The moments of inspiration

One of the things that really gets me excited about making new pieces is photographing the old ones. The ones I have started to think of as reeeeeally old. And am not as thrilled about as I once was. Don't get me wrong, I love all my little pendant babies, even the weird ones. I just get tired of seeing them in their little trays, I guess. After a while, too, they don't stand up to my new expectations...compared to the new designs still in my head and poorly sketched out on paper.

Today when I was taking these pictures, I realized how much I've missed the work that so much fills my time so much of the year. The forming clay, adding texture, choosing glaze colors. Then the moment I first see them after they're fired can be excruciating. There's a love/hate thing happening, nearly always, because they rarely look as I expect, and yet they always thrill and delight me. Nearly always.

But since I have so many pendants that still need to be worked into some new designs, and so many beads, I won't be spending time at that "starting from scratch" phase this week. Instead, I'm about to make some more necklaces. Which is good because I don't have enough anymore. In fact, that's the fun I have in mind for myself tonight. Time to make the necklaces. I have no idea what I'll start with, but I'm thrilled at the prospect. I'll fill you in on the progress when I have more to report.