Ceramic Flashback

Last night I had dinner at my grandparent's house and for some reason we started looking at pictures that nobody had paid attention to for years. I was checking out a picture from my high school graduation when I heard Ammy (my grandma) say, "Oh look! Here's one of you being creative!". Clearly these pictures frames hadn't been updated in forever because this beauty dates all the way back to 1998:

Have you stopped laughing yet? OK good. Even though it's TOTALLY embarrassing, I just had to share. Obviously the picture's not great, but can you see what I'm painting with? For you Duncan die hards it's easy to tell those are Concepts underglazes! In fact if you look even closer, you can tell I'm painting THIS jumbo latte mug I blogged about over a year ago! All I can say is thank goodness we switched to this beautiful new label...

...and thank goodness I don't wear my hair like that anymore!

Sarah's Baby Shower

Some of you may remember this post about my older sister Sarah's wedding in May of 2009. Well, come October I'll have a beautiful niece! A few weekends ago my Mom, sister Libby, friend Valerie and I threw Sarah a baby shower. We were all so excited and loved celebrating with family, candy, cupcakes, good food, brightly colored poms, beautiful flowers, and of course, presents! Here are a few pictures from the day (isn't my sister the prettiest pregnant woman ever?!):

Valerie, Mom, Sarah, Libby, and Me

Libby and I with our cousins Lea and Vida

I was obsessed with these poms!

All pink Candy Bar

Instead of playing games, we had the crafty idea of having everyone decorate a onesie for Sarah. What did we decorate them with, you ask? Scribbles Dimensional Fabric Paint, of course! Here's all the goods sitting on my desk a few days before the shower:

I went a little overboard, but with so many fabulous colors to choose from, I really had no choice! Everyone had so much fun decorating their onesie. And who knew we had such a creative bunch?! Here are some of my favorites:


My cousin Lea with one of her many creations

My Aunt Veronica with her witty onesie

After everyone was done we hung the onesies up to dry on a clothesline outside. Doesn't it look cute?! I couldn't have been happier with how everything turned out. Now I just need it to be October already!!

Sprinkles, and Travel Mugs, and Ice Cream Dishes... Oh My!

These two projects have been my babies, and I'm so excited to finally share them with you! If you check out ilovetocreate.com you'll notice we've released 26 exciting new Duncan Oh Four Bisque designs!! I personally helped choose and design each of these pieces, so I hope you love them as much as I do. Check out the new Travel Collection and Tea Party Collection below. What's not to love, right?! People in the office have literally be camped outside my cube BEGGING for samples of these new pieces! Yes, I'm talking to you, Lauren. I had no idea the power that would come with this position!

This is just a sneak peak of the great new designs we have in stock! Visit ilovetocreate.com or click here to download the new bisque brochure and check them out for yourself.

Everyone knows how much I love cupcakes, so of course I had to develop a line called Concepts Sprinkles! We took 12 of our most popular Concepts underglazes and added sprinkles of fun to them! The 12 new colors are:

CN 514 Straw Sprinkles

CN 515 Neon Orange Sprinkles

CN 516 Really Red Sprinkles

CN 517 Purple Sprinkles

CN 518 Delft Sprinkles

CN 519 Aqua Sprinkles

CN 520 Caribbean Sprinkles

CN 521 Kiwi Sprinkles

CN 522 Really White Sprinkles

CN 523 Ginger Sprinkles

CN 524 Briarwood Sprinkles

CN 525 Black Sprinkles

I love how Concepts Sprinkles can spice up a boring project! And they're super easy to use! Check out this cute cupcake plate I made at CCSA:

Everyone at the show had a blast trying out our new product! For those of you that are a little more advanced than me (hello, that's all of you), visit ilovetocreate.com to learn how you can create other awesome projects with Concepts Sprinkles, like Dessert First.

Summer Recap!

As summer's wrapping up, I decided it was about time I return to my blog and update you all on what I've been up to! No, I haven't forgotten about this lovely blog. I've just been a busy girl, not that it's any excuse! So where have I been, you ask? Well, a pictures worth a thousand words, so let me show you!

