Road trip

Yesterday my SO and I took a (LONG) drive in the Michiana area, to hit up the Michiana Pottery Tour, or at least part of it. We have gone on this tour before, sticking to the area around Goshen, so this time we decided to venture farther afield. The first stop was in Constantine, MI. Then we visited a studio in Bristol, IN, and two more in South Bend. We were going to go to Shipshewana, too, but pooped out and had to stop and eat.

Each stop featured a host and between four and seven guest potters. So there was a LOT of pottery in a LOT of forms in a LARGE range of prices. I bought three pieces.

This jug is about 6" tall. The funny thing is we had seen a bunch of these at the maker space where I fire my pottery, and I was surprised that there would be two potters with the same idea. Turned out it was the same potters - Briggan and Jeff Mueller - from Fort Wayne. Briggan was generous enough to explain how they were made - she created a plaster slip casting mold, then used a combination of Mayco and Spectrum glazes on them.

This mixing bowl is about the right size for scrambling eggs or mixing up a small batch of pancakes. The whisk came with it, too. Made by Mark Goertzen of Goshen.

Cristal Sabbagh, who describes herself as an "interdisciplinary artist" and is from Chicago, creates lovely cups with original artwork, but I opted for one of her necklaces.

It's so inspiring to meet all these potters and see their studios. There are a LOT of mugs at these events, which has gotten me thinking that maybe I should upgrade my coffee mugs. The mugs I make are more like bricks, while the ones at these fairs are usually porcelain, light-weight and thin. Per usual, our jaunt has left me with lots to think about.

Clay fail!

I belong to a FB group called Clay Fail! It's a refreshing departure from the other pottery groups I follow where only the prettiest stuff is shown. (My least favorite phrase is, This is my first piece, which invariably accompanies something gorgeous.) The rule at Clay Fail! is no advice asked, none given. There is plenty of advice on the other pages.

Of course, I have a few failures of my own. One is this watering aid prototype. I was trying to enlarge the holes in the greenware, using a power drill. One prototype didn't survive.

I made this vase in a class and placed it in a safe location where Beau, the Feline Destroyer of All Things Nice, wasn't likely to knock it over. Unfortunately, it was not safe from my elbow.

I've been working on making slab mugs (sans handles), following this video. The clay was too wet to handle on the first attempt, so I left it to dry... too long. It cracked when I tried shaping the mug. The second attempt went better. The third, I thought I was making the bottom larger than the mug, but magically it turned out smaller. I still tried to make it work. We'll see how they turn out.

Woven clay

My SO and I attended a couple of local art fairs yesterday. We are becoming "regulars" at these things, have developed chatting acquaintances with some of the artists. Joe Pelka, the instructor of the turtle workshop, was there, with his clay and his acrylic paintings. We've run into Elizabeth Wamsley of Art Bank of North Manchester at several fairs, and this time I purchased a raku piece of hers, primarily because I liked how it felt in my hand.

A neighbor of my SO was there with his pottery. Once upon a time, I tried to weave with clay, but all I got was a coaster-sized piece. It's very tricky.

So when I saw clay woven baskets by Raymond, I had to purchase one. It's so impressive. I just love looking at it.

I kept saying that I was getting burned out on art fairs... but the Michiana Pottery Tour is coming up soon. We definitely don't want to miss that.

Stained

The other day, I mixed up some stains and oxides based on "recipes" in The Potter's Guide to Ceramic Surfaces by Jo Connell. This book was published in 2002, which may be why the author does not mention that you don't have to mix your own stain colors - there are over 100 mason stains available for purchase online. For someone with my skill level, there is no need to get all fancy schmancy and mix my own.

Anyway, I mixed up the following combinations:
Light olive green: 10g canary yellow (recipe calls for egg yellow but I don't have any) plus 2g cobalt oxide
Dark olive green: 10g canary yellow (again, recipe calls for egg yellow but I don't have any) plus 4g cobalt oxide
Mustard: 20g orange plus 8g red iron oxide

I tried the method described in a video I watched (which of course I cannot find now, but it was an introductory lesson): mix the stain with a little water in a plastic sandwich bag, then pour it into a well made with the clay (1kg of stoneware clay). I started with the mustard color.

I wedged the clay and stain mixture on a plaster batt and wore latex gloves, but it created quite a mess and stained the plaster batt. The color looks very RED - not sure if that will change after firing.

AFTER I tried this, I discovered that there is such a thing as a SLAB MAT. They are developed for putting clay through a slab roller, but they are available in smalled sizes for wedging, etc. They are not woven and don't stain, so clean up very easily. I order several from the Ceramic Shop.

I decided to wait until I have the slab mats before mixing the other colors. Maybe I will try sandwiching the stain mixture between discs of clay. Or I will go back to the "slip" method I used before, which takes more time but is less messy.