Glazing Spree

Glazed bowls loaded into the kiln before firing

I recently finished a marathon of glazing, lots and lots of cone 6 glazing. This is all functional work from this summer. This kiln load contains a batch of bowls, some for my friend, a few COVID mugs and planters, and some other mugs and odds and ends for sales this summer (Fresh Air Art Celebration at the Greenway, July 24 and Yakima County Artists' Studio Tour, September 4-6th)).

COVID mugs and planter in progress

The COVID mugs and planters are the most time consuming to glaze as I need to work the background glaze in and around the covid bumps and then I wipe the surfaces off before applying the red glaze.

COVID planter before I've wiped off the glaze from the top edges that will be red

I got into a nice flow with the bowls. I really prefer dipping glazes, but I'm not sure I can justify large buckets of glaze for the amount of functional work I produce at home.

partially glazed mug on a banding wheel

For this batch of bowls, I got out some large brushes that hold a lot of glaze and set up the bowls on banding wheels. It just feels good when the glazes go on smoothly while the wheel is spinning. And this works a lot better with large bowls than with mugs or other mostly narrow or vertical pieces.

applying glaze by brush to a bowl on the banding wheel

It also should help with how the glaze looks, since any brush strokes that show up should be even and all arranged with the same direction. I've had a few inconsistent results where I've applied the glaze too thinly and the brushstrokes show, so I tried to make sure every piece got a solid 3-4 coats of glaze. It's sometimes harder to judge when some of the glazes are thicker or thinner (because they've been sitting for longer). This time around I used mostly new bottles of glaze which makes for more even application and consistency.

bowls after the interiors were glazed, the colors are blue and light green

I glazed all the interiors, then all the exteriors, then cleaned up all the rims and feet, then added a rim coat of another glaze or glazes to most of the bowls. I only remembered after I loaded the kiln that I might not have enough coats on some of the rims (and I might have layered the two glazes out of order), so maybe I'll unload the kiln and add some glaze right after I post this.

glazed bowls ready to fire

I decided to dribble glazes inside most of the pieces because I like the effects. I usually do this when I am glazing at YVC. I like how the marks and color combinations aren't carefully planned but add some variety and something to look at inside the pieces. I used mostly celadons on the interior and exterior walls, but the dribbled glazes include some Potter's Choice glazes. I've tested them before on my plates and like the results.

glazed bowls waiting to be loaded in the kiln

I did leave one piece un-dribbled. This interior is a new white I just purchased, so I'd like to see how it looks on its own. Hopefully it won't look too strange being different from all the rest. I guess if it is, I can just make more. The bowls especially are just pleasant to throw, trim, and glaze. For some reason, maybe it's the simplicity or maybe it's my familiarity with these forms, but I find these to be soothing to create.

the one bowl without dribbles