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December 28th 2009

The photos mentioned in the previous entry didn't follow on for a number of reasons, the most important one being that a lot of the tiles were damaged in the firing. The need for survival in recession meant that my time was more usefully employed in making items for sale rather than spending time on experimentation, so the tiles were crated up and sadly are still awaiting completion. It isn't all bad news though and the Gallery has been moved and reinvented, and the workshop and living accommodation and showroom have been relocated in and around Newcastle Emlyn. I now have a 'shop window' in town and have constant visitors to the Gallery which is really good news. The name has been changed to Gabrielle's Gallery as the Red Cow Restaurant is also in Newcastle Emlyn and it was too confusing to keep the name as they are in different parts of the town. I will however be keeping the previous name on the internet as too many people will have past advertising and brochures with the website address in them.

April 5th 2009

I can't believe another month has gone by. I have successfully completed my 'impossible' tiles after two or three attempts. They are now at the firing stage and photos should follow shortly as will the painting images promised last month and have not yet got around to.

March 5th 2009

It may appear that I haven't been working at all over the past couple of months. However that would be a long way from the truth.
I started to make the new designs for the curvy tiles, but it became impossible to finish as the clay kept freezing and drying enevenly, so I abandoned it to wait for more favourable weather. The door is still not on the workshop, so everything is exposed to the (extremely cold) winds and snow.
If I am offered a large project I am resolved to renting one of the many vacant units that are becoming available around and about.

I have also been working on improving the website and have added an online shop so that the prints, postcards, notelets and small tiles can now be oredered online.
In between times the calligraphy and painting have kept me busy. The new paintings will be added to the website shortly.

December 14th 2008

The Craft fair was, as I was expecting, quiet and uneventful. Nothing was sold at all. The only person making money there was the person selling the pitches! The nearest I came to making a sale was when I had an offer for a framed tile that was £4 less than it cost me to have it framed. Either I paid too much for the framing and my tiles isn't worth anything at all or it would be wise to go into hibernation mode for a while. Unfortunately I can't stop producing , it is not in my nature. I have nearly finished another sunset painting and started on another of some dancers and I am also experimenting with calligraphy. I wonder whether it will be the root of a new design... I have finished doing the calculations for the new curvier tiles I designed last month, and I am struggling with planning the practicalities of how to make them. I like an impossible challenge! I will attempt to start making them after the holidays.

December 5th 2008

These geese tiles are from the last firing this year - I think - I am hoping to sell them at the local craft fair this weekend as unusual Christmas presents. I will be slowing down production of tiles until the new year and spend some time painting in between making mince pies and wrapping presents. It's always difficult to get clay to dry when the weather is cold, and I am waiting for builders to put some doors on the workshop.

Demand out there is wearing a bit thin, as it is with everyone else. Perhaps I shall have to take Marks and Spencers' lead and do a 20% off day in January. No matter, the geese will make a good addition to the Gallery should they remain unsold.

November 27th 2008

My daughter thinks the arrangement of cows as I set them out for the photograph on Nov 14th doesn't do them justice. I'll take that as a compliment, then. They are intended for a fireplace surround to be set in plain bought tiles. I don't have a photo of how they look in situ, but I suppose I have to explain that they will not be on the wall in the arrangement as set out in the photo.

I have sent a sample of tiles with a cockerel motif to a tile showroom in Newcastle upon Tyne - Lifestile, Unit 22A, Airport Industrial Estate, Kingston Park - photo of how it looks in the showroom is shown below. So those of you who were expecting my Newcastle (Emlyn) to be theirs (upon Tyne) now have an opportunity to see some of my tiles for real, as opposed to viewing photos over the internet. It looks quite small from this viewpoint, but is actually 1200mm wide.
People keep telling me that the website doesn't do my work justice, but there is nothing I can do about that, other than do a round the country tour. NOT possible right now!

        

November 14th 2008

My 'herd of cows' have come out of the kiln this morning, and are now finished and ready to go.
It's fascinating how the different shapes of black and white alter the shape of the cows, even though they are from the same moulds and are the same shape.

        

November 11th 2008

I have put the finishing touches on two paintings that have been left unfinished since September as the show interrupted my working time. It feels quite cathartic to have them out of the way. One is a portrait of a little girl from London and the other of a very unusual sunset I saw last May. I apologise for the quality of photos which seem to have picked out and darkened the wet paint.

          

November 8th 2008

New designs are being put together for even curvier tiles. It could take a few months before they are ready, but if you are interested in their possibilities it might well be worth coming back to this site in February or March to see them.
The first project since the Grand Design Show is nearing completion and will be available to view shortly. It is a project that uses relief tiles and I must say that it has been a relief to do them after the months of developing the curvy tiles. I had quite forgotten how easy making flat tiles from a mould was!
As a point of interest most people entering the Tile Competition said that they preferred a combination of mosaic and tiles. The least popular were the relief tiles. Ironic that the first order to come long immediately after that was from someone wanting them.

October 28th 2008

These are some pictures of the stand at Grand Designs Live in Birmingham this October. The kitchen units on show with the tiles and mosaics are made by Mark Stone of www.welshkitchens.com
If you are looking for a bespoke kitchen Mark is a craftsman of the highest quality and his attention to detail is second to none. Well worth an enquiry.

October 21st 2008

The winner of the Free Tiles Competition drawn at the show will not be having her prize any time soon, so the story will be put on hold until there are any developments

October 12th 2008

In a stroke of brilliance I came up with a free tiles competition to satisfy myself that the next tiles I make for advertising purposes are not eventually going to be thrown away or stored in a store cupboard, but going instead to someone who will appreciate them.
Over the past ten years I have spent a good deal of my time making tiles for tile showrooms and exhibitions. As an artist it pains me to know that after the hours of work that I have lavished upon them, they will eventually be discarded. Tile samples for exhibition cost every bit as much in time and effort as the tiles I sell to clients - it is a form of advertising and they are 'paid for' by an advertising budget. Making displays for individual showrooms for free is not cost effective and taking displays to exhibitions inevitably results in damage.
It has also given me the opportunity to collect important information that will give me an insight into the the style of tiles that people can incorporate into their home design, and now I can consider their choices when developing new designs.

I take each entry into the draw as endorsement and a personal compliment and thank everyone who took part.