Show and Tell: Raffle Prize

This week for Show and Tell, I present a pair of nesting bowls. I did the glazing, but they were thrown by someone else (I can’t make bowls this big yet). I’ve donated these bowls to the raffle for Share Southern Vermont, the organization for bereaved parents run by my bloggy friend Cara. The drawing will be held on November 15, and you can enter online. You can even designate your raffle tickets toward specific prizes, so there’s no chance you’d waste the karma of winning on a prize you don’t want.

Side note about the glaze: This is an example of form following function. The glaze bucket wasn’t big enough for me to dip the bowls in one dunk, so I glazed each bowl in sections. The overlap of glaze in some areas but not others caused a wonderful pattern. This glaze in particular has different qualities depending on how thickly it’s applied, resulting in variation in color as well as texture. The photos don’t do the bowls justice, if I do say so myself.

For everyone who has said that they wish they’d win some of my pottery, here’s a great chance to control the odds — with the additional benefit of donating money to help bereaved parents. If you’d like a chance at winning these bowls or many other great prizes, enter the raffle right now!

Show and Tell: Zen Non-Attachment Revisited Once Again

Since I will not be leaving the hospital for at least a couple more weeks (currently 30w1d and counting), I might as well go back to the Show and Tell I would have posted a couple weeks ago had I not been hospitalized.

More than a year ago I showed you a lovely pot I’d made that I dropped on the concrete floor when I was taking it out of the kiln. This pot was intended to sit in my pantry holding garlic (hence some decorative holes for proper aeration). I talked about my approach of Zen non-attachment with pottery, and how that Zen does not extend to fertility.

I subsequently showed you other examples of ruined pots that required Zen non-attachment due to no fault of my own, ranging from smaller incidents inside the kiln to The Great Pottery Calamity of 2008.

I may approach things with a Zen attitude, but that doesn’t mean I don’t still want replacements for the ones I’ve lost.

During my most recent round of pottery, I was set on finally replacing the lost pot. I decided to make some backups so that I’d be sure to end up with at least one for myself — having long ago given away three very nice pots with similar shapes, some for garlic, some without holes, to members of DH’s family, who showed a range of levels of appreciation (you can probably guess who was insufficiently appreciative). Finally, I have my garlic pot… and then some.

My favorite of the bunch, not intended for garlic because there are no holes, from a different angle.

A close replacement, in form and function if not color:

Not that any cooking has been taking place in my house at any point during this pregnancy. But whenever garlic eventually gets purchased, it will have a home, finally.

Show and Tell: Blogoversary Contest Prizes

Sorry that I couldn’t post last week to show you the prizes won by the winners of my Blogoversary Contest. Turns out that being horizontal is not conducive to climbing stairs, fetching cameras, photographing pottery, etc.

1st Prize which will be sent to Birdless whenever I can manage to put the package together and send my husband to the post office (she preferred a blue-ish bowl over the prize I’d originally planned). It’s cereal-sized — unless you’re my husband, in which case you’d need a bigger bowl for cereal. Hopefully Birdless eats normal portions of cereal; or, she can eat whatever she wants in it. The inside swirl was done with glaze; the pattern around the rim is carved into the clay when it’s leather-hard using the wheel and — get this — a pencil. That pattern at the rim is a bit of a trademark for me (almost all of the bowls in my house have that pattern). Thanks to the swirl, this is one of the bolder pieces I’ve made:

2nd Prize for Lori. Yes, those are L’s for Lori (or for Lavender Luz if you prefer). The L’s go all around the cup in a decorative pattern. I was experimenting with wax resist.

I won’t be making any more pottery for a loooong time, so in future Show and Tells I’ll keep showing you some of the pieces I made in this last batch as well as various non-pottery things. Next week: A resolution to my episode of Zen non-attachment, my very first Show and Tell from over a year ago.

See what the rest of Miss Lollipop’s class has to offer for Show and Tell.

