Wow, it has been so long since I posted it is hard to know where to begin.  In June I received a large tableware commission (290 pieces).  This was exciting and terrifying at the same time.  I have never tried to complete an order this large before.  So far I have completely finished 96 pieces, and cast 41 more.

These have all been glaze fired now, the firing came out quite well.

This was terrifying not only because of the scale, but because 1 week before I received the commission we had decided to buy our first house.  We have always rented, because we move around so much, but we seem to be staying here, so it seemed time to own.  This way we have no landlords to deal with and can modify our house to our tastes.  Our lease was up at the end of August, so we decided to compress a process, which takes most people many months into 2.  It all worked out and we managed to find an acceptable house.

The new house.

As anyone who has purchased a house before knows, it can take a long time to get settled in.  The house was in excellent condition, but we have different decorating tastes from the previous owners, so there has been a lot of wallpaper stripping and painting.  We may even manage to get unpacked by December.

This is where I was at the beginning of September (this is the same space as above)

While putting all my artwork in storage I took the time to tape photographs of the contents on all the boxes.  This should save me many headaches in the future.

I now have 2 studio spaces, a work area and a kiln room/ glaze room.  This is fantastic because I can now fire a kiln and still work.  I also now have air conditioning and heating in my studio for the first time in years.  I am still getting used to these new spaces and working while not completely unpacked yet. 

My new slip casting area/ work table

 In addition to redecorating I took this opportunity to build myself some studio furniture.  I now have two new tables custom built for me.  It is fantastic to have all the new storage space underneath, and have them be just the right height as well.  I will have even more storage space when I get around to installing the rest of my shelves as well.  In general everything is looking good, but it has all been very tiring.  Trying to move into a new house and keep on working on the commission which needs to be completed soon, while teaching full time has been a little overwhelming.  I will never overlap so many major projects again if I can help it.