Today I mixed up some more glaze tests. Lots of measuring. Lots of chemicals.
Small batches of recipes I’ve collected for cone 6 oxidation firing. I’m hoping that at least a couple of them turn out nice. I’m looking for good translucent colors that pool well, break well and have no crazing.

Just in case, I’m test firing the same glazes at cone 10 reduction to see if they turn into anything cool. Wouldn’t it be great if I got at least one beautiful glaze in cone 6 that ALSO looked different and equally as great at cone 10? Two successful glaze colors from one bucket. Wishful thinking, huh?!!!

Tonight I focused on making more test tiles for some upcoming glaze tests.
Textured with stamps and grooves to “break & pool” the glazes in all the right places.
I made two batches with two different clay bodies… just to see how much difference
the iron content makes!!!

I think I’m going to like the “cleaner-lighter” look of the new glazes on B-Clay.
Just guessing.

I started toying with some new glaze recipes a year ago.
If you recall, I started 2013 with a quest for some new glazes. And look…
here it is 2014 and I’m doing it again…. let’s just say that I kinda lost focus along the way.

So I’m going to try and do a better job this Winter. I need to make some new test tiles with a couple different clay bodies. And then I’m hoping to find a few new cone 6 oxidation glazes that pool well & break well in all of my stamped textures. An added bonus would be if that same glaze recipe also worked in a cone 10 reduction kiln. It would be wonderful to have some new “double-duty” glazes in my studio. Here are a few of the cone 6 glazes I tested during 2013… fewer than I wanted to…

I do believe there are a couple glazes here that are working well at cone 6. I need to do some more testing before I make full batches. And I would love to try a few more recipes to get a few different colors. I think that’s what is drawing me towards cone 6… some brighter colors. That and the fact that I could fill an electric kiln a lot faster & quicker to get a new pop of color into my inventory. Now don’t get me wrong… I love soda-firing. And I don’t expect that to change. I just want to broaden my pottery palette.

Anyone have any suggestions or glaze recipes they would be willing to share?
If you know of a glaze that pools well & breaks well at cone 6, but might be good at cone 10 as well, I’d love to get them. And here’s a deal… if you send me a glaze recipe and I decide to add it into my “repertoire”, I’ll send you a FREE stamped mug glazed in your color!

With my second Holiday Home Show this coming Saturday,
I’ve been getting a few new pieces out of the kiln just in time… limited quantities!
This last batch of glazed pieces comes from a cone 10 reduction gas kiln.
Some of them have some pretty sweet glaze runs & chemical interactions.

You can grab one of these beauties this coming Saturday at my place!
The SECOND Holiday Home Show
Saturday, December 14th from 10:00am-6:00pm.
If you need home address specifics, just send me an e-mail or Facebook message!

A quick glimpse “before & after” a cone 10 reduction glaze firing…
just in time for this Saturday’s Holiday Home Show.

Here’s a stamped platter leatherhard “before”… and glazed “after.”

And here’s a stamped bowl leatherhard “before”… and glazed “after.”

Night two of glazing was quite productive. Things were literally stacking up.

After I added the wadding these pieces went onto my rolling studio cart to make room on the table to glaze even more! Especially since I’m glazing to fill my own soda kiln AND share a cone 10 glaze kiln with two other studio members. Glazing for two different kilns at the same time is a little daunting.

When I finished glazing & wadding the mugs, I moved on to the new pieces. I did the same glaze inlay to help “pop” the stamps. These are the small size… tomorrow I’ll tackle the medium & large ones!

Let the glazing begin… looks like it’s going to be a long night.

Glaze inlaid into the stamps… and the top surface carefully wiped off to help accentuate the textures.

Next up… liner glazes!!!

We didn’t get very far… until we stopped at Joe Christensen‘s studio in Hudson, Wisconsin to see some huge pots, vessels & sculptures with wonderful textures, carving, slip patterns & sgraffito. Not surprisingly, larger pots using more clay take a lot more time to dry. So these large vessels have been sitting out for days, and are different stages of dryness. The darker the stoneware clay, the wetter the clay is.

And you thought those ones were big… check out this huge one still sitting on the wheel…

You know how I love texture & pattern… so I knew I had to share these great surfaces with all of you. Some especially wide & deep sgrafitto through the white slip layer.

On the other side of Joe’s workspace are some finished pots. Already glazed & fired.
Now just waiting to go home with a satisfied customer!

For those of you in the Chicago area, Joe and his huge pots will once again be on display at “One Of A Kind” over the first weekend of December. Click here for more information about Joe Christiansen.

Sadly, my cousin Kim’s favorite cat of all time passed away earlier this year. Rudy.
After years of cherished memories & warm nights snuggled together.
Luckily, her boyfriend Don knew that Rudy was so very special in Kim’s life, and that his passing was a momentous occasion in her life, so he had to be cherished, celebrated & memorialized. With that said, Don called me and asked if I would be willing to create a special, custom urn to hold Rudy’s cremated ashes. How could I say no? Although I’m not a fan of custom orders, this one was so touching & heartfelt… I knew I had to say ‘yes.’

I started by throwing two lidded jars. I knew that it would be better to hedge my bets and make two, knowing that at least one of them would turn out fine. There are so many opportunities along the way for a pot to get messed up, especially when soda firing. So I made two. One lower & rounder, the other taller and more statuesque. Each one was stamped with a nice repetitive pattern.

And then, I decided to customize them with some alphabet pasta letters… thanks to my former student Tracey who turned us onto the simple process.

So I separated letters and tried to find all the ones I needed.

Then I started pressing them into the leather-hard pots… okay, they were on the wetter-side of leather-hard. Along the way, I decided to hedge my bets one more time. To make one for “Rudy” and the second one for a more generic “Kitty.” I like the lower rounder jar better, so I was hoping for that one to be the finished piece for Rudy. But if that one doesn’t work out, “Kitty” would still be a viable option.

Once the letters were all pressed into the clay, I covered them with a band of colored flashing slip. A colored slip band across the jar and another one on the lid… with some accents in each an every stamp.

I left the pasta in place as they dried… and again when I bisque fired them. When the pieces came out of the kiln, they were a little scratchy around the letters where the slip had “built-up” around the pasta. A quick bit of sandpaper did the trick to even them out.

I then covered the stamps and letters with temoku glaze. Filling the indentations completely with glaze.

Then with a damp sponge, I wiped off the top layer of glaze to reveal the patterns & indentations now filled with glaze.

After a quick soda firing, both lidded jars turned out great. I’ve had to keep them “under wraps” for a few weeks so as not to ruin the surprise for Kim. The jars were in my last soda firing, but I had to wait until Kim received her gift before I could post them here

So this one now turns out to be an “extra”…
anyone have any ashes in a box somewhere that need a good home?!

And here’s the one that brought my cousin Kim to tears…
I gave the jar to her boyfriend Don during “Art In The Barn.” He proceeded to give it to her in front of all of us… my parents, her Mom, and more family & friends. She was so touched by the gift that she immediately turned into a sobbing mess. So touching. So emotional. So appreciative. Exactly the reaction one would like to get.  And now Kim’s favorite cat Rudy has a fitting resting place. RIP Rudy.