Todays little video is on a very simple tumbler but i thought id run through what I’m doing as it may be of use to you, let me know if what you think anyway 🤗🤗
By all means comment below have any other further questions
Decide on the shape and style of your cup. You can create anything from a classic cylindrical shape to more creative and unique designs. The straight wall tumbler is a very easy shape to throw but also works with most designs in most homes
I use about 800 to 900 grams of clay for most cups. Don’t forget that clay can shrink up to 20% of there original size once’s glazed fired, so always compensate with the size of your cup when you throw it. Initially, if you make a slightly oversize cup, it should be perfect by the time it’s glazed fired. If you want to make a cup for a plaster mould, it needs to be bigger yet again.
When finishing off the outside of the cup, I like to use either a metal rib or rubber rib. The metal rib will give you a much smoother surface, but it takes away more of the clay walls. This is never been an issue for me, but in some circumstances, it might be a little bit too overpowering for a thinly thrown piece. A lot of the time it comes down to personal preference, so try what works for you and what you enjoy working with.
Let the cup dry until it reaches the “leather hard” stage. At this point, the clay is firm but still slightly flexible. This can take anywhere from 6-48 hrs depending on weather and the climate you live in, If you find the cup is too unstable to pickup in your hands then its too soft and need some time left to dry out, using a plastic bag during this process will help eliminate the cup, drying out too quickly or drying out unevenly
Once it’s at the leather hard stage, you can then put it back onto the batt and trim the base, you can either add a footing or trim the base dead flat. I tend to find that there are less cracks in our pieces when we do do a footring as it brings down the base thickness to be inline with the walls, it also adds a very nice look to it and gives it a professional look
Hope you enjoyed this post and as always Happy Potting!!! 🥳🥳
