Ceramic Painted Planter

After high school Sharon Massey enrolled in art school and after taking one ceramics class she was captivated with the diversity of clay. At that point she declared her major, ceramics. Her talents with painting came in handy once she mastered the art of wheel thrown pottery. Her love of color and painting transferred onto her work as she created beautiful and functional works of art. She makes a beautiful ceramic planter.

Materials:

potter's wheel
trimming tool
throwing sponge
wire tool
bucket of water
wedging board
newspaper
rib tool
low fire white clay
kiln
under glazes in a variety of colors
clear glaze

Steps:

1. Cut off a large piece of clay. Wedge or knead the clay to eliminate air bubbles.

2. Place the wedged clay onto the potter's wheel.

4. Push down with your index fingers in the center of the clay (figure B). Note: Measure the bottom of the opening to make sure you don't push down too far.

6. Smooth out the bottom by holding the sponge in your right hand and smoothing out the bottom of the clay from the outer edge of the inside to the middle (figure D). This forces the clay back to the center while smoothing out the bottom. This is an important step to prevent cracking.

8. Smooth the outside of the clay to eliminate any lines with a rib tool (figure F).

9. Smooth the inside of the piece.

10. Cut a wavy design into the rim with a wire tool (figure G).

11. Let dry for approximately two hours (figure H).

12. Apply the under glaze design in a random pattern. Carve through some of the under glaze with a trimming tool. Make face designs with the black glaze (figure I).

14. Immerse the piece into a bucket of finishing glaze (figure J). Wipe the base and set it onto newspaper to dry and to catch any dips while the glaze is drying. It dries in a couple of minutes.

15. Secure the piece on stilts and glaze fire in the kiln for approximately eight hours. Stilts prevent the piece from sticking to the shelf.

E-mail: masseypottery@hotmail.com