Have Wheel, Will Throw
My friend, George told me I could put some of my pots in his brand, new Minnesota Flat Top kiln, a Nils Lou design. So I said, "Ok."
This is the very first time George would be firing his new kiln. What an honor.
I had lots of bisque ware in my old studio. Eighteen years old. There are people who weren't born when I threw some of these pots and some of those people, after they got borned and stayed alive for eighteen years, voted in the latest presidential election. I found a bowl that I helped the daughter of my then girlfriend make. I didn't realize this until I turned it over, and there it was: "Kymber 7/24/91."
I took each bisqued piece and washed it thoroughly to cleanse it of all those years of dust and mice poop. We let the pots dry before applying wax resist to the feet and then glazing them. My wheel sits in my kitchen. I threw 14 mugs and then knocked out another dozen bowls to make sure I'd have enough to contribute toward the 14 cubic foot load. Turns out there so many pots, that George could have loaded the entire space with just my ware, with pots left over. After we tore down the door, George was wishing he'd let me fill it.
Funny how reduction works. What you have to do is starve the firing atmosphere of oxygen so that carbon (in this case from propane, but it could be natural gas, wood, etc.) does its little chemical reaction trick in the glazes to make them all nice and pretty. Well, not having fired the kiln before, it was all guess work. Add to that the fact that George had previously only been firing in smaller updraft kilns and this baby was all down draft. Yeah. So his glazes didn't get enough reduction and they sort of sucked, while mine didn't get enough reduction and turned out just fine. Reason for that is this: George wanted to use different glazes from the ones I chose. Luck of the draft. Uh, draw. Whatev.
It's good to be back.
Now I'm on my way to give Kymber her pot.
Merry Christmas, Peeps. I love you.
28 Comments:
oh wow! how beautiful are they? i'm so glad you got to fire them. when ya gonna make more?
Hi there Limers! I think I'll be making and making and never no more not making. My own studio should be up and running by Spring. I hope, I hope. Glad you like them!
GAWPO!!! I've missed you!!
Those pots are cool!!! I've always wanted to do pottery, but have never done it. Le sigh.
Merry Christmas, my friend!
Hey bonehead! Good to see a post and WHAT a lovely one indeed! I'm headed right over as I may need some extra coffee cups for cocoa Christmas morn. Hugs to you and have a Peace filled Christmas neighbor!
Here it is Christmas Eve and it's quiet here and I decided maybe, just maybe you'd post. I cannot tell you what a gift it was to open your blog and see a new post AND the fact you are back at the pot....ha! I had to say that!
Everything looks gorgeous and I am hoping you will be selling your wares. I need a new mug (well you can take that both ways...coffee AND facially).
Anyway, I've missed you my friend and I hope all is well in your world!
I hope you'll post more often.....it's always a treat!
Merry Christmas!
Love and smooches,
Lisa
Nice to see you back, you had a few of us a wee bit worried about you.
Your work is simply beautiful and very professional looking.
Happy Holidays!!
It is good to see you haven't gone to 'pot' since the last time I was here! hooo heee!So..now that I am in Portland...what UP WITH ALL THIS SNOW????
Gawpo!!
They is goooorgeous.
You are a creative genius, an addition to the positive side of life. Thanks for not being a subtrahend, or a divisor :D
Happy New year, hon!
THERE you are!!! I was beginning to fret a tad. E and I were just talking the other day about which of your pieces we still have. They all made the move just fine and we were lamenting that we have no current additions. Sigh. : )
very pretty. my cups always ended up looking like ashtrays..and my glaze would always bubble. it's good to see you again. happy new year!
Love that bottom plate Gawpo, Happy New Year to ya, and good to have you back.
Wonderful colors! Thanks so much for sharing and Happy New Year!
The pots are ABSOLUTELY BOO-TI-FULL!
Happy New Year my friend...you have been thought of....and missed!
wow. wow. wow! omg. they're beautiful, gawpo.
you are a talent man.
mmmmmMmmmm.
happy new winter. stay warm. keep plenty of cocoa in supply.
What?? You're back with all the beautiful magic that drew me in in the first place! What a wonderful surprise on New Year's Day!
I love the photos of your work. Amazing!! I'm wanting some French onion soup in one of those festive pots right now. ;)
HAPPY NEW YEAR, AMIGO!!
What a relief to see you back.
Losing Joe is bad enough. I couldn't stand losing both of you.
There is so much of a missing link, a void, since losing dear Jeaux. Sigh.
