Vermont is a Winter playground but 4 – 6 months of freezing temps can make it difficult for anyone to work in the studio. Here are some of the ways I cope when the mercury dips and the snowflakes fall.
Supplemental heating.
I have large pellet stove to heat my two story barn studio but sometimes I need a little more heat. This is where my little electric space heater earns it’s keep. For those of you in Southern climes you may find that a sweet little electric heater is all you need.
I have used a heater like this for years and it has been a great little unit although a bit noisy. Since my studio has a main source of heat I place this one near my feet when I’m working for an extra boost. It warms the immediate area I am working in and makes the studio much more pleasant.
Just this week I upgraded to a larger and much cuter electric heater. I found this Duraflame heater with the faux logs and fire. This puts out more heat than my little milk house style heater and is super quiet. Also it came with a remote control! Fancy I know! Of course this one costs a bit more than my first one but so far it is has been well worth it. I love the finish and the decorative elements of this heater and have ordered another to go in the house for our home office. This unit puts out 5200 BTU’s and can heat up to 1000 sq ft space. That is a lot of heat, maybe too much for your studio space. If so I would look into a smaller unit like the ceramic electric heater pictured above.
Cold hands make to very difficult to work with clay.
To help keep my hands warm when throwing I keep an immersible fish tank heater in my bucket of throwing water. This keeps the water slightly warmer than room temp and allows me to work longer in the cold temps. You can use any brand you like. I’ve been using the same inexpensive one for about 7 years! They work best when you keep the water in the bucked filled above the heater and free from any slip or lumps of clay.
One word of caution they are made of glass so you want to be careful not to break it! These will also work if you are a hand builder or sculptor just make sure your bucket of water is large enough to accommodate the fish tank heater.
Speaking of hot water..
I keep a simple plastic electric kettle to heat up water for a multitude of uses in the studio. I don’t have running water in my studio so having a way to heat up the water I am using is very helpful. I use it to top off and warm up my throwing water. The fish tank heater I mentioned above keeps the water warm but it has a hard time making 40 degree water 80 degrees!
When I am doing any staining or wiping away of underglazes it is much nicer to have a bowl of warm water to dip my sponge in. Also I use a 5 gallon bucket to wash off tools or my hands during the course of the day and electric kettle allows me to add warm water to this so I’m not freezing my fingers off while scrubbing clay off tools!
Lots of hot beverages!
Tea, coffee, cocoa, nothing warms you up quite like a hot cup of something. Not only does it warm you from the inside but holding the cup will warm your hands as well. I often take 2 or 3 tea breaks during the course of a day… and if a cookie or muffin happens to go along with it well that’s just a price I’m willing to pay.
This will also give you more chances to use that new favorite mug you got over the holidays!
Bundle up.
My best advice is to dress appropriately for the temperatures in your region. Here in New England it is just plain cold and I have embraced this with my studio attire. Wool socks, hats( warm can be cute too!), boots, turtlenecks and flannel shirts are the norm for my winter studio wardrobe. I recently started wearing leg warmers. These fashion accessories from the 80’s are now one of my studio must haves. I like to call them my leg sweaters and I go for the over the knee style for maximum warmth!
Other things you can do to stay warm is to work on a rubber anti fatigue mat. This keeps your feet off the cold floor plus is easier on your back when you stand for a long period of time.
And last but not least….. jumping jacks! That’s right when you get really cold once every hour do 10 jumping jacks. I guarantee you will be warm afterwards plus it gets you moving and prevents your body stiffening up from working in the same position for too long! If jumping jacks are not your speed try doing a few yoga stretches or take a 15 minute walk.
I hope these ideas help you to stay warm and comfortable in your studio so you can spend more time making happy, wonderful pots!