Well I have the finished product!

I was itching to get to my pottery class this week, I couldn't wait to see how all my bits had come out of the kiln!! I wasn't disappointed.

I am pleased with my big bowl, the glaze has smoothed it off beautifully and its so lovely to touch ! I am pleased with the colour, which in the flesh is a rich turquoise blue with darker accents. The dribbles down the outside are in evidence but not as pronounced.

Well the mugs are great not the prettiest of mugs but there is  huge satisfaction drinking tea from a mug crafted by your own fair hands!!

It has really inspired me to try to make a couple more. I really need a bigger size for me and Tom has requested a smaller cup shape for his morning cuppa. I like both colours but I really love the brown one so I am going to see if I can make a big mug in that colour.

This little lidded pot was made by using a textured rolling pin on the clay. It was fairly simple to make and I like the way the glaze has sunk into the shapes and has emphasised the hearts. 

The small plate came out well, I like the colour, BUT my eye is drawn to the blue spec that managed to land on one of the daisies!

I suppose that's character, a unique feature!

My head is buzzing with new projects to try. Last week we tried coil pots. Its not a technique that I am overly fond of now that I have tried it, I get the idea, but I couldn't seem to make it do what I wanted. In my head I wanted to make a narrow necked vase with a bulbous bottom I tried very hard but it wasn't having any of it! I could not make it get smaller at the top, it kept getting larger. 

The idea is that you make lots of sausages out of clay, you then keep them moist while starting to build the pot. You do a couple of rounds and then smooth the inside and outside, to shape the pot you then start to make the coils smaller something that wasn't working for me!

In the end I gave up and decided to flute the top and hope when its cooked the glaze will work its magic again! Can't see this one being anything other than a disaster! Lots of people have asked about the pottery courses, so take a look HERE for further details. The lady who runs the courses is called Elly Wall of Elly Wall Ceramics.

These weeks are going fast, Beth has already ended for the summer . Its amazing how fast her first school year has gone. She has packed lots into it and has made huge steps forward in terms of knowledge and confidence. I am sure she is at the start of a long career in her chosen field. 

Carl is at the brink of a new chapter of his life and in a couple of weeks he will be off to Hong Kong. He wanted to say good bye to his friends with a get together, so last night we went to that party. I have downloaded the photos but need to make sure that they are OK to post!!!

Have a lovely week

xxx