exactly what the title says. im not a potter, but i enjoy watching the process. surely with how expensive clays can get, the industry would have figured out a way to inoculate a non irritating white mold for a high end throwing clay?

I can’t pull walls but I can make organic art.

I’ve been searching for a second hand wheel with no success. Someone finally listed a Brent C with tons of tools and bats, but it’s 20 years old. Is this still a good investment?

ETA- thanks for all the feedback! I will most likely just purchase a new Shimpo lite.

Like the title says. I am an amateur potter so about how much clay would I need for a 40oz pitcher? I have a hard time pulling thin walls. Thanks!

The bottom and top is just a studio glaze but the upper outside of the vase is amaco PC vintage Gold. I know that the reason for the bubbles and pinholes is that it was applied too thickly.

I have used vintage Gold before and when applied using three coats it turns out very dull. This is four coats and I like the shine it has, but I am struggling to get the balance right between a nice metallic shine and a smooth finish. I attend a pottery studio so I have very little input to kiln firings. I wonder if there is a trick to get a nice smooth finish. Was thinking of maybe thinning it with either water or gum solution. Any input would be appreciated.

I broke a friend’s handmade bowl (thankfully not a precious piece to her) and I told her I’d make her a new one.

My question is, how is this glaze effect achieved? How would I apply it?

We learned donut shapes in class and were told before the first fire you have to poke a hole in the form to ensure the inside fully dries and to prevent an explosion. So I did 2 trinket trays leaving the hole but after the final firing the hole looks like a defect. After the bisque can this be closed with glaze before the final firing? Or do I really need the hole?

What is the reason?

I was really excited about this piece. The design was inspired by ancient Chinese Chu Dynasty lacquerware, and after the first color test, I was thrilled with how much it actually resembled authentic lacquerware.

For the black layer, I used an airbrush to apply the underglaze. However, the bottom cracked during firing. I’m wondering if it could be an issue with the underglaze concentration, uneven drying, or maybe an S-crack from compressing the base?

I’d really appreciate any insights or suggestions on why this happened and how to prevent it next time!

Standard 112 clay with commercial glazes fired to cone 5

Earthenware.

i’m a potter based out of india and work out of my little home studio. shared some carafe sets last week and you guys showed it so much love, i am truly grateful! hoping to connect with more and more of you, please do reach out if at all! :)

note: i don’t make my own glazes (yet) and buy these from a local glaze manufacturer/vendor!

I’ve always been glazing these pieces with black as the design but I think white has its own unique flair. Now I’ll need to really try some other color combinations as well. Which do you prefer - white or black?

Hi everyone! I’m interested in cuerda seca and have done some designs with gold sharpie as resist but the lines aren’t as thin as I’d like. I thought about getting a batik pen. Anyone here who does this kind of work and has suggestions? Recent “just fucking around” jar pic for the algorithm. TIA!

I want to create a series of ceramic cups and vases, roughly the size of shot glasses, that all have the same inner diameter - 1.25" and depth - 2.50".

The exterior shape will vary, but the interior must remain consistent after firing. I know it will take some trial and error to nail down the shrinkage, I may need to plan on a 1.5" wet ID in order to get a 1.25" fired or glazed ID.

My first thought was hand building around a DIY Mug Plug, but I feel like at this size it's going to be a lot of work to join the seams and build the bottoms.

Alternatively, could I ball some clay around a plug or form, throw it on the wheel, shape the outside, then pull the plug? Something akin to a Jigger, Drape or Hump Mold?

I'm currently dealing with reclaiming all of my built up clay waste, and I was lazy, so there's more than usual. There's probably 30+ lbs worth (enough to take up over 5 gallons of my reclaim bucket after soaking and hitting with the paint mixer).

I'm drying it out on a big piece of sheetrock in a shed with good ventilation and mixing it occasionally with a kitchen bench scraper to keep it even. It wasn't so bad when the clay was really wet, but it's getting really difficult to work with now that it's about half way dry.

How do others deal with this much wet reclaim, and any tricks to make it easier to deal with?

i took home my unfinished pottery from a color me mine type of place and im having trouble figuring out how i can paint on the details without making a big blob of paint.

the place i went didnt have very good detailing paint bottles. as you can see the couch looks kinda bad. the lines were done with the detailing bottle

all tips appreciated, thank you

I’ve been using this handmade black clay cup every day for water, tea, and coffee, and the color has slowly started to change.

Some parts look lighter yellow or dark blue or green and softer now, especially around the rim and interior. I’m wondering how potters would read this: is it mineral deposit, tea staining, surface wear, absorption, or something about the clay/firing?

More broadly, do you think this kind of change is damage, patina, or part of the life of the object?

I personally find it beautiful, but I’d love to learn what might be happening materially. For context, it's a handmade black pottery cup from a Himalayan pottery tradition. From what I understand, it was low-fired and blackened through a carbon-smoking/reduction process rather than glazed.

Beginner here! Sometimes I'll be adding wax resist on my piece and when I'm almost finished, my brush slips and I'll get a tiny bit of wax in a spot it's not supposed to be. Any tips for fixing little mistakes like this without refiring the piece and starting over? I've had some success glazing over the spot anyways but sometimes it still leaves a little bare spot.

Bonus question: Any tips for cleaning up glaze droplets from details areas of wax resist? I've tried going over the area with a sponge but noticed it thinned out the glaze in that spot and left my piece looking uneven. Thanks!

Just want to share this fantastic glaze combo.

KYMW Sea Side over Frosted Periwinkle.

For those who throw at home and fire elsewhere, how do you transport your dried greenware without it breaking? Bins/boxes/trunk/seat?

I’m moving soon and will be using my wheel at home but am not in a place to have my own kiln, so I’ll need to transport. Curious for any advice!

Howdy!

Basically the title. I had a local small business ask if I wanted to do a pop up pottery sale for my pieces.

To date, I’ve only ever sold (or mostly given away) to friends and family. This would be my first in-the-wild sale.

With that in mind: I’m a little confused on what I need to do to have my ducks in a row. Do I need a sales tax ID? Anyone have a card reader they like? Just do it cash or Venmo?

Any help would be appreciated!

I know you can touch up pieces with crawling and refire them. Can you use a brush on glaze on fully vitrified pieces and expect it to come out similar to bisqueware? I'm a bit bummed. I was there when she was loading the kiln and set it to fire. She's new and I specifically asked her if she did the bisque program and she laughed and said yes.