Final Project
For my final project I made a cupcake. I chose to do a cupcake because my mom makes me cupcakes (real ones haha) on my birthday or for any occasion that cupcakes are needed, and I thought it would be cute if I made her one. I wanted to do one also because I tried to make on in the past and it didn't work out. I did a plain pink glaze and a black that had little chunks in it that melted into color when it went in the kiln. For the bottom to get the texture of a cupcake wrapper I made a pinch pot, waited a day and let it dry out just a little and then carved lines through it. For the top I used a coil technique. If I was able to do this project again I would most likely keep everything the same except for the top. I would try to make the coils more even. Other than that I was very pleased with how this project turned out.
Box
For this project, I made a box with little holes in every corner. I used the slab technique. I also created a simple lid with a lip and small handle on the top so that way it wouldn't slide off on its own, but also so it was easier to grab when I wanted to take the lid off. Before I glazed this project, i took sandpaper and smoothed it down to make it soft. Then, I glazed it with a simple pink-like color, and after firing the box the glaze creates little cracks.
Turtle
For this project, I decided to challenge myself a little bit by doing something new. Instead of doing just a plain lidded container, I made a turtle. I did two pinch pots, and added a lip to the top to create a lid, and to make it so the lid wouldn't just slide off. I made it smooth, and paid attention to little details like its eyes. I used a dark green for the shell and a mint green for the turtles "skin". After it went through the first firing, I put a coat of clear glaze on it to make it shiny.
Project 1; second trimester
I had a very different idea for this project when it started. I was trying to get inspired by Chinese styled buildings, but I didn't spend enough time studying the shape of them before I cut my clay. I also planned on using a red and orange glaze, but the glazes I wanted to use never do well in the kiln and they always burn out. So, I had to resolve and do two contrasting colors instead. I didn't put as much effort into this project as I have my other ones, and I know that if I had it would have turned out much better.
Final Project
For this project, I made two small pinch-pots and carved lines into them. I found some of this project to be difficult because I wasn't happy with how the top turned out, so I decided to quickly redo it and evenly space my carving more. I enjoyed making this container because although it was simple, it was also very challenging to carve the lines evenly. I decided to give it a bark texture, and glazed it with pink and black.
Acorn Lidded Bowl
For this project, I made a simple acorn bowl. I ran into many difficulties while making this. It was hard to get the top to fit onto the bottom as to make it look like an acorn. As well, the bottom dried quicker than the top, and many times it cracked and I had to reconstitute the clay and make the bottom over again. For the bottom, I used the pinch-pot method. For the top,I made a solid Hershey kiss shape, and I carved out the inside of it. If I were able to do this over again, I would make it smaller. Since it was so large it was hard to work with. I would also put an actual pattern on it, but because of time shortage I had to keep it simple with a plain glaze.
Flower Lidded Bowl
For this project, I wanted to do something a little more simple. I decided to do a flower design on the top. I initially wanted to carve into my bowls, but for this one I felt like slipping and scoring the petals on would be better. I used a black glaze for the bottom and the back of the top. For the first layer of petals i chose a pink color, and the second I chose orange. For the middle I used yellow. I found that it fired with the clear glaze that it came out streaky on the pink, and that the pink turned more into a dark salmon color. If I could do this project again I would defiantly use a softer brush to apply the clear glaze so I could avoid the streaks.
Abstract Lidded Bowl
For this project, I wanted to do something abstract with clashing patters. Although I enjoyed the different textures, the colors were not quite what I wanted them to be. I used the pinch-pot technique for both the top and bottom. On the bottom, I slipped and scored a vine that went all the way around the bowl onto it. On the top, I carved cracks into the bowl. Overall I think I could have done better on this project. If I could do it again, I would change how they fit together, and the color of the glazes.