Jay Jasper's Blog, page 111
December 3, 2020
Thursday Throwdown December 3, 2020
It’s vase-to-vase combat like you have never seen before!
How it works: We share two vases and YOU vote which is your favourite! The winner will then move on to the next round to face another competitor!
Last week, Ogopogo and The Eye of Horus battled to the death! Your vote has determined that
Ogopogo is OGOPO-GONE back to the lake!
Bye Naitaka!Ogopogo – $ 88
Shipping included in Canada and US
The Series so far.
Gorgeous Vases of No Contact Wrestling
Vase Name
Gossip Girl
Phoenix Reborn
Pillar of Atlas
Evangeline
Ogopogo
Iris En Ciel
Original Twin
Kermit The Vase
Haring’s Dance
White Walker
Sobek’s Tears
Mount Olympus
Argus
Draupnir
Grandmother
Old Soul
Make It Work
Hope Rising In Springtime
The Eye Of Horus
Wins/Losses
0/1
2/1
0/1
5/0
0/2
0/1
0/1
1/1
0/1
1/1
1/1
4/1
0/1
0/1
0/1
1/1
0/1
1/1
2/0
This week it’s an optometrist’s Dream
(or possible nightmare)
a battle of the eyes!
The Eye of Balor –
$
288Shipping included in Canada and US
Think you have issues with your daddy? This large vase, called ‘The Eye of Balor’, tells the tale of an Irish giant, a prophecy, his captive daughter, some serious control issues, a late night rendezvous and a whole lot of famillicide!
According to Irish legend, a race of giants, the Fomorians, were said to be among the early settlers of Ireland. They even had their own king, Balor. Balor was no ordinary giant king, as he was also the god of death.
Balor would have been an unwelcome patient at an optometrist’s office. He only had one eye. Imagine the frustration of trying to fit a pair of glasses for him. This would be the least of the eye doctor’s problems though, as whoever was caught in his gaze would die instantly.
Fortunately, giants weren’t big on seeing eye doctors. And Balor kept his single eye closed until this terrible power was needed. Maybe he had a cool eye patch?
According to the prophecy, Balor would be killed by his own grandson. What was a giant cyclops to do? Imprison his own daughter in a crystal tower of course! That way she can never have any babies and the prophecy would be thwarted.
A crystal tower apparently does not make a great prison. Cian, a minor god was able to find a way into the tower and Balor’s daughter found her self with child not long after. Imagine getting pregnant with triplets from your first sexual experience? That is what happened to Balor’s daughter, Ethlinn. It seems she had terrible luck.
Balor heard about the birth of his three grandsons. But rather than passing out cigars he threw them into the sea.
One boy Lugh was able to escape his watery grave by finding refuge with Manannan Mac Lir, the god of the sea. The prophecy finally played when Lugh led the Tuatha De Danann (a race of Irish gods) into a battle where Balor would meet his fate. Death by removal of his one eye.
The Eye of Horus –
$140
Shipping included in US and Canada
‘The Eye of Horus’, tells the tale of a feathered god, an 80 year struggle for power, avenging the death of a father, a missing testicle and eye and a race down the Nile. Did your parents ever say ‘It’s all fun and games until someone loses an eye.’? Horus’ mother might have wanted to mention this to him.
Horus was depicted as a falcon, or a human figure with a falcon’s head. Fittingly he was the Egyptian god of the sky. His right eye represented the sun god Ra, and the left eye was symbolic of the moon. One could literally say he had stars in his eye, or at least a star.
That would be fitting because Horus was kind of a big deal, as he was a contender for the throne of Egypt. But he was not alone in contention for the throne!
His rival and uncle Set, who had murdered Horus also wanted the throne of Egypt, and both of these gods liked to fight dirty. Their battle would last for over eighty years and would include many contests arbitrated by the other gods and battles between the two.
In one such battle, Horus would lose his left eye, ripped out by Set, but Set did not get off lightly. He lost a testicle. Eventually Horus would recover his eye, and the god Thoth would heal it. Thus the Eye of Horus has come to represent, healing, restoration and protection.
And some people worry about laser eye surgery!
At the time it was commonly believed that an evil eye could cast a spell on the heart with just one glance. To counteract this the Eye of Horus often acted as a protective symbol.
You may be wondering how this 80 year old battle would end? In a boat race and some trickery. Tired of the constant fighting and upheaval the gods decided a boat race would determine the victor for the throne and the end to this conflict. Horus somehow convinced Set to use a stone boat. He had painted his own boat to look like stone as well, only his was made of wood.
As you can imagine, Set did not get very far. His boat sunk. Horus had avenged his father’s death, and many of the future pharaohs of Egypt were thought to be his reincarnation.
Who will be your optical victor? Be sure to get your vote in BELOW!
Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.I choose this vase as the winner.The Eye of BalorThe Eye Of HorusEmailSubmit
Their fate is now in your hands!
We will share the winner (and update from last week!) next Thursday!
December 2, 2020
Holiday Highlight
– Khalil Gibranen
Tiffany Blue Raku Ornament$ 25 – Shipping in US and Canada Included
Great as a gift for you or someone else!
December 1, 2020
Holiday Highlight
– Bill Blass
$75
Shipping in US and Canada Included
Great as a gift for you or someone else!
Flying free!
We are excited to share that another owl has left the nest! Thank you to Michelle for her support in our Alchemist’s Studio adventure with this one-of-a-kind red owl that is off to become a holiday gift!
