Jane James Coastal Ceramics

Update

2012-01-21T03:56:00.000-08:00

Sorry that it's been some time since I have updated my blogger blog, I am not too good with all this social media stuff, too busy enjoying working with clay. I have had a great 2011, moved studio, employed two staff and increased sales. One of my 2012 New Years resolutions is to try an update blog so that my customers and followers know what I am up to. To help make this simple I have consolidated my website blog, Blogger blog and facebook onto a new Jane James coastal ceramics facebook page, see link on this page. I promise to try and keep updated, so if you want to see what I have been up to follw me on facebook.

All the best for 2012

Jane

Large Bait Ball

2011-02-08T14:55:00.000-08:00

I have just finished a commission for a very large bait ball. I couldn't find a piece of driftwood large enough so I commissioned Jersey Oak to machine a 1m square piece of oak using two tree slices to retain a bark edge on all four sides.

I then hand made over 400 ceramic fish to create the bait ball. Each fish was given a different glaze and different scales. It took hours placing them in diffrent positions until I was finally happy with the result and I could glue them all on. This is the largest bait ball I have made to date and I am really pleased with it. It's home will be a lovely Jersey granite house by the sea, so I just hope my client likes it!

Feature on BBC Radio Jersey

2011-01-25T13:14:00.000-08:00

I spent this morning with Chris Stone, a BBC Radio Jersey presenter recording a feature for his afternoon show about local artists in Jersey. Chris first joined me driftwood hunting at Le Braye, St Ouen with my dog Pip. Chris interviewed me and recorded the sounds of the beach. Once we had collected a bag full of driftwood we headed back to my studio at the Workshop in St Ouen.

We then went back to my studio to make some ceramic fish and to discuss the making process. Fortunately he was wasn't very good at making fish! You can judge for yourself, here is a photo of mine and his.

You can view more photographs of his visit to my studio at http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/jersey/hi/people_and_places/newsid_9373000/9373446.stm

The feature was broadcast in three sections during his afternoon show on the 25th Jan. You can listen to this broadcast again on Jersey Radio's BBCiPlayer at http://www.bbc.co.uk/i/p00d6gx0/ . The programme is 165 minutes, my feature is broadcast at 10.00 - 15.00 minutes, 1hr 06 - 1hr 13 minutes and the last piece at 2hrs 06 - 2hrs 15 minutes.

Hard at Work

2010-10-02T08:19:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it is the autumn already. When I look at my last blog the sun was out and we were enjoying the delights of St Malo. The last month has been very hectic. We had the official studio opening on the 10th September, which was very well attended. We have been sponsored by the Jersey Arts Trust and we were featured in the Gallery Magazine.

Over the last couple of weeks I have been busy completing a corporate order for an International Bank who have commissioned me to produce gifts for a conference they are holding in Jersey. I provided some larger pieces for the speakers and I had to make 110 individual pieces for all the conference delegates. They asked for 50% of them to be fish and the other 50% to be beach huts. Everyone had to be individually hand cut, glazed and mounted on driftwood!!!

Trip to St Malo

2010-08-15T06:44:00.000-07:00

I recently went on a day trip to St Malo, it is only an hours ferry ride from Jersey. St Malo is the most visited place in Brittany. Its main attraction is the amazing walled Citadel. This is surround by magnificent beaches. I couldn’t believe my eyes we I saw the wooden groyne sea defences. It is like a forest of driftwood, if only I could fit one on the ferry!!!!

Genuine Jersey in St Helier

2010-08-15T05:40:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, it was my turn to have a stall right in the middle of St Helier High Street. One Genuine Jersey stall is allowed to set up every Saturday to help promote and support locally produced crafts.

I made an extra effort to dress the stall and borrowed some the Genuine Jersey promotion banners and bunting. The pitch was located in a prime spot next to Hamon's on King Street. This week is particualary busy because it is Battle of the Flowers week. this is Jersey's premier tourist attraction and attracts over 15,000 visitors. see http://www.battleofflowers.com/section/3/index.html for more info.

I was extremely busy and it was a good opportunity to meet new customers both tourists and locals.

