Two little teapots

For gnomes, as someone commented :) These are made from that new chamotte clay, quite grainy to touch.




I've been trying and trying, but still am quite far from achieving my ideal teapot, that looks nice, feels good to touch, is easy to use, and pours without spitting and dripping. I think I've experienced all of teapot "problems" so far : cracks on the sides from hot water, "s" cracks in spouts, lids etc. But I'm not giving up!  

New clay

I've been working with new chamotte clay, it's blackish brown, but after firing becomes sandy yellow and pink. The cups are a bit thick to my taste, so I won't be continuing, but it was fun making small vases and plates with this clay.

Two white glazes, one with Zn, that becomes grey on this clay and the other with Ti, that gives a rustic yellow beige.







Here presented on handspun fabrics from Atelier Tissage et Tradition. 

Pots and autumn flowers

We had a very nice sunny autumn, and I really do hope this sunshine lasts till spring. So here are some pics of flower pots and what goes inside.


Yep, an hydrangea that is still blooming! I got this seedling from a flea market and it flowered twice this summer, courageous little fella:


Christmas roses, helleborus niger, that also go by the name of "Potter's wheel", lol:


And a pic of my autumnal blood grass, finally looking like it should, fiery red

Sun-kissed cups

I reduced slightly the beverage capacity, but they are still cups for generous servings.

And experimented with handles. These are my favourite:



and some citrus squeezers:

Bigger pots

It was time :) This summer will be 4 years that I started doing pottery, tackling throwing after a year of playing around with slabs.

And orchid pots


Thought this blood grass was a goner, till I stopped submerging it in water.

A lemon tree:

Sprinkled blue

I have started using a new clay (GB8 from Solargil) in our workshop, all thanks to Herta, and the result is much lighter cups!
And I tried new color combinations, but I think I'll stick with the white. In pottery fairs it doesn't look appealing, but it works best on the table.




Some white Ti cups of the same batch

And jugs.

Cosmic glaze

This weekend we went to a pottery fair in Dourdan. About twenty ceramists showcased their work in the old market hall, just in front of the castle, a temporary home (or prison) to many historical figures.
We bought two lovely vessels, by Lluis Soler.


His work makes me think about constellations and nebulas, drinking tea becomes an outer space adventure :)