Oxford Clay

So many pottery projects involve joining clay together and it’s not unusual for clay to crack apart after it's been joined. 

Join me for this episode where I talk about my 5 simple steps for joining clay together to stop clay from cracking apart! 

*Join clay that is the same level of dryness, you can encourage this by keeping clay in a damp box. 

*Use vinegar to ‘melt’ the joining surface of the clay. 

*Score the surface of the areas to be joined. 

*Use slip on the joint (and superpower this by mixing in paper fibres!). 

*Dry your pottery slowly to prevent some parts from drying faster than others and cracking apart. 

Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube

✨Support the Podcast

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Resources for Potters:

⭐ Pottery Paperback Books available from Amazon

Free Pottery Guides:

🆓 Download the Free How to Make a Pottery Glaze Workbook (suitable for beginners):

🆓 Download the Free How to programme an Electric Kiln for bisque and stoneware glaze firings (includes full kiln firing schedule)

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Thank you for your listener questions! This is the first listener question episode, and we're talking about about crazing and pinholing in pottery glazes. The listener questions in this episode are:

Is it a defect of the glaze to have pinholes or hairline cracks after firing?

Are these fired glazes permeable and will food residues settle in them over time, especially if you only wash them by hand?

Can crazed and pinholed pottery go in the dishwasher?

Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube

✨Support the Podcast

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Resources for Potters:

⭐ Pottery Paperback Books available from Amazon

Free Pottery Guides:

🆓 Download the Free How to Make a Pottery Glaze Workbook (suitable for beginners):

🆓 Download the Free How to programme an Electric Kiln for bisque and stoneware glaze firings (includes full kiln firing schedule)

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Experimenting with making pottery glazes is one of my absolute favourite things to do.

In this episode, I tell you how I make my glaze tests at Oxford Clay, and how you can do the same!

Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube

✨Support the Podcast

-------------------------------

Resources for Potters:

⭐ Pottery Paperback Books available from Amazon

Free Pottery Guides:

🆓 Download the Free How to Make a Pottery Glaze Workbook (suitable for beginners):

🆓 Download the Free How to programme an Electric Kiln for bisque and stoneware glaze firings (includes full kiln firing schedule)

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In this episode, I talk about 5 simple things you can do to recycle resources in pottery!

The 5 things I talk about today are:

*Collecting Rainwater to use in pottery

*Reclaiming used clay back into new clay

*Turning scrap metal into colouring oxides

*Making pottery glazes from plant ashes

*Using glass in pottery to add colour and decorative detail

Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube

✨Support the Podcast

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Resources for Potters:

⭐ Pottery Paperback Books available from Amazon

Free Pottery Guides:

🆓 Download the Free How to Make a Pottery Glaze Workbook (suitable for beginners):

🆓 Download the Free How to programme an Electric Kiln for bisque and stoneware glaze firings (includes full kiln firing schedule)

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Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube

✨Support the Podcast

-------------------------------

Resources for Potters:

⭐ Pottery Paperback Books available from Amazon

Free Pottery Guides:

🆓 Download the Free How to Make a Pottery Glaze Workbook (suitable for beginners):

🆓 Download the Free How to programme an Electric Kiln for bisque and stoneware glaze firings (includes full kiln firing schedule)

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Did you know that you can actually make your own green pottery colourant called Verdigris?

Verdigris is an ancient pigment that has been used for thousands of years, and you can make it yourself by recycling scrap copper! 

In this episode I share 3 beautiful pottery glazes I've made using Verdigris. Green Stoneware / high-fire recipes below: 

Learn how to fire these stoneware glazes in an electric kiln in this free workbook.

Recipe 1: 

Cornish Stone - 50

Quartz - 25

Whiting - 15

Dolomite - 10

5% Verdigris 

Recipe 2: 

Cornish Stone - 40

Quartz - 20

China Clay - 15

Whiting - 10

Dolomite - 10

5% Verdigris

Recipe 3: 

Feldspar - 56

Quartz - 22

Whiting - 13

Plant/Wood Ash - 9

5% Verdigris

Recipe 4: (just in case you like this glaze?! / are making a sculpture of an amphibian and need a good glaze for the skin!)

