cups – Page 6

Glaze Fire Results – October 2012

Here are some of the highlights of the load I pulled out of the kiln in late October. Actually, you can see some of the mugs in the Zombie Run post.

But here is some of the best non-sculptural work:

: zombie mugs

: handmade mixing bowl

: glossy rust cups

: charger mugs

: barely blue pie plate

: black and brown berry bowl

: stoneware mugs

: stoneware mixing bowl

: splattered bowl

All functional ware. All wheel thrown with Warm Brown Stoneware and glaze fired to ^6.

Pretty good results overall. I like the combination of the Waterfall Brown and Licorice glazes (both from Mastering Cone 6 Glazes). I also mixed up a small amount of the Glossy Clear Liner to use on the inside of some pots.

As for form, I feel like I’ve got a pretty good variety in this load. I’m still refining a lot of things but I’m making progress.

I’ve got a bunch of pots downstairs drying that I hope to get finished for Christmas. I’ve also got some more posts to publish on the blog here. Hopefully soon! Thanks for reading.

August Glaze Fire Results

I’ve got some images of pots from my August glaze fire. Below are some of my favorites:

: wheel thrown mugs

: textured blue cups

: stoneware berry bowl

: saturated iron vases

: mixing bowl with handle

: celadon blue mugs and vase

: barely blue yarn bowls

: barely blue word mugs

: barely blue berry bowl

All wheel thrown stoneware with cone 6 glazes. Mostly Celadon Blue and Saturated Iron by Coyote. You can check my Facebook Page for a few more pots.

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Ceramic Decals – First Attempt

ceramic decals

I learned a little bit about ceramic decals in the surface class I took this past summer at the Goshen Clay Artist’s Guild. During the class I spent most of my time working with the crystalline glazes and never got a chance to try the decals.

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Early July Glaze Fire Results

Finally getting some images uploaded of the pots that I glaze fired at the beginning of the month!

: altered vases

: artbyfuzzy tags

: barely blue toothbrush holder

: barely blue vase

: blue berry bowl

: barely blue mugs

: blue pbl mugs

: blue stamped cups

: brown glaze test cups

: brown stoneware cups

: mugs with test glaze

: pam’s blue cups

: pam’s blue mug

: pam’s blue vases

: rusted cups

: sunset yarnbowl

: tiny clay sculptures

Not pictured are a handful of pots that will be re-fired to improve some glaze results that weren’t what I was hoping for. And one or two mugs that already have happy new homes. And a few pots that are just fine but not eye catching enough for me to take a photo, edit the photo, upload the photo and type in a description of the pot.

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Pottery in Progress: July 2012

Say No to Cracks!

oval dish crack

I’ve decided to try a couple larger forms of the wider variety. I made some slightly-square baking dishes and a pie plate. The pie plate developed a tiny crack in the middle which I might have helped along by stretching the bottom too much while trimming it. The baking dishes also developed some small cracks in the corners inside. One was barely visible and it even survived the glaze firing. The other went all the way through to the outside during the bisque firing so i probably won’t even try to glaze it.

Then there was an oval dish that I tried to make… I followed the steps in the book Wheel-Thrown Pottery (DIY) but the dried pot had a crack so big I could see through it! I don’t think I added enough clay when I re-sealed the cut mark and it just pulled right apart.

large baking dish-in progress

I think I could have decreased the likelihood of some of these cracks a couple ways. First, I think some of the pots were a little too dry when I altered the forms. I also might have let them dry too quickly. I always hear to dry things, especially large flat things, very slowly. But the plates I’ve made have never cracked… and I’m impatient… and I wanted to fire the kiln! So I might have rushed it too much. Put this one under the things-I-already-knew-but-still-had-to-learn-the-hard-way category. I put handles on this large baking dish and I have two other pie plates drying… very… slowly. Maybe I can avoid the cracks this time…

Work in Progress

I’ve been making some test items at the Clay Guild in preparation for the crystalline glazing. But I’ve also been working on some things in the home studio.

after the cut

before the cut

I threw a couple tall vases. One looked a little funny to me, so I cut off the top part. Now… maybe I like the way it was before? The picture “before the cut” is actually after I cut the top part off. I just put it back on top so you have an idea what it looked like before. I think the top part was too small. I didn’t like something about the proportions.

cups with texture

I’ve also been making a lot of small cups to experiment with. The cups in the photo have textures which were all created from parts of the sprinkler that I took apart.

Today I hope to throw a few more cups and maybe some tumblers. And try out my new stamps. And finish another blog post about the clay studio… I better get busy.