Hello everyone! I apologize for being a neglectful blogger the past week thanks in part to how busy I find myself this time of the year. Also, I came down with a bug this past week and barely had energy to do the those tasks that I absolutely have to do every day. I’m on the mend now and hope to resume life as normal.
My after school kid’s clay club made these adorable little sculptures two weeks ago and when I pulled them out of the kiln, I was so darn excited to see how they turned out. The project was inspired by a fellow Colorado Potter’s Guild member who makes fun little ceramic and metal insects. I asked Penny Woolsey if she would mind if I did a similar project with my kid’s clay class and she gave her blessing.
The sculptures are hand built and then the screws are added before bisque firing. I was a little nervous about the metal melting in the kiln, and even called the screw manufacturer to verify the metal that was used to to make this particular screw to assure myself that I wouldn’t have a kiln disaster on my hands. Here’s a list of different melting temperatures of various common metals – so once I established that my screws weren’t lead, brass, aluminum or other low melting point metals, I fired the sculptures. I was so excited to open the kiln and find these gems and hated to give them back to the kids.
Porcelain unfired mug
In the meantime, I managed to get in a few studio hours last week and made a new type of mug (new for me). The body is thrown and the handles and base are hand built. I’m going to fire a bisque kiln this afternoon and am looking forward to seeing how this one will fare. It’s a large mug – 16 oz. capacity or so.
Porcelain doesn’t hold up well to hand building in general which is why I have been using a white stoneware clay for my hand built mugs. I like the whiteness of the porcelain clay better than the stoneware clay, so this might be a good alternative.
Have a good week,
~Cynthia
12 Responses to “Kid’s Sculptures and New Large Mug Design”
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Those pieces by your after school class are wonderful! Kids are just so creative!
I love your own creation too – the new mug looks lovely with the combination of the smooth and textured surfaces together. And thanks for the link about the melting temperatures, I’ve saved it in case I need it for future reference.
The kids sculptures are uber cool.
Looking forward to seeing what you will do with the mug
it’s amazing what a few screws can do… sweet..
The kid’s pieces are soooo great! I just did a barrel firing with some little guys at the Montessori school and I know that excitement well. When we dumped out the trash can the coil pots and pinch pots and rattles we made looked fantastic. I totally forgot to take pictures I was so excited! I am going to get some of my kids projects together for a post one of these days…………..
The kids sculptures are fun! I love how they used drywall screws for legs, antennae, and tails! That’s great!
Good to hear you’re on the mend, Cynthia. I know several people who are currently fighting off nasty ‘bugs’.
Those pieces are great — your kids must have been so excited! Love the new, big mug with all the mod cons: 16 oz. and a roomy handle. Can’t wait to see the next step.
I love both!!!
Love the sculptures and the new mug.
Linda U. – Kids are super creative, aren’t they? My students try to yoink my chain occasionally saying, “I don’t know what to make, can you help me?” I always tell them, that I know what they’re capable of making since I’ve seen their work. I think they like the attention…
Thanks – Janet, Judi and Linda!
Ang – hehehe I’m only on my first cup of java this morning…
Tracey – I don’t photograph all of my kid’s work, but I try to. I’m thinking of putting a book of kid’s clay projects together and have been compiling info, photos and inspiration. Not all of it is photo worthy though. I would love to do a pit or barrel firing some day – that would be cool.
LB – you would be the one to know that these are dry wall screws! (lol) Some kids didn’t add the screws to their work – I think they weren’t sure how it turn out. I did the project with my daughter’s art teacher for her class at school too, and I had some kids (all boys) who turned their screw/sculptures into weapons with sharp point outwards- doh. Imagine their surprise when I added little balls of clay to the ends?
WJ – Yeah, nasty bug is still here, but I’m better – not 100%, though my head doesn’t feel like I’ve been hit by a freight train.. I hope this means that I’m exempt from sickness for awhile now… I did a bisque fire last night and had hoped to fire the mug, but alas, it’s still too wet. The hand built handles are persnickety and need to be dried slowly to avert cracking.
This mug looks so nice and I believe it is very practical at the same time! Because the ripples in the surface probably make it easier to hold it, and not all the designers consider the use of things. The other day I held a mug with a handle which was almost impossible to hold, so I renounced on it and just held the mug, not the handle.
Thank you very much for your kind comment on my blog, it was really helpful.
I made some pottery when I was a student, and I know how much knowledge and experience it requires to get out of the kiln what you planned to get.
I’m enjoying listening to KVOD while reading blogs and loving the kids insects! The white porcelain mugs with a stoneware handle do it just fine for me. I’m excited to see it when it comes out of the kiln.
Hi Cynthia – The kids’ pieces are great. You are a wonderful teacher and they are so lucky!
Question on the mug: You mentioned that the base is hand-thrown… Why hand-throw the base?