So what is it like having a raku owl living
at your house anyway?
Goodbye Red Owl! Thank you for not being a hoax!(If you are curious about other colours, please get in touch )
Well . . . it’s certainly easier than this!
“IN THE WILD, the father owl hunts relentlessly. He has to provide approximately six mice per baby per night. The usual brood is five babies. The father also has to feed his mate, who never leaves the nest and eats about three mice per day. And he must feed himself about four mice a day. This adds up to some thirty-seven full-grown mice every night during nesting season.”
― Stacey O’Brien, Wesley the Owl: The Remarkable Love Story of an Owl and His Girl
The Alchemist’s Studio is proud to guarantee that our Raku Owls do not require collecting of 37 mice a night during nesting season!
and that is a promise we can definitely keep.
*PLEASE NOTE: If it does start requiring 37 nightly mice,
we think you may have a larger problem on your hands.
Happy Tuesday!
November 30, 2020
Mugshot Monday
if you are too heated, it will cool you;
If you are depressed, it will cheer you;
If you are excited, it will calm you.”
– William Ewart Gladstone
Mug 7
$30
Shipping Included in US and Canada
Name That Vase – November 2020
It’s time to share our winner and feature another vase in need of a name! Welcome to my monthly feature – ‘Name that Vase’.
For those who are new to this feature, ‘Name that Vase’ is where you can suggest a name, create a story, poem or prose for this raku pottery vase. Consider this your chance to be inspired, a writing prompt or a creative cue. You can, or if you are feeling nostalgic,that started what has now become a monthly tradition for our blog and readers.
This month we have a very special vase for your naming, but first we must congratulate ’s winner authorwilliammangieri for their name and write-up! Congratulations!
I submit “Andromeda’s Genesis”
There was something about the pattern on that made me think of the birth of a galaxy, perhaps of all creation. I did a search online and discovered a picture jarringly similar, of the large emission nebula IC 1396 in Cepheus.
Here’s the picture:
I continued down the rabbit hole and found the story of Cepheus & Cassiopeia and what they did to their daughter Andromeda before Perseus saved her.
Forgive the free verse – I normally avoid poetry.
Andromeda’s Genesis
Clay spun out
in a spiral nebulae
Resembles Cepheus,
Who with Cassiopeia
Emits Andromeda
She finds how worthless family can be
They sacrifice her
for the sins of the mother
Yet saved by Perseus,
she spends eternity with her hero in the sky.
$94
Includes Shipping in US and Canada
And into our new month!
Here is our vase for this month:
Please add what you think the name should be for this month’s vase and any associated poetry or story in the comments below.
I look forward to reading all your great ideas!
And if you like this glaze, there are a few others items in it as well, including these two Christmas ornaments!
$25
Double-Sided Chromium Yoda
$25
Geometric Raku Chromium
Looking forward to reading your submissions!
If you have coronavirus on mind (as so many of us do right now) please check out this helpful post, B-B-B Bye Corona, Self-Care In The Time of Pandemic.
November 29, 2020
Ornaments In Focus
Let’s take a closer look at a few of them!
$25
Icy Blue Geometric Ornament
Includes Shipping in US and Canada
(This one is one of my favourites)
$25
Double-Sided Chromium Yoda
Includes Shipping in US and Canada
$35
White Raku Sphere
Includes Shipping in US and Canada
(I love the colours in this one!)
$25
Raku Magenta Ornament
Includes Shipping in US and Canada
$35
Honey & Oatmeal Large Sphere Ornament
Includes Shipping in US and Canada
Do you have a favourite of these? Or perhaps there is one on the Ornaments page that resonates with you?
Let us know in the comments!
!
This week at the studio in photos – Pit Firing!
The pit firing right before it began
$88
Includes Shipping in US and Canada
Each makes a great one-of-a-kind gift for a friend or for yourself!
$136
Includes Shipping in US and Canada
This one I am keeping for my own collection.
$125
Includes Shipping in US and Canada
$98
Includes Shipping in US and Canada
thank you for checking out out work!
You can see more of our pit fired vases here.
That’s been the week here.
How’s your week been?
If you are looking for other gifts, definitely take a look at our Holiday Gift Guide!
We are also releasing special deals to our newsletter subscribers so be sure to sign up here!
November 28, 2020
Our pit crew is ready! Travel Back in Time today. Space is limited
You can take a journey back in time and experience a slice of life that dates back over 30,000 years.Or you can take a look at our brand new pit firing page!
As many of you know, we did a pit firing for pottery here a few weeks ago. I was so happy with this years results, that I am excited to share these little wonders with you! You can take a look at these pieces here, they are available for viewing and for sale, and I’d really love it, if you let me know what you think of them in the comments.
Some of you may be wondering right now, what the heck is a pit firing? It’s the most ancient technique to fire pottery. You can read more about the process here, in our post last year for our 2019 pit firing, or just enjoy these process pictures from this years firing.
Let me know what you think about our 2020 pit crew.
I think even RuPaul might appreciate the charisma and uniqueness of these pieces!
You can help me play Santa Claus, and you might even win our next draw. All you need to do is click here and sign up for our newsletter. Once we hit 500 subscribers, we will do another draw and send out some pottery to one lucky winner!
November 27, 2020
Get your Black Friday shopping on!
Get your order of handmade pottery and artwork in and with time for shipping right to your door!
Ornaments, Angels, Trees and much more! Shipping included in Canada and the US!Click here to view the Holiday Gift Guide now!
