Denice

The utility cabinet I bought doesn't cost much here but you may not find one where you live.   The college I went to made up a  wooden shelf unit with slat shelves,  they would wrap it in heavy painters plastic  put a fan and light bulb in in.  I wouldn't leave the light bulb on unattended,  I just had a lampshade frame break and it fell against small low wattage bulb and melted.    Denice

It can be humid in my area so I put a small desk fan or a light bulb in the bottom of my cabinet,  the fan cannot blow directly on the pots.   The cabinet I use is a utility or laundry room cabinet, it is all plastic with adjustable shelves and is vented.   I have to put wire racks on the shelves so I won't have a build up of condensation between the shelf and the bottom of the pot.  I pick up the racks at estate sales,   you have to know the size  and make sure the wires and to far apart.  I bought one for tile that is called a pie rack ,  3 shelves that stack on top of each other and then fold up to put away.    Denice

It can be humid in my area so I put a small desk fan or a light bulb in the bottom of my cabinet,  the fan cannot blow directly on the pots.   The cabinet I use is a utility or laundry room cabinet, it is all plastic with adjustable shelves and is vented.   I have to put wire racks on the shelves so I won't have a build up of condensation between the shelf and the bottom of the pot.  I pick up the racks at estate sales,   you have to know the size  and make sure the wires and to far apart.  I bought one for tile that is called a pie rack ,  3 shelves that stack on top of each other and then fold up to put away.    Denice

This was part of a demonstration  on how broken bulbs fired in the clay create a clear glaze.  He had us find old bulbs and break them over a trash can outdoors  because the powder in side of them was dangerous to breathe.  We washed them and brought them to class,  this was part of our assignment.   I handbuilt my pot,  we had only one wheel in the class,  my teacher would pick one boy to teach him how to throw.   Girls weren't given this honor we were too weak,  I was a head taller than my teacher.  had broad shoulders and large hands.   The glaze it made was a ugly dingy clear.   In the late 60's  many of the psychodelic  albums were played during class and I am pretty sure my teacher was smoking marijuana in his pipe.  After I left he somehow managed to burn down the classroom,  they rewarded him by replacing the electric kilns with a big gas kiln.  It  was a interesting and fun time of my life and I didn't do drugs, smoke or drink.    Denice

Saw dust gives clay a rough surface after it's fired, you can press chips of wood into it when you are finished throwing it for bigger gouges.  I have a pot made by a man and wife team,  they gave everyone a unsigned unglazed small bowl from the seminar.  The top of the bowl has a beautiful tear.  they were using  a Cone 10 stoneware. I think you can mix sawdust in any clay you have.   It has been 20 years ago so my memory may be a little off.    Denice

Looking through your old pots can help sometimes.  Like Old Lady I dislike or even hate them but occasionally I will run across a piece that I really liked and forgotten about.   I wonder why I didn't go further with that design and decide now is the time.    Denice

Looking through your old pots can help sometimes.  Like Old Lady I dislike or even hate them but occasionally I will run across a piece that I really liked and forgotten about.   I wonder why I didn't go further with that design and decide now is the time.    Denice

I like to read the Ceramic Monthly from the 50's and 60's and check out the techniques that was used before I  started seriously working with clay in the late 60's.   Once in a while I will try to make a piece that I have seen.   I know I will never come close to copying it,  by the time I keep cutting and changing it there isn't any resemblance.     Denice

When I was a decorator I would have to turn down jobs because of the chemicals they used in nearby rooms.   I never know when I am going to have a reaction and quit breathing.  It would be nice to sneeze or cough.  letting me know that there is something in the air.   I usually can get outside before I collapse,  one time I was in a hardware store and they started demonstrating a new product.  My husband notice that I was acting odd and decided I needed fresh air,  by the time we got to the door I slumped down to the floor.   He managed to get me outside.   Have been hospitalized  for insect spray and another for mowing the grass.   I have been around clay mold for 50 years and built up a tolerance to it.  Yeah! Denice

I like to read the Ceramic Monthly from the 50's and 60's and check out the techniques that was used before I  started seriously working with clay in the late 60's.   Once in a while I will try to make a piece that I have seen.   I know I will never come close to copying it,  by the time I keep cutting and changing it there isn't any resemblance.     Denice

I like to read the Ceramic Monthly from the 50's and 60's and check out the techniques that was used before I  started seriously working with clay in the late 60's.   Once in a while I will try to make a piece that I have seen.   I know I will never come close to copying it,  by the time I keep cutting and changing it there isn't any resemblance.     Denice