1970 VW Camper Van

2010-08-02T15:55:00.000-07:00

I have recently taken delivery of my new work van, a 1970 VW Bay Window Camper Van, called Ruby. She has been lovingly restored to her original condition. She will be great for taking all my ceramics to craft shows/markets and she is also great fun to use. We spent a lovely weekend at St Ouens watching the sunset. Its a hard life!!!!

Magazine Articles

2010-08-02T15:47:00.000-07:00

I have been very lucky to be featured in two magazines this month. The Longueville Manor Magazine has written a very nice article about me and a textile artist friend. We both sell our work through the hotel, see Longueville Manor Magazine. I am also in this month's Craft and Design Magazine, see Craftanddesign.net. I am thrilled to be featured in the UK's leading magazine that show cases British Crafts. I have attached a PDFs of both the articles on my website see http://www.jane-james.co.uk/blog.htm as it is not available online.

New Studio

2010-07-27T16:03:00.000-07:00

I have just signed a lease on a new studio. It has been wonderful working from home overlooking the beach but my ceramics have spread from the garage to the spare bedroom, the kitchen, the air cupboard and just about everywhere else in the house, so I recently took the decision to look for a studio. A chance encounter with Bianca Padidar (a textile artist) in Pizza Express has led to me renting a large studio (800 sq ft) in a building already occupied by other artists including Bianca. As you can see from the photos it is a bright and light space and will be ideal for working and displaying my ceramics. It even has its own seperate enterance from the other studios in the building, although being part of a small artist community in the building will also be fun. The property is aptly named the Workshop. (I think it used to be a furniture workshop)

I am now in the process of transporting some of my old equipment to the studio and purchasing some new larger scale equipment to fit it out. My daughter has now broken up for her school summer holidays so I am planning to get the studio ready for when she goes back to school. In the meantime I have got to look after my daughter during the school holidays, make more ceramics for the various shows and events in Jersey and get my studio ready!!!

Deck Chair

2010-07-27T15:51:00.000-07:00

For my exhibition I experimented with printing my ceramic fish shoal design onto some textiles. I then used this to make a couple of deck chairs, unfortunately I burnt one trying to fix the ink with an iron but one survived and is now pride of place in my garden. I noticed the sun was illuminating it this evening, so I took a couple of photos before the deck chair gets too used and weathered.

Jersey Summer Events

2010-07-25T00:17:00.000-07:00

I haven’t posted a blog for a while, so I thought I had better let everyone know what I have been doing since my exhibition finished, especially has I have some new followers. I love Jersey in the summer, the Island comes alive and there are plenty of events to sell and promote my coastal ceramics at. Over the last couple of months I have attended the following events:

Jersey Fish Festival
This event celebrates Jersey’s finest seafood and fishing heritage and the funds raised are in support of the local maritime charities. It is set up around the Victoria pier in St Helier. There was lots of freshly cooked seafood in a massive dining area, fronted by a music stage. Top Sea shanty bands and the best local musicians provided 12 hours of non stop entertainment. All the fishing boats were dressed up and they had a massive water fight in the harbour.

I was part of a large local arts and crafts area. The event went onto 10 o’clock but most of the craft stalls left at around 6pm before it got to lively!

West Show
On the 10th & 11th July I attended the West Show in Jersey. This is a bi-annual event and is one of the largest shows held in the Island. The West Show promotes Jersey's history, culture, farming produce and crafts and also showcases local clubs and associations, offers "headline" attractions such as motorcycle stunt riders, a French circus and a falconry display team, as well as a demonstration by the Jersey bobsleigh team.

I was part of Genuine Jersey Products Association’s biggest ever local crafts and produce market. It was a hectic weekend, I set up my gazebo on Friday and worked until midnight to make sure I had enough ceramics for the show. I arrived at the show ground at 8 am on Saturday to finish setting up and the show officially opened at 10.00

It was a lovely hot and sunny weekend, especially Saturday. Islanders and visitors flocked to the show, which easily beat the previous show record of 15,000 attendees. The show closed at 6.00pm of Sunday evening and I then had to pack everything away before I left at 7.30pm. Wow what an exciting and tiring weekend!!!

