Ceramic Aquarium Decorations, Senior Crit

Front side of large piece.

Back side, multiple caves and hiding places.

Small piece, has 3 holes, bottomless.

Hey Everyone,

I have pictures today! Wooh!

Senior Crits:

So, the senior crit today went really, really well. Our guest critiquer was Glenn Rand and he did a really wonderful job. It's probably the best critique I have ever had and it really helped me out with some of the issues with my pottery. I had a great time and I look forward to starting to work towards my next show!

Ceramic Aquarium Decorations:

They are under way! I have created two so far and I'm very happy with them! I have made a small one that is just meant to be a hiding spot for smaller or less active fish. The other is a large piece, probably 10 inches by 4 or 5 inches and probably 3 inches tall in the tallest place. I made the larger piece with multiple little caves, overhangs, and a tree trunk (with roots!) that a plant can be put into even if it's potted and the roots will hang out underneath with lots of circulation around them. I made the surfaces on the pieces pretty rough (as opposed to skin smooth) so that they can trap bacteria and aid in the healthy-ness of the tank and the water. They will be lightly glazed so that they can withstand water for a long-long time without breaking down, similar to china that they are still pulling up from the titanic that is in pristine condition. I'm looking forward to finishing them and seeing what they look like in my tank and then I'll make more to sell on Etsy!

Aquarium update:

So, got the fish some live plants today since it could take up to a month for the bulbs to germinate. I got some pretty hardy plants (can't remember their name!) and some moss. I also got a piece of driftwood that I attached the moss to, once it attaches it should keep growing and cover the driftwood. I'm hoping to have the aquarium pretty well planted and established by june or july. I also ordered an aquarium heater that I'm going to use to breed the betta's first, then I'll install it in the big tank and keep the fishes warm, it's getting a bit too cold in this apartment for them.

P.S. Amazon sells fish supplies for up to half price of where I can buy them in pet stores and general stores, awesome!

Ben

Senior Crits, Aquarium Decor and Plants

Hey Everyone,

So today, although I don't have pics....Sorry!!....I started building aquarium decorations and they are turning out pretty cool!!! I have two so far. A small cave-like one with a couple holes and a larger one, almost 14" long with multiple holes, caves, overhangs and a tree trunk with roots for putting a plant in or using as another entrance for the fishes! I'm really liking building them so far, after a little trial and error. I will have photos tomorrow since I have everything in line now (and remembered to put my SD card in my camera...duh).

Aquarium Plants:

Tomorrow, after my senior art show critiques, I'm going to stop by our local fish Doctor and get the facts on aquatic plants and also on gravel/substrate for the plants. I already ordered plant food that is safe for aquarium use with fish, so I will have that at least. I would like to get some live plants in my tank while I'm waiting for my bulbs to sprout. I also need to have a live plant or two for our betta.

Breeding Betta's:

So, I introduced our female and male betta on bad information. I found out the multiple sources I had were wrong, it's not two days of conditioning, it's two WEEKS. So, a few torn fins later and they are separated and both doing great. I've been medicating their water to heal their fins and feeding them both high protein diets to 1. heal them and 2. condition them for spawning. The female is starting to show signs of spawning already again. This time I'm going to wait until the two weeks are up and she is full of eggs, then I will try again in a more patient and secure way. I've ordered a book on Betta's and also been consulting a lot of academic sources on betta breeding. Looks like in 3 weeks I could have up to 100 betta fish! I don't think I can handle that many fish and I might be using some of them as food for my other tank. It's all part of the cycle.

Senior Show Crits:

Tomorrow! Hopefully the critiquer will talk this time. The last one hardly said anything, I need someone who is useful.

New Fish-Aquarium Ideas and Info

Possible decoration designs.

Possible Aquarium designs

Hey Everyone,

So, went out today to our local aquarium specialty store "The Fish Doctor" and purchased 2 more Blood-Fin Tetra's to go along with my 3 that I already had and also 3 Red Swordtails (1 male and 2 females). I'm really interested in starting a small breeding operation with the swordtails, but first I'll just see how they act and how they are feeling in the tank.

