The Arch... retry

OK, so we dry stacked the arch.  Dry stacking means you use no mortar.  You just hope that all the brick does what it should... all stay & look wonderful.  Guess what?  It didn't.

We are artists in the best form.  Sometimes we throw caution to the wind and do things we think will work without looking things up or doing calculations.  Well, we had bricks sliding out and we had gaps after we pulled the arch form.  We put the arch form back in & took down ALL the bricks we had cut & put in.  It came out much quicker than it went together.

Now what?  Now we have the proper calculations for the angle on the brick (thanks to Mike & his math skills).  We are also going to mortar it all in... just in case ;)  So what does that mean?  That means that we will have to cut 160 new bricks for the arch.  We got half done yesterday.  I didn't realize how out of shape I was.  My stomach muscles are getting a great workout.  

It also means that my oldest daughter is playing mom while we get this accomplished.  She has been so great through all of this.  I'm hoping by Wednesday we'll be all done and I can take her to our favorite coffee place for the live paint event.  I think by then we'll both need a break.  

For those of you wondering why we don't have family coming over to help... we live 14 hours away from all of our families.  We moved out here almost 4 years ago for my husbands job.  It's times like these that I know how important family is, and how much every moment that we spend with them is appreciated!

The Arch

So... this is the fun part.

First we needed to build an arch support.  It needs to be a wee bit smaller than the opening, so we can drop it out after the arch is built.  We stilted it up in the hopes that it doesn't collapse.

This photo is at about 9pm... now we're ready to top her off...

So we THOUGHT we had the right arch brick already cut, but it wasn't the right brick temp (it's times like this that i wish Mike was writing this post).  Arch brick is cut at a slight angle on each side.  That means we have to cut all of the brick.  

By hand.  Hence the delay...

But it is going together.

And we have the spy holes cut!

Soon we'll be seeing glowing ware though these babies!

Hopefully very soon...

Progess!

I just hope this work like it does in our heads...

We're almost done with the laborious work, next we build the arch for the roof of the kiln, then...

...the burners & the kiln stack.  Wish us luck!!!

A photo down the chimney, just for fun :)

Featured Seller, Jrisco...

My husband and I met at work.  We both worked at a pottery in upstate NY that makes hand painted and decaled tablewares & furniture.  While working there I gained an appreciation of hand painted ceramics.  Each piece a bit different.  All made with pride and attention to detail.  When I saw this shop that's what I thought of!  I love the whimsy and clean look of these pieces.  Jeanette Risco has a wonderful eye for balance and harmony.  She has the same feeling about her pottery as I do about my journals... they should be used everyday!  These little bits of pretty things are definitely too nice to let collect dust on a shelf!  And I can just imagine how impressed people will be if they actually get to use something that is this pretty when they come to visit!  She has wonderful things to gift also... my kids love tea sets.

She sent me a little something about herself...

Porcelain painting is a completely new venture for me. I graduated in 1995 from the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc) in Los Angeles and for several years I worked as a designer in architectural and interior firms in Southern California and Seattle.

While living in Uruguay from 2005-2008 I had the opportunity to take the time to explore and learn some new things. I took classes in weaving, sushi, and pastel painting. I taught architecture to 4^th graders, learned Spanish, and played mahjong. I spent 2 years as the VP of the American Women’s Club and…I learned how to paint on porcelain.

From the moment I began exploring this new medium I found the anticipation and technical requirements of the medium very challenging. (Almost like the first time I drafted on AutoCAD – but much more fun!)

Please enjoy my pieces and know that I am having a great time creating unique one of kind treasures on porcelain that make people happy.

Use your china everyday!

Great workspace, Jeanette!  Keep up the good work!

Visit her shop at Jrisco or...

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join her facebook fanpage, Jeanette Risco Hand Painted Porcelin!