Ceramics Workshop... Pinch pot

I attended my first session in ceramics/stoneware yesterday and I couldn't be happier! It was a nice small class...three adults and 2 youngsters. Our teacher, Ms Katti Sta Ana is a very good instructor. She toured us around the ceramics studio and we jumped right in to working with the clay. I love the the feel of the stoneware clay. It definitely has a different consistency compared to the polymer clay I am used to working with.

First we learned to prepare our clay for working, a process called Wedging.  We do this in order to knead the clay to get all the air bubbles out and get an even consistency.Then we wrapped the clay in plastic bags to keep them moist. We brought the clays to our table and started with our first technique/lesson...the pinch pot.

We started with a small ball of clay and pressed it in with our thumb. We continued to press the walls, feeling the thickness with our fingers while forming a little pot. We made several and combined the pots together until we formed a ball shape. Each of us was to make a pinch pot animal and since I love owls, it was my animal of choice. Our teacher made a puffer fish, my classmates made a cat, a turtle, a dog and a snowman. We also got to paint our finished creations with underglaze. Then we had to leave it to dry before it can be bisque fired.

We really learned a lot of things like how to make clay glue or also called slip, how to attach two pieces of clay together by scoring and adding glue, how to fix cracks on the surface and so much more. We each get to work with 2 kilos of clay every session and whatever we have left at the end of the session we can take home. I am excited to practice more today with the left over clay that I have...here are some pictures of our day's work...

This is my owl...the horns/ears looks a little funny and it makes him look like a devil...haha..

The two little girls in the class are quite inspiring to watch..they had so many ideas while working!!! Here are their pinch pot creations...a snowman and a dog...