Show and Tell: Odds

I’ve been quite lucky lately. Aside from the whole getting pregnant thing, I’ve also won several contests online. Let’s review, with an eye toward the odds in each contest.

In February, as I have mentioned before, I won a handmade pillow when Kristin’s car needed a name and I suggested “Manatee”. There were four people who made suggestions, with one entry each for the two prizes, meaning the odds were 2 in 8. Those familiar with 4th grade fractions will realize that 2 in 8 reduces to 1 in 4, but I think the true odds were still 2 in 8 because one person could theoretically have won both prizes. This contest was merit-based rather than random, though, so the true odds may have been different.

In April, I won a gift certificate for maternity clothing from Sticky Feet. Winning is a relative term, since I received a gift certificate for $50 then spent another $200 of my own money — it was pretty exciting to buy maternity clothes after so many years. (Apropos of the Thoughtful Thursday about doing it all from a couple of weeks ago, she is currently giving away a book on “Momnificent” balanced living.) My odds of winning that contest were 2 in 29.
(Out of respect for those who aren’t in a place to see such things, as a policy I am not posting belly shots in the body of a post — and in fact haven’t taken any at all so far during this pregnancy — but if you really want to see a faceless version of me wearing some of the clothes, go ahead.)

In May, I won a pair of adorable baby booties. I first entered a contest on Cool Mom Picks, where I was one of probably thousands of entries, then also entered a contest on the knitter’s blog, where I was 1 of 28.

In June, I won a bunch of YoBaby Yogurt, a bib, and a bowl from Gotcha Baby. Since the vouchers for the yogurt will expire before my babies are eating solids, I’ll have to eat the yogurt myself. Unlike yogurt, the bib and the bowl will keep until the babies are old enough to eat solids. Odds of winning that contest were 1 in 7.

Why am I telling you about the odds? Because I have a new contest coming soon: a Blogoversary contest! Because it was my Blogoversary two days ago!

Unlike the lottery, which I am too math-knowledgeable to ever play, blog contests tend to have excellent odds. All of my past contests have had excellent odds:

Bridge contest (which started an online and now IRL friendship between Lori and me, and also won her a vase): I didn’t set the odds in advance; 5 people guessed, though if a correct answer hadn’t happened, more guesses would have kept coming, but basically 1 in 5 (required actual knowledge of geography)

Guess the Size of Lori’s Vase Contest, in which Wishing4One won her own tiny vase despite being 250% off in her guess: 1 in 3 (required picking a number)

Creme Contest, for which Kathy won a bowl: After no one guessed correctly the first time, I reset the odds at 1 in 10 (required some combination of thinking and picking a number)

Dirty Laundry Contest, in which Neeta won her choice of artwork from Wall Blank: Odds preset at 1 in 11 (required picking a number)

Holy Fucking Shit Contest, a.k.a. Guess the First Beta, in which Fattykins got to pick anything I could carry back from Spain and chose pottery: 1 in 32 (required picking a number)

Guess the Second Beta Contest, in which Julia won a bowl that I didn’t manage to photograph before mailing: 1 in 13 (required picking a number)

The upcoming contest will have preset odds of 2 in 21 (two prizes available, mostly involving picking a number but some knowledge/thinking would be helpful). The prizes will be pottery that I made. One will be similar (though not identical, because identical work is impossible and undesirable with this style of pottery) to the dish that I gave Lori. That winner will have a choice of colors, in case they aren’t a fan of yellow and brown.

The other prize will be regular pottery, assuming next week’s glaze fire doesn’t end in catastrophe — if it does, I will be very sad, but I do have some other pottery stockpiled, so the second winner will get something good, not an exercise in Zen.

For those of us who have been screwed over repeatedly by the odds of successful reproduction, 2 in 21 is pretty good. Stay tuned!

In the meantime, see what else is going on at Show and Tell.

