In this tutorial, I’ll guide you through crafting a vase using black midfire clay. To begin, centre the clay on the wheel head, forming the base and walls with your fingers. Maintain consistency in wall thickness as you prepare to elevate the vase with a throwing sponge.
The technique used for shaping involves squeezing the walls from the outside inward, maximising height and aiding in shaping the vase. This inward squeeze allows for both increased elevation and controlled shaping, enhancing the overall design. Ensure the walls are well-formed before moving forward.
Once the base is refined using a turning tool, cut the vase off the batt, cover it with a bag, and let it rest for 48 hours. This period allows the clay to set to the leather hard stage. Once ready, trim the base by cleaning the outer edge and flattening the pot’s bottom.
Now the foot ring is optional, but if you have an overly thick base, then a foot ring will help minimise the thickness and also aid in the reduction of cracks forming from being too thick. For this vase I left approximately two and a half centimetres of thickness in the base during the initial throwing stage. This provides the opportunity to carve a deep and visually striking foot ring.
By all means comment below have any other further questions
Hope you enjoyed this post and as always Happy Potting!!! 🥳🥳
