Hi there
Thanks for popping in. It has been a pottery morning. In fact it‘s been a pottery weekend, and I am rRight out of my comfort zone here!
Decided to figure out how to use oxides and oxide washes. Good God! Glad I wore rubber gloves! What a long way that stuff goes!! If you were thinking that pulling a print on the Gelpress plate with acrylic paint is way too messy, then you’ll probably want to give Copper Oxide washes a miss!
THIS IS NOT FOR THE FAINT-HEARTED!! Lovely Linda Williams – she who spent more time at the Clarity Gelpress Retreat washing her hands, wiping down the table and everyone else at the table! – she would have flipped here!
So after two days of stretching my pottery skills to the absolute max, I just closed the door on the kiln – and detached with love.
Everything in there is an adventure. Every single piece is glazed or treated using oxides or stains or slip or underglazes. I have been putting off the experimental session on finishing until I had a couple of days off.
I have been learning, watching youtubes, making notes for months. I’ve been getting better and better at building, throwingm, turning and so on, but I have avoided the glazing and finishing because I really don’t know for sure what I’m doing.
But in the end, you have to JFDI. Just Do it.
I have let go of every single piece in the kiln. To me they are specimens, pots and bowls used to try things out on. I have accepted that every single piece could be rubbish. I do hope nothing runs and sticks to the shelves, because they aren’t cheap, and I hope nothing explodes and takes out the rest of the pieces on the same shelf. But hey. If it does, if the whole lot blows, then I will have learnt more than I could in a year of lessons.
It’s quite exciting actually. Why always play it safe, and do what you already know works. Nah. This feels good.
Once we turn her on, it will be 12 hours to maximum firing heat, then at least 24 hours to come back down again. Patience also a requirement.
Have a great Sunday.
Love and Hugs
Barb xxx