Sunday, December 29, 2013

Goodbye/Hello



As we punt 2013 as far down field as we can, lets not reminisce about the passing year's "best of" whatevers. Instead, lets look forward to a positive and productive new year from 2014.

I'm healing well from a recent surgery and looking forward to getting back into the studio and making lots of new work. I am also eager to jump into my new position as Ceramics Studio Coordinator at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts. Since I have been stranded at home recuperating, I've been planning plotting and scheming about putting together workshops that cover an "everything but the kitchen sink" approach to surface design...think I'm right about there. I am even planning to make more sculptural objects in the very near future...you know, so I can be asked "but what do I do with it"...I have missed that.

I would rather make plans... not resolutions.

Thank you for reading, following, looking and lurking. 
I hope you continue to do so.

Hello 2014.
Here I come.

Happy New Year.

(PS. interested in new music for the studio...recommendations for some good tunes ...see the comment section and feel free to post your own!)

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Giving.


First of all let me say thanks to those out there who have been supporting the cause...you know, buying my stuff for Christmas gifts! BUT not just my stuff...handmade stuff...handmade art and fine craft to be specific. You see I'm a supporter of the "war on the corporate, commercial and big box stores for Christmas"...bet you haven't heard of that war on whatever for Christmas. It seems everybody has some cranky gripe about what is and is not done anymore for this holy, holy consumer holiday...so why not just jump on the bandwagon with my own!! If you can't beat'em join 'em and drive them crazy and make them throw you out...that's my belief.

Just to let you know, there is still time to shop online and get it shipped before Christmas. I will keep shipping until this coming Friday 12/20.

I will also be manning the counter at Boutique 208 this Saturday!...So get off your damn devices and come on out in person and shop in real life...for real handmade stuff...art and fine craft from local Pittsburgh folks,like me...Kirsten Lowe Rebel, Pittsburgh Pottery and many more!!! The Boutique is located smack downtown on 6th street...across from Heinz Hall...right near the restaurant 6 Penn...heck, come out and make a day of it!!!

I also want to make you aware of another wonderful cause...its a kickstarter project that my friends Dan Kuhn and Aasta Deth have ventured into. These guys are opening a large, pottery teaching studio complete with gallery component and all in the hip and happening area of Lawrenceville here in Pittsburgh. The name of it is called Ton Pottery. This is a really great space with "tons" of potential but they need our help getting it off the ground...please click on the link and check it out and GIVE then share it with a friend. Lets help build more small businesses like this one in our communities.
still some ornaments in ye'ol' Etsy shop!

Happy Holidays!


Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Gangsters, Freaks, Pimps,Thugs and a little Arsenic for Xmas.


Just in time for the holidays..."fresh from the kiln" mugs and more. Like many of you out there I have been in a tizzy rushing around trying to finish pieces, and getting things ready for Christmas. The holidays are crazy enough just the way they are but I have to add in to the mix a little surgery to take care of a hernia issue...uuurrghh. Its an in and out procedure but its the recovery time that's really going to do me in.

That's another reason for my rushing around...I have been counting the days before I have to hit the hospital and trying to squeeze in another glaze firing or decal firing or just getting other pieces ready for when I am ready.

I do have some good news for an end of a crappy year to share...I got a new job. I am the new Ceramics Studio Coordinator for the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts...and I am thrilled! The PCA here in the steel city is a very well known and wonderful place and I will be taking up the reins for the ceramics department. Here's the link so you can check all they have to offer for yourself...WOOHOO!!!

I am going to keep on sharing more good news...I was included in this article from Pittsburgh Magazine...Pittsburgh Foodie Gift Guide : 15 ways you can keep it local this year....check this link . It is a great article and I am beyond happy to have been included in this stellar list of businesses and indie artists/crafters.

Ok, one more...I am with a new gallery/boutique smack square in the middle of downtown Pittsburgh...its called Boutique 208...the link will take you to their Facebook page. They are an artist run space in an awesome location and so far its going really well! If you are in the Pittsburgh area you should stop over and check it out...my stuff, Kirsten Lowe Rebel's work, Pittsburgh Pottery's stuff and so much more!

But that's enough of me blowing my own horn here...check out the images of new work that I am loading up the Etsy store with!
my new candle-scapes...fits a tea light and illuminates nicely.

over size sweetness







Tuesday, December 3, 2013

COUPON CODE CRAZY!!!

