Hulk

Folk art guild white with behrens satin matte on top
Here it is with just folk art guild white

So I've been doing glaze combo tests on glazes that I use but didn't think would be any good together.  Got a few surprisers anyway.  But what I've been doing for a bit is making carafes.  Lots of them.  I'm sending my first shipment of 10 with matching mugs next week.  That is, weather permitting...  It's been 50 degrees at 98% humidity here for a week, so things are NOT drying.  Very frustrating, even when I have them on the tables next to the kiln, it's very slow drying.
 

First, overall impression, "gestalt" - shape, colours, texture, design; from there, feel, utility. 
For my own work, still experiencing the Frankenstein effect, where love and awe for the "monster" I've created when it first breathes fades to "what have I done?" It's getting better, however, as more are recognized as such and tossed to the recycle pile before bisque fire.
On the other hand - and the reason for the question - have found that some less positive first impressions will fade with familiarity through handling and use.
What elicits "I love this" has evolved, and will likely continue to change; I'll try to keep an open mind!
I like to see other's work, and as possible, handle as well.

Pres, 
first what makes me think "I love this" is usually a good comfortable handle and the texture of a glaze. BUT your comment about keeping bugs out o honey reminded me of a honey pot I saw in a old museum in Pontevedra, Spain. There was a ridge in the shoulder of the pot for water creating a mote . It kept ants out o the honey because they wouldn't cross the water barrier. I thought it was brilliant. I loved the ingenuity of the pot.
Marcia

I sure like all these answers but the one question that pops into my head when reading the honey jar story is : did you find the modification worth the effort? If so, then I would say it now is acceptable to your standard.
Folks who master a craft often produce fine precise things almost impossible to recreate by machine. Not taking away from handmade, but many things handmade are crazy precise as  a function of mad skill and a personal standard of excellence.
so In the end, did the built in spoon enhance functionality to your personal satisfaction?
I think I like both the randomness as well as skilled  intentional precision.

I don't even know really, I like things that LOOK like handmade pottery though.  Things that look perfectly machine made are not very appealing although I understand the amount of skill it takes to make something that well.  

Colour, balance, weight, size. 
But each of those criteria can/will be different for any given object.  Mugs need to feel strong, cups delicate.  That kind of thing.

Its a blend of form and function that appeals to the user . Say in a mug the handle feels right and the form feels right as well as the color is good for that user.Everyone has a different value for this but you know when it all lines up for you. The bowl looks like it should weight as much as it does and the way it feels and works makes it just right.The foot looks and feels right and the balance is great between these aspects .

Well, I have to go with "all of the above", as a baseline. Yet those attributes alone won't do it for me as much as when a piece elicits  an inadvertent little internal  gasp...because it's just so gorgeous.  Just don't ask me to define my ideas of gorgeous (or lucious, or sweet, or way cool, etc.). Essentially I just "know it when I see it".  Loving a piece covers a lot of territory, from craftsmanship to color to design, to form to function to whether it can earn its keep, and so much more.  For me it's intuitive, or at times even highly counter-intuitive, evoking  a kind of primal or visceral reaction--or response-- (those not being the same thing)  to the piece. I guess it's a vibe, or an energy, or a perception of something being shared, that just sparks something and connects me to the piece, and sometimes, at least peripherally, with the maker.  

Hulk recently asked in the QotW pool: What (in a functional piece) elicits "I love this" for you?
Babs replied in the same pool:
Its feel in my hand .
Its "balance" when in use.
How it looks to my eye.
How it fits in my cupboard.
And
Its functionality
Not taking time to prioritize but bottom one is essential but then....
I really don't know as I could improve on her answer, other than to add. . . I often try to improve on the functionality of pieces.  As an example my honey jars with the built in honey spoon is an adaptation to keep bugs out of the honey when outside on the deck or elsewhere. I went through several variations before I came up with one that worked well, and was not too great of a time addition to the project. In the end when dealing with this I have to ask was the improvement worth the effort?
Asking once again: What (in a functional piece) elicits "I love this" for you?
 
best,
Pres

Beginning "No. 7 " in my Hidden Mask series. This is a raku piece to be fired at Hampton Pottery, NH, in the spring.
 

So I spent the last Month off and on to: 
Congratulations Dawn & Ray!
We Just finished the fourth Kiln monitor, interfacing with their Geil car kiln,  and made further improvements to the programming to help folks reduction fire more easily, repeatable, and hopefully share their results with everyone in the pottery community.
First reduction test run was designed to calibrate and hopefully allow schedules to be created that are effective and finish in about eight hours.   From an initial peek inside the kiln, All test tiles reduced everywhere as expected ……… they are on their way to creating cool stuff and sharing their results and new schedules / techniques. Next build I think we are gonna find a cool dressy enclosure though.
Generation  Four- Finished!
Pictures of some of the peek inside the kiln and other stuff below
 

So I spent the weekend making more of these, and I really like to make them.  I keep improving on the design which means I'm learning.  Learning makes me happy!  So anyway, was able to finally glaze fire some and I like the result.  Here's one from the batch

2 feet of snow... ya'll are crazy! 
Feels good to have something on the bench, life's been busy, wife sold her store, we opened a new one in a nearby small town and I've actually sold a few things there already, tried a booth at a local shop that rents booths but  it's not done much better than the rent. We had to practice like 30 hours for a gig at a friend's party, that was awesome, made people cry, felt good to nail it for a change.
Anyway, uggg, you don't throw for a while and for me anyway, let's just say the first few mugs will have carving around the bottoms, a couple might not make it due to thin bottoms, and I felt a bit rusty, lol. Sure does feel good to spin some mud though, nothin' like it.
 