Perfect Moment Monday: Back in the Saddle

It has literally been almost a year since I’ve properly worked in the pottery studio, partly because work obligations have precluded attending my usual class and partly because the Great Pottery Catastrophe of 2008 took the wind out of my sails. I did take one class in a very different technique, but I haven’t sat down at the wheel in far too long. I’d been toying with the idea of building a studio in my home, but once I learned that I was finally pregnant, I decided that it should wait (high startup costs + toxic chemicals + 2000 degree heat = not great with curious little ones running around). My pottery pursuit was put on indefinite hiatus.

Last week I got an email about a summer pottery class with a new teacher (one who was not implicated in the Great Catastrophe). I wanted very much to take the class, but I decided that I shouldn’t because it’s not a good idea to do pottery while I’m pregnant. It’s a great hobby for infertiles, but not as good for pregnant women, between the chemicals used in the glaze and the physical strain of certain tasks. Plenty of women are able to continue pottery throughout pregnancy, but since twin pregnancy is higher-risk than most, I thought that it would be prudent for me to opt out. This sensible decision made me sad, because I miss pottery a lot, but I’ll do anything to keep these babies safe.

I mentioned this to my husband. He said, “You should take the class! You can stay away from the chemicals and modify things to take it easy. It will be a long time before you can do it again. For once, we won’t be traveling much so you’ll actually be in town for most of the classes. Pottery makes you happy.”

His optimistic clarity was one perfect moment; I foresee many more perfect moments to come — starting with my first class tomorrow!

Lori from Weebles Wobblog is in charge of Perfect Moment Mondays. And she’s up for a blog award for being so inspiring — vote early and often!

Show and Tell: Impossible

Ever since I took up pottery, I’ve had a rule that I’m no longer allowed to make pottery purchases. I still browse in stores and arts festivals, to appreciate others’ work and to give myself ideas, but anything that I’m able (or potentially able) to create is off limits — if I want it, I have to try to make it myself.

That rule did not apply when I went to a shop in Madrid run by a pottery cooperative. I actually went just to look, and I saw lots of cool stuff, but I could not resist one item that I found. Technically it is a ceramic sculpture instead of functional pottery like I usually make, so it doesn’t violate my No Purchase rule. As decent as my pottery skills are in certain ways, it would truly be impossible for me to make one of these.

Remember how I was drawn to Don Quixote, both because of the then-upcoming trip to Spain and because of the quixotic, impossible dream of IUI #7 (the one that worked)?

I just couldn’t say no when I saw this. Yes, it cost a lot of money. Yes, it was extremely inconvenient to transport across the ocean (height = 14 inches tall, but happily it’s not as heavy as you might imagine). Despite the downsides, there was no way I could go home without it — especially since at the time I knew I was pregnant, and that the character of Don Quixote had already taken on additional meaning for me.

This handsome fellow now sits next to Don Quixote and Rocinante in pen and ink, creating a little Impossible Dream corner of the room. I’ll show you what they look like together soon, but first I have to show you a couple more installments of Infertility Art — or perhaps a more apt name would be Fertility Art?

Join the Show and Tell circle.

Show and Tell: Sock It To Me

It has been delightful to participate in Kym’s Sock It To Me Sockeroo.

First, I did some shopping in Madrid to find the faux-Chuck Taylor socks that I sent to Katie from The Happy Hours.

Then, I received two pairs of socks from The New Life of Nancy. Amusingly, when I opened the package, I knew exactly who had sent them. I had only seen one preliminary blog post showing socks that the blogger had sent for Sock It To Me: Nancy’s post about the socks she sent me (which I didn’t know when I read her original post). Over-the-knee socks, perfect for roller derby. I’m not actually this much of a badass, but I can pretend.

How does the Adoption/Loss/Infertility blogosphere make me feel warm and fuzzy?

