September already

I still have a few berry bowls left- need a Christmas gift?  Why am I talking about Christmas in September?  Well, say it gets to be mid October and a customer wants me to make an item in time for Christmas.  This is approximately what the timeline looks like:  It can take a couple of weeks to make enough pottery plus that item to fill the kiln.  I really pack it to get the most out of the electricity I'm using.  Now it's around Nov. 1st.  Before I can fire, everything has to be bone dry.  This can take up to 3 weeks.  Some items, like mugs, need to take their time drying because handles will dry a lot faster than the rest of the mug which can result in cracks.  Next is bisque firing, then glazing.  Glazing takes about a week, then I'm ready to load the kiln again for the glaze firing.  And that takes us into December already!