Shiva and Fireball have been next to one another in separate tanks for the past few days and Shiva is showing signs that she wants to mate. Fireball is getting very old and I would like to keep his lineage going, so I'm planning on introducing them to one another later today.

So other than that, here's what's going on.

Ceramic Aquariums:

So I'm thinking of making some ceramic tanks that I can throw on the wheel. I would throw something like a car tire (smaller of course) with a bottom. When turned up on it's side and glass installed, it would be like a one sided aquarium. After that I have to figure out how to install a light and of course I'll build a lid for it. It would also need some sort of shield for the bulb. It's still a work in process, but the only way I'm going to figure out all the problems is by building one, so I'm gonna give it a shot!

Ceramic Aquarium Decorations:

So, I found out that people used to use old terracotta pots in aquariums all the time. Also, I can use a clear glaze that will not affect the water on terracotta and have it not be a algae and bacteria breeding ground! I'm thinking of making some natural looking rock formations and then also doing some wood/tree looking pieces. I'm also thinking of doing some pieces with Oni Masks or skulls on them with holes for the fish to swim through or hide in. I'm still working through it, but hopefully I will have some work made soon that is actually good!! If I get enough made, I might even sell some on Etsy, we'll see I guess.

Well, thanks for reading, another blog post tomorrow!

Ben

Small Business Idea-Pros and Cons and Concerns

Hey Everyone!

So wow, talk about animals and put some cute pics up and I get like 200 hits overnight, awesome! Thanks!

Gabriel's Grove Pottery:

So, Gabriel's Grove is the name of my pottery studio and I have been playing with the idea of starting up a small business. There are a lot of problems that I could face and starting up this business, but I think you could potentially be worth the risk.

So, the cons. The potential for failure, possibility of being unable to build a large enough client base, lack of sales, and the possibility of having to take on a part-time job because of the business failure. These are all very real concerns but at the same time I find myself not very worried about them, I don't know if that's me being hopeful, or me being foolish.

So, the pros. I could finally realize my dream and have my own pottery business, I could live off my artwork, I could destroy some stereotypes about artists, and I could really enjoy what I do. To me these far outweigh the cons but at the same time I know I need to be realistic and take them into account. I know I will have to work very hard to realize this dream and to also make enough money to live off of, although I will have some help, I don't want to be totally reliant on somebody else.

The Plan:

So the plan is to get a DBA license, so that I can get a break on taxes and also claim my art supplies on my taxes. My goal is to raise at least $500 a month, which will add up to $6000 a year. That's not a lot to live on, but with help's possible. I will need to set up my studio space, potentially purchasing new kiln, and definitely purchase supplies. The start up cost in supplies is around $500, but the kiln itself would cost $3000 with furniture. I'm thinking at this point that the kiln is little way off, but still possible. The studio space would most likely be a garage or a rented space, but I'm looking at the possibility of working for the college and having a studio space assigned to me with full access to materials. That seems like the most intelligent way to go at this point.

Sales Venues:

– Chelsea Market

– The Fire and Water Art Gallery

– The Book Abby

– Etsy.com

– Craft Shows and Fairs

– Custom Orders/Commissions

Per Month Plan:

*2 to 4 Craft Shows

*60 items on Etsy.com at all times

*20+ hours a week in the studio and selling

Expenses:

– supplies, equipment

– travel

– packaging and mailing

– business materials including the business cards postcards and the website

– credit card transaction device

– time

At this point I think that it would be a good idea to take the TA position at the college and work 20 hours a week which will give me a meal plan, a housing stipend, and a paycheck. Not to mention it will also come with free materials and access to the studio at all times, which will save me a lot of money in the long run. I'm thinking a DBA license is not something I need at the moment, since I have absolutely no materials to claim and no employees to pay.

I'm really going to try for this. By the end of this year I would like to have a mailing list and a client base that are reliable.I would also like to have consistent orders coming in from Etsy.com and also have consistent payment coming in. I know I'm very preoccupied with money, but at the same time no one can survive without it.

If you have any information or any advice please comment and leave it for me to read. I will respond as soon as I can.

