My pottery journey began with my grandmother, who collected pottery, and passed her love of clay to me. I began taking courses while I was in university, and was lucky enough to set up a studio of my own shortly after. I took a break from pottery while my kids were young, but recently returned to pottery, both as a pastime and as a side-gig! While I am a full time elementary teacher approaching the end of my teaching career, I hope to pursue pottery even more in future.
In July 2024, I began to challenge myself to create pottery that is both functional and beautiful, and documenting this journey on RU-vid has helped me to improve my skills in pottery. I have tried new techniques, new materials, and more difficult forms. I have greatly appreciated everyone who has shown interest and support!!
Although I don’t sell full size items online (shipping nightmare 😢) I do have an Etsy shop for miniature pottery at: feniaksfirings.etsy.com)
@@Ellen.s.atelier thank you! I will definitely subscribe to your channel and check out your pottery- I always find watching others inspires my own pottery!
I have never seen someone come with just one hand on the clay. Is your hand just super strong? Or is there a trick to coning up with one hand on clay and other hand pulling the thumb?
@@HiveCreekFarm I probably don’t have the best form but the left hand is used for pushing the clay up while the right pushes it down. The pressure really only comes from one hand at a time but the left is also braced against my leg and most of the power comes from my leg. If you watch closely when I am throwing a bigger piece of clay or one that is wonky I bring the left leg higher to do more work. The right pushing on the thumb is likely a bad practice but I link my thumbs so the two hands work together while centring and for some reason it helps me centre when I am somewhat bracing that hand against the other. Maybe it helps me focus the push at the bottom (heel of my hand) and get a better rise of clay from the bottom that way? My understanding is that ideally you want a circular movement of clay in the lump as you centre and part of that is moving the clay down the outside and up the inside and a straight sideways push doesn’t necessarily achieve that. I was told by my teacher who was a master potter that this is what centring meant - not just the outside layers being circular but a “stream” within the clay meaning the particles all being centred. Mind you, I have seen excellent potters here on RU-vid who don’t seem to worry about the inside clay so maybe my way is old school and out of date! Thank you for the question!
I just realized I did a lot less editing of the “quiet” moments in this video and I was just wondering whether people prefer to have more of the details like trimming or smoothing or would you rather have a quicker video that jumps from step to step?
@@nimirnn2293 I have a kitchen scale that I used to measure out the clay, but for these, I was thinking they would use about the same amount of clay for one of my little prep or dip bowls, which is 200 g, with a little extra for the smaller side. So the one that was thrown in one piece I think I used about 300 g and the other one I used 200 and 100 g.
@@ODDwayne1 thank you so much! I have enjoyed working with the black clay although had some glaze issues with it! I am hoping to avoid that this time around. I wasn’t going to show the glaze process because it can be tedious but I will definitely post pictures once these are fired! 🤞 If you are interested I can do a walk through of the processes of glazing and firing (in my very unphotogenic garage!)
What type of clay do you choose ? Maybe you can tell what "YOU" chose before going into pottery ? The tips and suggestions from a potter :) I like your channel.
@@Adnancorner this is black clay - I just started using it a couple of months ago, usually I use red clay or speckled cream stoneware. My career has mainly been teaching, so pottery has been an hobby/interest and side hustle since I learned how to make pottery during university. If you wonder why I don’t talk through the process more (especially given that I am a teacher!) I guess I felt that people could be more in the moment just watching, and also the sounds of my backyard are much more pleasing to the ear than my voice!) if there is anything you would like explained I am more than happy to do a voiceover or comment! Thank you! I truly appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment and show your support!
@@feniaksfirings I would love to hear you talk through your thought process while making your creations. I like to hear talking while watching potters. Plus, sometimes voices can lull me to sleep...lol
@@Mangobattie to be honest I am self conscious about recording my voice because I think it’s sort of irritating (kind of nasal?) also I am a teacher so talk all day. But I will try a video with talking and see if people seem to like it in the next few weeks - Let me know what you think if you see it!
