Tooling Around

My time in the studio this week has been disjointed. When no particular deadline or goal looms, it can be this way. I spent time with friends, worked on non-clay projects and delved into the studio here and there. When creativity is a blank slate, it can be scary. What shall I make? What do I want to make? What do customers want me to make? All these questions have multiple answers, so creative decision-making can be hard. For me, the best solution is to dive in and just fool around.

I’ve been working out a new design for a berry bowl. I like the lattice base I’ve developed. I  criss-cross strips of clay about 1/4 inch wide for the base. At first, I used tools I had in the studio (a needle tool and ruler) to make the strips. I didn’t like the results.. 

So I created my own tool that can easily slice through the clay and create the exact-sized strip I need. I used two nails and a piece of cork. It works perfectly! Now I need to figure out how to make an adjustable version of this to cut out a variety of widths!

Now that the lattice design has been tackled, I worked on the bottom foot of the bowl and the overall functionality of the design. In my mind, the bowl will be used to wash and store a variety of berries. Additional randomly placed holes will provide air flow to keep the berries at perfect ripeness as they are stored. My latest version features square-shaped cut-outs to provide this function. I like how it looks too. What do you think? Am I getting closer? Click on photo to send me your thoughts!

Change of Scene

When I'm away from my studio and tools, it gives me an opportunity to look around my current environment and develop ideas with items that are on hand. Here, I've created a new template for some shapes I'll be working on using a frying pan and bowl. 

I like this scalloped edge. I'll test it out as the rim or base on some new shapes.

The clay I'm using is different from what I use in my own studio. It feels flimsier to the touch and fires to a different temperature than what I use in my studio. The color choices and glazes will be different too. I'll post pictures when I reach that stage. I'm playing with some baking dish shapes and sizes.

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When I'm away from the clay, here's what else is keeping my hands busy!