Lesley
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Pottery Therapy: 7 Health Benefits from Working with Clay
Pottery therapy is one aspect of working with clay that doesn’t get the attention that it deserves. Pottery and other clay products are a staple in many homes and buildings today. From the aesthetic appeal that they can bring to spaces to their functional applications, the reasons for that are not farfetched. However, working with…
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How to Identify Salt Glazed Pottery – Key Features & Marks
If you are involved in the pottery field – whether as a potter yourself or lover of fine things – you would have come across quite the number of designs and finishes. From the terra sigillata to salt-glazed pottery, these units bring different things to the table. Salt-glazed pottery is usually characterized by its German…
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Is Terra Sigillata Food Safe? – Or Is It Purely Decorative?
Terra sigillata has long been in use by potters who continue to push the limits of what’s possible. This low-fire clay method is best applied when potters are trying to achieve a fine, smooth finish on the outside of their products without glazing. But then, that begs the question – is terra sigillata food safe?…
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How to Become A Potter – Getting a Pottery Qualification?
Take it from someone who has been there: pottery can look intimidating from the outside. If you were considering how to become a potter, standing in awe of these magnificent ceramic creations could make you rethink your choices – and if you are cut out for this in the first place. Becoming a potter is…
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Pinch Pot Artists – 12 Potters Using the Pinching Technique
The pinching technique can be used to make exquisite pottery and artwork. Here are 12 pinch pot artists, who demonstrate how refined and creative the pinching technique can be. The breadth and diversity of their work illustrates how versatile pinching clay as a method of hand building can be. The following pinch pot artists are…
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Can You Use Decorating Slip on Bisque? – Slip on Bisqueware
I recently made a lovely red terra cotta vase, and bisque fired it. I was wondering what glaze to use when it occurred to me that a nice white slip would look good. But I had already bisque fired it and I wondered, can you apply decorating slip to bisque. So, I did a little…
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Pinch Pot Mug – 2 Ways to Make a Mug Without a Wheel
Making a pinch pot mug is simple, and like anything the more you practice the easier it will become. Once you have mastered the pinching technique you can get creative and find your style. In this article, I will show you my two favorite ways to make a pinch pot mug. This is a…
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How Thick Should a Pinch Pot Be? – Pinch Pot Walls
Making pinch pottery is very tactile. As you pinch your pot you will feel the thickness of the clay between your fingers and thumb. But just how thick should a pinch pot be? Exactly how thick you want your pinch pot to be is a matter of personal choice and taste. However, there are a…
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Pinch Pot History – A History of Pinch Pots Over the Years
Pinch pots are one of the oldest ways of making pottery. There is evidence that pinch pot history starts many thousands of years ago. The simplicity of the technique has survived over the millennia. When I discovered that pinch pots were being made as far back as the Neolithic era, I was oddly reassured. …
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How to Make a Pinch Pot – 3 Ways to Make Pinch Pots
Pinch pots are one of the easiest and fastest ways of hand building pottery. Once you have mastered the basic pinch pot technique you can use it to make a lot of clay projects. So, I thought I’d write a step-by-step guide on how to make a pinch pot. In this article, I start off…
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Wheelchair Accessible Pottery Wheel – What are the Options?
I had been thinking about running some pottery classes. And one of the questions on my mind was how to provide a wheelchair accessible pottery wheel. So, I started looking into it and this is what I found out. You can buy a wheel that is specifically designed to be wheelchair accessible, however, these are…
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Table Top Pottery Wheel – Shimpo Aspire or Speedball Artista
I decided to buy a table top pottery wheel. The two most highly recommended table top pottery wheels I could find, are the Shimpo Aspire and the Speedball Artista. But which one is the best? I wanted a table top pottery wheel that I could put in the back of my car, and transport easily. …