Lark Crafts

If you’re a potter, you either have your own studio or are a member of a communal studio. Or maybe both! But no matter where you make things with clay, there are times when there’s no instructor or experienced potter around to help. Or when someone who really knows their stuff is around, but needs to show you how to attach a spout to a teapot without actually making a teapot on the spot.

For those types of situations, Lark created the Ceramics for Beginners series. When we revisited that series with the aim of making them more affordable, we decided to change the series name as well.

This is me making a mug. I make a lot of mugs.

My name is Thom, and I’m excited to introduce myself as the new ceramics editor and point person at Lark.

I was hired by Lark a little over a year ago, shortly after I moved to Asheville. Before that I lived in New York, where I worked a few blocks from Central Park for the craft book division of Random House.

I didn’t expect to continue to work in book publishing when I returned to the south. At least not in a full-time kind of way. But as luck would have it, Lark needed help on their needlearts team just as I was moving. I jumped at the chance. As a lifelong potter, I knew and respected Lark’s publishing program. And I was more than happy to make books for fellow makers, even if it wasn’t the ceramics books.

Fast forward a year and here we are. I will be the primary editor at Lark for ceramics books going forward (we are still a collaborative office though, and super-editor Linda Kopp will continue working on ceramics books here and there). To go along with that, I have two other big-ish pieces of news:

As of now, we have spun off a new, dedicated Facebook page for Lark Ceramics.
Drop by and say hi! We’ll give you some incentives to “like” us as well. What kind of incentives? How about posting calls for entry for the ceramics books. Not enough? We’ll also create some themed photo galleries and such. What more could you want? Seriously, let me know and we’ll make it happen if Facebook allows it. With some time, I hope it will end up as fun of a ceramics Facebook page as a Facebook page can be.

I will be attending NCECA in Seattle at the end of March.
We haven’t finalized the details yet, but I will try to wear a Lark button or hat or something to make me easy to spot. I’m also trying to think of something fun to bring and give away. (Temporary tattoos are the best I’ve got so far.) Once we have the details worked out, I’ll post them on the blog and also on our Facebook page.

I look forward to meeting our authors, readers, and everyone else in the ceramics world–whether it’s in person or just online. Let’s make things together.

Our team was talking a couple weeks ago about winter-themed ideas for the blog. The color white. Soup. Valentines. Snow. Weddings. Snow sculptures. The list went on.

Then a couple days later I read a blog post about how nice it can be to see pops of bright color amid all the grey and white of winter. That same day I started seeing it everywhere I looked. And not only online. I walked into Target and they had new neon accessories front and center! There must be something to the psychology of it all…a measurable effect of bright green, pink, and orange.

So a couple days ago I started pinning it. You know, in case anyone else has winter blahs and needs a bright burst of color. There’s a preview below, but a bigger neon board over on Pinterest:

If you want to find out more about Pinterest, check out my previous Pinterest post or head over to Pinterest’s site.

Every month it seems like more and more craft- and food-focused people join up and post boards on Pinterest that lead us down all sorts of rabbit holes. If you haven’t visited the main Pinterest site, you should click on over. It’s still invite only, but you can browse without being a member. (And if you request an invite to join, it should arrive in a few days.)

If you do decide to join, there’s all sorts of ways to use the Pinterest boards. Some websites and blogs, like ours, now have “Pin It” buttons built right in (look to the left hand side of the page once you click on a post). You can also use Pinterest’s own linking software to grab images from posts you want to pin to your boards.

Lark will soon have a Pinterest account of its own, but until then I’m going to share a little bit of what I’m exploring now and then. This week, I started out looking for new soup recipes–but like the potter I am, I ended up just as captivated by the ceramic soup bowls. Now my board has about as many inspiring pots as inspiring recipes. See what it’s all about by clicking the preview of my board below, and let us know if (and what) you’re pinning!

Are you hosting the holidays this year? Or are you traveling for them? Either way, a few extra holiday decorations would fit right in. These trees, designed by Lindy Cline (aka PLY Textiles) for Stash Happy: Felt, would make a classy centerpiece, too! Just add a couple handmade wax LED candles to the mix.

Perhaps more than any other project we’ve shared, these are the ultimate stash-buster. Have scraps of felt? Make the medium tree. Only have yarn? Make the big one instead! Or just grab that stray bit of roving and whip up the tiny tree. No matter what you’ve got in your drawers or bins, there’s a (tree) wrap for that.

Some of my more tech-savvy friends have long since bought an e-ink reader or a Nook Color. But this year, it seems like even my mom is interested in something to tote around that can do it all. I never thought we’d be talking about things like the Kindle Fire and Nook Tablet as gifts for her.

But I’m a fan of these hybrid devices. There’s something that just feels right about the 8-inch size. Unlike a smart phone, the regions on the screen are easy for me to tap. No more trying to click a link and feeling like I have lobster claws instead of hands. But as a lifetime paperback reader, the 8-inch size is in some ways preferable to the larger 10-inch tablet screens too. It feels more manageable to hold in different ways and read for a couple hours. I just can’t imagine doing that with a bigger screen.

That brings me to the case. There’s more and more options out there every day for this unique size (I

In December there’s usually a lot of talk about making presents and things to give away. But the truth is, this is also a fine time of year to make some new stuff for yourself.

Ok, so maybe that’s not the traditional holiday spirit. But just one thing here or there doesn’t hurt. Especially when it’s something that makes your house or apartment even more welcoming for guests during the holidays.

Today’s free project is just such a thing. It’s a nice, festive holiday treat that you can justify making for yourself–just think of all the guests who will enjoy it too! And you can always give it away after a party if someone just “has to have it.”

The Felt Blooms Wreath comes from Jennifer Fitzsimmons (you may already know about her store, Itz Fitz).

Have you noticed the sneaky holiday-time invader on the blog this week? He jumps out just after Thanksgiving and then he doesn’t leave until…well, until you eat him!

You may have spotted him on Monday when Linda posted the gingerbread house and gingerbread men tree ornament giveaway. And there was a whole feature about the various gingerbread houses where he lives as well. Today he’s back, taunting you with his famous saying right there on the apron.

“Run, run, as fast as you can!”

If you hadn’t already guessed from the cute factor, this apron project comes from the one and only Cathy Gaubert. You can find it in (and also on the cover of)