It's Show Time!

Start your holiday celebrations with a visit to the Yourist Studio Gallery Annual Holiday Show and Sale . We launch with a festive Opening Reception on Friday, December 7th, from 5:00 to 8:00pm. Our Show and Sale continues on Saturday, December 8th, from 10:00am to 6:00pm, and on Sunday, December 10th, from 11:00am to 5:00pm.

You'll see a wide range of beautiful ceramic ware— from bowls, plates, butter dishes, cups, and mugs to tea pots, trays, vases, and more— lovingly created by hand by our Resident Artists and selected students. You're sure to find gifts that will give your loved ones pleasure and joy for years to come. And maybe a choice piece or two for yourself. We look forward to welcoming you.

Going, going . . .

Studio humor

. . . almost gone . Sign up by December 5 for winter 2019 classes to take advantage of our Early Bird Enrollment Discount of $10 off the tuition price. This discount applies to all introductory and advanced classes of six weeks and longer. 

Great news! By popular demand, we've added a second helping of our Coffee and Clay hand building class with Nancy Bulkley on Wednesday mornings , from 9:30 to 11:30 am, starting January 9. Now you have double the opportunity to take this excellent class. Register today.

Here's our full winter 2019 class schedule: Advanced / Intermediate Clay Tue, Jan 8-Apr 9, 6:30-9:30 pm, with Alex Pratt Advanced / Intermediate Independent Study Wed, Jan 9-Apr 10, 6:30-9:00 pm, with Kay Yourist Introductory and Continuing Wheel Mon, Jan 7-Feb 11, 7:00-9:00 pm, with Kevan O. Wilson Thurs, Jan 10-Feb 14, 12:30- 2:30 pm, with Nancy Bulkley Thurs, Jan 10-Feb 14, 6:30-8:30 pm, with Kay Yourist Introductory and Continuing Wheel Sundays Sun, Jan 6-Feb 10, 1:30-3:30 pm, with David Timm. Coffee and Clay Sat, Jan 5-Feb 9, 9:30-11:30 am, with Nancy Bulkley New! Wed, Jan 9-Feb 13, 9:30-11:30 am, with Nancy Bulkley Try It Once on the Wheel Sat, Jan 12, 1:00-2:30 pm, with Nancy Bulkley Silk Screening on Clay: A Refresher Sun, Jan 13, 9:30 am-12:30 pm, with Darcy Bowden. See details below. Enroll here.

Silk Screening on Clay: A Refresher A mini-workshop for those who have taken the August or October silk screening workshop. This followup session offers you more practice and reinforces your workshop learning. Sunday, January 13 9:30 am-12:30 pm Sign up now.

At the studio

Meet Finnegan . . . . . . our newest, and dare we say most adorable, potter in training. Finnegan is a Border Collie and Aussie mix, a dog with strong herding instincts. To learn how to respond, be sure to read Kay's training rules for Finnegan, which are on display at the studio. Happy holidays and best wishes for an artful new year from Finnegan and his people!

Studio holiday hours The studio and gallery will close at 1:00 pm on Monday, December 24. We will reopen for regular hours at 10:00 am on Saturday, January 5. Remember, the studio will be unavailable for any clay work during the Yourist Studio Gallery Annual Holiday Show and Sale from December 7-9. Please put down your pottery tools and come join us at the show.

Too close for comfort Here are the dates by which bisqueware from November and December must be glazed for firing or collected and taken home: November bisqueware— December 24 at 1:00 pm December bisqueware— January 31 To free our shelves for new bisqueware, we must discard any unclaimed bisqueware remaining after these dates.

Ready, load, fire We've tentatively scheduled the following gas kiln firings in December and January: December Loading : December 3 Firing : December 4 Unloading : December 6 January Loading : January 15 Firing : January 16 Unloading : January 18 Keep in mind that these schedules could change if we don't have enough pieces to fill the kiln. Check with the studio for the latest schedule.

Where's Tool Time?  Tool Time has left for an undisclosed island in the sun over the holidays and will be back after the beginning of the new year . Be sure to check our February issue for topic and time. Meanwhile, if you have topics you'd like Kay to cover in her free Tool Time demonstrations, please let her know . We're interested in hearing from you. 

Potter's quick tip

Q. When I make mugs, I like to use a liner glaze on the inside and a different glaze on the outside. To glaze the outside, I usually stuff my fist inside the mugs and dip, but I find this method awkward and messy. Is there a neater way to do the dip?  A . Potter and software engineer Jeremy Smoler had the same problem. As Smoler demonstrates in this video, he solved it by using balloons to dip the outsides of his mugs in glaze without getting the glaze on the inside. View examples of Smoler's finished work here. 

Clay lover's events calendar

Pieces by Ian McDonald Cranbrook Art Museum

Exhibitions Breaking With Tradition: Contemporary Ceramics . Now-January 27, 2019. Harris–Burger Gallery, Flint Institute of Arts. More . . . Animal Friends: Ceramic Sculpture by Marcia Polenberg. September 17- December 7, Taubman Health Center. More . . . Table Top Stories. Curated by International Museum of Dinnerware Design, December 3, 2018–January 9, 2019. Ann Arbor District Library, Downtown Branch. More . . . Annabeth Rosen: Fired, Broken, Gathered, Heaped . November 17, 2018– March 10, 2019. Cranbrook Art Museum. More . . . Ian McDonald: In No Particular Order. January 19-March 10, 2019. Cranbrook Art Museum. More . . . Butter . April 6–August 25, 2019. Third Biennial National Juried Exhibition presented by the International Museum of Dinnerware Design. Museum on Main Street. More . . . 

Holiday sales Yourist Gallery artists Darcy Bowden and Linda Heckenkamp join five other local artists in a Holiday Show and Sale Saturday, December 1, from 11 am-6 pm, and Sunday, December 2, from 11 am-5 pm. 1311 Brooklyn Street, Ann Arbor. Ann Arbor Potters Guild Winter Sale , December 1 and 2, 10 am-5 pm, 201 Hill Street, Ann Arbor. Yourist Gallery artist Nancy Bulkley exhibits at the Winter Artist Market , Matthaei Botanical Gardens, Sunday, December 2, from 10 am to 4 pm, 1800 N. Dixboro Rd. Ann Arbor. 

Resources for potters

Making puzzle vases

Is it a sculpture? Is it a vase? It's both! In this video from Ceramic Arts Network, potter Jerilyn Virden shows how she hand builds three graceful forms and then attaches them to make a vase that is both functional and sculptural. See more of Virden's functional work and sculptural work .

Yourist Studio Gallery 1133 Broadway Ann Arbor, MI 48105 734-662-4914 | www.youristpottery.com •Classes and workshops •Community studio workspace •Pottery tools for sale •Exhibit gallery