Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
No matter how hard I try to replicate my initial rests with this red clay and glaze, I’m still not quite achieving the same surfaces qualities the first tests achieved. It’s tricky and I think the glaze thickness is really sensitive and I keep overdoing it, despite my diluting of the glaze a third time. I won’t be gambling with pots again, instead I’m going to make some test tiles and I’ll dial it in that way.
The trickiest thing about using this combination of materials is how I have to adjust my making in order for the pots themselves to survive the firing process. It’s a little ridiculous. Overhanging walls slump, thus the galleries on many of these began to undulate and distort, especially with the weight on the lid too.
As a result, despite a number of real successes with this batch, I’m going back to the drawing board with the clay too, as I think it needs to be strengthened with something like a heavily grogged body. We used to fortify it with PF520 during my apprenticeship and I may resort back to that.
Nonetheless, teething issues, but they’re irritating to encounter after a few initial tests that “were” successful. The smashed pot, by the way, had two issues, the first was that the lid had a tremendous bloat on the top, in an area that should be perfectly flat and the lip of the jar itself was wavering all the way around from where the waddings pressed and sagged into it as the stoneware softened and slumped. Good riddance.
#clay #satisfying #handmade #craft #pottery
No matter how hard I try to replicate my initial rests with this red clay and glaze, I’m still not quite achieving the same surfaces qualities the first tests achieved. It’s tricky and I think the glaze thickness is really sensitive and I keep overdoing it, despite my diluting of the glaze a third time. I won’t be gambling with pots again, instead I’m going to make some test tiles and I’ll dial it in that way.
The trickiest thing about using this combination of materials is how I have to adjust my making in order for the pots themselves to survive the firing process. It’s a little ridiculous. Overhanging walls slump, thus the galleries on many of these began to undulate and distort, especially with the weight on the lid too.
As a result, despite a number of real successes with this batch, I’m going back to the drawing board with the clay too, as I think it needs to be strengthened with something like a heavily grogged body. We used to fortify it with PF520 during my apprenticeship and I may resort back to that.
Nonetheless, teething issues, but they’re irritating to encounter after a few initial tests that “were” successful. The smashed pot, by the way, had two issues, the first was that the lid had a tremendous bloat on the top, in an area that should be perfectly flat and the lip of the jar itself was wavering all the way around from where the waddings pressed and sagged into it as the stoneware softened and slumped. Good riddance.
#clay #satisfying #handmade #craft #pottery