I like to read the Ceramic Monthly from the 50's and 60's and check out the techniques that was used before I  started seriously working with clay in the late 60's.   Once in a while I will try to make a piece that I have seen.   I know I will never come close to copying it,  by the time I keep cutting and changing it there isn't any resemblance.     Denice

When my day in the studio starts out bad,  I just quit and find something else to do.   I usually do some house cleaning, not a great housekeeper but I have a great husband who prefers me to work in the studio than clean the house.  Bad studio turns into a good house cleaning day.    Denice

This mold discussion brought up a memory of mixing beer in a batch of clay so it would get plastic faster and have better mold.   I don't know if it really works,  we were just following instructions of the MA  students.    Denice

I agree with Kelly,  potters are people who are seduced by clay.   I filled in one summer for a injured throwing teacher,  at the end of the summer everyone had the basics down and fairly happy with their results.  A third of the students thought it was too much work and frustrating to continue with.  The rest of the class liked the throwing but weren't interested in glaze and clay formulations.   I did have three students that followed me around asking questions,  I think they may have been seduced by their clay.  It makes me wonder why they were seduced and the rest of the class wasn't.  Denice

I agree with Kelly,  potters are people who are seduced by clay.   I filled in one summer for a injured throwing teacher,  at the end of the summer everyone had the basics down and fairly happy with their results.  A third of the students thought it was too much work and frustrating to continue with.  The rest of the class liked the throwing but weren't interested in glaze and clay formulations.   I did have three students that followed me around asking questions,  I think they may have been seduced by their clay.  It makes me wonder why they were seduced and the rest of the class wasn't.  Denice

I am much organized than my husband he  works out of piles.  I  work on projects,  I just finished some tiles for a kitchen and I have a long term mural that I am about ready to bisque.   I will clean and organize my studio before I start working on the mural.   I generally don't stop on a project and start on another but the kitchen tile needed to be done NOW!  I will admit that my studio can get messy when I am heading towards the finish line but everything gets cleaned when I finish.   Denice

I took a test in high school to help determine my direction in life.   The test came back that I should be a architect.  They told me I had the highest score on the section of three dimensional objects and blueprints  they had ever come across.  I didn't get into architecture until I was 55 decided to design my home.  Taught myself how to use a computer by learning three architectural programs.  Denice

I took a test in high school to help determine my direction in life.   The test came back that I should be a architect.  They told me I had the highest score on the section of three dimensional objects and blueprints  they had ever come across.  I didn't get into architecture until I was 55 decided to design my home.  Taught myself how to use a computer by learning three architectural programs.  Denice

I took a test in high school to help determine my direction in life.   The test came back that I should be a architect.  They told me I had the highest score on the section of three dimensional objects and blueprints  they had ever come across.  I didn't get into architecture until I was 55 decided to design my home.  Taught myself how to use a computer by learning three architectural programs.  Denice

I took the career test LeeU mentioned,  I had potter show up as a suggested career among all of the other artistic careers.    They listed a few that had very little to do with art and many of the jobs  I have done in my life time.   I became a potter when I was 12 years old and my art teacher gave me a ball of clay and told the class to make anything you want.  All of the other kids started pounding our ash trays,  so I checked with her that I really could make anything.  She said yes.  I had been reading a book about Egyptian cats and I made a cat pendant.  When it was fired  she hung it in the schools big display case for the rest of the year.  I had decided that clay was magic and you could make anything with it.  I have studied other arts and always come back to clay.  It could be we all have it in our DNA and it gets switched on by some event, aren't we the lucky ones.      Denice

I give away my flawed pieces,  sometimes people will ask why I give them away.   I tell them about the flaws and that some of the work didn't come together like I wanted it to.   Most people love the flawed pieces, my shelf of flawed work empties quickly.   Denice

I give away my flawed pieces,  sometimes people will ask why I give them away.   I tell them about the flaws and that some of the work didn't come together like I wanted it to.   Most people love the flawed pieces, my shelf of flawed work empties quickly.   Denice

Your skewer is going to cause your clay to crack,  your clay continually shrinks as it dries your skewer doesn't unless is it is made of a flimsy material that is easy to crush.   Denice

If I can I buy a mug from artist I meet at workshops or at their shop.   If they are coming to visit my studio I will tell them to bring a mug and we will trade if they want to.   I visited Marcia Selsor studio a few years ago,  I brought her one of the pots from the hand coiled tribal series I was making,  I gave it to her as we departed.   I didn't want her to feel obligated to give a piece of her work that she sells for hundreds of dollars.  Denice