Darlene's wheel goes round and round

For more than 15 years I have watched my wife Darlene throw pots. Every year I watch her talent and knowledge leap. The clay takes on graceful new shapes. Her glazes push ceramic chemistry. Her pots look great. This site takes you through what I watch every day-- the process of throwing, glazing and firing pottery.

Preparing the clay

Darlene currently uses clay manufactured by Highwater Clays. There are local earthenware clays, but she does not use them as the resulting pots would not hold up to the stress of daily use. The type of clay a potter uses depends on the temperature they fire to and the type of firing-- be it electric, gas, wood or raku.

The first step is preparing the clay to be thrown. To do this she throws the clay into a machine called a pugmill which mixes the clay, gets it to the desired consistency and vacuums out any air bubbles that might be in the clay. Consistency is very important. For smaller items, like small jars and bowls, she likes a slightly stiffer clay. For large items, such as tall vases or huge serving bowls, she likes her clay soft.

Throwing the pot

Darlene starts by "centering" the clay-- forcing it into the middle to get a uniformly shaped ball to work with. If the clay is off center at any point in the process, centrifugal force will throw off the shape.

She then sticks her thumbs in the middle of the clay to open up the pot. The throwing process itself is a combination of forcing your hands inward while taking advantage of the centrifugal force pushing the walls of the pot outward. Varying this pressure allows the potter to give the pot shape. Meanwhile, Darlene is pulling clay from the bottom of the pot and bringing it up to give the walls of the pot height.

Decorating the pot

Finishing the pot is a two-step process. The first step is "trimming." The bottom of the pot will have excess clay, so Darlene will trim off the excess with specialized tools-- for example creating a "foot" or the ringed base for a bowl. Darlene also often adds handles, incisions or impressions to her work often using stamps she has carved out of clay. At this point she signs her name on the bottom of the pot.

Finally, the pot is set out on the shelves until they are bone dry.

Throwing Pots / Glazing Pots / Firing Pots