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Year in review: 2016

Happy 2017 everyone!  I can't believe time flew by so quickly, my last post was a year ago?!  I guess it's time to review the past year....

Year 2016 was a tough and yet interesting year for me outside of pottery making.  Earlier in the year I lost my beloved grandma, but she lived a good life, it was just unfortunate that I weren't able to spend more time with her.  :(

For work, it was an interesting year as I was given many different challenges but at the same time my workload has greatly increased.   

Unfortunately with an eventful year, some stuff got to give and pottery was the one.  Although I didn't spend too much time making new pieces, I was still able to participate my first ever Ottawa Guild of Potters' Spring sale.  I didn't have my own booth, just shared a table with 5 very talented potters.  It's a great idea the Ottawa Guild of Potters' sale committee introduced, it allows someone like myself who can't replenish my inventory quick enough between the Christmas Sale to Spring Sale and yet would like to join the fun.  It was an excellent experience for me and I made some sale as well which was a great bonus.
Display for Spring Sale 2016


Since I missed the Christmas Sale in 2015 (as we were travelling), even though I didn't make too many new pieces, I quickly signed up for the Christmas Sale for 2016 as soon as registration opens.  I treated it as motivation for me to make new work.  However, I didn't really start preparing for the sale until September and of course it was such a rush again, but I did it. 
 
Display for Christmas Sale 2016



Every year I would like to try making some new or different from the year before, however, I didn't get to do that in year 2016.  I did however improved on some techniques I'd done in the past. 

For example, I brought back the swirl with a little improvement.


Swirl 2016





Improved version of mug
Bigger espresso cup - closer to a cappuccino cup
For 2017, I have a couple of goals.  I would like to have 10 soup bowls for Great Bowls of Fire (I better start on it soon as first week of March is really just around the corner).  And I would also like to take part of the Canada 150 project - Populace (http://www.ottawaguildofpotters.ca/events/populace/).  Populace is a great project organized by 3 lovely members of the Ottawa Guild of Potters.  The project involves making thousands of ceramic roses, lilies and feathers which will be installed in a park adjacent to the Canadian Museum of Nature in June 2017.  

As for making some different every year, I would like to try making beer mugs.  This is an inspiration from my recent trip to a German town in Brazil called Blumenau (http://wikitravel.org/en/Blumenau).  It would be quite cool to drink beer out of a mug made by myself.  :)


Beer mugs display at the Beer Museum in Blumenau, Brazil
Last but not least, of course I would like to be part of the Guild Sale.  I probably won't join the Spring one this year, but would definitely participate for the Christmas one.

Alright that's for now.  Hopefully I will be able to update the blog a bit more often this year.





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