April 2007 firing

The stuff is out of the kiln, and looks great. The ash coverage is excellent, and I got some nice, deep browns, and warm flashing. Needless to say, I'm pretty happy. Here are some pictures. Sorry I didn't have time to make the layout a little better, but I think the pictures are all you need anyway:

April 2007 firing

Enjoy. Comments are neat.

First firing of 2007 finished!

After 40 hours, we finished the first firing of the year. I peeked in the kiln this morning (36 hours later and it was still 500*) and the color looks promising. I will post pictures of the work after I open it tomorrow or Wednesday. Until then, here are some pictures of the loading and firing:


The door is almost bricked up:


Wood - cut and ready:


I used some good bourbon for my lighting ritual:


I keep the kiln below 200* for six hours to drive off any remaining water:


Taking is easy:


Getting hotter:


Bethany looking tough in the morning:


Side-stoking some wood and wet sawdust:


Almost finished (at about 2300*). Those are flames coming out of the chimney:


The moon:

Winter work

This winter has been hectic. I haven't been able to throw as much as I would have wanted, but what I have thrown, I am pleased with. This vase is about 19 inches tall, and was made in two parts. I also made a paddle which I have been experimenting with. I used it to create the texture you can see.



Also, I have been making planters which I am hoping to be able to market to greenhouses in the area, and possibly sell at home and garden shows.



Click on any of the above pictures to see more of what I have been making these past few months. I hope to be able to fire this stuff in about a month. Bring on the warm weather!

Weekend open house

This past weekend went well. About 50 people came through on Saturday, but only six came through on Sunday. It was raining all day, and the Packer game was on. Overall, I call it a success.

On Saturday, a neighbor came by with her son and daughter, and a bucket of clay that the little girl had dug from a creek bank in Monroe. The mother said, "She needs to talk to someone about clay." I let her throw a lump of it on the wheel, and she made a little cup. She is going to bring it back when it dries. Hopefully, when I fire it, it doesn't melt completely.

Ups and downs

My excitement when I opened the kiln was short-lived. When I got the front stacks unloaded, I found that most of the back was bloated badly. Pretty frustrating. I'm not sure why it happened, either. I may have not burned the carbon and/or the sulfur out completely, or I overfired. If anyone has expertise, please take a look and tell me what you think.

I did get some really nice stuff out of the kiln, though, and I really like how the test glazes turned out. The Shaner Oribe has especially caught my fancy. Half a success is better than none.

Recipes

I tested some glazes in my kiln this firing:

Shaner Turquoise Oribe (from Sam Hoffman's June/July/August 2005 Ceramic Monthly article):
Strontium Carbonate ... 9
Talc ... 4
Whiting ... 19
Custer Feldspar ... 28
EPK ... 3
Silica ... 37
___
100%
Add: Copper Carbonate 3%
Bentonite 2%

Euan Craig/Lee Love/my variation Oribe (from a ClayCraft post July 13, 2005):
Feldspar, NC-4 (Soda) ... 6
Nepheline Syenite ... 6
Calcium Carbonate ... 3
Kaolin ... 5
Woodash (from fireplace, mixed wood, unwashed, 30 mesh) ... 50
Silica ... 30
___
100%
Add: Copper Carbonate 5%

Rob's Green
Cornwall Stone ... 75
Whiting ... 18
Gerstley Borate ... 5
Copper Carbonate ... 10
Strontium Carbonate ... 7
Bentonite ... 2