beginnings

I'm loving having my own pottery wheel here at home. Its been great to be able to practice whenever I get a chance, especially since my ceramics course has ended. I am still a complete beginner on the wheel and I feel like I need to put in the hours to change that. Its also been nice to have time and space to concentrate and learn.

I love throwing but it is maddeningly hard, and I'm pretty sure I'm not alone in that opinion! One day I might have a good day and feel I've moved forward in my skills. But just as I feel I am starting to get the hang of it I will have a session like yesterday when I go back to feeling like a complete beginner and ruin every pot I attempt!

I haven't fired any of my pieces. I'm waiting to collect up a good batch to take to one of the local firing places. I kind of love them though in their greenware or unfired clay forms.

I'm enjoying playing around too with decoration techniques. From my readings there is almost a limitless range of ways to decorate your pots, and in my usual overly ambitious and enthusiastic style I am impatient to try as many as I can!

So far though I've only bought one glaze, a black underglaze. I bought it to play at mishima - incised and glazed pieces like this bird above. I haven't quite got it, My glaze seems to sponge out of the incised marks so the glazing is a bit faint, but I will keep trying. I think I need a wax resist to paint over the outside to protect the unglazed clay before I carve.

The spotty design was made with wet paper cutouts stuck to the clay and then painted over. Another experiment which needs more practice but I do love the dots.

The leaves and flowers are just painted, with the added details on the leaves scratched out later.

I'm sure you can see the flaws in my work, I can!

I wanted to share and document my beginnings here though, in case any of you were interested in ceramics or having a go yourself, but also to have a record of this fun creative journey.