Gawpeaux, those pots. Divine. And I love you too!
You know, maybe eighteen is a magic number. They are extra special now. Vintage, even before firing.
You've brightened up my day. So glad I stumbled here to find you again.
xoxo
What do you know, I stumbled in right after my first born..!
Quite unplanned.
I think you are the only person who blogs less than I do. All that will change as I have started over with a new page for the new year.
The pots are gawjus! I loved taking pottery classes, but never managed to make anything as wonderful as these.
Happy New Year..
hugs
Sheila
xx
I want you to start an Etsy shop and sell your pottery.
?
SM: Si! Si! Don't wait to have another baby to start throwing pots. That's my sage advice.
CHEESE NUGGETS: Hey. The coffee is getting cold. But it can be reheated. Come on over. Steamers await.
LEESUH OCEANDREAMUH: Sigh. I think I have a broken tooth in my sprocket. Now that I got my life back and am working a real job, I'm making up for lost time doing all sorts of catching up int he 3D world. More blogging sure to come. xoxoxoxxxxooo!
BUTCH!: Yes, well, tardy doesn't even begin to cover it. Not sure why I have this blog block. But it's okay. I am so happy to see you here. Really. I was shocked to see so many visits here. My email notification has reported only three. I may have to check my settings as I am now wondering if some of you are going to spam. Not the kind you eat, either.
PAM AIRIES: Hooty Hoo! Yes, it WAS indeed very snowy when you left your comment. Now it's beautiful at the beach and very foggy here where I sit at the Portland airport. Story to follow in latest post. Stand by.....
PHOGOLILE: Subrahend? Subtrahend? You know you've just enmissioned me, don't you?
Signed,
C.G. (creative genius)
SARAH: What I'm thinking is that your latest addition needs to be drinking and eating from a latest edition. It shall be so.
MINDANCE: Dahling, you needed to go with a stiffer body, maybe with a touch more OM4 ballclay or a good frit like, say, 3134 and a pinch of nepheline syenite to flux it down a touch. I'm guessing you were too high in dolomite and allowed the gerstley borate to dry out the eutechtics on the top of the heatwork curve. Oh, and as for the bubbling, use Dawn instead of Palmolive. Trust me, Babe.
BAZZAH: Wow. You even picked one out. It went to my sister for
Christmas. Actually, she's for other things as well.
BWOOKIE!: I am stranded at PDX. I will call you. xo
VICCANCE: And I too think of you. I need to unpack and set a spell, I think.
CATNAPPING: YOU GAVE ME GOOSEBUMPS! Really? Thank you, dear real artist person friend. Thank you.
SCARLETA: Boy, I feel really great. Everyone is welcoming me back, I don't check the comments box for like, oh, gee.....WEEKS ON END!, and I am realizing the love. My blogging vaycay is so au revoir, so adios. Entonces, amiga, fijate----HOLA!
BLUE TSG: What? What?!!!! Jeaux? Gone? Really? I wouldn't gneaux because I have been so sleaux to geaux. But he's gone? Are you Gawpin' me? I must check this to be true or not true.
Dear me. I hope I wasn't a bad influence on the chap, our good and wonderful and beautiful friend, Jeaux.
But you, dear----hello. I embrace you here. Hug. Hug.
Hope you stumble back. I have a story to tell.
SHEELER, MOB: Wow. That's amazing. That you stumbled by right after #1 dawhtuh did. HELLO, SHEILA! I have to see how finances shape up with the new job and all so that I can have a better idea if I can still come to the weddin'. I am hoping so. If so, then pottery will be in tow.
BLUE TSG: Get outta Cindra's brain! I am a stranger in the ways of the Etsy. But I trust you two. I say YES!
Depot Bay... FEBRUARY!
CHEESY: w00t!
Yo. Why didn't this post show up on my fed reader? And where have you been keeping yourself? Don't be a stranger!
Hi Gawpo. How nice to see you back (more or less). Of course, I'm the pot calling the kettle black since it took ME a month to arrive and find this post. I like your potting style. Very masculine colors. I bet Kymber was a very surprised young woman.
Happy Wednesday! Bloghoppin' here... Hey, I have an interesting tutorial for you that I have written myself. It is about adding Adsense on your Single Post in XML template. I hope you'll like it! God Bless you!
I like the glaze with the slice in it... a tear in the bowl of the sky.
Gawp, are you ever posting again? I miss you.
Hey, It's March already. I miss your posts.
Happy St. Paddy's Day!
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