The hits just keep on comin'...shop small and online, support handmade, stay in your jammies.

Sunday, December 1, 2013

Half Price Shipping!!!


HOLY SMOKES! homefry ceramics is offering HALF PRICE SHIPPING on CYBER MONDAY!

All work purchased from the homefry Etsy shop on 12/2 will receive half price shipping!!!

Click here in case you missed the links above.

Shop small and make it handmade!

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Gobble.



Yep, the holidays are upon us for sure. Feel it? So often or not, what we feel is the crush of getting everything done that needs doing, preparing the food, running to the grocery store with the crowds because you forgot one small thing, cleaning before family comes over. We forget to enjoy these times.

I hope you can slow down( I hope I can slow down)and enjoy being with family and friends. I have some ideas how we can all do this.
1) Skip the madness of black Friday shopping.
2) Shop online or with local small businesses.
3) Shop with ME at homefry ceramics... I am just one click away...and you can stay in your jammies. 

Hey, anything to help the stress levels out there.

I have great holiday gifts and stocking stuffers over at my online shop ...and I am a fast shipper...just sayin'...Have a gander at some of my brand spanking new work here and head over to see what else I have at homefry ceramics!!!

Have a relaxing Thanksgiving ...breathe...


coffee pour over sets!!

starfish bowl sets!!

several different types of handmade clay ornaments!!!

Thursday, November 14, 2013

MORE...I Made It!


I am  busy cranking it out right now...I have even enlisted help to get my decals all done...thank goodness for the kindness and willingness of others to lend a helping hand!!!!!

Check out the cool info video for the upcoming I Made It! event ...hope to see you next weekend!


Friday, November 8, 2013

Double K at the IMI...

What the heck does that mean, you ask?

Well folks, let me tell you, it means me and my friend and fellow artist Kirsten Lowe-Rebel will be sharing a space in the upcoming I Made It! for the Holidays at the Waterfront here in Pittsburgh. This is a really cool, Indie, Pop-up like, indoor, art and crafts festival that happens the Friday and Saturday before Thanksgiving. The location is awesome as well, the Waterfront is an outdoor shopping "mall"... it has a lot of name brand shops and will be heavily trafficked.

Check out Kirsten's great work here  and here ...and in the below image. Looking forward to it and hope to see you there...click the link for I Made It! and check out all the links for all the participating artists...I think you should come!


I will have lots of new work as well...new images...new forms...come one, come all...step right up...


Hope to see you this holiday season...oh yeah, you can always shop my Etsy in case you miss me in person...click here for the homefry Etsy shop....I wouldn't want you to miss out now! Stay warm out there!!!
PS. check out the music video by The Head and the Heart over on the left...get through the minute and a half chatter at the start and its awesome...from the new record.
xoxo

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Fresh for Fall...



I'm keeping it short and sweet in the wordy words department these days like I said a few posts back...but I wanted to just acknowledge my very eventful weekend and post a bunch of new pics for you to have a peep at.

My 6th year on the Indiana County Potters Tour was a good one and it was wonderful to return to my old stomping grounds and visit with Nancy Smeltzer. I saw a lot of old friends and even met some new ones...


And then last Saturday night I trucked my butt from the cozy hills of Smicksburg all the way into Pittsburgh to go to the opening of Rival Cities: One Field at The Clay Place at Standard...and I am glad I did! Graham Turnbull and his father Jim, the owners of Standard Ceramic Supply Company, played host to a large crowd that turned out for this great show. Works from ceramic artists living in Baltimore and Pittsburgh were chosen to be shown and the opening was strategically marked to happen the night before the big Steelers and Ravens game. Football is serious stuff around here. There are so many really nice pieces in this show and it spans all interests...absolutely luscious wood fired functional ware to brightly colored, object based, sculptural narrative pieces. I feel lucky to be in such good company and also to be treated so well...GO STANDARD!

I still have a couple events coming up and I have also listed a lot of new pieces in my Etsy shop...and as promised, here are some new PICS!...take a gander at some of my new stuff and if you feel so inclined, click on over to my Etsy shop and purchase something for yourself...or a friend...or yourself.

Hope to see you this Fall...