There will be another update tomorrow on the new ceramics ideas that I'm working on. Stick around and read, there will be pictures posted tomorrow.

Thanks for reading!

Ben

I am such a bleeding heart....

Frank, the abandoned Bunny. Left in the winter snow to freeze.

Blood-fin Tetras, I actually got these from a professional breeder. There is a clown plecostomus too, but he is really shy.

Charlotte and Persephone. Charlotte was a baby from a pet store and Persephone was rescued from becoming snake food once her babies were sold.

Shiva, rescued from a Wal-mart shelf in a 6 oz. container.

Fireball, the boyfriends betta. From a professional breeder.

Hey Everyone,

Well, the other day I stopped by goodwill and I found a 10gallon fish tank with a broken hood for 7$. Great deal right? Wrong....little did I know, a new hood with a light is 30$ and then a new filter and I already had the air pump...pretty much a new tank with everything is 55$ and that's pretty much what I spent to set up this used one....oh well I guess, live and learn! Anyway, so I upgraded by 3 bloodfin tetras to the 10 gallon along with the clown plecostomus and then we moved my boyfriends male beta to my 3 gallon tank. They are all so happy!!! The tetra's have so much room and the tank cycled out in like 3 days and the betta has tons of room now!! So happy fish all around!

Now the bleeding heart...So I went to walmart today to get a couple things for the fish tank since the fish store was closed and I came across the bettas. Wal-mart keeps their bettas in those 1.5 cup containers that you buy potato salad in and only have them half full. So about 6 ounces of water and one fish, miserable right? That would be like you being contained to your 4x5 ft. closet 24/7. That is horrible conditions, so I know we have been thinking about getting a female betta and since I can't save all the fish at wal-mart (because they'll just get more) I bought one of the females (the one that didn't look like it was already dead) and brought her home. I got her some stones and put her in the 1 gallon tank that we had in storage and now she is very happy! She's super perky, lively and very beautiful! Her name is Shiva.

I also, a month or so ago, got another rat for my rat Charlotte. She was very energetic and getting a little crazy (since they like to live in at least pairs) so I got her a friend. I went to the pet store and there was a baby rat and the momma rat. The baby was the last left from a litter of 14 and they had all been weaned and I found out that the momma rat was gonna become snake food if she was not sold before the last baby was sold, so I bought the momma. (all the babies were sold, I checked today). So I brought her home, introduced the two and now Charlotte and Persephone are best friends and they cause tons of mischief together! (including chewing on some of my cords even though I have toys for them everywhere).

And the last bleeding heart thing I have done these past few months has to do with our bunny, Frank. Frank is a domestic dwarf/(something) mix. He is obviously a pet bunny and someone let him go, or dumped him near my boyfriends apartment in November. It was getting really cold outside and he was already showing signs of the weather affecting him. I saw him when I drove up to the boyfriends apartment. Left all my things in my car, walked up, picked up the bunny and brought him upstairs to the apartment. We both knew we couldn't let him just freeze to death so we got him a litter box and kept him in the bathroom for a few days (linoleum is so easy to clean!) and then, once we knew we wouldn't find the owners (after posters and searching) we bought him a cage and decided to keep him! So now Frank lives with us, he has a little hut and litter box, good food (full of goodies that he always eats before the healthy stuff), lots of timothy hay and people who love him! We have no idea how old he is, though I suspect he is young, and no idea what kind of rabbit he is, but whatever, he is cute and awesome nonetheless!

So, over the past few months I have inherited, from the horrible things society does to animals, 3 more critters that are wonderful and I'm so glad I have them! When we have a home one day, I plan on rescuing a dog and cat also. I want to do my part to help out some of these poor animals that get dumped on the street, left to starve, kept in horrible conditions, or are becoming meat meal because their breeding usefulness has been filled. I hope to help more in the future!

Ben

Two More teapots!

A bit tall than I usually make, we'll see how it turns out!

I like this one a lot so far...

Hey Everyone,

Here is the two I finished up today! Can't wait to get them glazed!!

Ben

New Teapots!

Hello Everybody,

Got some new teapots drying out, can't wait to get them glazed and finished!!

Ben