Recently I had some of my pottery come out of the glaze fire with bloating in the clay. So, I went on a fact-finding mission to identify the cause and find a solution to this defect. I’m happy to say I’ve managed to fix the problem and I wanted to share what I’d learned about…
Making pottery can be tough on your hands and fingernails. Clay can dry out your skin and your nails. Also, clay is abrasive, which can make your nails thinner. So, how do you protect your nails when making pottery and ceramics? Fortunately, all is not lost. I’m someone with naturally thin nails. Even before I…
Buying a pottery kiln for home use is very exciting. But making the right choice is important and there are some key things to consider. In this guide, I’ll walk through my experience of buying an at-home kiln. I will flag up any essential things to bear in mind when you are choosing, installing, and…
One way to recycle your clay is to spread the wet clay over an absorbent surface. I’ve found that the best surface for reclaiming clay is a plaster slab. Making a plaster slab for drying clay is very simple. This is the process that I use, step by step. How to Make a Plaster Slab…
The term ‘majolica’ has been used to refer to two different kinds of pottery. One type is tin-glazed pottery and its production is said to date back to the 8th century. The other is colorful lead glaze pottery which emerged in Victorian England. In spite of this difference, there are ways to identify majolica…
Crazing in pottery glaze is a network of very fine cracks that cover the glaze on a piece of ceramics. Sometimes potters deliberately want to create a crazing effect, and this is known as crackle glaze. But a lot of the time crazing is considered to be an unwanted glaze defect. Crazing happens when a…
Making a clay vase is a fun project and they can become the centerpiece in a room. These three clay vase ideas are easy to make and can look lovely. Plus, they are made from printable slab templates which makes it easier to produce a well-proportioned piece. Clay Vase Ideas Using the Slab Technique Let’s…
Nerikomi pottery is a particular way of working with colored clay to create striking patterns. In this article, we will look at 3 simple ways to create beautiful Nerikomi patterns. One technique I will cover is how I make Nerikomi plates, which you can watch in my video here.. What is Nerikomi Pottery? Nerikomi pottery is…
The terms maiolica and majolica are often used to refer to the same thing. And the word faience is sometimes used as an umbrella term for majolica and maiolica! So, is there any difference between maiolica, majolica, and faience? Maiolica, majolica, and faience are all words that are used to refer to a broad category…
