Not that I went anywhere. 

But I have been busy revamping the shop and making new work. For those of you who have been with me since the start, you will notice a distinct evolution in my style over the years. I love playing with different surface techniques and often don't stick with just one technique for very long. 

At the present time I am obsessed with all things floral and nature-inspired and using the water erosion* technique, in addition to carving and hand paiting my work. The popularity of my Lady Vases really took off last summer and I am continuously working to improve everything about them. I enjoy pushing myself and sometimes the result is an absolute flop. Other times it's near genius. 

The majority of the new work posted in the shop will be on display at the Memorial Hall Library in Andover, MA during the month of March. Feel free to make the purchase but know that I will not be shipping any of the pieces until after April 1. I also have several new pieces in various stages at the studio, so stay tuned. 

*Water erosion - what is it?

There are a couple of ways to achieve this etched/embossed look but I primarily use polyurethane. I have to wait until my pieces are bone dry and then I sketch out a rough design, fill in the design with polyurethane, and then take a damp spounge and wipe, wipe, wipe the piece until the part that has been poly-ed begins to rise. It's like magic. Many of my pieces are layered - I start with the smallest part of the flower, do a round of eroding, and then paint a new layer of poly to create the next element of the flower. Wash and repeat. After I have completed all of my desired layers I often go in with my handy carving tools and refine some of the shapes or add details. This technique provides a really unique result and I'm excited to keep pushing the limits to see what it can do. 

One of these days I will film myself using this technique so you can see what it's all about. 

Until next time, 

d