Playing with textures & patterns again… with another batch of “hybrid mugs” fresh out of the soda kiln! I’ve really loved exploring the combination of wheelthrown & handbuilt parts & pieces… and how they come together into one seamless mug… or in this case, several mugs!!! Many of these hybrid mugs will be with me this weekend at the GLENVIEW SUMMER ART FAIR! Come on by to see them & fondle them in person!

“Hybrid mugs” assembled, trimmed & handled… and the MKM Pottery Tools that did most of the hard work. Sure, I might have had a tiny-something to do with it too?! But having good tools always makes it more fun!!!

Lots of stamping… lots of patterns… lots of textures! Always fun using my own handmade clay stamps to create the surfaces on my mugs. All pressed in one by one… by one… by one…

After the two-part stacked vase demo, I took the tall vase up to my studio and did a bit of stamping. Always good with a little “creative camouflage” to help cover up the seam in the middle!

Another TEXTURE TUESDAY with some fun textures & glaze pooling effects on these soda-fired “hybrid” mugs! I’m always enamored with this glaze effect when it comes out of the soda kiln… and the glaze highlights & breaks in all the right places!

And then last night after “stamping”… we continued on to “sprigging.” Kind of the opposite of stamping in a weird sort of way. Basically it’s pressing clay into a textured mold, and then popping out a little “medallion” of clay to score & slip and attach to the bowl. So the sprigs kind of turn into “inverted-stamps” creating a fun texture pattern wherever you choose to place them. All from one little handmade sprig mold… and more fun for my SURFACE DECORATION class last night!

Last night in my SURFACE DECORATION class we all tackled stamping as their technique-du-jour! Not only did I bring down my pre-made bowls for them to play with… but I also brought some of my own handmade stamps! So we talked about some fun stamping techniques… and then I set them loose to do their own stamping!!!

Soda-fired & highlighted in all the right places. Love how the unglazed surface caught the soda to create these details & highlights on this “hybrid” mug during my recent soda-firing!

Celebrating a little MUGSHOT MONDAY with a pair of new “hybrid” mugs fresh out of my latest soda kiln. Loving this new texture from MKM Pottery Tools … and how the soda-firing process creates great colors & accents on the unglazed exterior!

Last night in my SURFACE DECORATION class, we tackled textures & patterns created by “bulging” out the side walls of a straight-sided cylinder. To make it even more fun, we also played with colored slips, texture tools & sodium silicate for that fun crackled effect. Always fun to see my students trying the “tricks” after my demo!