Cornish Stone - 40

Plant/Wood Ash - 40

Quartz - 20

10% Verdigris

Learn how to make your own Verdigris and use it in your pottery in this video mini-course.

Or this book

Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube

✨Support the Podcast

-------------------------------

Resources for Potters:

⭐ Pottery Paperback Books available from Amazon

Free Pottery Guides:

🆓 Download the Free How to Make a Pottery Glaze Workbook (suitable for beginners):

🆓 Download the Free How to programme an Electric Kiln for bisque and stoneware glaze firings (includes full kiln firing schedule)

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You may have heard the word ‘Verdigris’ used to describe a blue-green colour, or you may have seen it on brass statues or the roofs of buildings. 

Verdigris is also a pigment that has been used by artisans for thousands of years. But did you know that Potters can actually make their own Verdigris to use in their ceramics?! Making your own verdigris is a great way to avoid using commercial metal oxides, one of the least environmentally friendly pottery ingredients. 

In this episode, I tell you about how I make my own verdigris and how I use it in the pottery at Oxford Clay as a unique eco-conscious pottery colourant. 

Learn how to make your own Verdigris and use it in your pottery in this video mini-course.

Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube

✨Support the Podcast

-------------------------------

Resources for Potters:

⭐ Pottery Paperback Books available from Amazon

Free Pottery Guides:

🆓 Download the Free How to Make a Pottery Glaze Workbook (suitable for beginners):

🆓 Download the Free How to programme an Electric Kiln for bisque and stoneware glaze firings (includes full kiln firing schedule)

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Leather hard clay is when the clay has dried a little but is still wet enough to work with.

Clay is very versatile at the leather-hard stage, stronger, and less prone to breakage like bone dry pottery (also known as ‘greenware’). 

In this episode, I explain what leather-hard clay is and all the amazing things that can be created with leather-hard clay! From building slab pots, etching decoration and slip trailing, to turning the base of wheel-thrown pots and more!

Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube

✨Support the Podcast

-------------------------------

Resources for Potters:

⭐ Pottery Paperback Books available from Amazon

Free Pottery Guides:

🆓 Download the Free How to Make a Pottery Glaze Workbook (suitable for beginners):

🆓 Download the Free How to programme an Electric Kiln for bisque and stoneware glaze firings (includes full kiln firing schedule)

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Any Potter can make their own totally unique pottery glaze! Making your own signature pottery glaze is a great way of creating a unique aesthetic for your ceramics. 

You may think that making your own glaze is difficult but it's not! If you can follow any kind of recipe, you can make a pottery glaze. 

In this episode, I talk about 3 ways to make a totally unique pottery glaze: 

*Tweak the base ingredients of an existing glaze recipe. 

*Add different colouring oxides to a base glaze.

*Make a pottery glaze using plant ashes. 

If you’re interested in learning how to make a Stoneware pottery glaze, and having a base glaze recipe to make your own unique glaze,  you can download the free How to Make a Pottery Glaze workbook here

Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube

✨Support the Podcast

-------------------------------

Resources for Potters:

⭐ Pottery Paperback Books available from Amazon

Free Pottery Guides:

🆓 Download the Free How to Make a Pottery Glaze Workbook (suitable for beginners):

🆓 Download the Free How to programme an Electric Kiln for bisque and stoneware glaze firings (includes full kiln firing schedule)

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After years of practising pottery, I’ve distilled the absolute one thing every Potter needs to know: be kind to yourself!

Although being kind to yourself doesn’t seem like it has anything to do with making pottery! Self-kindness is actually something that superpowers your pottery learning journey and helps you cultivate a growth mindset.

Being kind to yourself is an absolute must for learning any new thing that requires a lot of patience and making ‘mistakes’ along the way - like pottery!

Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube

✨Support the Podcast

-------------------------------

Resources for Potters:

⭐ Pottery Paperback Books available from Amazon

Free Pottery Guides:

🆓 Download the Free How to Make a Pottery Glaze Workbook (suitable for beginners):

🆓 Download the Free How to programme an Electric Kiln for bisque and stoneware glaze firings (includes full kiln firing schedule)

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