Once I finish the current step for these pants (working on ruffles), I think I’m going to work on a current custom tattoo design. I was hoping to get some prelim. graphic design stuff done this week, but since I won’t be getting my other computers from West Virginia for yet another week I have a bit of a reprieve.

ON DECK: Research the hair of Alphonse Mucha’s women
TODAY ON TV: Ep 101 of “Mad Men”; Terry Jones’ “Barbarians”

I’m in MD this weekend for the Holiday Sale/Open House at Art of Fire. Va and Darrell and Mary and I have converged upon Va’s parental homestead for the evening, and at the moment are still striving to regain the feeling in our extremities from such a very, very cold day in the Celtic Annex (read: un-insulated garage). We are looking forward to seeing some great people this weekend. Will any of them be you? We’ve got all the usual suspects, and some new ones, including “Crow” cookies jars and “Ceilidh” cassarole dishes. More info is up at the Dancing Pig website.

Anyway, that’s what’s going on on the pottery front. This show was last weekend and this, and it will be followed by two weeks of stock building before Va and I take off for Hamilton, ON, where we are planning to spend the holidays. (Darrell is staying home to make stock and host the indians. No, really.)

But wait, there’s more:

-In addition to making stock these next two weeks, we are working pretty steadily on renovating my apartment above the pottery studio. The decorating scheme so far is a melange of Celtic, Roman, and Halloween chic. Kinda. Hell, it’ll be eclectic but tasteful. Not unlike myself.

-Over the past few weeks, I’ve started work on the leather jacket back piece. It’s a Hanuman design, with Buddhist art influences and some crows thrown in. (Would you honestly expect me not to involve a crow or two in this project? Really, with me you can almost count on it.)

-Also, I’ve been researching representations of both Hermes and dogs on Archaic Greek pottery for two new tattoo designs, but I’ve post more on the subject when I have some more research under my belt.

-In DC just before Thanksgiving, I was inspired to start tap dancing again. “To what end?” you (probably didn’t) ask quizzically. My answer? To try to revive the tradition of tap dancing as an integral part of burlesque performance, in the DC area. I find it almost impossible to believe that no one has done it yet; it seems like such an obvious thing. Am I wrong?

-Does anyone out there have any books to spare related to Buddhist art and iconography? I find that there’s a disturbing hole in my collection.

Hope all is well with you, and in these crazy December weeks, please try to find some time to enjoy the way winter can bring a little clarity along with the cold. I continually find it…useful, even what I see wasn’t what I was expecting.

Cheers, all.