November '24 Newsletter
Published by Elise on Nov 5th 2024
Warm Greetings, Autumnal Artists!
As we kiss our beloved October goodbye, our Stone Leaf staff prepare for the coming winter months. The weather turned cold quickly, so don’t forget to bundle up! Plug in your space heaters, locate your hand-warmers! We wish you a gorgeous fall, and a warm time in your studio.
Upcoming Electric Kiln Workshops
Electric Kiln Workshop
Saturday, December 7, 2024
8 AM to 1 PM
CLAY OF THE MONTH
Whitestone Cone 5-7 - $0.81/lb, up to 100#
$20.25 per bag
Ingrid, the owner of Stone Leaf Pottery, had this to say on Whitestone:
“Thirty years ago there was a Laguna Clay store in Denver. When my family and I moved to Arvada, I wanted to find a local clay source. After checking out several different clay bodies at the Denver Laguna store, Whitestone was recommended to me. I fell in love with it. It is a textured porcelaneous stoneware that fires a creamy white.For me, it has about a 1% cracking rate, which is outstanding. It’s super responsive to throwing as well as hand-building. Be aware, because of the porcelain content, one must avoid porcelain warping issues (don’t dry it in a draft, and never swear at it). We used Whitestone with tremendous success in our teaching studio for over twenty years.”
This clay has previously been a standard clay body, but now Stone Leaf Pottery custom orders this clay because we think it’s the best. It can be fired from Cone 5 to 7, and is a creamy white in color.
The example piece (below) for Whitestone is a fun story: Ingrid saw the drawing and pastel artwork of John Evans (this link is to his Instagram) posted online and asked him if he would like to try creating his work on clay. He happens to live close to Stone Leaf and Ingrid gave him a round Whitestone tile with an unfired white majolica base glaze and an Amaco underglaze pencil. His resulting artwork with a black underglaze pencil shows just why he’s an award-winning 2D artist. If you’re interested in his work, John has five pieces (unrelated to clay) in a show at Echter’s Garden Center, 5150 Garrison St., in Arvada, Colorado. The Public Reception is this Saturday from 1:00 - 3:00 pm and the show stays up through Nov. 10, 2024.
TOOL OF THE MONTH
GR Pottery Forms - 10% off
(no limit for the number of items)
This tool of the month is perfect for seasonal ware-making. Want something to gift your friends and family and want it to be an easy make? GR Forms are the answer. Featured in a variety of shapes and sizes, these are a slab-builders dream tool. The cut and beveled fiberboard makes them durable and economical. Easy to use over and over again, giving you a tool to create your personalized, shallow objects, the Forms are designed to be shallow so they are more versatile. Gifts and market items become easy in a blink of an eye—plates, platters, saucers, and more. Don’t miss out on this fantastic deal! Scoop up a GR Form now!
We have more than 50 different forms available, so view all of them online at: https://stoneleafpottery.com/gr-pottery-forms/
Want to see GR Forms in action? Check out this phenomenal YouTube demonstration!
GLAZE OF THE MONTH
Kentucky Mudworks glazes, 15% off
we won't be stocking them again so scoop one while they're here!
That’s right, folks. Stone Leaf Pottery is saying sayonara to our KY Mudworks glazes. We know it’s a bummer, but we’re sending them off with a bang! Grab a pint of an awesome mid-fire stoneware glaze next time you’re in the store and enjoy the gorgeous blues, mattes, celadons and more by Kentucky Mudworks. They have a great collection of colors and finishes, and we’re so excited to share them with our customers.
Want some recommendations for a darker clay body? Check out KY Mudworks’
Instagram post about their Brown Bear-friendly glazes!
Here’s Stone Leaf Pottery’s list of KY Mudworks glazes on our website!
November Public Events
November is prime holiday shopping, so get ready, get set, LET’S GO to some art events!
