Come see what we make

tatami mat topped with pottery

We have pots all over the place, in the house and in the studio. I am pretty fond of the hand-built bowls pictured in the front there. They are generously proportioned, big enough for a whole meal. We call them monks' bowls.

And, we are having one more event at our place this weekend:

Jensen & Marineau Holiday Open Studio

Saturday, Dec. 15th, 10-5

22017 NW Beck Road Pdx 97231

*~*~*~*Please drop in to see what we make!*~*~*~*

I just unloaded a firing this morning and found a new favorite piece~

large oval platter

Or maybe it's this one~

scalloped tray

We had so much fun last weekend at our open studio; thanks to all of you who stopped by! I hope we will see some of you that we missed last Saturday.

large black & white mugs

We still have a good selection of mugs too. Come on over!

Holiday Open Studio

assorted hand-built pieces

Jensen & Marineau Holiday Open Studio

Saturday, Dec. 8th, 10-5

22017 NW Beck Road Pdx 97231

We are right in the thick of getting prepared for our annual winter open studio. We have several new hand-built shapes that I am pretty excited about. I am particularly fond of those long, flat rectangles, called cheese boards.

fresh from the kiln

Mugs are back too, by popular request, and they are enormous~ one imperial pint, to be exact. I just learned that beer forms a finer head of  foam in a glazed vessel than in glass.

hand-built bowl in progress

We're still in production though, we will have a firing or two more during December.

glazed ware waiting for the kiln

I hope to see some of you locals out here on Saturday. It should be festive, plus I will have something good for you to eat and drink. Please stop by on Saturday!

And don't forget to visit Mud, Sweat, and Tears~ a pop-up shop in downtown Portland. On 12/6 First Thursday, Jonathan Brinkley will play and they'll have brandy and liqueur tastings from Stone Barn Brandy Works 4:00 - 8:00

Coming up this month~

new hand-built work in black & white at the pop-up shop

Come visit us at this pop-up shop during the holiday season, open every day all month long. It's located in the heart of downtown Portland; so convenient, and we will be restocking weekly. It's looking very festive!

Details here:

 Also, just for one weekend; come and see us at the Skyline Artisans Guild show. There will be music, wine and food too.

And, of course, we will be inviting you to our studio for our annual open studio, Saturday, December 8th and Saturday, December 15th. Stay tuned for more details and be sure to sign up to be on the email list over here on the right----->>>>>

Someone doing good in the world.

Mia

Mia

(*after Rob Moore)

Fourteen years gone,

the dear old dog is dead.

Nothing left to pat but the Earth.

Buried out beyond the shop,

feet to the east, 

tail sailing south,

nose pointed at the North Star,

chasing ghost coyotes across the universe.

Tell god hello for me, girl.

Say that I'll be along later.

newish

 floating bowls

Hand-built bowls, one cup capacity. I call them dumpling bowls; they remind me of cozy homey food.

dumpling bowl

 mini plate with beetle

Mini plates are about 5" wide and have a little rim to corral the contents.

oval platter full of smiles

This one is about 11" x 7", it's proving to be a useful and  popular size.

another mini plate

Lucy Kirk is so creative.

address numbers

my first address tiles

I got an order for some custom address tiles with carte blanche as to what I could make; wheeee..... 

wareboards with bisqued numbers and letters

I decided to make over-sized individual letters and numbers with deep texture. I put two counter-sunk holes in each tile for screws to mount them on the wooden fence that is their final destination.

glazed with my new favorite surface treatment

This glaze is nothing more than manganese, mixed with water to the thickness of whole milk, brushed on, fired to cone 6 in oxidation.

so much variation, matte black to bronzy-metallic

thick and chunky

don't you just want to take a bite? ^click on it

garlic drying in the sun

In other news, the garlic harvest is in.

trimming it up

I have the perfect basket to put them in too.

spice dishes in the garlic

My studio assistant got creative with some photos.

little dish of smiles

 cauliflower and bun dish

I am pretty proud of my cauliflower this year.

broccoli and mini plate

And of my broccoli too.

Have you seen the yelp reviews read by actors on YouTube? There are about six of them, go there and watch them all.

Freaking hilarious~

fresh strawberries

 the last of our strawberries

 fresh cherries from Sauvie Island

 new bug dish, just right for the cherry pits

 totally in love with my new socks

 morning sunlight on the bed

poppy catching the morning sun on the terrace

Have you seen Creature Comforts? My favorites are the pig mother and daughter (American version). Netflix has it, so funny.

friends and fruit

 cantaloupe and raspberries in hand-built bowls

Summer is the time to gorge on fruit, we eat fruit all day long this time of year. 

...on french toast made from homemade challah, or in crepes, over scones with whipped cream, & out of hand.

 a friend brought a gift from Sweden, so charming

This is a cloth made from wood fibers, nice and thick for wiping down counters. Friends came to lunch...

 we ate russian cream with berries

 three kinds of lavender, origami bowl of cherries

The next day, other friends dropped by after visiting the Oregon Lavender Festival with more presents!

I like my Swedish rug and Swedish table and Swedish cloth with Oregon sunshine pouring in.

summertime

 sage growing in a pot glazed in Shaner's red and fake ash glaze (old skool!)

 collected stones, coral, shells, glaze tests

fresh raspberries, textile series dish

ahhhhh, the summer bed

I love Ruan Hoffman's sense of humor (click through them all).

origami pots

cheerful eggs

How to distinguish hard-boiled eggs and, perhaps, to surprise refrigerator visitors.

log with mushroom

Spied on a hike, a single mushroom that looks like a magnolia blossom.

just like a flower, right?

but, clearly, a mushroom

The very next day it was completely collapsed.

origami pots waiting for decoration

I'm working on a new series of hand-built pots made by cutting and folding slabs of clay. I make them by cutting a slab into a circle, square, or rectangle, then making little slashes in the edge (three or four, depending on the shape I'm after) and then folding up the sides (+ score, slip, press, smooth). Do you want to see how? I'll document the whole process if anyone asks...

compost bucket for the chickens

Our compost bucket was looking especially pretty after a kitchen session making roasted sweet potatoes, kale chips, and watermelon.

I really liked The Hare With the Amber Eyes by Edmund De Waal; here is a link to his netsuke collection, so wonderful, especially when you know a bit of their history.

blue and white and spring

matsuno vegetable kitchen tile

I've been working on a blue & white tile job for a client in California. 

Sigh...

Even though I have made hundreds of blue & white tile, sometimes I miss a defect. This one was probably already cracked when I  decorated it and it didn't reveal itself until the glaze firing.

now there's a bee 

But, the client likes insects, so I added a bumblebee while I was at it. 

chickens enjoying the sun

We have taken to calling the chickens "pennys", partly because of their coppery coloring, but also because its easier than calling them out individually* (also, they don't care). 

gorgeous, and huge (!)

yay spring

Yes, but why is it still snowing and storming?

*for the record: Henny, Penny, Honey, Blackie, Little Red, and the other three...