Glaze Tests

I have been extremely busy with testing glazes the last 3 weeks. My first batch was from Michael Bailey's book. I chose the AM1 base as I fell in love with the colors. They came out perfectly but proved to be too matt and opaque for functional ware.

My second round of glazes tests are from Mastering Cone 6 Glazes by John Hesselberth & Ron Roy: http://www.masteringglazes.com/index.html

They came out perfectly! I am so pleased and excited by the results. I will run another kiln load next week and post those pictures. Now I am dying to get on the wheel to make more! To check out my latest work with the MC6G tests, go to:

http://picasaweb.google.com/SunnyDazeDesign/MC6GGlazeTests1?authkey=i-BZTFQjkmg and http://picasaweb.google.com/SunnyDazeDesign/MC6GGlazeTests2?authkey=87aG5aHhyC8

Christmas Presents

There is nothing more special and rewarding than making something yourself and giving it to a family member or a friend. The candle holders to the right were gifts for my sister at Christmas and the Beer Stein and coffee mug was for my brother.

I wanted to give something extra special to my mother but I had yet to complete (fire & glaze) a piece which I felt was good enough or special enough. Luckily her birthday is coming up in a couple of months!

I'm Bustin'!

I love the shape of this bowl and the colors!!! Look at the cool effects where the green and black meet! This was going to be a gift but I like it too much to give away. Click on it to get a closer look!!!

A couple of days ago I was sitting at the wheel and I made something that made me say "Wow" for the first time! I am starting to be pleased with my results! So the lessons are paying off. I now have control over the clay and now it is just a matter of practice, practice, practice!

My test glazes are almost done so that is the next step! It is exciting and scary at the same time because I need to experiment with the glazes but I want results now that I really am starting to like what I am making. Yikes! Patience was never one of my assets!