LeeU

Kinda like the "What's on your kitchen table". What's it look like out your studio window?  Here's mine, fresh snow coming down.

I have to drive to Maine or Massachusetts (I'm in New Hampshire), so I mostly don't. I usually use Sheffield or other inline sources.  

I have to drive to Maine or Massachusetts (I'm in New Hampshire), so I mostly don't. I usually use Sheffield or other inline sources.  

I have to drive to Maine or Massachusetts (I'm in New Hampshire), so I mostly don't. I usually use Sheffield or other inline sources.  

No bare feet. Visitors must touch NOTHING. Good respirator, safety glasses, clean up immediately, keep shelving/tables stable and well organized. 

Only 5 tools? That's rough!
OK-for hand-building: a Kemper fettling knife; an  XIEM mini-double-ended fettling/smoothing tool; a double-sided paddle (smooth/texture); a pony roller; and a Kemper hole cutter-the pointed kind that can ream out various sizes.
Most everything else can be scrounged from around the house & modified if needed.
For throwing: an MKM wooden rib with a straight edge & a curved edge; a  piece of sea sponge; a medium Kemper loop tool;  a cut off wire with handles, and; a music play list that will motivate me into giving it another go.

Well, this isn't on my kitchen table-yet-but I am hoping for some fresh scallops and lobster off Portland, Maine-via a young guy who is working on a fishing boat & used to help in my studio & helps me with the summer art fair in Portland. I barter & he ends up with cool LeeU Ceramics neck pieces and other smalls that are tailored for his punk culture guy friends.

Only 5 tools? That's rough!
OK-for hand-building: a Kemper fettling knife; an  XIEM mini-double-ended fettling/smoothing tool; a double-sided paddle (smooth/texture); a pony roller; and a Kemper hole cutter-the pointed kind that can ream out various sizes.
Most everything else can be scrounged from around the house & modified if needed.
For throwing: an MKM wooden rib with a straight edge & a curved edge; a  piece of sea sponge; a medium Kemper loop tool;  a cut off wire with handles, and; a music play list that will motivate me into giving it another go.

Mold and clay is fine-aged clay can mold and it is a non issue.I have clay that is decades old a bit of mold is no problem .
Many other things to worry about (watch the news if you like to worry)
I alsways consider mold to be a sign that clay is aging well like myself as a potter.

Different methods of making handles for mugs https://tinyurl.com/yckrtf6r
Video: https://tinyurl.com/mrnwfa5b

extruded blanks can be tapered by rolling, takes only a few seconds.  add interest by pressing into a mold shown above by Peter or use some rubber floor mat like The Pottery Boys  show on their website.  one roll with a pony roller produces the "ribs" in the handle.  can"t link you but they show exactly how to do it.  hardware stores sell the mat by the yard.

Pop (an' Grampa, Gramma, uncles...) called 'em "Humboldt" crabs; seems they are same Dungeness (aka Market) crab that we see further south.
Grampa used to pull his friend's pot and replace a few crabs with tall Coors cans.
Grandma would bring home a dozen from Katy's sometimes (she and Katy were close friends); my brother and I picked.
Cal Poly, heh, my Pop came here (San Luis Obispo, on the GI bill) for the course of study he wanted; back then, it was a loong drive back to Crannell to visit the folks. 

A diver friend called with 4 fresh crabs for us a few days ago-ate them same day they came to surface,
Live backed them and slipped and really cut my palm badly--some antibiotic cream and super glue I was able to center and throw pots the next day. These guys are tasty served hot out of the steamer with hot melted butter
Last night it was tamales another treat. Potters need to eat well.

When we lived on Haida Gwaii we were spoiled with all the fresh fish and crab we could get. My husband and I would limit out with crab every time we went diving. At the local cannery they used a heavy flat faced tool instead of the nut style cracker. Smack the top edge of the leg sections with it and the shell splits so it’s fairly quick to get all the meat out. Still have the “crab basher” as my kids would call it.
 
 
 

I can't /don't want to do production/retail and took a 30 year detour from my original ceramics education/experience/intentions (returned to clay  after retirement & installed a small studio in my trailer) so I am essentially just a member of the audience  on this site. I enjoy what I get from reading what others have to say. Most of my real ceramics work was "back in the day" except for a brief foray, courtesy of John Baymore, into anagama firing, which was a major thrill & lots of learning, plus did some raku courtesy of Andy Hampton. (also NH), and have some placements in local small shops.  Today I only use commercial bodies & glazes. The modest sales I had going have mostly dried up due to how the pandemic hit the rural small independent shops near me. (I rarely do shows/fairs). All that aside, when I was truly into it, I loved mixing/formulating glazes "from scratch", learning the chemistry/dry & raw materials,  as well as tweaking recipes from some of the core masters in the field. Due to some cognitive issues I couldn't do the science/chemistry/math now even if I had the motivation-even effective "work arounds" are just too exhausting these days (I'll take some aged cheese with that whine, thank you very much). I've done some experimenting with the commercial glazes in my electric kiln but haven't come up with anything particularly interesting/meaningful, like some on here have done (think Joseph Fireborn).  I have been poking around with multi-refires for my Hidden Mask series, which I need to get on with.

