Hello All

Hello, Just thought I'd introduce myself as I have just joined the group. I found google groups today and was pleasantly surprised to find one dedicated to my passion! I work out of a corner of my garage. When I was in school (I've recently graduated) I high fired, either reduction or salt/soda cone 10. Now that I no longer have access to such facilities I am trying to adapt to cone 6 out of my little electric kiln. Its tough but I'm making it work :) I started working with clay about 8 years ago, and hope to keep it up the rest of my life. I rather miss the clay community I had at school, so I am looking forward to participating in this group and getting to know some of you! I hope a few of you will tell me something about yourselves, maybe what temp you fire to and what type of work you do. (Oh, I do mostly functional, but have been leaning more towards some slightly sculptural/concept peices recently. I'm not exactly sure what the future holds for my pots!)

Reply to
anna
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Hi and Welcome Anna! I'm Donna. I also learned pottery doing reduction firing at cone 10 (with the raku firings as entertainment at parties). I'm now working at cone5-6 oxidation with an L&L kiln. I recommend Mastering Cone 6 Glazes if you don't already have it. The authors also have a very nice site (actually 2 sites).

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recently did a workshop on pitfiring and really liked it. It fills my need for the flame and gives the surprise element that you don't get much of in electric firings (which can be a good thing). I liked the white clay that was used and am now thinking of working more in the white range. So much to try. So little time. Lots of good people here. and also at
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easier to read archive iswww.potters.org One of my favorite places is
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These are all places that help me find that electric firing can be just as vibrant and exciting as reduction.

Look forward to your input. The room is always nicer when it is busy.

Reply to
DKat

Hi, welcome and seasons greetings Anna, I'm fortunate enough to work as a tutor and technician in two colleges but neither of these at present fire Raku or Reduction; and my tiny kiln at home only fires to 1200 degrees C so for a couple of years now I've had to explore low fired oxidised glazes to the n'th degree.

Exploring both low fired and high fired, oxidised glazes for the past twelve years or so, has led me to the conclusion that the best results can be obtained by using carful combinations of glazes rather than the somtimes uninspiring single glazes.

I'm stuck in the city most of the time but like Donna have greatly enjoyed the odd pyramaniac's party, raku, smoke and pit firing; wonderful occasions as like minded often solitary potters go ape in good company. Oh how I miss Raku and reduction! However, the New Year offers great promise as one college is now contemplating firing their beatiful Raku kiln (never used) which has remained a decoration for two years; also I have just finished helping a friend ('working potter who fires mostly 'reduced' table wares) to build her new gas kiln and space is on offer, all I need now is time! Andy

Reply to
plodder

Andy mentioned careful combinations, which is good advice at getting oxidation glazes to look good instead of boring. A matte glaze over a gloss can sometimes break with interesting results. I work at cone 10 oxidation, functional. I do crystalline glazes, not to get the big crystals, but to add snowflake variation to the glaze, again to keep it from getting boring. Brad Sondahl

Reply to
Brad Sondahl

Well thanks so much for the warm welcome and advice! It inspires me to hear the stories of others who have made the switch from high fire to medium. I greatly appreciate the links you (Donna) suggested, and will certainly look into them in the near future. I have heard of that book, even paged through a friend's copy....I do need to get one of my own though! Lol, I totally relate to your raku as entertainment comment....we had 'raku parties' at least once a semester when I was in school. Such fun! There is a ceramics studio/supply store in town which fires reduction, soda, raku, and even wood.(it is just so expensive to fire there!) In fact, just before christmas I did a shift in a multi-day wood firing over there. There is nothing like the midnight to 7 wood stoking shift. It is so peaceful, and you can't help but bond with your stoking-mates! It was such a wonderful experience. Almost magical.... You (Andy) are right on about keeping your glazing interesting by using more than one on a peice. I've just bought some mason's stains I want to use under a clear glaze on a nice white clay body. I am excited about this possibility in a cone 6 firing. Thanks again for the welcome, and I so look forward to getting to know everyone!

ps Is there any way to post pictures in this group? Or does it have to be through a link to an external site?