@Hulk, don't know if this is something you might be interested in but  there is a mentorship program available for free if you are current member of ICAN.  Listing of current mentors.  Mentors and mentees can get in touch via email, phone, skype or in person. I know of one lovely man who is a member of this forum who mentored a woman from my area. I know it meant the world to her before she passed away to have this connection.

Autodidact, that's a new word for me, thanks!
Ah'm believing that my throwing is improving some; mainly it is studying others' work (and my own) and observing others (YouTube, mostly) that guides my focus on what to try, what needs improving, etc.
There are very structured approaches to skill building for some disciplines, and some of these very structured approaches actually work well - recall, for those of you who had the experience, the tedium and pain of a full semester of keyboarding (formerly "typing")! If you came out rocking sixty or more words a minute (even thirty, ha), it was worth it, right? ...especially for those who spend/spent years running a keyboard (like me!). Are there many self taught keyboarders rocking sixty wpm? Compare/contrast the teaching of reading  (there is current analysis of widespread failure in the teaching of reading, btw), where the better structured approaches ease those who struggle up to full speed ahead, and the poorer structured approaches cripple.
...and that is my point; for those who are a "natural" the approach/method/strategy may not be as important. For those who struggle, a progressive, structured, flexible/varied approach can make all the difference in terms of achieving mastery, overcoming ineffective (bad) habits, etc. This point comes from my experience in the teaching of and training in swimming, from basic skill only through competition at highest levels and all in-a between. I did not see (and still don't see) much really good swimming instruction, and what is good isn't varied - it's good for a fraction of the audience, at best.
I'm not expecting to find a throwing mentor, however, will try to keep an open mind!
Before returning to school, I worked in the painting trade (having turned my back on teaching). I'd learned to spray airless and conventional; I was very good at it, and don't mind saying so, lol! ...wasn't much of a brush and roll guy though, not until I worked with someone who could really go, AND put me on a program to build the skills. There's a lot to handling paint tools that most of the world has no clue about. So I was a good sprayer, but my mentor helped me become a master, and also a good brush and roll as well. I was lucky, eh? ...same guy set up an intervention which lead to me going back to school for CS, changed my life, thanks Ron.
There are good mentors out there...
Any road, thanks for the responses!

Autodidact, that's a new word for me, thanks!
Ah'm believing that my throwing is improving some; mainly it is studying others' work (and my own) and observing others (YouTube, mostly) that guides my focus on what to try, what needs improving, etc.
There are very structured approaches to skill building for some disciplines, and some of these very structured approaches actually work well - recall, for those of you who had the experience, the tedium and pain of a full semester of keyboarding (formerly "typing")! If you came out rocking sixty or more words a minute (even thirty, ha), it was worth it, right? ...especially for those who spend/spent years running a keyboard (like me!). Are there many self taught keyboarders rocking sixty wpm? Compare/contrast the teaching of reading  (there is current analysis of widespread failure in the teaching of reading, btw), where the better structured approaches ease those who struggle up to full speed ahead, and the poorer structured approaches cripple.
...and that is my point; for those who are a "natural" the approach/method/strategy may not be as important. For those who struggle, a progressive, structured, flexible/varied approach can make all the difference in terms of achieving mastery, overcoming ineffective (bad) habits, etc. This point comes from my experience in the teaching of and training in swimming, from basic skill only through competition at highest levels and all in-a between. I did not see (and still don't see) much really good swimming instruction, and what is good isn't varied - it's good for a fraction of the audience, at best.
I'm not expecting to find a throwing mentor, however, will try to keep an open mind!
Before returning to school, I worked in the painting trade (having turned my back on teaching). I'd learned to spray airless and conventional; I was very good at it, and don't mind saying so, lol! ...wasn't much of a brush and roll guy though, not until I worked with someone who could really go, AND put me on a program to build the skills. There's a lot to handling paint tools that most of the world has no clue about. So I was a good sprayer, but my mentor helped me become a master, and also a good brush and roll as well. I was lucky, eh? ...same guy set up an intervention which lead to me going back to school for CS, changed my life, thanks Ron.
There are good mentors out there...
Any road, thanks for the responses!

