Jay Jasper's Blog, page 68

This Week At The Studio In Photos

A starfish lounging in the shallow waters of the Northumberland Strait Working with a different kind of clay A heart of roses A Yellow Owl flew in for a visit
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An afternoon at the beach to cap off SaturdayThat’s been the week here.

How’s your week been?

😎 Fans Not Working? ☀️ Need A Break From The Heat? ☀️ try this! 😎

I present to you ‘The White Walker’, rising up from the snow covered ground to give you a burst of cool.

The White Walker vase pays homage to one of my favourite television series, that captivated me right until the rushed and disappointing ending, Game of Thrones!

The White Walkers were an ancient race of formerly-human ice creatures who came from north of the wall. As the books and TV series progress, they become humanities greatest threat.

Think icy zombies.$68
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This vase celebrates the defeat of the Night King at the hands of Arya Stark, which resulted in the complete obliteration of the Night Army. Which, in case you don’t watch the show, is a very good thing!

Too bad the ending of the series was not such a good thing.

At least we have the final books to look forward to!IF you are still too warm, remember [image error]

Want a raku vase of your very own at no cost? Click here!

Alchemy Of The Forest

“The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness.”

– John Muir

Follow me Through the archway of grape vines into the forest and among the trees and you will find where the magic lives. it is in these natural forms,
colours, and patterns Fractal Magicwhere The magic of raku lives. Textures of Rakuraku pottery brings the magic
into a Form I can touch Evangeline
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May your day
be touched with magic!

A Sailor Mooning

Prologue

Previously we told the tale of Argus, a many eyed monster who was transformed into a peacock by Hera to pull her chariot. We left poor Io who faced unwanted advances from Zeus as a wandering cow, thanks to Hera’s wrath. Zeus still didn’t get the girl! How many peacocks does it take to pull a chariot anyways?

You can read the story of Argus here.

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‘Io‘, tells the tale of it’s namesake, a wandering cow with a secret, a man in chains, the ultimate cosmetic transformation, and an ending where the god gets the girl.

The Flies Have It!

Io, a former priestess in the temple dedicated to Hera in Argos had faced unwanted attention from Zeus who was in love with her, and from Hera who punished Io for her husbands attraction by turning her into a beautiful white cow. Hades hath no fury like a goddess scorned.

Bovine Io, unfairly punished, was left to wander through deserts and the world. To make matters worse, Hera had another meltdown when her pet monster Argus was killed by Zeus. So she sent a gadfly to follow Io around and harass her in all the places her tail could not reach. I am sure she would have given anything for a can of raid. Or opposable thumbs to use it.

Prometheus Bound

Io wandered and wandered, growing more and more upset and disoriented. It seems she was afflicted with the original mad cow disease. Eventually she reached the Black Sea and the what is now called the Bosporous, (ox passage) which was named in her honour.

So things were looking up and her situation was about to improve. Being named after one of the most strategic areas in the world was cowtastic.

It was on this leg of her journey that she would meet up with another victim of the gods, Prometheus.

HerA and Stones May break my Bones, But Heroes in Chains Excite Me!

It was when Io was passing Mount Caucasus that hope was restored. There she ran into Prometheus, another toy of the gods, who had been chained to the mountain by none other than Zeus.

It was in this moment, that Prometheus told Io that she would eventually be restored to human form and not give up hope. She would be the ancestress of many powerful figures. Holy Cow!

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Sailor Moon

Io was often associated with the moon by the ancients. The self proclaimed ‘horned virgin’, made her way across the Ionian Sea to Egypt. I guess the original sailor moon may not have been a goddess, but she definitely had bovinity!

It was in Egypt that Zeus finally restored Io to her human form. Her long journey as a wandering cow had finished, but her story and those of her ancestors was just starting. It would take many generation, but one of Io’s descendants would be one of the most famous figures of the ancient world.

