Made a new cookie jar for the dog's treats. I really like the way the top color dripped and thickened near the transition between the two glazes.
Cookie Jar
Pallet Sunset
We needed something new to hang above our bed. I had a bunch of wood I had salvaged from the pallets that the upstairs flooring and my new lathe came on, so I decided to try to make some sort of decorative art piece out of pallet wood for the wall - I figured if it didn't come out good enough, I could just hang it in the workshop instead. :) But thankfully it came out pretty good!
Couple of Cute Moments
Here are a couple of random cute photos we got of the dog lately. In the photo on the left, she was taking a break after utterly *destroying* a stuffed toy we got her. In the one on the right, she is laying in Sean's bed and soaking up the son - but I love the way her back legs are strung out behind her, rather than being tucked up under her like normal.
Upstairs Floors
Over the Thanksgiving and Christmas breaks I put down a floating hardwood floor in all of the bedrooms (plus the hallway) upstairs. I'd been wanting to do it since we moved in, to get rid of the old stained and nasty carpets that were in all of the bedrooms. I still have a few thresholds to install, but it's essentially done!
Feathered Ice
I came outside one morning to leave for work, and there was this really amazing, feathery ice pattern all across the roof of my car. The picture doesn't really due it justice - it was incredibly intricate and delicate.
More Mugs!
Another bunch of mugs I made to give away at our Christmas party. I've been experimenting with different surface textures and forms, and a few new glazes.
Udvar-Hazy Center
During a work trip to Washington D.C. this past fall, I went to check out a museum I hadn't seen before - the Udvar-Hazy extension to the National Air and Space Museum. This is the place where they keep all the stuff that is too big for the main Air and Space Museum on the National Mall. They've got the Blackbird (SR-71) there, plus a Space Shuttle! It was pretty amazing. They've also got a place where you can look in on the workshop where they do all the restorations before things go out for display.
Mugs
I've been having a lot of fun making mugs lately, and experimenting with different shapes, sizes, glazes, and decorating techniques. I plan to make a whole bunch before Christmas, to give away at our Christmas party. Below are the two most recent batches.
Kitchen Pull-Outs
I've been working my way through our kitchen, and adding pull-out drawers to all of the lower cabinets. It makes the space a lot more useful, and also a lot easier to access. I've also turned a few of our narrower upper cabinets into pull-outs as well (but forgot to take a picture of those) - turning one into a pull-out spice rack, one for cleaning supplies, etc.
Refrigerator Pickles
We've had an 'accidental cucumber plant growing in our compost pile this year - best I can guess is that when I tore up the garden at the end of the season last year and tossed the leftover stuff on the compost pile, one of the cucumber seeds must have sprouted this spring. It's been producing a _ton_ of cucumbers, so sliced a bunch up to make a batch of refrigerator sweet pickles with them. I added some red and white onion too - I love pickled onions. Good stuff.