My high school only had one wheel,   my teacher would pick a boy to teaching throwing too.  He didn't think girls were strong enough to throw.   When I went to college to get a degree in clay  I needed to take three semesters in throwing.   Rick St.John was my first throwing teacher,  he was very patient and drilled the basics into our brain.   My second teacher was more into teaching us how to recycle,  make clay and cleaning,  very little throwing.   My third teacher was a mountain of a man and  would throw a 25 lb block of clay in minutes,   he gave my class a few helpful hints but mostly we followed a throw and cut schedule.   I decided to concentrate on hand building  when I had completed my throwing requirements.   Who knows I may have stayed with throwing if I had a mentor.   I have been rebuilding my brain/hand  connections since I bought a used wheel.   Marc found it for me and convinced me that getting rid of my kick wheel and going electric was the best way to retrain.   He was right,  maybe he is my mentor.    Denice
 

From what I remember I was introduced to wheel throwing in 3rd grade, and had ceramics class for part of the year for every year from 3rd to 7th grade, and then took 2 years (6 courses) at community college.  But I pretty much forgot everything between then and when I bought my wheel 2 years ago.  Been slowly reteaching myself with the help of you guys here and YouTube since.  I'm fairly autodidact so when I am interested in something i am driven to learn everything about it.  Doesn't always translate to skill though.

I took private lessons in 1969 to learn to throw. It was in Seal Beach Ca. I was in high school and I did it as a suggestion from a friend`as we had wheel access at scholl but no instructor . So we signed up for a night class and threw on 5 different wheels-3 were power and two kick wheels.I do not recall how many months we did this maybe 3-4 months. That same year I bought a wheel for home and within 6 months moved away to collage where I had more training in throwing. I guess about 4 instructors in total for throwing skills. I think it took me about 6-8 years to master it really. I thought I mastered it in 4 yrs  but looking back that was not the case especially handles.

Hulk recently posted in the QotW pool: 
Still curious what mentor/mentee experiences others have had with regard to throwing?
Hulk adds to this question by stating: I started at the local JC Ceramic lab, where short demonstration introduces skills required for upcoming assignments, then practice. From there, anyone struggling and/or having questions and/or asking for help would get some one on one or small group. I as (still am) ok with that. I have/am learning by practice, making mistakes, and observing others. Isn't it interesting what we see when observing others - particularly what we didn't see earlier? ...aha!
For myself (Pres), even though I thoroughly believe that learning to throw is much like learning how to ride a bike; I believe that good practice can be taught, reinforced, and improved upon with the aid of an experienced teacher.
First to cover my beginning statement, much of life depends on what is referred to as a priori knowledge that is pre existing knowledge to help learn something. However, riding a bike is something that you really don't have a lot of pre learning to help you out. Much the same when working on the wheel. The coordination of using the foot pedal, you can relate to the gas pedal on the car as it makes things go faster. but how do you learn the right pressure to move the clay, to center it, to brace yourself for greater strength/pressure on the clay, or how to gauge the thickness of the walls or the depth of the floor? All of this must be learned by viewing others, practice, practice and. .. . well you get the idea. In the beginning a good demonstrator/ teacher is paramount to understanding the steps in the process, the general body positions, the positions of the arms, hands and finger, and the speed appropriate for the stage of the throwing at hand. Only practice will really allow you to approximate the steps demonstrated and end up successfully.
My last sentence of the opening paragraph states that a good teacher observing can make good improvement on what is already learned. I have seen many adults taking an adult ceramics class that I taught in the Winters at the HS where I taught, and where I still help out.  Many of these folks are art teachers, or had ceramics in HS, college or both. All too many times they have developed weak habits when throwing, that as an experienced thrower I can help them to correct, improve upon and by doing so allow them to throw larger amounts of clay with greater confidence and experiment with forms they would have never been able to accomplish before even though the desire was there.
 
 So to return to the original question from Hulk: 
What mentor/mentee experiences have others had with regard to throwing?
best,
Pres

Min that sounds like a wasp/bee we have around here,  it is called a Cykada  killer,  it was imported here in the twenties when Kansas had the locust invasion.   A sting from them will put you in the hospital.  Just got back from the Senior housing,  my mother in-law was eating dinner and couple of ladies sat next to her.  They asked her where she use to live and she told them down the street,  she asked them where they use to live.   The one lady said she didn't remember and asked her friend,  her friend told her she came from Timbucktoo!   My mother in-law is 96  and has all her wits could barely keep a straight face,  living in a senior village might be fun after all.   Heading out to my studio.    Denice

Thank you Liam and Hulk! Ouch on the hornet sting Liam. There have been a couple Giant Asian Hornets found here recently, really nasty things with a wingspan of about 3".
Those shelves are just odd boards and strips of ply with leftover laminate flooring on top of them so I can wipe them down without the sponge getting caught up on the rough boards. Batts are homemade plaster ones, no pins, stick to a Xiam Batemate. 

Wow those are awesome, @Min!
Today I mixed glaze (folk art guild white) and made soaps of metal salts for lustre experiments.
While I was mixing glaze, I grabbed a bag of spodumene, unrolled it, measured out the spodumene, and while I was rolling the bag back up, OUCH WHAT THE #&%@!  
Got stung by a hornet that decided to hibernate in the folds of my spodumene bag.  So that was fun!  The hazards of mixing glaze that no one talks about.  Now my middle finger is swollen up, which could be advantageous if I run into someone particularly disagreeable.