• I can connect to people at every stage of the infertility journey. Unlike my IRL support group, where I was the veteran explaining everything to the newbies, in the blogosphere I can impart wisdom as well as draw on the experiences of others. Sure, 7 years is a long time, but it’s by no means the longest around here. 11 treatment cycles? Not so many, compared to some. Blogging has shown me what to anticipate, and what to be thankful that I’ve managed to avoid.
• It teaches me about aspects of this process I barely thought about, and in many cases didn’t want to think about. Adoption, surrogacy, and donor embryos are scary next steps to think about for myself, but they’re totally manageable — and quite fascinating, in fact — when friends like, respectively, Lori, Kym, and Dora (as well as Miss Conception) talk about them.
• Having recently become pregnant with twins, there are a lot of people around who get it. They get the twin thing, and the twins-from-treatments thing, and the scared-about-pregnancy-after-infertility-and-miscarriage thing. Plus the thing where I feel like an impostor.
• There is a receptive and appreciative audience for my writing… and my pottery.
• Some of my bloggy friendships have turned into real friendships. Lori is the first blogger that I’ve met in person, but she won’t be the last.
• Over 100 people have accepted my invitation to be thoughtful over the past three months.
• Despite keeping sooo many secrets about infertility (and now pregnancy) over the past 7 years, I have found people that I rush to tell about everything: good, bad, and silly.

Many other Show and Tell offerings involve socks, but many others do not. At least one involves some very interesting pottery.

Show and Tell: Splitting the Difference

This week for Show and Tell I am revealing the winner and prize for my Guess The Beta Contest.

The beta at 12DPO was (drumroll) 79.

This means that Fattykins from I Can’t Wash My Jeans, My Fat Is In The Way is our winner, with a right-on guess of 79.

(Honorable mention to S from Misconceptions About Conception who guessed an ever-so-close 78.)

I gave Fattykins prize options of some pottery that I had made or a gift of her choice from Spain. She decided to split the difference with some pottery from Spain.

Here it is, from an incredible shop in Madrid that sells all sorts of functional and artistic porcelain items made by a pottery collective. Note the deceptive-as-usual photo tricks distorting the scale — this vase is less than three inches tall. Sorry, I didn’t bring my old pal Wonder Woman pez to Spain.

I actually bought myself a gift at that same shop too (despite my rule that I’m not allowed to buy pottery, which this doesn’t technically violate since it’s a sculpture) but for that you’ll need to wait for a future Show and Tell.

Congrats, Fattykins! I hope that you can locate some tiny flowers to fit the vase. I will mail it once I return to the U.S., which is only a couple of days away. Sad news for continued enjoyment of this fine country, but happy news for the ability to do a repeat beta.

Which leads us to… another contest! Guess my second beta, which will occur at 21DPO. It could have doubled many times over from 79 at 12DPO, or it may have declined. No hint of becoming un-pregnant so far, but if I’ve learned anything from this BFP, it’s that anything is possible. Hell, it might be quadrupling because I’m carrying quads. Anything is possible.

Ojo los otros de Show y Tell.

Show and Tell: The Ugly, The Bad, and The Good

Since my description for IComLeavWe mentions pottery, it’s time for some truth in advertising.

After the Great Pottery Catastrophe of 2008 took the wind out of my sails, it’s taken me a few months to get back into the studio. I’m currently taking a class in a technique I’ve never before encountered — it’s pretty unusual and quite amazing. I’ll show some examples of my newest work at future Show and Tells.

Almost every time I go into the studio for class, I come across some of my work that has come out of the kiln. These finds have revealed that the Great Catastrophe actually involved more than one kiln firing, since different ruined pieces were at different stages. They have also revealed that the kiln has been fired at least once since the Great Catastrophe without incident. I’ll show each find at two different angles — from the side and from above. The Ugly, The Bad, and The Good. To give you a sense of scale, The Ugly are 5 inches in diameter, The Bad is 8.5 inches, and The Good are 5 and 6 inches.

