The top area of the kiln was reserved for my latest jugbird creations. Jeremy Waller of Primavera, in Cambridge, asked me to bring along some English birds and some more exotic ones. So I now have to carefully pack them up in a cardboard box that is just slightly smaller than the allowed carry-on size, ready for my flight to Gatwick on Friday.

I am posting a photo of each piece along with an image from our travel collection or from the web to show how I choose the shape and colouring of each one. I like to think that although they are really just useful jugs they resemble their real counterpart enough to make you smile.

Along with these eight I’ll be taking an English Green Woodpecker and a Kingfisher from my previous firing. While I’m away on this brief family-visiting trip Alan tells me he’ll be getting some writing done. I’ll have to try not to make him too jealous of my gallery-hopping, good meals, Hambledon Hill walk, London time and drives or train rides through English countryside! I’ll have several blogs to post when I get back at the end of the month.

Too many images in one blog. I’ll post a second one with the other four jugbirds.