@@ODDwayne1 I totally find it therapeutic too - especially if it is going well!! But watching the movement and flow, seeing how a change of my hands creates movement in the clay helps me to relax and just be in the moment!
Thank you thank you again thank you. You’re the first one in the RU-vid channel. Who show up all the details and the whole process with all the real time. no deleting non ….. Nothing just the way that you work appreciated. I’m a beginner and I love your videos. I’m a big fan for you and for your job even your mistake. you been showed themthank you thank you thank you
Will this clay bisque fire black in colour? What glaze will you use? Ive never used a dark clay before so would be interested in the results. Many thanks.
@@AngelaMacKenzie-hl1io the bisque ware looks like a dark grey colour but when fully fired it is black. Glazes can make it look other colours (the ones I have used give it a brown appearance). On these bowls, I have a glaze that is normally a fairly bright, turquoise and glossy, but I tested it on some smaller black pieces, and it ends up being sort of a sage green, and the clay itself appears brown. Fingers crossed!!🤞 I will post the results when they are done!
@@michaeldonoghue9015 sure - this is a Brent wheel - probably about 25 years old but in great condition. If you are looking for a wheel, Brent and Shimpo are both excellent wheels. There are now smaller more portable wheels too like Vevor if you want a more compact one. Is there anything specific you would like to know about the wheel?
@@jaredhuke6123 sounds challenging! I am tempted by the promise of the final form though! I have only used porcelain for miniature pottery so far, which might make it even more of a challenge for me!
It is a study in hydration management. I’m early in my career but I just love it. Today I threw three pots and only one died along the way - I cut the bottom too shallow. Hope prevails!
Suprised you say you are not a professional, your work is very skillfully made. It has been wonderful watching your videos this summer for throwing inspiration. I really like the greenish nautilus plate, even if it's not as intended. Digitalfire has some good information about causes of pinholes for a starting point. Without knowing more about your firing curve, glaze recipe, or how you made the clay black I can't be more specific. So difficult not to feel heartbroken - ceramics can be cruel!
@@malcolm7436 thank you! I have been trying to figure out the pinhole issue as well - especially since the same load had some excellent results along with the damaged one! I assume it reflects different temperatures in the kiln (which is an old one that has been very naughty in some of these firings!). I never considered the kind of black clay a potential problem though - it’s just PSH cone 6 black clay… I obviously should have done more extensive testing before committing to a glaze! That’s me being too impulsive (I had a vision!!). I appreciate your support and your advice.
Uh I forget to ask: when you are carving and using the stylus tool (I’m not sure that’s the name: the tool with a small ball on the end) - what effect it does on the carving? What do you achieve during carving? Smoothing? Deeping? 🤷♀️
@@gabriellame1815 I call it a ball tool but not sure if that is correct! It smooths out the cut edges left after I do the initial carving with the ribbon tool. It does deepen them a bit as well but it’s mainly to make it look cleaner/smoother.
@@feniaksfirings thousand thank you:)) never thought about it, but definitely will try🙏🏻🙏🏻. It’s much more nicer than a damp sponge, not taking more clay away
@@gabriellame1815 i’m not sure if I’m doing it wrong but when I try to smooth stuff out with a sponge, it tends to reveal any grog in the clay and then end up looking more rough. I find burnishing with some sort of hard surface better for pushing the grog down and then making the surface smoother.
its a beautiful shape, with your throwing being so fluid, i had to watch over and over the part when you went from dog bowl shape to the final shape, Before you trimmed it, i looked flat like a plate, i just could not see how you did it, and the carved decoration, outstanding, have you a picture to show it in its finished state?. thankyou for showing us and sharing your talent
@@denisenoble4010 thank you so much! It is just about to be bisque fired but I will post it in its glazed form. This is my first time using black clay and I am excited to see what it looks like with the glaze I have in mind!
@@gabriellame1815 thank you! This one was a tough one to clean up because the carving lines made sections with small connection points and it started to bend/disrort. I am going to let it dry and stiffen up then use a needle tool and a paintbrush to clean it up very gently.