Find #1: The Ugly. From the Great Catastrophe firing, a glaze firing that went horribly wrong and destroyed months worth of my work. These were both supposed to be turquoise — don’t adjust your screens, the horrible green is true to life. Adding to the ugliness are giant chunks missing from the bottom where the pots stuck to the kiln shelf, as well as unsightly bumps which absolutely weren’t there when I created them (seen on the second photo, the blotches inside). These little pots were some of the replacements for my Zen Non-Attachment pot, which itself had turned out perfectly except for the final step where I dropped it on the ground. A suitable replacement for that one still does not exist.

Find #2: The Bad. On the next visit to the studio, I noticed this piece sitting on an out-of-the-way shelf. When I last saw it, it was waiting for its first firing (called the bisque fire). Now I have proof that the fateful Catastrophe glaze firing wasn’t the only firing that went poorly. This came from bisque firing that clearly was fired far too much, so that it looks as if it’s been through the second much-hotter firing (called the glaze fire). At this point, it doesn’t really work to try to salvage it by glazing and refiring — it just won’t absorb the glaze. It also has some of the same odd bumps seen in The Ugly.

What’s especially funny about this piece is that it’s the fifth chip-and-dip I’ve tried to make. One of them has made it all the way to being a finished piece — though there was a problem with the glaze, so that itself is not what I intended (but it is attractive in its own way and fully functional). The others have faltered during the process of drying: I throw the chip part and the dip part as one piece and the dip part often tries to escape (technically, it cracks away from the chip part because the part where they connect is thicker than the rest of the piece). The one you see here was an attempt to prevent the dip from fleeing, successfully achieved by drying it ever-so-slowly over a period of five months last year with finishing work done periodically through the drying process. Once it was perfectly dry, I put it on the shelf to be bisqued and patted myself on the back. The next time I saw it, it looked like this. Technically it’s still functional, but again, this is not what I intended. If you’re wondering if it hurts more to see a perfectly-shaped piece get ruined, the answer is yes.

Find #3: The Good. The following week, I was shocked to see that these bowls had come out of the final firing wholly intact. There is nothing wrong with them at all. In fact, they match, and the smaller one nests inside the larger one quite adorably. That sums up my pottery life lately — I’m shocked when something turns out well. Come to think of it, that sums up my fertility life as well. If IVF #3 turns out as well as Find #3, it will be the most pleasant surprise ever.

Visit Show and Tell — very little ugly or bad, mostly good.

Show and Tell: My Consolation and a Winner

Before I announce the winner of the Creme de la Creme contest, I would like to show you my own consolation prize.

Most nights, after giving myself my IVF shots, I like to console myself with a sweet snack. In so doing, I am breaking the “no eating after 10 p.m. rule” usually followed in our house. When we established that rule, we did not foresee my repeated stabbing with needles.

Here is an example of a consolation snack: 1/4 of a brownie. You may recognize the plate as part of the series that I made using gauze from IVF #1. I don’t use it in the normal dish rotation, but it makes a fine plate for IVF consolation.

And now, the moment you have been waiting for: the winner of my Creme de la Creme contest…

AngryCanRN!

I am delighted that she is the winner. Not only is she wry, hilarious, and strong beyond belief, but she will soon be donating embryos to Dora. A piece of pottery is comically tiny in comparison to that kind of gift, but here it is.

I must include the disclaimer that I did not make this bowl, but I know the person who did. She is a professional potter, and one of my pottery teachers. I will hopefully be able to make a bowl this nice in the near future. I was getting close, until a certain pottery calamity derailed my progress. I hope to resume soon and make some replacements for everything that was destroyed, as well as many prizes for future contests.

Congratulations, AngryCanRN!

Amusingly, AngryCanRN actually submitted multiple entries for the contest. The first one was the correct one, but when I took my sweet time announcing the winner, she assumed that her first guess must have been wrong and tried again. But, since the first guess was correct, I will count it. I’m not sure if the lesson here is to go with your instinct or to try try again.

And so, if you are keeping track, that means that Show and Tell: Bridge was my favorite post this year (and therefore, in the history of the blog to date). Only a few days until we get to see everyone else’s favorite posts at Creme de la Creme. In the meantime, you can enjoy the rest of Show and Tell.