I've been doing a lot of painting recently. It all started when we got two large orders for hand-painted pitchers, so I was working on those for a while. Then Hurricane Irene hit, and we were without power for a full week! I couldn't do much work in the studio, so I spent all my days painting pitchers. It's interesting how the designs evolved. I began doing my usual flowers/geometric shapes. Then I started really examining other types of flowers to see if I could draw them. Suddenly I had pitchers without geometric shapes (what I used to think of as my signature) and only flowers: geraniums, daisies, lilies, roses, hydrangea, etc. Then I started geometric shapes again, but with a more checkerboard look to them. Now I have shelves and shelves full of pitchers, both round and disk shaped. And not one of them is the same; each pitcher is unique! And finally both large orders are filled, with some to spare!
Mystery Letters Plate
As we announced earlier, we are new grandparents and wanted to do something special for our granddaughter. And what is it we do best? Pottery! We decided to create a large plate for her (it's actually bigger than her at this point!) and paint a customized design on it. Do you see the name hidden in the design?
We are excited about this plate, because we feel like it would make a beautiful customizable gift! The "Mystery Letters" design wouldn't have to be only on plates. You could order it on any of our pieces!
My New Bowl Collection
I've always loved dinnerware and I especially enjoy setting a table and layering dishes. That's why I'm enjoying creating pieces that have a "layered mystery" about them... The question is... "how is how is that pieces layered and where does the rest of it go?" It's almost like each piece has a secret.
Happy Mugs
As you may or may not know, we use all our own dinnerware in our kitchen. In fact, I use it for display as much as I use it for serving food because they really can brighten up a room! This morning, however, when I went down to the kitchen for my usual morning cup of coffee, I realized they can brighten up a lot more than just a room! I opened my cabinet door that stores our mugs, and immediately found myself smiling. I was looking into a cabinet full of our mugs, but I always reach for one of the hand-painted ones. They just put a smile on my face and give me a cheerful start to the day! So that's when it occurred to me that I want to call them our "Happy Mugs". Much like we have a line of "Pass-It-On" Plates, our hand-painted mugs will now be our "Happy Mug" line. I hope they bring a smile to your face and a cheerful start to your day, just like they do for me.
Hand-Painted Mugs
Sometimes when I'm between projects, I try to come up with new ideas for our pottery. A couple weeks ago, you saw the evolution of our large bowls through the years. It seemed like such a big jump when I started hand-painting our bowls with so many different colors! From there, I started hand-painting everything! But only this past week did it occur to me to hand-paint our mugs. The picture above shows the first ever Jean Elton painted mugs and I am so excited about them that I will probably keep them in my kitchen for myself. But even if someone didn't want a whole set, wouldn't just one be a fun gift?
The Evolution of Painted Bowls
When asked why she started hand-painting her large ceramic bowls, Lois remembers a conversation she had with a fellow ceramic artist at the Rosen Show in Philadelphia several years ago. "The woman had hand-painted her bowls and was selling like crazy," Lois says. They got to talking and Lois mentioned how much she admired her work, while lamenting her own lack of drawing skills. But the woman encouraged Lois to begin painting. And that's how it began! That's when Lois started painting plates; she liked it so much, she eventually graduated to hand-painting all her work!Browse the gallery below to see the evolution of her painting prowess on her large bowls.
Ceramic Jars: From Blue to New!
For years, I've been making these little ceramic jars and glazing them with one color or another. They have never been a big seller like our dinnerware, but they are a fun little item. Just a few days ago, however, I asked myself why I had never tried to hand paint one of the jars, like I do the plates. So I decided to try one. Suddenly the hand-painted jars are getting so much attention! See the picture below and tell me what you think! 
This jar is on special offer from now until the end of March for anyone who is a fan of ours on Facebook, or a follower on Twitter!
And here they are!
I have had so much fun with the Christmas ornaments, from finding all the fun cookie cutter shapes to adding the color and the glitter at the end! All the Jean Elton artists have been involved in the painting, so we have a variety of personalities showing through in all the ornaments. Some are very precise and well measured, some are whimsical, and some are very modern.In the pictures below you will see the final steps of making the ornaments as well as the finished product. ( Just to warn you, you will be tempted to eat some decorated sugar cookies after viewing!) You will see the painting of each individual ornament, the glaze firing, the spraying (which adds a bit of a sheen), and finally adding just a touch of glitter.Thank you for keeping up with us here at Jean Elton! Please check back in a week or so for information on where the Christmas ornaments will be sold.
Behind the Scenes: Inspirations
My mother-in-law is a painter and we have some of her beautiful watercolor paintings around our house. She painted a lot of flowers, but most of her work was very abstract. Before I started hand-painting our dishes, I would look at her work and wonder if I could translate some of that beauty onto our pottery. In the beginning, I would try to draw a perfect flower, but soon I realized that perfection wasn't as interesting as different shapes and designs. Instead, I started drawing flowers, not worrying whether or not they were perfect, and then complement them with abstract shapes that I would later paint in all different colors. That is how the latest Jean Elton designs were born. I use water color glazes to achieve the bright and varied colors that I saw in my mother-in-law's paintings. And then I just draw and see where the shapes and colors take me.