. Right Here.

Lorelei's Michaels Challenge Reveal

This was indeed a fun and exciting Challenge Lorelei.  Thanks so much for setting it up.  The adventure started on Saturday, Oct. 2 when I went to Michaels' and bought two sets of the beads that Lorelei picked out for the challenge, one for me and one for my new friend in Sweden, Malin de koning.  I sent them out to her the following Monday and she had them in just a few days, which I thought was amazing.

The beads I used

Then I started on the necklace on Columbus Day Holiday and have been working on it since.  It was a challenge in lots of ways, and all of them good and the reason I signed up for this in the first place.  I love to have to stretch my mind and try out new things.  This challenge met those criteria.  It also surprised me in some other ways  It was a challenge to make a necklace that looks like me and stayed within the parameters set for us.  The structure of the  "rules" was difficult at times and I think I learned a lot about the importance of design, color and FOCUS ( It was hard not to add more beads, charms etc.).

According to the "rules" we could add 2 bead types and a pendant and a clasp.
I added my handmade:
Stoneware Wild Grass Pendant
Lime green earthenware clay beads
Teal stoneware beads
Teal stoneware wild grass toggle
Copper HOPE toggle bar

I used a copper Bead Landing chain instead of the white one, not because I couldn't find white, but because I found the white just wouldn't work for me.
The idea of wire wrapping the lime green beads and new jade into the chain I owe to Leslie Rogalski who explains this technique in the Oct./Nov. 2010 issue of Step by Step Wire Jewelry, pages 32-33.
About the word HOPE.  I chose this word because it is important to me. I try to impart hope to all I know and meet.  I thought that adding this word to the clasp would make the necklace more personal.

My favorite part of this necklace is the texture.  It is lumpy bumpy which gives it vitality, I think.  I know I will enjoy wearing it.
You can blog hop to  the others who participated in this challenge.   Yesterday I couldn't make the links live.  So I am going to have you link back to  Lorelei's blog.
Mary Harding


Hilary of Fryestyle

For My Sweet Daughter

My Life Under the Bus

Kristie of DreamSomeDesigns

Linda’s Bead Blog & Meanderings

Copper Diem



Andrew Thornton

TyneBodenNecklaces

Raida of HavanaBeads (I need a correct link for this blog!)

Erin of Treasuresfound

Molly of BeautifullyBrokenMe

Beading by Malin de Koning







AuntieAnnie

Gr8Findings

Deborah M Purdy

Spirited Earth



Erin Siegel Jewelry

beads by breul

Beads for Busy Gals

Cynths Blog

Nayas Organized Chaos

Crafty Hope



Rosebud For the Love of Beads

Jamberry Song

Peacock Fairy

Elysian Studio Art

Designs by Debi

sweet girl design