Stoneware Wall Box Tile Trio
5 Ravens Wall Box Tiles, printed stoneware clay, mishima, brushed glazes and laser toner decals
This trio was a ton of fun to make and decorate. In fact I enjoyed making these so much that I had intended to make more right away. Now that the show pressure is off and the making cycle interrupted, it’s been harder to get back in the studio groove. It doesn’t help that the month of May is a terribly busy one with my daughter’s school activities and my extra volunteer/chaperone/sub duties related to school. But, it’s almost over…the school year officially ends in a mere 11 days when my (weep, weep) 5th grader graduates to middle school. Or as Denver Public Schools puts it – “continues” – sounds more feel good P.C., don’t you think?
Three 2.5" square by 1" deep wall boxes
After constructing the wall boxes, I played around with placement – shuffling them around until I liked how the textures lined up. BTW, this set up was not my final choice.
Side view
To keep the boxes from warping after I constructed them, I weighted them between 2 pieces of drywall board and periodically checked on them until they were bone dry. These were constructed with 45° degree beveled joints which I then scored and slipped with paper clay for strength before joining.
Added a small notched slab for easy hanging
Sarah, a ceramicist up in South Dakota, asked how these hang the other day and I just happen to have a photo of my system in the archives. When I’ve made these in the past, I’ve tried different techniques from just using the upper edge, to punched holes for wire to these little notched additions. The little slabs were left over after I constructed the boxes and just seemed like a good idea at the time. I centered the notch with a measured center point on the top of each tile. These can also sit on a shelf instead of being hung on a wall (see the first photo).
Meanwhile, I did a little pendant glaze firing last night in my mini Aim test kiln. Tomorrow is my last teaching day for my after school clay class and I decided to give the kids a little going away present – star shaped pendants with their initials decaled on the front. The kiln is still too hot to touch this morning – but I did prop the lid open to speed cooling. After I drop my daughter off at the school bus stop and take the hounds for a run, I’m going to spend the am looking for a cool font and will print the initial decals.
Have a great week,
Cynthia
