Just over an hour until I start my ZOOM demo as part of the NORTHERN ILLINOIS POTTERY TOUR. It’s totally free for anyone who wants to join me. I’ll be showing you how I add stamped textures & patterns to my wheelthrown bowls… and answering questions at the same time! Yep, that’s me multi-tasking!!!

All you need to do is quickly register FREE online to get the ZOOM code… and then join me in my studio at 8:00pm CST. Hope to see you then!!! – www.northernilpotterytour.com

The NORTHERN ILLINOIS POTTERY TOUR starts tomorrow morning at 8:00am CST. This inaugural year the Tour will be “virtually” online… but starting next year we’ll be out there in-person for a full-on Pottery Tour! Until then, check-out the website for full details, free demo schedules, and links to all TWENTY-ONE POTTERS!!! www.northernilpotterytour.com

And don’t forget… my new ETSY SHOP goes live tomorrow at 8:00am as part of The Tour. Here’s the link to bookmark & follow ahead of time… www.etsy.com/shop/firewhenreadypottery

Tomorrow is the big kick-off of the NORTHERN ILLINOIS POTTERY TOUR! Check-out the website for information, artist links & to register for FREE POTTERY DEMOS!!!

We have twenty-one potters on The Tour, many of which will be doing free demos. I will be in my studio tomorrow night doing a demo on how I uses handmade stamps to add texture to my pottery. If you would like to join me in my studio, you just need to register online to get the ZOOM link for all of the demos… plus, you’ll also be registered in a drawing for some free pottery by our Tour Hosts!!!

GARY JACKSON : STAMPED POTTERY DEMO
FRIDAY, JUNE 18th, 2021 @ 8:00pm CSTMore info at www.northernilpotterytour.com

Some more stamped surface decoration for this weekend’s NORTHERN ILLINOIS POTTERY TOUR!

Wanna see how I do it…
Well, tomorrow night I will be doing a ZOOM demo live from my studio at 8:00pm! You just need to register for free on the Pottery Tour website to get the ZOOM link. And if you do, you’ll have access to all of the free artist demos… and have a chance to win a free piece by one of the tour host artists!

Check out the list of free demos on the website… www.northernilpotterytour.com

After my quick stamping demo, my SURFACE DECORATION students set-off to start stamping their own pieces & the bowls I gave them. So much fun to see them getting their groove on… and adding grooves & textures into the clay! So much fun for all of us… as MORE IS MORE!

Last night in my SURFACE DECORATION class, we tackled stamping textured patterns into clay… go figure! I did my first demo bowl explaining the process along the way… and then let them set-off on their own stamping adventure on the plain bowls I provided for them… along with a few of my handmade stamps!

Some simple stamping on some simple spoon rests on a simply rainy Saturday!

After my sgraffito demo Thursday morning, I also did a quick stamping demo for them as well. One stamped impression at a time… one after another… all the way around!

Doing some more repetitive stamping on a couple larger pieces tonight… row by row, layer by layer… one stamp at a time!

So I’ve been stamping another batch of mugs! A little “something” different as they wre made with a new kind of clay. A tilemaker friend of mine bought some new clay and didn’t like how it “felt” when he started using it. And then when he fired his tiles, they all cracked during the firing. So he believes there might be something wrong with the clay?! He passed it on to me to give it a try… and here I did. I will agree it felt a little goopey & sticky… a little more finicky… but ultimately I made some cylinders for mugs. It was a little tougher to get them to stand up & hold their shape. But I’m sure I’ll get used to it… as he’s planning on passing his “bad” clay onto me!!! Bring it on… CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!!!

Mug 1 – before & after…

Mug 2 – before & after…

Mug 3 – before & after…

Mug 4 – before & after…

Mug 5 – before & after…

Mug 6 – before & after…

Mug 7 – before & after…

Mug 8 – before & after…

Mug 9 – before & after…

So for now