Luv it when threads rejuvenate. I have no table-just a prep counter, a rolling tray table in the LR, and my computer desk. This is what's on my desk: cut-up egg "cups" w/vegetables, over Spanish rice, with some cheddar cheese mixed in. Add a bit of hot sauce and enjoy. Not shown, a nice mug of Death Wish's dark coffee, hot & straight up.

Luv it when threads rejuvenate. I have no table-just a prep counter, a rolling tray table in the LR, and my computer desk. This is what's on my desk: cut-up egg "cups" w/vegetables, over Spanish rice, with some cheddar cheese mixed in. Add a bit of hot sauce and enjoy. Not shown, a nice mug of Death Wish's dark coffee, hot & straight up.

I can't /don't want to do production/retail and took a 30 year detour from my original ceramics education/experience/intentions (returned to clay  after retirement & installed a small studio in my trailer) so I am essentially just a member of the audience  on this site. I enjoy what I get from reading what others have to say. Most of my real ceramics work was "back in the day" except for a brief foray, courtesy of John Baymore, into anagama firing, which was a major thrill & lots of learning, plus did some raku courtesy of Andy Hampton. (also NH), and have some placements in local small shops.  Today I only use commercial bodies & glazes. The modest sales I had going have mostly dried up due to how the pandemic hit the rural small independent shops near me. (I rarely do shows/fairs). All that aside, when I was truly into it, I loved mixing/formulating glazes "from scratch", learning the chemistry/dry & raw materials,  as well as tweaking recipes from some of the core masters in the field. Due to some cognitive issues I couldn't do the science/chemistry/math now even if I had the motivation-even effective "work arounds" are just too exhausting these days (I'll take some aged cheese with that whine, thank you very much). I've done some experimenting with the commercial glazes in my electric kiln but haven't come up with anything particularly interesting/meaningful, like some on here have done (think Joseph Fireborn).  I have been poking around with multi-refires for my Hidden Mask series, which I need to get on with.

I can't /don't want to do production/retail and took a 30 year detour from my original ceramics education/experience/intentions (returned to clay  after retirement & installed a small studio in my trailer) so I am essentially just a member of the audience  on this site. I enjoy what I get from reading what others have to say. Most of my real ceramics work was "back in the day" except for a brief foray, courtesy of John Baymore, into anagama firing, which was a major thrill & lots of learning, plus did some raku courtesy of Andy Hampton. (also NH), and have some placements in local small shops.  Today I only use commercial bodies & glazes. The modest sales I had going have mostly dried up due to how the pandemic hit the rural small independent shops near me. (I rarely do shows/fairs). All that aside, when I was truly into it, I loved mixing/formulating glazes "from scratch", learning the chemistry/dry & raw materials,  as well as tweaking recipes from some of the core masters in the field. Due to some cognitive issues I couldn't do the science/chemistry/math now even if I had the motivation-even effective "work arounds" are just too exhausting these days (I'll take some aged cheese with that whine, thank you very much). I've done some experimenting with the commercial glazes in my electric kiln but haven't come up with anything particularly interesting/meaningful, like some on here have done (think Joseph Fireborn).  I have been poking around with multi-refires for my Hidden Mask series, which I need to get on with.

I can't /don't want to do production/retail and took a 30 year detour from my original ceramics education/experience/intentions (returned to clay  after retirement & installed a small studio in my trailer) so I am essentially just a member of the audience  on this site. I enjoy what I get from reading what others have to say. Most of my real ceramics work was "back in the day" except for a brief foray, courtesy of John Baymore, into anagama firing, which was a major thrill & lots of learning, plus did some raku courtesy of Andy Hampton. (also NH), and have some placements in local small shops.  Today I only use commercial bodies & glazes. The modest sales I had going have mostly dried up due to how the pandemic hit the rural small independent shops near me. (I rarely do shows/fairs). All that aside, when I was truly into it, I loved mixing/formulating glazes "from scratch", learning the chemistry/dry & raw materials,  as well as tweaking recipes from some of the core masters in the field. Due to some cognitive issues I couldn't do the science/chemistry/math now even if I had the motivation-even effective "work arounds" are just too exhausting these days (I'll take some aged cheese with that whine, thank you very much). I've done some experimenting with the commercial glazes in my electric kiln but haven't come up with anything particularly interesting/meaningful, like some on here have done (think Joseph Fireborn).  I have been poking around with multi-refires for my Hidden Mask series, which I need to get on with.

