the bottom of a new gift cup
even the simplest designs with the scraffito tool are painstaking
moderately busy in the oven still plenty of shelf space to go around though
when things go wrong....Termite Housenever happy to see damaged goods
The venture into the realm of ceramics started with painting a cup. Then 2 more cups. Then a couple more. Today it has swung back full circle as another cup, the eighth in all, (or ten, including gift cups) was begun, after months and months away from even looking at a cup. Class time will now be reserved for detailed painting, mostly, short-term wise. After a spell of getting to grips with clay over the last year or so, it's now time to get busy with precision and detail on some ready-made good 'ole drinking mugs again.*
One useful tool just come into use is the writing tube, demonstrated by the wording in the top picture. Easily used on the flat base, but a different proposition altogether on the surface curvature.
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The worst part of decorating a cup is undercoating each one in 3 foundation layers. This is a common pain-in-the_____, and seems to take forever to dry while meanwhile you twiddle your thumbs wondering what else there is to be done while waiting.
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It can be tricky handling the thing when half of it is wet, too. NEVER PAINT THE HANDLE FIRST! One heavy smudge or smear over a patiently executed intricate pattern can have you looking for the nearest dumpster.
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Another thing is knowing when to stop, when enough is enough. Sometimes, less is more.
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