Wow, back at it after about 2 months away from the wheel...nice to see that I didn't forget everything!  It is a lot harder to pick it back up with so much time inbetween, but it is a little like riding a bike, you fall off a lot, skin your knees, and long for the training wheels...but eventually it really does come back to you.

I thought it would be cool to see if I could make a few dogwood pieces.  My grandfather made dogwood frequently, but dad never really did a lot of dogwood pieces.  It's a good deal more involved that just turning, but as long as it stays attached we should be in good shape!

Last Class this Session

Last class this time around.  It's nice to drive down t he street and be able to turn, but I have to say the "advancements in technology" available at the hundred year old post civil war studio, ha! 

"Dear giffin grip, I really missed you tonight when I was trying to align my bowl and trim it without cutting a hole in the side..."

"Dear centering arm & ball opener, how did I ever live without you?  You are truly the greatest thing since sliced bread..."

mom's coffee cup (finally)

Tools & Tricks

I spent some time playing with a few new tools tonight.  Pretty cool what different ribs can do.  This session is starting to wind down, and I am really looking forward to turning more with dad. 

beehive bowl

I turned this vase/sake pitcher type thing tonight.  I will say they are getting taller, even though all of my pottery is still quite small in scale...I hear there's a market for minatures, maybe that could be my specialty?  Do you know how much a pot shrinks when it dries?  Seriously...it's crazy.  You can turn this gigantic piece and it's so big you can't believe it, and then when you come back to look at it after the water has evaoprated and it's like someone zapped it with a shrink ray!  

sake - vase - type thing

I really enjoy the turning at the Hilton Homeplace...it's pretty cool to know that I am turning in the same studio as dad does, and my grandfather did.

pottery wheels in dad's shop

It's even more amazing when you are turning and need a tool...chances are if you just look around whatever you need is within arm's reach...even if you didn't know what it was until you needed it!

So in the spirit of Hilton pottery heritage, I made my first attempt at turning swirl today.  (a skill my grandfather was quite adept in) Not sure you will be able to call mine swirl...more like "whirl" ha ha!

my first attempt at swirl

back to the basics...

Ugh...back to using those multiplication tables again...although it felt a little more like counting with my fingers today...

  I couldn't get back into the swing of it after yesterday's vision of the advances in potter's tools...could I really be spoiled after only a few hours?

  I managed with a great deal of effort to end up with a few little things.  I can make the plates like dad with the well at the bottom, (although you'd have to be on a pretty strict diet to use this plate...it's really small!)

 

tiny little plate

...and I turned this little cream pitcher...but don't hold your breath waiting for a matching sugar bowl...

cream for your coffee?

So I spent the day with dad in his studio today...the first experience we've had together...HOLY COW!

It is amazing what a difference a clay makes! And the tools...who knew about ball openers, and centering arms, and giffin grips?

To put it into perspective for non-potters...remember when you were in school and the evil math teacher made you memorize all those silly multiplication tables...only to give you a calculator the next year? It was kinda like that...

I played with a few different clays (some with less sandpaper than that I have been using...much better for the manicure I must say) and turned on dad's wheel. The largest pot so far!

...of course our resident publicist, Dawn Crouse, was there for the photo op...thanks girl, you make us look so much better than we are...

All in all a great day and so very much fun! I can't wait to do it all again!

Flip your lid...

I am learning new tricks! I made a bowl today and learned how to turn a lid for it...my next trick needs to be learning how to measure the lid so you don’t have to re-make a pot to fit it...ha ha!

hmmm, lid + this pot = need new pot

I also used this cool “caulking-gun-meets-cookie-press” tool today to extrude handles.

Tomorrow I visit with dad to turn together for the first time...I can hardly wait!