My First Bowl
9.22.15
I made a short, wide bowl for my first bowl project. While making this project, because it was the first one I've thrown in months, I definitely had to work on opening the base the correct way and pulling up evenly. When I pulled up, the sides were different thicknesses, therefore I had to try two times to make sure my sides were relatively the same thickness. For my glaze, I decided to do a contrast of colors, black and white, dipping the project in black and then using a dropper to make a wave pattern on the outside for emphasis. My project exemplifies contrast and color and this adds emphasis to my project.
My Second Bowl
9.30.15
For my second bowl, I decided to focus on pulling up as even as I could so my base is wider and my walls are shorter because I had to trim them to make them as even as possible. With this project, I think I did a better job of compressing the lip. My first bowl had sharp edges because I didn't compress the lip, but I did on this bowl so it has nice smooth edges, giving it a softer look. For the glaze on this project, I decided to dip it in black and then use a paintbrush to make a pattern in white around the outside. The white slightly blended in with the black so I didn't get the complete contrast that I wanted but I think my project still has emphasis and the colors and pattern I choose make it aesthetically pleasing.
My First Vase
10.7.15
I have thrown vases before, but not super successfully, and I am pretty proud with the way this one turned out. If I was to do it again though I would start with a lot more clay because my vase is very short and when I had to trim the top I barely had any clay left for the lip. To make my vase shape, I used the technique where, when you're pulling up, you bring your outside hand up farther then your inside hand and with your inside hand gently press against the inside of the cylinder to get a rounded shape. This worked well for me. My lip was also slightly uneven but I had already trimmed it so much that if I went any further I wouldn't have a lip. For my glaze, I chose two different colors. I put deep brown on the top and turquoise green on the bottom because I liked the symmetrical look. Unfortunately, I put too much glaze on the bottom part of my project and it crawled like crazy in the kiln. Now I know the less glaze the better.
My First Planter
10.26.15
This planter didn't turn out as well as I would have liked. The lip is uneven and very rough to the touch, not smooth and rounded as I would have wanted it to be. I need to work on making my lip smoother. I didn't pull up the wall of the planter enough, so the base is very heavy. I think the foot ring is one of the best I have ever done, though. It looks very neat and even. When I was deciding what color/pattern to glaze my planter, I decided to go with the cobalt blue glaze because I really wanted to focus on one solid color for this project, no patterns or emphasis. I put 2 thick layers on but the color turned out very faded. In some spots, like at the bottom of the planter, it is deeper than others, but overall it has a very faded look. I am not happy with the glaze color, I thought it would have turned out deeper than it did. Making planters is a weakness for me and I have goals for making one next time: making my lip smoother and rounder and putting on more/thicker glaze.
Choice Project: My First Plate
Plates are easy for me, so that's why I decided to make one for my choice project. I started out with a pretty small piece of clay because I wanted to make a small plate to start off with. All my sides are even and the thickness of the clay is the same on all sides; this has been hard for me to make my sides even and so I am really happy that the walls turned out even. The foot ring on this project turned out well I think, the bottom looks very even. For the glazing of this project, I wanted to dip it in clear and then paint on a symmetrical pattern. I used a red paint and made a plus sign down the middle of my project. Then I used the yellow paint and made short lines coming out of the corners of the cross. For the last touch, I made a little purple dot at the end of each of the yellow lines. I wanted to use contrast with all of the different, bright colors.
My First Cup with a Handle
My goal for this project was to make a tall coffee cup that I could each morning to drink hot chocolate out of, but my plan didn't work out how I wanted it to. The walls of my project were very uneven, so I had to use the pin tool to cut off the top. I had to continuously do this in order to keep a level lip. Unfortunately, my project came out very short, the cup only being about 3-4 inches tall. With the glaze of this project, I decided to do a splatter pattern. So I dipped the whole cup in clear gaze and then when that dried, I splattered forest green all over the cup. This gave the cup an emphasis on the green which is what I wanted. Next time I make a cup with a handle, my goal is to make it at least 6 inches tall so it will be more practical. Every time I throw, I am getting better and better at pulling up the wall evenly and making the lip even in thickness, so I think by the time it comes for me to make a choice, I'll make a cup with a handle that will be taller.
My Two Bowls