I was in such a hurry to get these dishes into this bisque that I did what I absolutely know better than to do, and I put them out in the sun to dry. They were fine, actually, in the mottled sun on my deck but they weren't drying fast enough for me, so I out them on my south-facing front steps, with the predictable result that one of them -- the one on the top right -- developed an s-crack. These are for an order. I wanted to get them into this bisque, because if I didn't, it would put off their delivery for another month -- and I was already a little slow getting started. A couple of weeks went by before I even threw the pieces. It's worth remembering that once I started, it only took fifteen minutes to throw four of these, and they don't need to be trimmed. These particular pieces (which didn't start out to be custom, but she kept getting gradually more and more specific) don't need any decoration, so the fifteen minutes, plus a minute or two with a rubber rib on the bottom, is all the wetwork time I have in them. Fortunately I only need two.
The surviving three did make it into the bisque, and will be fired on Wednesday; and I can cross one more thing off my to-do list.
I learned that lesson for the first time recently - brisk wind + hot sun = cracked bowl! I put it out with misgivings - having heard by hearsay a pottery lecturer remark on the wonderful drying quality of the wind that day. Oh well. The bowls look good. Atb D
ReplyDeleteIt's always the way isn't it. We know better, but do it anyway because we're in a hurry or whatever the reason. It's a perfect example of why we should always make more than we need just in case. Glad it worked out. Be well.
ReplyDeleteafter 10 years potting full time...i still do things like this much too frequently. being in a hurry often equals major mistakes...i'm still trying to learn this. i hope that the 2 bowls turn out well. i'm going to unload right now and see how the 3rd round of some sp order bowls worked out...
ReplyDeleteenjoy.
Why do we do that? At this very moment, I'm running a bisque kiln with pieces that had absolutely no right to be in there. And I knew it. And I will see the rewards for my impatience tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteAh, but if they make it through, you can be sure I will be pushing my luck again in the future.