Rushing to get everything done. I’ve got my next soda kiln firing scheduled for this coming Saturday. Which means I need to load everything Friday evening. Which then means I need to have everything glazed & wadded before then. Looking at the calendar, and counting backwards, I only have a limited amount of time left. So I NEED to push this through a little faster than I would like. I’ve had things in front of fans drying as much as possible. But at some point, I just needed to get them into this bisque kiln. If you look close, you can see the dampness in the darker clay. Not my usual “tight” packed kiln… but I wanted a bit more air space for drying purposes. No stacking & nesting of wet work!!!
Kiln Layer #1 – bowls, tiles and damp mugs.
Kiln Layer #2 – tiles, damp tumblers and more damp mugs.
Kiln Layer #3 – textured salt & pepper shakers, tiles and more mugs!
Kiln Layer #4 – a few larger tiles and the new “round” slab vases.
They’re packed tight, and still a bit wetter than I would like them to be. I’m going to candle the kiln with a slow preheat and fingers crossed. I’m hoping it works. I would hate for these to explode after all this work… although I am “expecting” some varied results. We’ll see in a day or so when I unload this kiln…
The amount of nail-biting in ceramic work is astronomical, isn’t it? Even when you know what you’re doing–sometimes BECAUSE you know what you’re doing!
I’ve got a commissioned plate and my first porcelain sculpture in the kiln right now, and I swear I need a tranquilizer until it’s safe to open! Eek!
Best of luck with your firing! Fingers crossed for you!
Hey Gary – What are the bits and pieces in your large bowl in the 1st pic?
ANNE – The little bits of clay are small beads & chunks of clay that I’ve accumulated. Something as simple as wiping the clay off my wire tool makes a nice little ball of clay. I collect all of these pieces and bisque fire them. I then use the pieces whenever I’m making a piece that I want to rattle. I keep a little stockpile at hand. The different sizes & shapes make different sounds in the finished rattles. And, you know how I love kiln filler… this is just a little more extreme!!!