I can't /don't want to do production/retail and took a 30 year detour from my original ceramics education/experience/intentions (returned to clay  after retirement & installed a small studio in my trailer) so I am essentially just a member of the audience  on this site. I enjoy what I get from reading what others have to say. Most of my real ceramics work was "back in the day" except for a brief foray, courtesy of John Baymore, into anagama firing, which was a major thrill & lots of learning, plus did some raku courtesy of Andy Hampton. (also NH), and have some placements in local small shops.  Today I only use commercial bodies & glazes. The modest sales I had going have mostly dried up due to how the pandemic hit the rural small independent shops near me. (I rarely do shows/fairs). All that aside, when I was truly into it, I loved mixing/formulating glazes "from scratch", learning the chemistry/dry & raw materials,  as well as tweaking recipes from some of the core masters in the field. Due to some cognitive issues I couldn't do the science/chemistry/math now even if I had the motivation-even effective "work arounds" are just too exhausting these days (I'll take some aged cheese with that whine, thank you very much). I've done some experimenting with the commercial glazes in my electric kiln but haven't come up with anything particularly interesting/meaningful, like some on here have done (think Joseph Fireborn).  I have been poking around with multi-refires for my Hidden Mask series, which I need to get on with.

Yes especially if they have a reputation behind them and thats over the decades
Not all companies make all things best
For example Brent makes great wheels that last a long time(they started with wheels only and where one of the 1st to make quaility wheels with all speeds) -they are not alone as there are others now doing the same now making great wheels
Brent slab rollers work but the cable system and boards for thickness are not as easy to use and require adusting alot compared to say a Bailey slab roller
Bailey makes great long lasting slab rollers that are easy to make any slab thickness (If I recall slab rollers where one of his 1st items)
Take North Star for example they knocked off many products and made slab rollers with plastic gears in the start which failed, now they are using metal gears-this example is a company changing for the better over time-if you had an early model you suffered
Soldner made great foot pedals and  pretty good wheels and was one of the 1st in with a clay mixer that worked ok  (back then schools used dough mixers)
Walker mixers came on the scene at around the same time. Soldners mixers worked great but are brutal on you body as you have to bend over to load it and scrape it out.
I have run a few tons thru one back in my prime and it killed me then
Peter Pugger was the 1st all around mixer and pug machine all in one (they where the 1st)  and makes a Soldner mixer look  like a stone Age tool
Petter Puggers added vacuums to the machines and they are a dream to use now 
So yes Brands make a differeance but no one brand does it all the best
So you want to spend $200 on a wheel and those toy ones on Amazon from China look good  and they are cheap ,well you will find out the hard way that Brand names make a difference 
 

Slab, coil, and pinch, and a fair amount of whacking things into shape (I use the term "shape" loosely-I'm not usually going for finesse or the precision of symmetry, except w/the herb markers/plant stakes. I use various wooden tools/hard surfaces (paddles, for example) as a significant component of my process.  Will occasionally use templates when I want more refined joins, say with a traditional box and lid. I also like excavating, and having a piece emerge from the reduction of mass from the inside out.

This is a really great discussion topic!! I am thinking a lot lately about the sustainability of my most important tools- my hands/wrists!
a friend recently shared this series of exercises with me and I’m trying to get myself in the habit of doing these before and after throwing sessions. I’m  at the beginning of my Pottery journey and I’m hoping this will help me be able to throw  for longer and with less troubles down the road ….at least it can’t hurt to try.
sharing here for anyone who may be interested

My husband is starting his fourth year of retirement and I think everything that could go wrong did.  He had health problems right away,  in the middle of his colon surgery his mother was brought by a ambulance to the same hospital.   We spent two years handling things for his mom,  she died last November,  still settling the will a year later.  In middle of all this  Covid shutdown,  I had both wrists and a finger operated on and I have arthritis in my fingers.   I haven't given up,  I am reorganizing my shop this week,  even hanging new blinds.   I started on a alternative plan to keep me in my studio ten years ago.  I started growing gourds,  I know they are not clay but they are shaped like pots and are light weight.  There are many ways to get designs on them with light weight tools.  If you not into growing them you can buy them in bulk on-line.   I have seen finished pieces in galleries and have bought a dozed pieces for inspiration. I bought one that was from a gallery on 5th avenue at a estate sale.  My big project this winter is 3'x4' mural.   I guess I'd better get to work.   Denice