10.05.2015
Categories: ornaments
Summer is over…
So I guess tonight was a good night to start making Christmas ornaments.
They’re thrown off-the-hump. When they stiffen up a bit, I’ll stamp them, trim them, slip paint them and add a hanging hoop where the “squishy” part is.
Hi Gary! I adore your work, and you’ve inspired me to make my own stamps. As a relatively new potter, I’m really intrigued by your ornaments! I spent most of today trying to figure out how you throw your ornaments. Any chance you could pass along some hints?
Cheers!!
Sherri Donlon
Absolutely LOVE your work. I’ve been making Christmas ornaments on the wheel but can’t figure out how to fire them in the kiln unless the top is flat and simple and the piece can stand upside down, on its own, on a shelf. Love the ornate tops of yours so if it is not too much to ask, could you explain how you rig up your pieces to fire in the kiln? I fire to ^5/6
Thanks, Carol
CAROL – Of course it’s not too much to ask. As you can tell, I’m willing to share pretty much everything. My ornaments are fired in a cone 10 soda kiln. So there is no glaze on them going in. I make a little tripod of clay that they “perch” on upside down. I did the tips in kiln wash so they don’t stick. And I try to balance them on the topper, NOT the ornament itself. I don’t want the tips to leave flashing marks on the sides of the ornament. If you do a search for “ornaments” on my blog, I’m sure there are photos of them in the soda kiln showing the tripod and the ornament going in.
Really lovely work. Are they solid or hollow
LAURA : My wheelthrown ornaments are always hollow. I throw them off-the-hump to make it a little easier to center & throw a smaller piece of clay.