All Blog Posts (139)

1st pot out of the LLutt

This is the first pot out of the new LLutt.  It's the combo of Frogskin over Magic.  When I refire it in the bisque, it should turn nice & red.  jhp

Added by Jeff Poulter on November 4, 2014 at 12:30pm — No Comments

John Britt's New Mid-fire Glaze Book

Just received John Britt's new book, "The Complete Guide to Mid-Range Glazes" in the mail today!  I can't wait to sit down, relax , and read!!

juli

Added by juli long on October 29, 2014 at 2:00pm — 5 Comments

Note to Self -- Do Not Devalue Basic Techniques

I have found myself from time to time scoffing at some nice pots that were dipped in two overlapping glazes. The technique is seemingly taught to every beginning pottery student on their first day of glazing instruction. The fact is that some very interesting results can spring from the technique, given glazes that are attractive on their own, and that are suited to layering one over the other.

Yesterday I was very pleased how Glazing 101 technique worked for me with 3…

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Added by George Lewter on October 26, 2014 at 9:48pm — 2 Comments

Begining Agan

I'm officially down the Rabbit Hole. After a 10 year hiatus from Clay, but not from Art, I've come back to the Wheel. I'm starting where I left off, in a way, because my interests are very similar, Large Pots.

Yes, I make tiny bowls, that's another love, and a challenge to trim in the perfect foot, and keeping up with the fast drying time so I can carve in some details, another love. These are a Max of 3" wide, mainly used as Ring Catchers or for condiments, like Soy Sauce, or Hot Sauce,… Continue

Added by Karen Gatti Foster on October 3, 2014 at 2:51pm — No Comments

Wedgwood ceramic archive - potential break-up and sale

I was very informed about ceramics by a sections of Josiah Wedgewood's Kiln Journal written while developing their original Jasperware, "Trial 136 Success!"  It's sad to see this.

Stoke museum's collection of pioneering potter, described as 'unparalleled' by Unesco, due to be sold to meet pension debts.

Wedgwood plates from the series Variation…

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Added by Norm Stuart on September 1, 2014 at 8:00pm — 3 Comments

Computerized Clay Extruders and Throwers

"Wired" magazine has an interesting article on the new way to throw or sculpt clay, featuring Dutch artist Oliver van Herpt.

http://www.wired.com/2014/08/a-huge-clay-filled-robot-that-replaces-the-potters-wheel/#slide-id-1413601…

http://www.wired.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/clay-16.jpg

http://www.wired.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/clay-04.jpg

http://www.wired.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/clay-07.jpg

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Added by Norm Stuart on August 19, 2014 at 2:00pm — No Comments

safe glazes

Hello do you have a location for safe glazes cone 6 and cone 10 . Need help thanks richard f. crown

Added by richard f. crown on August 15, 2014 at 7:47am — No Comments

The week before vacation

Setting things up the week before our vacation is an excersize in working backwards. On Monday, a day early, I got my last order out the door to my wholesale client. I feel like I have bought a small bit of time getting it out early.  I can leave work basically finished and covered for the duration but I have a window of time to get  it to that stage. Colanders need to be drilled and cleaned up and can then sit and dry while I relax on the beach. My week of teaching is a bit scrambled since…

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Added by Patricia Bridges on August 12, 2014 at 6:24pm — 2 Comments

A day in the life

Well a mixed day in all.  This morning I  tried to start a bisque firing but my kiln was totally unresponsive.  So I called Rob Battey, who knows all (well all about kilns) at Northwest Potters Supply and discussed the symptoms with him.  We decided that a new Board for the Controller was needed and so it is on its way.  After this it was a lesson with Lola who is teaching me all of her china painting techniques and tricks, and after more than 30 years of china painting she knows a lot.  So…

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Added by Joan Klotz on July 30, 2014 at 4:25pm — No Comments

Slow-cooling or fast?

There are many uses for changing the cooling speed of ceramic glass.

http://www.wired.com/2014/07/material-science-flexible-display/



In new PCM displays, the inner material is a substance made of silicon’s heavier chemical cousins, germanium, antimony, and tellurium. The two states of this material, known as GST, are actually two different phases of matter: one an ordered crystal and the other a…

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Added by Norm Stuart on July 10, 2014 at 1:48pm — No Comments

The Wholesalecrafts.com

I cannot clutter this wonderful webpage with my pictures. So if anybody want to see more of them and at the same time i will share the place we sell the other half of our production. Look into the "Wholesalecrafts.com

Our ID# is 24939 the password is my wife's name "Karin".