Saturday, October 12, 2013

SEE ME>>>

Large Platter ,one of five pieces included in Rival Cities exhibition.
Hello everybody...I am thrilled to announce a full Fall schedule.

October 19 and 20:
Indiana County Potters Tour
click above link for all the details, times and directions...this is my 6th year on the tour with my good friend Nancy Smeltzer at Little Mahoning Creek Pottery

Also in conjunction with the tour, Artist's Hand Gallery in Indiana, PA opened a month long exhibition of the Potters Tour group...This show opened 10/4 and will run through the month. We all have a couple pieces in this show!

Saturday, October 19, 2013
Opening Reception 6-8 PM
 Join us as artists from Pittsburgh and Baltimore square off 
the day before the big football game in.........

  
Curated by
Deborah Bedwell from Baltimore Clayworks and Kate Lydon from The Society of Contemporary Craft in Pittsburgh.
Select artists from each city will be represented in this show
which will be exhibited through December
. 

There is so much really awesome work in this exhibition and I am super excited to have been asked to be a part of it...Baltimore artists include: Brett Freund, Shawna Pinkus, and Jim Dugan among others...Pittsburgh artists include: Ed Eberle, Kirk Mangus, Dale Huffman, Scott Cornish, Laura Jean McLaughlin and myself among others.

November 22 and 23

I am pumped to be doing this hard to get into indie pop-up fine craft show! This is a really interesting event that is completely curated with a fine tooth comb as if it was a gallery show. Who is going where and what will be next to what, all considered and laid out! They even give everybody a square to use for credit card sales! I am sharing a coveted corner spot with my friend Kirsten Lowe Rebel...see her work here and here.


Pour Over Set in blue!

Poison pour- over set available at The Outside In

AND, if you are in the Hudson Valley area of New York, please search out The Outside In Gallery.
This was where I went a few weeks back. I was delivering new work to them and checking out the area. What a great place! I am stoked to be part of this gallery and I absolutely love dropping the work off in person and spending some extra time hanging around. This is a beautiful area just 12 miles outside of Manhattan. We stayed in Tarrytown and explored Sleepy Hollow(headless horseman stuff galore)and the surrounding little towns.

Outside In Gallery, Piermont New York...Hudson Valley area just 12 miles outside Manhattan.

Surly pour-over set available at the Outside In Gallery.


AND, AND, AND if you can't find me at any of those places you can stop by Stray Cat Studio and you might be able to catch me running in and out during the Holidays. FINALLY as always, you can find new work in my Etsy shop...homefry ceramics

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Busy Weekend?


Hey, its me again. Looks like I'm back in the blog business.

I just wanted to let everybody know that we are having a 'Saturday Sale' THIS Saturday the 21st from 11 am - 4 pm. It will be at the studio/shop here in the greater metropolitan area of Beaver Falls, PA. We are located about 45 minutes outside of Pittsburgh and if your in the area, stop by and check us out.

Unfortunately I will be away this weekend but I will have plenty of work there along with several other potters, weavers, jewelry makers, and painters. The fam and I are taking a weekend trip up to the Hudson Valley area of New York. So much going on, things are kicking in to high gear...the official start of Fall, my birthday(woohoo,ugh), the sale at the studio and way more that I will post about next time...including the trip to New York.

Till then...

Thursday, September 12, 2013

True Love


I think its love.

Cool flower pots for your Fall mums? Praying Mantis not included. homefry ceramics

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Been A While...

Oh, Hello...remember me?
 It has been a good while since my last post...I admit it. I thought I have moved on from this blog. Although, maybe not. Honestly, I'm a bit undecided about the fate of homefry sketchbook. Just know that its me...not you. I thought I needed some space...you know, to get my head together. But here I am again...back at your virtual doorstep...and I am bringing lots of juicy pics for you to check out. For some reason you keep me coming back...not sure I can quit you.

So lets just leave it at that...no explanations, no details, no anything but a load of new work to have a gander at...

Please feel free to comment...I do love that...I miss the way some of you would talk such sweet words and the way others would bashfully just lurk in the darkness of the internet. And if your interested in seeing more of me...because I would love to see more of you....follow me on Instagram @khouser922 because I have been living through my cell phone camera quite a lot lately. AND if you want to get serious...visit my Etsy shop... khouser.etsy.com ...where there is plenty of work to purchase.

Enjoy the pics. click to enlarge and just remember that I love you.