Supermarketmagnets

So, they are finally ready to show you: the SUPERMARKETMAGNETS!
It has been such a fun project to work on and Anna did a terrific job on the illustrations. One is cuter then the other and I loved matching the colors together and applying the transfers.
There are 4 different color tones and 8 magnets in each of the color palettes. They hold a super strong neodymium magnet on the back and can hold lots of papers on your fridge or magnet board.
They are now available in my shop on Etsy.

 

 

Anna did a terrific job on the photographing of these supermarketmagnets don't you think?  :)

On the shoppinglist...

 

 

I've been working on the new collaboration project and my hand is sore cutting up a transfersheet. But the images are mighty cute and I can't wait to apply 'em onto the mosaic tiles. 

 

I love the colors & I'm pretty sure they will look awesome after firing.
Soon magnets to be and in our shops (LilaRubyKing & ArtMind)

About groceries and food

Anna (LilaRubyKing) and I e-mail each quite often and while we talk about our collaborative work, we also quite often chat about other stuff.

So while we were discussing a new, small project, we agreed on a theme and then got distracted talking about food stuff and grocery lists and then suddenly, our new collaboration is all about food and groceries.
Huh? How did that happen, Anna?

Anyway, all supplies are ordered and I'm waiting impatiently for it all to arrive at my home. I'm always excited about new projects so I can't wait to get my hands on it all.
To be continued...

Collaboration

My sweet friend Anna got featured on the Etsy blog with a quit your day job-article. The main focus was about our collaboration. Can't believe it's already 5 years since we are working together and even though we're miles apart, it feels like having a very good friend around the corner.
Hope we can add many more years to that and be able to come up with new ideas and projects together.
Later this year we will hopefully see each other again to attend on a fair together and do some actual sightseeing besides working in the studio.

Don't you find Anna's colour in sheets fantastic? I love 'em and can't wait to start colouring with Julie. Here is Julie's latest artwork:

Sea level studs

New Sea Level studs will be added to the shop soon.  They are going to make their first appearance at the Ceramic Market in Maaseik this Sunday.

These are glazed and then there are transfers burned into them. Very fiddly work but I think the result is super!

Glazing earstuds & new designs

The other day I glazed some earstuds. Normally I apply the decals onto unglazed ware but with digital decals it is much harder to apply them to unglazed ware. So I had the joy of glazing fiddly tiny discs for earstuds.

When Anna made the new designs for the Sea Level line, there is always room left for a few teeny tiny designs for earrings. Below you can see a sample of some of the new designs. Yes, some, there are more then these but I didn't feel like cutting all of them out just to get a sample. :)

These new earstuds will be first available at the ceramic market in Maaseik on the 30th of June. 

In the mean time, there are still some pieces left of the MINORERROR work if you like to get a good deal. :)

MINORERROR

What a weird title for a blogpost hey? It's a coupon code that's available in my Etsy shop. While making the new line, there was some testing involved of course. And not all went right.
When I fired the pieces, I placed the plates on top of the bowls. The temperature I fire the transfers is not that high that I would think the glaze would be affected. Unfortunately it has and so I have some bowls and cups with minor errors on top of the rim or on the bottom of the plates or saucers.

The errors are nearly not visible so we decided to offer these pieces on a discounted price. If you have been eyeing the new work you can now get your piece at 50% discount. I tried photographing the errors but they are so tiny that it's nearly impossible...

Anyway, below you can see the images of 2 pieces only but on all the bowls, plates, cups, saucers, the errors are that minor. The errors are right below the text. Put on your glasses 'cause they are very hard to see. ;)

If you want to adopt a piece with an error on them, please go to my Etsy shop, purchase the piece that you want and add MINORERROR as a coupon code and it will give you a discount of 50%. 

I will update the pieces that are available here so come and check here what's still available... These are the pieces that have errors on them:

• Seadragon bowl
• Seadragon plate
• Coral bowl (SOLD)
• Coral plate (SOLD)
• Coral cup
• Coral saucer
• Bird bowl
• Bird plate
• Bird cup
• Whale bowl
• Whale plate
• Whale cup

If you purchase pieces with a discount and they are not available anymore, I will cancel the sale.
And obviously, the coupon code is only available on the Sea Level line.