Gorey Fete de la Mer
On Sat 22nd May, I attended one of my favourite festivals, the Gorey Fete de la Mer. This is set in the shadow of the magnificent Mont Orgueil Castle in Gorey harbour. The festival has a lovely atmosphere with an array of traditional sea food, al fresco dining, entertainment and local crafts for sale.

It was a scotching hot day and thousands of people attended to enjoy the food, entertainment and to buy my ceramics!

Liberation Day Celebrations
The 9th May is a special day in the Jersey calendar, it is Liberation Day. This year was the 65th anniversary of the liberation of the Channel Islands and Jersey staged a host of re-enactments and entertainment. At the Weighbridge in St Helier at large screen and stage was erected to show the Service of thanksgiving and remembrance and the Re-enactment of the Liberation and for the Jersey Big Band to play war time songs.

All the craft and food stalls were arranged around the outside of the square and were decorated in flags and bunting. It was another lovely sunny day and the thousands of people cam to see the celebrations, remember those who bravely fought and those who died for this cause and to enjoy the war-time atmosphere.

Jersey Boatshow

In early May I attended the Jersey Boat Show. This is a particularly good event for me because there are very few other craft stalls and my coastal ceramics fit in perfectly with the maritime atmosphere. The boat show lasted for three days over the May Bank Holiday with an estimated 10,000 visitors sampling enjoying the chance to look around the show and experience a taste of life at sea. Special exhibits included the Royal Navy’s 79-metre Fisheries Protection vessel, HMS Mersey and the tall ship, Lord Nelson

Coastal Ceramics Exhibition

2010-05-29T14:43:00.000-07:00

The day of my exhibition at the Harbour Gallery has finally arrived. The exhibition is the culmination of 6 months work and the last 3 weeks have been incredibly hectic. I have been working until midnight every night to finish all my exhibition pieces.

I wanted to dress the exhibition space to give it a seaside theme. I asked Jersey Oak to build me three beach hut fronts and I managed to borrow a fishing net and some lobster pots. It took two whole days to dress the space and hang my pieces but fortunately I managed to complete it all in time for the opening by the Lieutenant Governor on Thursday evening (27th).

I am really pleased with the finsihed result and the launch evening was fantastic. As you can see from the photos lots of people came along to show their support. I will be keeping my fingers crossed that I sell lots of pieces over the next month. The exhibition is on until 21st June, so if you are visiting Jersey please come along to the Harbour Gallery in St Aubin and see my exhibition.

Spring Tides

2010-03-01T13:07:00.000-08:00

We had spring tides in Jersey this weekend. The view from the garden was is a bit scary with the waves lapping at the top of the wall but it’s a good time for collecting driftwood from the beaches. I went out searching on Sunday and managed to come home with a good haul.

Holiday in Antigua

2010-02-27T12:21:00.001-08:00

I have just got back from a weeks holiday in Antigua with my family. We stayed at St James Beach Club, it was paradise; our room had direct access onto a beautiful Antiguan beach. The weather was hot and sunny, the food and drink was plentiful and the warm Caribbean seas provided plenty of inspiration for my ceramics. I snorkelled everyday at the nearby reefs. My favourite fish was the Yellowtail damselfish, its neon blue spots were amazing.

Plemont Beach Cafe

2010-02-14T12:18:00.000-08:00

I have had a busy January helping my favourite beach café get ready to open this spring half term. Paul, the owner of the Plemont Beach Café, asked me to help liven up his café. He already stocks my coastal ceramics, so we decided to carry the coastal theme throughout the café, this compliments the spectacular views of the beach and cliffs. I have painted a fish shoal, similar to my ceramic ones, swimming all the way around the café. Every fish was individually hand painted; it took a week to complete! I also designed his new menus with the same fishy theme and of course I have stocked the café with plenty of my ceramics.

The cafe opened this weekend, so I had to pay a visit and sample a full english! Unfortuanetly the bridge to the beach was closed. It is being repaired and is due to be finished in the next couple of days. We all went for a walk on the cliff top path instead, it was fantastic, the sun was shinning and the views were incredible. So, if you fancy a lovely breakfast followed by a stroll on one of the best beaches in Jersey or a cliff top walk, then I highly recommend Plemont.

