Rebuild Update #6, 12/22/21

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      On Saturday, Dec 18, I fired my first load of 46 pieces since the Caldor Wildfire, in my small 8 cubic foot kiln, while my usual 35 cubic foot kiln awaits repairs and a new structure in which to operate it. I purchased this 8 cubic foot Thermolite Kiln from my employer, Grant F. Cloud in 1992. It's function was to bisque fire the production pottery I was throwing for him. I have only used it for bisque and raku all these years, which do not require very much precision. Grant told me that he had fired porcelain in it at one time, but that it would need several repairs on the burners and door gasket to achieve that sort of precision. This month I restored it to it's 1973 original performance, and the results are very promising. 

      I built my first workshop in '94, while I was still working for Clouds' in Folsom. I had purchased my 10 acres in '87, and had only built a carport (10' by 20') to store my classic Buick, a family heirloom. In '94 my friend Steve and I poured two 10' by 10' concrete slabs and stick framed walls under the carport roof. We plumbed, wired, and insulated, sided and re-roofed. I moved my (Clouds') production throwing facility from Roseville to Pollock Pines in June of '94, as soon as the concrete was cured. I threw continuously while we built the walls, and I never missed a beat while the winter set in. 

      This is how I envision the second half of 2022, but with concrete walls this time. My day job and a maintenance agreement with my neighbor are helping keep me afloat, while I remain very thrifty with the bank account from my fundraisers earlier this fall. Before the Pandemic lockdown, demand for Scott Wilson Pottery was increasingly outpacing my ability to produce, and the opportunity seemed endless. 

      May 2022 bring fresh opportunity to all of us.