The Arapahoe Ceramics Guild, located in Littleton Colorado, has an annual holiday sale coming up November 14-16, 9am-6pm! Join us for their Holiday Pottery Sale, and discover holiday gifts made by artists you know and love. For more information, check out their website.
The Denver HoliGay market will be happening December 7-8 at the Rainbow Dome, located off Federal Blvd! Last year offered an amazing array of handmade, local goods, so this year should be a treat. You don’t want to miss this one! Follow their Instagram for more info!
The Olde Town Arvada Winter Market will be on December 7,14 and 21 (three Saturdays), 12pm-3pm! Done with your supply shopping at Stone Leaf, need to shop for the holidays? Olde Town Arvada’s a stone’s throw away. Keep an eye out on their Instagram for more info!
We hope to see you at CAEA 11/7 - 11/9, as Stone Leaf will have Make & Takes at our booth in the vendor hall!
FINAL NOTES
KY Mudworks Clays
We’re saying goodbye to some of our KY Mudworks clays, though you’ll be able to continue to special order them from us. We are going to start only carrying the following KMW clay bodies:\
That means Speckled Brown Bear, Tony Beaver, Polaris, Big Turtle, Magnolia, and Speckled Turtle will be special orders once we run out—they will be available to order with a 50% deposit. As stated in our specials this month, Stone Leaf will also stop carrying Kentucky Mudworks glazes.
End-of-Year Firing Schedule
The last day for customers to turn in pieces to bisque fire is Friday, November 15.
The last day to turn in pieces to glaze-fire is Friday, December 6.
These dates are intended to remind you that if you hope to make pieces to give as gifts, pay attention to all deadlines, both yours and ours!
It’s always first turned in, first fired! So, get going on your work so it can be turned in sooner, rather than later. We will try to have all the pieces brought to us fired within two weeks, but during this busy time it is not guaranteed.
First frost should hit this month, so no more clay returns will be accepted until winter is over! We do not accept clay returns during the freezing months.
We also wanted to give our customers a reminder: if you’re picking up 1000# or more of clay, please give us 24 hours notice prior to when you plan to pick it up! That way we can best prepare our staff to meet your needs.
Ingrid’s Tip of the Month:
Ingrid’s Tip of the Month is on the right size of kiln to buy. Several factors need to be considered and here are the first 5:
1 - Find out if you have enough electrical power to run a kiln. Kilns require more power than other appliances and are mostly 240 volt, single phase electricity for houses. Check with an electrician before you buy a kiln.
2 - If you do not own the property, do you have permission to install a kiln?
3 - Do you have a safe location to install your kiln? A kiln should be placed 18” or more from a wall. Is any nearby furniture, flooring, or wall coverings flammable? Remember, lots of floor tiles are flammable. A concrete floor is best, but it has to be at least 6 months old. An alternative is to place your kiln on top of aged concrete stepping stones. Make sure the concrete stepping stones exceed the perimeter of your kiln.
4 - Make sure that the kiln can be vented in some way. Fumes and heat can be bothersome, and the option to vent can be easily achieved with a fan and an open window, or a vent system purchased from the kiln manufacturer.
5 - The outside walls of a kiln can easily reach 600ºF when it’s firing, so you need to make sure the kiln is not accessible by young children (or pets) who could burn themselves on the hot kiln walls.
The remaining five points will come next month!
( our version of a tension-building cliffhanger)
As a reminder, don’t forget to check our social media (Instagram, Facebook) for any late openings or snow days announcements. On snowy mornings with a regular opening, we may be out clearing snow and might not be able to answer the phone. Don’t fret, we’ll return your calls in a timely manner!
Attention, dear customers! During the freezing months, we will not accept returns on clay or liquid chemical products such as wax resist. Thank you for being mindful.
Thanksgiving Holiday closures incoming:
We’ll be open Tuesday 11/26
We’ll be closed 11/27 - 12/2
We’ll re-open 12/3
That’s all for now! Happy fall, friends, and we look forward to seeing you around the store.
Elise and the Stone Leaf Pottery Crew