Reply to
anna

Post pictures on a the alt.binaries.crafts or alt.binaries.crafts.pictures (also alt.binaries.pictures.crafts) and then notify us that they are there or post a link. It would be nice if we all got in the habit of sharing there but I never think of it when the timing is right.

Reply to
DKat

I went there once when someone said that they had posted pictures there, but I couldn't open them?? Not a great computer person. If possible I prefer sites posted here.

Reply to
Xtra News

Gidday and welcome from New Zealand. I have a 5 cu ft electric and fire at cone 5 - 6. I do some functional work, but more often one off pieces that I put forward to exhibitions. This is one of the groups I belong to: Take a look at the anagama kiln that we are building. It will be up and firing this year - I am really looking forward to it.

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and this is another, where I tutor the pottery classes

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also teach pottery at a school to 13 -14 year olds one afternoon a week. It is challenging but rewarding. :o) So see you on the site lots I hope. Annemarie

Reply to
Xtra News

G'day and welcome from Australia. As you can see we are potters all over the world, and I just love it all . Nice web page NZ thanks.

Yours in clay Elaine.

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> I also teach pottery at a school to 13 -14 year olds one afternoon a week. > It is challenging but rewarding. :o)>

Reply to
Elaine Coggins

i set up a yahoo 360 webpage (free) to post pistures. i have my work, and other interesting pottery pictures (and non-pottery) on that page as well.

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day i'll start using their blog feature more since that also can beused to post a single picture for each blog. i have no idea what thelimit is on pictures, i've yet to reach it & have uploaded some 500 megof pistures i think... i do cone 10 & raku. been messing with clay around 18 years. hard to say when day one was. i 1st did mud balls as a kid & pit fires when my dad burned leaves. i didn't know it was a formal thing then. now i can't get that classic look the old mudballs got!

see ya

steve

Xtra News wrote:

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> I also teach pottery at a school to 13 -14 year olds one afternoon a week.> It is challenging but rewarding. :o)>

Reply to
slgraber

My husband has a blog, I must get him to set one up for me one day.

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>>> I also teach pottery at a school to 13 -14 year olds one afternoon a >> week.>> It is challenging but rewarding. :o)>>

Reply to
Xtra News

Ya know, I couldn't find alt.binaries.crafts, or any of the other names you mentioned. I typed them into the group search..... How do I get there?

Reply to
anna

The anagama looks great! I actually just helped fire one right before christmas! I haven't seen the one platter I had in there. It is such a great experience to be a part of a wood firing. The best of luck to you with this one!

Reply to
anna

Hi Anna!

I'm typing from Zurich, Switzerland, but am Norwegian by birth.

I started pottery about 4 years ago, but got really into it about 2 years ago, when I found a brilliant teacher with a studio really close to me and open "classes" year-round. She is fabulous! What she does, instead of classes, is a kind of open workshop once or twice a week. I go fridays from

2-5 PM. You just show up, say what you want to do, and she gets you started and helps you out as you have questions. Luckily, there isn't more than about 10 people in all that know about this, so we are usually no more than 5 or 6 students each day. Otherwise, I think my teacher would become totally frazzled!

Most of my stuff is fired to 1350, though I am considering trying more 1000 C firings in order to test out glazing and such with that.

I mostly make functional things - pots to put onions or such in for my kitchen, oven forms, bowls, etc. Lately, I have been mostly hand-building, though I hope to be able to get on the wheel in a month or two.

Welcome to the group! I think this must be the nicest international non-moderated group of all!

Marianne

Reply to
Bubbles

It is quite exciting to have contact with potters from such a variety of countries. It is really such a wonderful thing for us to all be able to share our ideas / techniques / knowledge with one another. Thanks for the warm welcome!

Reply to
anna

I am happy to say that this group has inspired me to set up a little web site of my own. It isn't quite done yet (problems with my home computer which has all my pics on it), but when it is finished I'll be sure to share it.

Reply to
anna

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