Added by Leo Villaroman on July 7, 2014 at 8:31am — 1 Comment

Heat Resistant Gloves

Has anyone used this type of flexible PBI / Kevlar blend glove?

http://www.superiorglove.com/extreme-dragon-pbi-kevlar-high-heat-gloves

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BHMATOW

http://www.superiorglove.com/system/images/3965/original/PB183514-480-14-PBI-Kevlar-Extreme-Heat-Wool-Liner-Heat-Resistant-Gloves-IMG.jpg

We've used a typical pair of yellow Kevlar gloves with wool lining to unload hot kiln shelves,…

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Added by Norm Stuart on June 2, 2014 at 1:30pm — 4 Comments

Rutile problem

The tile below is the way I used to seeing rutile react in a glaze.

We have a new bag of "Light Rutile" from Laguna which means it's calcined.  Unfortunately it leaves glazes opaque and uniformly whitened, as if we had added titanium dioxide.

The mesh of this new tan rutile is supposedly the same as dark rutile, so I'm at a loss to explain the profound difference.  Unfortunately rutile is a natural material, so some variation can be expected, but this is far too…

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Added by Norm Stuart on May 25, 2014 at 11:00pm — No Comments

New Coyote glazes

Check out the new Coyote glazes.  3 macros, an Aventurine & an Iron Red.  All slow-cooled......jhp

Added by Jeff Poulter on May 23, 2014 at 9:26am — 10 Comments

"Mastering Cone 6 Glazes" - written by John Hesselberth & Ron Roy

$19.99  iBook version - or $24.95 Black and White Print Version:

iBook: …

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Added by Norm Stuart on May 9, 2014 at 7:22am — 1 Comment

Thank you!

Thank you for accepting me into your group.  I hope to be an asset. I will try to update you over the weekend about my adventures with Simon Leach and his workshop.....from the mountains in PA. It should be interesting.

Added by Lani Allman on April 25, 2014 at 4:24am — No Comments

Want to spray unsieved glazes?

If you want to have speckled glazes where the specks are generated by particles in the glaze, you should not ball mill or sieve the glaze.

What if you want to spray these glazes anyway? The conventional spray gun will be clogged quickly!



Solution: the good old vaporizer !



Two tubes of about 1/4” at a right angle and compressed air of about 50-60 psi will do (you can even use your lungs! but you need a lot breath!)



I had an old pistol for inflating tires…

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Added by Daniel Spruyt on April 11, 2014 at 8:00am — 2 Comments

Cassie's Marsala

Many have tried to duplicate Alisa Clausen's test tile of Cassie's Marsala without success.

After making a chemically identical version which was opaque from excess iron, I've made a chemically identical version without the addition of 6.6% red iron oxide.

At this point I'm confident that Alisa Clausen replaced the high-iron American produced Redart Clay with a substitute containing less iron.…

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Added by Norm Stuart on April 1, 2014 at 5:30pm — No Comments

Chemical reduction

So this was my first attempt at a chemically reduced copper red of my own making.  Still fine tuning the formula & application, but was pleased with this first effort.  Many things still to try to work towards the perfect look!  jhp

Added by Jeff Poulter on March 30, 2014 at 6:14pm — 1 Comment

Clay-fired passion - an epidemiologist's journal entry

''A lot of his friends didn't get it,'' admits Mandy Walker of her father's collection of contemporary ceramics. Her father was Professor Alan Walker, the celebrated biophysicist from the University of Sydney whose special interest was plant membrane transport. He died in October 2013.

Walker was a man of many passions, including art (especially Monet and Cezanne), music (Haydn), sailing and photography, although his love of ceramics may have been lost on some.…

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Added by Norm Stuart on March 29, 2014 at 9:30pm — No Comments

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Members have had great things to say about John Britt's new book, Mid-Range Glazes. Click the image to buy from Amazon.com

Purchase Glazes Cone 6 by Michael Bailey, The Potters Book of Glaze Recipes by Emmanuel Cooper, or Making Marks by Robin Hopper, all available at amazon.comMastering Cone 6 Glazes by John Hesselberth & Ron Roy is now out of print.

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