new york

I took my second pottery course this Fall. I think I enjoyed it even more than my first course in the Spring , even though I was technically taking the same course again. I learned a ton of stuff and got to practice the techniques I'd learned in the Spring. Some things definitely felt easier the second time round and some techniques finally made sense to my hands. All in all, it was awesome. I got to glaze and fire the teapot I made in the Spring. Despite my attempts to repair it, the handle is still/again unattached at the base, so I won't be putting my teapot to work in the kitchen. Handles are something I need to work on. This little teacup is cute, but as you can see from the discolouration, also had to be repaired where the handle meets the cup. I made a lot of pieces. Here are most of the blue ones... I love how this mug turned out. The colours are perfectly wintery -- great for warm drinks! -- and the size is just right for warming your hands on. This is my super-shiny b

Christoph Niemann -- the mastermind behind I Lego NY -- has been baking. His Let it Dough series will get you into the holiday spirit... and make you want to make/eat cookies. Check out the full Let it Dough series on the NYTimes site.

The ultimate in holiday cuteness has got to be Not Martha's tiny gingerbread houses. Seriously. It does not get more festive than this. Check out the full story on Not Martha here and here .

"Happy Holidays," says Chronicle Books! "We made you a lovely little stop-motion movie." (I love that woman's yellow blouse.)

The video for The Avett Brothers ' song, "Head Full of Doubt / Road Fill of Promise" is fascinating. Painted by hand by Jason Ryan Mitcham, the video is a single painting... which Mitcham altered 2600 times. To create 1 second of film, he had to alter the painting 10 times. There's a "making of" video, but it won't play here in Canada. Gah. The link should be in the "related links" at the end of this video though, for those of you Stateside.

Baby, it's cold outside... Time to warm up on this Craft Rock Friday with Coldplay , and their video for their new song, "Christmas Lights".