Notebooks are very useful things to have with you. They’re good for recording fleeting ideas, and good to look back on to see where you’ve been. For two years, I’ve kept this little “Ceramics Ideas” notebook alongside my other general notebook, jotting down ideas for shapes I’d like to make in the Monday morning ceramics classes I’ve been taking with Louise Gelderblom. 
In early March, I’ll be showing some of my ceramic ‘Oddjects‘ in an exhibition at my shop, and as I get ready for it, I’ve been looking back through my notebook, finding it interesting to see how my ideas and sketches have ended up as 3D objects.
So, you get the picture. I’ve been drawing these things, then making them out of clay.
But then, in what has been an exciting extension of the process for me, I’ve been giving these Oddjects even more attention, spending time making prints on fabric, and doing some proper lino prints on paper at Warren Editions too. I’ve really dug in and spent time exploring these peculiar shapes that I keep making. And the best part is that all of this work in clay, paper and fabric was very much part of my Making Friday practise, where I just make things because I want to make them (not because of some deadline or commission or other commercial need).
Everyone who starts a business based on their creative output tends to have the same problem of never having time for making things, as the business needs always take over. Ever since starting Skinny laMinx, I have always been scrambling to produce, produce, produce, with my Making Fridays an occasional respite in the storm. But as the team has grown, and as there’s enough space in the business finances to employ people to do the bits I’m not so good at, I’ve had a lot more time to spend away from the shop, holed up at my Think Tank, or at pottery classes or learning about CMYK lino printing.
This leisurely process of exploring my peculiar shapes and forms across a number of media has been very special for me, not only because I’ve had a lot of fun doing it, but because it means that my business is sufficiently mature for me to have the time to design and think in a more considered, less frantic manner. Really, that’s all I could wish for.
Therefore, I want to say a big thanks to the whole of Team Skinny laMinx for giving me the time and space to dig in a bit deeper. I’m so happy my working life looks more like this these days, and I’m SO excited to have produced enough work (and a new textile) to justify a mini exhibition…. and a brand new textile print too!
Sign up for my newsletter to hear all about the Oddjects exhibition and fabric launch on 3 March 2016. I can’t wait to show you all the things I’ve been making!