In early July I visited my sister Libby in Rochester, New York. Being the die hard Harry Potter fans we are, we traveled to Toronto, CA to see this amazing exhibit. They had tons of costumes, props, and even sets used in the Harry Potter movies. Yes, we're huge dorks, and yes, we were in heaven! We even got to see Cedric Diggory's Quidditch robes!! For those of you who are perplexed by my excitement, in the fourth Harry Potter movie The Goblet of Fire, Cedric Diggory was played by a little known actor by the name of Robert Pattinson! That's right ladies, I was but a few feet away from clothing actually worn by Edward Cullen (swoon!). Here's a picture of Libby and I outside the exhibit:


Next I traveled to Aptos, California to spend some time with my boyfriend's family at the beach. We had a great time, although the best part might have been escaping the 100

degree Fresno heat! Here's a picture of all of us:

Mixed in with all the fun and traveling has been quite a bit of work! But lucky for me, that's pretty fun, too. One of my favorite things about my job is being on iLoveToCreate's Trendspotter Team. You can see the results of our trendspotting here at ilovetocreate.com. Below is a report written by our "Trend Master", Jen:

Jen writes, "The fashion industry has been inspired by ink-blots and mirror imagery for spring/summer 2010. The theory behind the Rorschach ink-blot test, created by Herman Rorschach, is that the test taker's spontaneous or unrehearsed responses reveal deep secrets or significant information about the taker's personality or innermost thoughts." The Rorschach trend isn't just for the fashion industry! Check out the awesome Enchantment vase below:

Isn't it beautiful?! This vase was created using CR20088 Blueberry Ice and CR20089 Raspberry ice from our most recent Crystals Glazes release! Visit ilovetocreate.com to find out how to create other cool Rorschach projects, like the Blots of Fun dinner plate!

10 New Crystals Glazes and Modern Brass!

It's so much fun when we can give our customers something we KNOW (and have heard over and over again) they want! Earlier this month we released six brand new Crystals Glazes and four reformulated, nontoxic favorites from our old leaded Crystaltone line. We also introduced the loooooong awaited Modern Brass, a nontoxic replacement for the leaded Antique Bronze and Antique Brass! Check them out:

CR 922

Eruption

CR 923
Raspberry Lemonade

CR 924

Wildflower Bouquet

CR 925

Independence Day

CR 926
Sandy Beach

CR 927
Hawaiian Sand

CR 20075
Dalmatian

CR 20088
Blueberry Ice

CR 20089

Raspberry Ice

CR 20091

Harvest Time

SY 1026

Modern Brass

I love to create with Crystals Glazes because it's SO easy. The random nature means there's no "messing up" - even a beginner like me can figure it out! Our amazing designer Suzie dreamed up beautiful pieces to show off these new glazes! See the lovely Harmony project below, and visit ilovetocreate.com for more inspiring projects!

Alice in Ceramic-Land

If you pop over to ilovetocreate.com and check out the Media & Trends section, you'll find Jen's most recent Trendspot:

In this month's Trendspot, Jen notes "During periods of recession and depression, people often choose to escape their fears through blissful fantasy, futuristic sci-fi and dark romance." Three obvious examples of the Fantasy & Escapism trend are the massive popularity of Avatar, The Twilight Series, and Alice and Wonderland. Why not add a little fantasy to your own reality?! There's no better way than with this whimsy "The Grin That's In" plate!

I love the devious grin, and the use of Pantone's 2010 Color of the Year, Turquoise! I'm especially partial to it since it's also the official color of Duncan! Enjoy this whimsical treat, and make sure to check the Trendspot each month to stay up-to-date on all the biggest trends!

Introducing Renaissance Glazes™ Color Break Series!

I gave you a sneak peek of this release last month, and now I'm so excited to officially announce 8 new additions to the Renaissance Glazes family! Reinvent your artistic passion as you experiment with this new line of Duncan Glazes! Specially formulated for cone 5-6 firing, the Renaissance Glazes Color Break series writes poetry with color on stoneware and porcelain in the greenware or bisque stages. These 8 new colors are available in 8-oz. jars. Like all Renaissance Glazes, they are nontoxic, food safe, and overglaze compatible!

RG 709 Spiced Cream

RG 710 Buff Clay

RG 711 Burnt Apricot

RG 712 Smoked Cinnamon

RG 713 Spiced Cream

RG 714 Pistachio Nut

RG 715 Heirloom Blue

RG 716 Henna

I LOVE the vibrant colors and the unique iron breaks! No two pieces will ever be the same. Visit your favorite Duncan Distributor to pick up these colors and start creating today!