Purple Beans Turn Green

While I was selling at the Blairsville farmer's market this past Saturday Gary bought some fresh produce for us to take home. He got some purple beans, garlic and tomatoes.

As I cooked the beans they started turning green. Fun to watch them turn. I sauteed several cloves of garlic and chopped two large fresh tomatoes and cooked them till the purple beans were soft and all green.

I cooked some red potatoes separately and then added them into the pot near the end. The fresh tomatoes cooked up nice and dark, I suspect the pigment in the beans changed the tomato color.

See how dark the beans are before cooking, a beautiful dusky purple.

At the market I put up signs in my booth, saying 'please touch the pottery' and 'please pick up the pottery'. Many people looked at the blue bowl and touched it; I placed it at the front of the booth near the crowds. The woman who bought this bowl said she loved the shape and the especially the glaze depth and color of the bowl and she plans to put it on display in her home.

Lots of folks touched this bowl too. I think they thought the texture was rough when it was actually smooth. I need to use this technique again to see what I come up with. The woman who bought this bowl said she was the tie-dye queen and she just had to have this bowl. She was wearing a tie-dyed dress. I love that. Thanks for reading and for all your comments.

Keep the Light On

On today's Memorial Day I'm remembering all those who gave their lives to keep our country free by keeping the light on in my lantern. I got these LED lights to test in my lantern; they'll last twelve hours and they run on a battery. If I had brought lanterns to the strawberry jubilee farmer's market I think I would have sold a ton of them.

I think using the LED light instead of a candle is safer especially at a show. I believe anything unusual like this flickering light will attract the passerby at shows.

Remember when I made these flowers? I discovered a small box of them when I was unpacking my studio boxes. I sold a ton of them at the show. They aren't on magnets or anything, they are just do-dads and they were snatched up. I suppose some of them can be ring dishes or spoon rests, perhaps meditation bowls. I couldn't find my pendants but I think I could have sold lots of those as well.

I priced them inexpensively singly or in sets of two or three. One woman bought three for her daughters, one bought two for her young daughter's dresser. They looked nice interspersed on my shelves and table and caught the attention of folks who otherwise might have passed on by.

While I was at the market Gary went home (it's only a  mile or so away from our home) and got me a small amount of clay. I demonstrated some pinch bowls (on the right) and gave some mini lessons to several children (small bowls and mushroom on the left) stopping in my booth with their parents or grandparents. Several folks have signed up for lessons at my studio.

Here's a photo of my new booth shelves which I now have set up in my studio. Sorry I didn't bring my camera to the show, next time. I sold several of my overlapping or stacked towers and they were well received by those visiting my booth. Folks remarked they really liked my work and found it refreshingly unique.

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My new shelves fold up in the middle and the sides fold in so they lay flat in my car. No shelves to remove separately. Several good things about the Blairsville Farmer's Market location are it's covered so I don't have to set up a tent. I can back my car right up to the spot and those visiting the market walk down a center aisle. There is piped in music and permanent restrooms and lighting.  Art and craft booths are interspersed among those selling produce and other hand made or home grown items. I was between an alpaca yarn vendor and a soap and lotion vendor. Both have been at the market several years in a row and had lots of repeat business.

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My studio is almost totally unpacked so I hope to have a photo or two for you soon. Yesterday Gary and I had a smashing party. Gary said he felt worse about smashing pottery than he thought I did. Several items were broken in moving and others were prototypes with various flaws or cracks. Other prototypes and pottery are now sitting on my new shelves for review or to be organized and repacked for the next show. The kitchen is almost ready for a counter top so stay tuned for a sneak preview soon. Hope you are having a relaxing holiday. Thanks for reading and for all your comments and encouragement.