This new garden totem(#5) was so much fun to make!  The little bees scattered around were made from sculpy clay, then attached to the stoneware ceramic orbs. Some of the bees are attached to very thin wire and then secured to the ceramic pieces. This makes them bounce like they are flying!The color pallettte is predominately blues and greens (like the Earth), with a couple of accents in reds and pinks. I also made the base look like a flower pot because the totem is "growing" out of it. Weighing down the pot are smooth black river rocks from my garden. Contact me if you are interested in owning this beauty!

Introducing my new gratitude box design!
These little cuties are about 3" x 3" x 5".
Handmade stamps add interesting texture and they all come with colorful slips of paper, tiny pencil and instructions on how to use as a gratitude box.
Of course, they are also perfect for holding any small item that you are constantly misplacing, like earbuds, keys or loose change!
You can see more colors under "Boxes" heading.

Here is a full scale photo of my California Colors Totem. It is 4 feet tall. There are 16 separate pieces that can be moved and rearranged in various ways. Each piece stacks atop one another with a wooden dowel as support and a wooden cross base stand (hidden with white draping in this photo.) If displaying outside, I recommend using a 6 foot steel rebar pole in place of the wooden dowel, with 2 feet of the pole sunk into the ground.

Each piece is and hand sized work of art. In order from top to bottom: a purple flower, bougainvillea blossoms, flying seagulls, hummingbird, California poppies, branch with butterfly and snail, jacaranda blossoms, palm tree, monarch butterfly, branch with worm and ladybug, lemon/orange trees and the blue base of ocean waters with turtles swimming around it.

You can see close up photos of some of the pieces in the Teapot/Totem page.

Here is a full length photo of my Ocean Theme Totem. This piece has over 16 separate ceramic pieces that can be stacked in various ways with a wooden dowel to support them. It also comes with a wooden cross base stand if displaying inside. If displaying outdoors, I recommend using a half inch steel rebar pole about 6 feet long, with 2 feet of the rebar underground. Artist available to help set up within 25 miles of  Pasadena, CA.

​Each separate piece is a hand sized work of art. From top to bottom it contains: a summer sun, a seahorse, a mermaid, a tropical fish, swimming turtles, blue seaweed, a dolphin, a green fish, ocean waves, a jelly fish and the water base decorated with starfish, waves and seashells.
​Contact me if interested!

I often have leftover slabs of clay when I cut out a template. They are usually very organic in shape. And they often spark my imagination wondering what I could make from this piece? The pictured vase started from a leftover slab. I merely cut out another piece in the same shape and created an unusual vase!

What do all of these crazy trays have in common? They were all glazed using a bubble method! Here's how it goes: I dip the entire tray in the base color. Then I choose a contrasting color for the bubbles. I mix a small bit of glaze in a container with some dish soap, stick a straw in it, and start to blow! As I blow, the bubbles grow and pile up until they slowly fall from the container onto the tray. As each bubble pops, the tiny bit of glaze in it pops onto the base color. It is SO much fun to do!  Hope you like these!

I was honored to be juried into the 96th Annual Pasadena Society of Artists Exhibition in October. I entered my "Garden Totem #2" and just found out yesterday that it has been sold! I am so happy that it has found a home.

I'll be starting on a new beach/ocean themed garden totem in the new year. I'll keep you posted!

I have seen garden totems in some of my friend's yards and wondered, "Could I make one??" Well, it turns out I can! Each piece is made separately with a hole on the top and the bottom. I chose to portray items you would see in a garden. Then it's just a matter of stacking them on top of each other with a wood or metal dowel. What's fun is that you can rearrange the order any time you want!
This particular piece was bought by a collector of mine from the McGroarty Arts Botanicals Ceramics Show in May.
I'm already starting on a 2nd one. I'll keep you posted!