Launch new collaboration line 'Sea Level'

Today is the big day! Anna and I have been talking about tableware for some time now and at last we decided we should just make it. While I'm very busy with my 9 month old baby girl, Julie, I don't have much spare time to make the tableware myself so we decided to buy tableware which was already manufactured. Much easier as making and glazing the tableware would be such an intense, time-consuming job. Besides that the tableware we selected is such a fun collection that fits our goal exactly: it's innovative and looks great.

When we decided on the theme of the new line, Anna started drawing and since I love her work, I wasn't surprised to see beautiful illustrations. I ordered the transfers, applied them to the tableware & fired them in my ceramic kiln. I love the result of the blue tones on the white ceramics. It reminds me of Delfts blue but in a contemporary way. The collection is called 'Sea level' as the theme is plants and animals living in or by the water.

We made 4 different designs on 4 different tableware pieces: a bowl, a plate, a cup and a saucer. All pieces are available seperately and you can mix and match as you like. For the next few days I'll be listing all designs in my shop. Hope you will come by and check 'em out.
With every order of this new line you will receive this beautiful postcard to send or to frame.

Curious about the recipe of the cookie in the images? They are divine so I can recommend baking them.

They are called thumbprint biscuits and here's the recipe for you:

Ingredients:
225g selfraising flour
100g cold butter
75g sugar
1 egg
2 spoons milk
raspberry jam

Preheat the oven at 200°C and grease a baking pan or use a baking sheet.
Add the flour and the butter in a bowl and mix it with your fingers until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs.
Add the sugar. Whisk the egg and stir it through the mixture.
Add the milk little by little through the mixture until your dough is soft. If the dough is too dry, add some more milk.
Scoop teaspoons of the mixture onto the baking tray. If all goes well, you have enough for at least 12 biscuits.
They grow a bit while baking so leave so
Make the top of the biscuit a bit flat with your spoon or hand and press your thumb into the middle.
Add a bit raspberry jam into the thumbprint hole.
Bake the bisquits 15 to 20 minutes in the oven until they are golden brown.

Take the biscuits out of the oven and let them cool down.
You can keep 'em 3 to 4 days in an airtight container.
me space in between them while baking.

Wrapping up orders

Wrapping up some orders on Sunday morning! They'll be shipped from Holland today.

Collaboration work in progress

While Anna has finished her part of the job, I'm waiting for the transfers to arrive so that I can start testing 'em. Can't wait for their delivery later this week and make the first samples!
Above you can see a postcard that Anna designed especially. When you order a piece of this new collection you will get it for free. Always nice to get a bonus! :)

Collaboration work in progress

Another sneak preview on what Anna & I are up to soon...
This tableware is not made by me but we loved it so decided to work with existing stoneware. And it's a big time saver for me too! :)
Put this together with last blogpost and you can get an idea what it will look like.
We're excited! :)

Collaboration work in progress

                                      images by Anna (LilaRubyKing & afjewellery)

A while back I told you that Anna & I are working on a new line. I asked Anna to send me some images of her sketchbook so that I could treat you with a sneak preview. We're excited about what we'll be doing next. I love the work that Anna did so far. Whales, waterbirds, sea dragons, krill, bubbles,...
All animals of the big blue! Can you wait? :)

New North Story rings

I made these rings a long time ago but never took the time to photograph them and put 'em in my shop. I came across them the other day and thought that I better do something with them.
They are in my Etsy shop now... More designs will follow soon!

Decalling

It's been a while since I did some decal work in my studio. But we (Anna & me) have some custom work waiting so I send Anna some porcelain pieces that she could decal. OOAK pieces are heaps of fun to make as not one is the same. You can have a preview of Anna's pieces in her blog. Although they are fun to make, I always twist and turn about placing a certain image somewhere. Is it too little? Is it too much? And the secret is to stop in time before you ruin the piece. 
I also like seeing how different Anna's pieces are to mine. I'm rather modest in combining an placing colors & patterns while Anna dares to use big color blocks. It makes her pieces really artsy I think.
Some of these pieces will be in our shops soon. :)
If you would like a OOAK piece of your own, please don't hesitate to contact us.