What do you think of our our raku vase and story? Please let us know in the comments below. And if you want to read more vase stories, check out our vase gallery here, it’s full of them!

Want to win a raku vase of your own?

Click here!

The Same Stream Of Life

A poem by Rabindranath Tagore

The same stream of life that runs
through my veins night and day runs
through the world and dances in rhythmic measures.

It is the same life that shoots in joy
through the dust of the earth in numberless blades of grass and
breaks into tumultuous waves of leaves and flowers.

It is the same life that is rocked in the ocean-cradle
of birth and of death, in ebb and in flow.

I feel my limbs are made glorious by the touch of this world
of life. And my pride is from the life-throb of ages
dancing in my blood this moment.

Growing up, i would sneak peas from my grandmother’s garden.

Eating these sneaky fresh peas was a celebration of life that
truly brought me joy – and continues to be one of the reasons we plant peas today. What activity did you do as a child that excited you? How can you recreate that today?

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And yes, I did eat that last pea

❤️ Sending Love To You ❤️

“There is no remedy for love, but to love more.”

– Henry David Thoreau

we can all use more lovE, don’t you agree? These roses sure do!A lovely song for your enjoyment Who would you like to send
a little bit of love to? A bit of love in vase form – Hera’s Heart
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View more raku vases

Too Buddhalicious For You Babe, His Body Is!

Three pieces have
made it on to the site.

We have a feeling they won’t last long! Yellow Buddha Pendant
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Intergalactic Yoda Pendant
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bodacious Buddhalicious yoda not your thing?

Perhaps this calm Tree Of life pendant resonates more with you?Tree of Life Pendant
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Either way, please enjoy this song! Let’s dance!

Take a look at even more jewelry over on the Jewelry page.

What do you think of these pieces?

hope you have an excellent Day!

On The Wheel Wednesday

“Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.” – RumiWe must open

Put On Some Extra Weight? Try This

Princess Admete wanted it, Hercules laboured for it, and Hippolyta almost never took it off.

This vase tells the tale of an ill thought out gift, Hercules charms, early woman’s liberation, and a wedding.

The cause of all of this?

Hippolyta’s Girdle – $140
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A magic girdle.

Most people would not even consider a girdle as a gift for their daughter, particularly if you are the father. At best, it’s creepy and a little insulting, at worst it’s a great way to let your patriarchy flag fly. I think Hippolyta’s father Ares could have benefited from the help of a personal shopper.

Ares gifted his daughter this ‘magic girdle’ as a symbol of her ‘dignity’, which is really ancientspeak for virginity. Not cool dad!

Perhaps Ares could have appreciated some Spanx!

‘Phew, now I don’t have to suck in my stomach’

Needless to say for someone’s whose name means ‘let loose,’ a girdle was not a great fit. I am sure she was waiting for just the right bra burning-esque moment to liberate herself.

Raku Vase – Hippolyta’s Girdle

That moment would come when news of a visitor started spreading around the Amazon kingdom. He was handsome, he was a hero, he was Hercules, heartthrob of the ancient world. It wasn’t too often that such an eligible bachelor was so close.

So Hippolyta decided to visit Hercules on his boat.

She was so impressed by him that she gave him her ‘magic girdle’. It just so happened that retrieving it was his ninth labour. This was very convenient for Hippolyta, because she finally got to take off that allegedly magical, constricting girdle.

This is where the real magic began.

Hercules, in a good mood because he thought his David Lee Roth like charm won the day, introduced her to his friend Theseus. The two fell in love and would be later married.

Maybe that’s the magic of the girdle.

The only way to find true love in yourself and others is to take the thing off – If you want to.

What do you think of this story and vase?

In Our Minds-Eye

The unknown can be terrifying.

we can see monsters where there are none but maybe

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we just need to see it a bit differently so monsters can become friends. The Eye of Balor – A monster story for the ages
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Monsters are the patron saints of imperfection

– Guillermo del Toro

Win your own raku vase (and more!) here!