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Summer Pottery Classes

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 Bonjour ! Its been such a long time since I wrote something but here you go. I have been busy attending pottery classes during the summer where I refreshed my long time infatuation to ceramics. And voila !! In my first attempt, I managed to make a very pretty cake stand and was able to get the colours and glazes just right. I had hand built this cake stand right from scratch and it was so gratifying to see it to completion. And I was extremely elated the day it came out of the kiln, all shiny and cheerful. Who ever walked into the pottery class that day , loved it and wanted to make something similar to this cake stand.  Recently I was working on building a chip and dip tray for which I managed to make the round tray, and successfully built a small dip bowl ( on the wheel). I had scored and fixed the little bowl at the center of the tray, but unfortunately when it was fired the whole tray came out cracked. It was the inconspicuous air bubble which ruined my tray. But I am going to try
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Mother's Day Gift Ideas

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Spring is here and the first thing that you notice is the fresh air, sunshine and flowers that start blooming in the parks and gardens. The nature shows us the way to start our new year by celebrating life. In some countries, the traditional new year starts in spring while in some other countries, festivals are celebrated to mark the end of winter and start of spring. One important date that I look forward to is the Mother's Day. This year, I am waiting for the Mother's Day to arrive soon so that I can celebrate this special day with my mom. It's going to be over a video call, given the pandemic around us but I plan to make it special for her. I am planning to send her yellow roses, as she loves them and I want to send her a gift that she will like and find useful. Some of the gift ideas that come off the top of my head are like : Foldable compact umbrellas Reading glasses or sunglass cases Pretty key rings with a coin purse Small diaries/notebooks preferably with an attach
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5 things to look for when buying kitchen ceramic canisters

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There is a small but an essential checklist to keep in mind when buying ceramic jars for kitchen. These points are usually there in the back of our minds but I thought I will make it easier for everyone to take note. Once you have chosen a certain ceramic jar with your choice of color and design, I would recommend checking for these small but very important features quickly:  Are the jars food-safe ? You don't want chemicals leaching into your food. Are the ceramic jars  dishwasher safe ? The jars would mostly be dishwasher safe but do check this as it makes life easy. Also, check if the lids (which have a silicone ring), need to be hand washed . Sometimes, the jars could be very tall and you might need to just hand wash them to thoroughly clean from inside.  Outside and inside the jar :  check for any cracks or chipped surfaces . Open and check the lids . For example for me, having good and easy to work with lids, makes or breaks the deal. Since you have to handle this daily so
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How did it all start ?

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 I had moved to London in January 2008 from India. And the cold weather, gloomy sky, sunset before 4 pm, reading books sitting in the close vicinity of the radiator and having infinite cups of tea all day didn't make me feel any better. So I decided to go out on walks, as I thought I should acclimatize myself to the new country. And I must say that going on walks, breathing in the scenic beauty and culture of the city was a welcome change.  It was on one of my walks along the Kidderpore Avenue that I reached Hampstead School of Arts. It's a quaint little school in Hampstead and has several classes in art and pottery to offer. I went back home that day and looked up the school and checked the courses currently running there. I found some new courses starting in the Spring term. The next day I had made up my mind to go again and register myself for my very first course in " Botanical Painting". I was thrilled to find myself in the course after a few weeks drawing and pa
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Ceramics connect to yourself

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  Sleeping on time and waking up early, makes a tremendous difference to our day and can really set the tone for the whole day. Once I get up in the morning, I head to my kitchen, switch on the kettle and get my favorite mug ready with a teabag and some jaggery. By the time the water starts boiling, I find myself admiring my ceramic tea, coffee and sugar canisters arranged on my wooden tray. And each day, when I prepare my tea, I feel so happy using them. I pat myself on the back for choosing the right kind of containers for my kitchen and using something which is made of clay ( and not plastic). I imagine myself using them for many years and not disposing them soon. And that's the reason one should choose even simple products for the kitchen very carefully. Once the water is ready and the tea bag is soaked, I add a dash of milk to the tea and then I quietly go and sit in my living room. I prefer not to switch on  any lights in the living room as I want to experience the dawn and f
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