BRHpottery

BRH Pottery is a working studio shaped by the Sonoran Desert. This site is a place to share functional ceramics, documented processes, and explore the landscape that informs the work, from clay and firing to wildlife, surface, and form. Move through the site to see finished pieces, studio notes, and the systems behind how this work is made, and how those systems continue to evolve over time.

Mug & Stand

Music in the Studio

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I primarily queue music from soundcloud.com because that's what I mostly listen to. Every now and then, I will add in music from Apple Music.

I made this mug, and several others on this day, but this mug stood out more to me than the others. I’ve been trying to nail down the perfect sized mug for a long time but clay shrinkage always stumped me. I over shot the mug here by quite a bit and after the final fire, it shrank just enough. This one’s a gift along with the stand in the other picture. The stand is just to raise up the surface to put the mug down on since the coffee table was a bit too low. It was my first slab built piece and probably won’t be my last!

Process Notes

The top glaze on the mug was a test. I combined my two favorite glazes, Light Shino and Desert Sage. I mixed the two in a clean container and made sure they were stirred in well. I had to dip the top of the mug, let that set up, then dip the bottom of the mug in the yellow. The box next to the mug took a lot more time. I brushed in the red glaze in to the stems and flowers, then I brushed the same mixed glaze on the surfaces. I then had to take a chop stick to scratch off the mixed glaze to expose the red glaze a bit more.