A Firing Schedule That Solves Problems
My cone 10 electric firing schedule, segment by segment, and why each step prevents a specific firing problem.
Why Your Glaze Is Pinholing
Pinholes are gas escaping through glaze that is already sealing. Here are the four usual causes and how to test for each.
Why Salt Fired Surfaces Age Well
Salt fired surfaces are formed in the kiln, not painted on, which is why they age with use instead of fading.
Why Handmade Isn’t Cheap
Handmade pottery is not expensive because it is handmade. It costs more because of time, high firing, testing and editing.
It Survived Cone 10
Most of my wild clay tests have failed. This one survived cone 10, and it's the first that has.
What Changes Between Throwing and Trimming
Throwing gets the credit, but trimming is where a pot's weight, foot and balance get decided.
Why You Always Grab the Same Mug
The mug you always reach for earns its place slowly. Here's what makes it, and what I think about at the wheel.
Not Everything Belongs in My Kiln
I don't fire everything I make. Why some pots stop on the ware board, and why salt never fixes a weak form.
Heat Isn’t the Hard Part
Getting a kiln hot is easy. Designing a salt kiln where the air moves right is the real work.
Surface Gets the Credit. The Rim Does the Work.
The glaze gets the credit, but the rim is what meets your mouth every morning. Why I fuss over every mug lip.
Advice I’d Give My Younger Self in the Studio
The advice I'd give my younger self in the studio: slow down, master the basics, and treat failure as part of the apprenticeship.
What Failure Has Actually Cost Me
Failure in clay is quiet. It costs time and confidence more than clay, and it pays you back in discipline.
The Limits of Utah Wild Clay
Digging your own clay is romantic. Firing it to cone 10 isn't. What Utah wild clay has taught me about its limits.
Why I Don’t Make Bright, Colorful Pottery
Bright glazes are impressive, but they never felt like mine. Why I make quiet, earthy, high-fire pots instead.
What Matters Most Isn’t the Surface
Surface photographs well, but weight, balance and form are what people feel first. Why the glaze can never save a weak pot.
The Real Reason I Fire to Cone 10
Cone 6 is easier. I fire to cone 10 anyway, because high fire glazes mature into the clay instead of sitting on top of it.
What Happens When an Electric Cone 10 Firing Fails
What happens when an electric cone 10 firing fails, how it shows up in the glaze and clay, and what I changed to fire smarter.