Our spring break was lovely and I don't remember a more beautiful Easter day- we got outside a lot in the last week and spent almost the entire weekend out enjoying the beautiful weather. I hope you've been able to enjoy it, too.

Today I've been working like a crazy woman all day, glazing. I had wonderful help again- this time with the sanding and the waxing as well as the glazing. Hiring a helper has been the best thing I've ever done for myself professionally. Paying someone else to clean for me was a close second. That I miss. But hiring for glazing help has been invaluable- I'm more efficient with my time when I'm paying someone else to help me and it should make sense that it would only take half the time with two people working, but still, it amazes me. I have a big load ready to go tomorrow and there are several pieces that I'm excited about, like these two platters:


They are test pieces for a large custom order- I need to find more of the fern, but I have another month to work on them. The first of May is my self-imposed deadline. I know you can't really see the design, but the fern is vining and lacey, and the brownish glaze will be a deep bronzey green and the stems covered by white will take on a turquoise glow. Glazing the ferns is tedious but I always forget how much work it took when I see the end results. There are still eggs to speckle and the kiln to load tomorrow, but it was a good day's work.

After supper I did some clean up work in the kitchen, glazing table, and later in the garden. I am pottery-ed out for the day and needed to putter around with other things. While I was out I picked my first asparagus of the season. These spears are a bit late and there aren't as many as I'd hoped, but I expect more in the coming weeks.
I'll eat these with a fried egg for lunch tomorrow. They are enormously fat at 1.25" in diameter and make me absolutely giddy. Besides a little picking, most of my garden clean-up time was spent culling asparagus seedlings from other areas of the vegetable garden. There were about 10 little baby ferns popping up in my leeks and several more in the area where I've planted carrots and radishes.

April 17, the opening day of the farmers market, is quickly approaching. The Trolley Stop Market (no link yet, but they do have a facebookpage) is projected to open on April 21. Between now and then I have about 500 herb markers to make, plus berry bowls, honey pots, and butter crocks. I won't be in this space much until mid-month. I'll pop in with an etsy update- the first batch of berry bowls is coming soon.

Have a great week, everyone!