Good News

2009-12-09T12:19:00.001-08:00

I have had two pieces of good news this week. Firstly my new kiln has arrived. It’s a third bigger than my old one, so I will be able to fire more ceramics together and it will save electricity. I have had my old kiln repaired, so I have now got a back up if anything goes wrong with either of the kilns.

Secondly, I am featured in this month’s Jersey Life. I am really pleased with the article. I did the interview with the reporter about a month ago, he recorded the interview, so I wasn’t quiet sure what that actual article would be like. Fortunately, I think it has captured the interview and my work accurately, I wonder if I will get any more commissions or sales from the feature!

Christmas Market

2009-12-08T13:55:00.000-08:00

The Spirit of Christmas Market ended on Sunday. This was the longest market I have attended, nine straight days including late night shopping on Thursday, boy am I exhausted! The weekdays were pretty quiet and not helped by the continuous wind and rain. Fortunately the last weekend was very busy, with lots of people Christmas shopping.

Overall, I think the Christmas market was a success. The wooden chalets, Christmas lights and a number of different street entertainers including Russian Snow Queens on stilts, a brass band and opera singers helped create a festive mood.

On Saturday evening, there was the parade of lanterns. This is an annual Christmas event where hundreds of children paraded through the Royal Square and St Helier with handmade candlelit lanterns. This is a lovely Christmas spectacle and great fun for the children.

Spirit of Christmas Market

2009-11-30T15:49:00.000-08:00

I have spent the last 3 days at the Fête dé Noué, Jersey's Spirit of Christmas Market. This traditional Christmas market has been set up in the Royal Square in St Helier. Each stallholder has been given a wooden chalet to display their goods. There are 20 wooden chalets in total, a large marquee and various food stalls along with a traditional brass band. What a great atmosphere, it’s a shame it has been spoilt by the atrocious weather. First wind and rain and now it is turning colder, good job I have got my thermals on.

The market is on from the 28th Nov until the 6th Dec, tomorrow there will also be a soup kitchen in the square, with various local restaurants cooking a large array of different flavoured soups to raise money for charity, and so the day promises to be very busy.

I will be at the market every day this week, so if you are in Jersey pop along and say hello.

Living Legend Christmas Craft Workers Fair

2009-11-28T22:10:00.000-08:00

Last week (21st & 22nd Nov) I displayed at the Living Legend Christmas Fair.
There were over 70 stalls selling everything from jewellery, cards, hand made toys, ceramics, paintings and a vast array of other handmade Christmas gifts.

My stall was in the large marquee. This was a nice and bright airy space, with plenty of room to display my ceramics but it was a bit noisy with the strong wind rattling the metal structure. Thank god for the industrial space heaters!

Saturday was very busy with lots of people looking for Christmas presents, some people are so organised, I have hardly started my Christmas shopping yet! Sunday was a bit quieter but I think there were lots of other events in Jersey at the same time. The Living Legend Christmas Fair has a great atmosphere and it was a nice way to spend a wet and windy weekend.

Getting Ready for La Fete de Noué - Christmas Market

2009-11-24T16:20:00.000-08:00

I am getting ready to exhibit my coastal ceramics at the La Fête dé Noué, Jersey's Spirit of Christmas Market in the captial St Helier. This is the largest event over the Christmas period and this year the market will be bigger and runs from the 28th November to 9th December. Visitors to the market can experience the magic of Christmas in Jersey’s old Marche Publique. The Royal Square is brought alive with characters including Saint Nicholas and will be decorated with brilliant white lights and holly and ivy and filled with music and the smell of mulled wine. Come along and buy a ‘Genuine Jersey’ Christmas gift, sit and sample some local fare and soak up the atmosphere! Speciality Hot Salt Beef Stall, traditional & served just like the Food Markets of London. Thursday night will be late night shopping.

I am hoping to sell lots, so I have been busy making. I had a set back at the weekend when by kiln stop working. I have ordered a replacement from Germany, I just hope it arrives in time for me to fire my ceramics!!