Thursday 29 March 2012

Barrington Pottery Charge Point.

Here is a new Idea,
I was asked to join this group, it's very simple
if you have an electric bike you can now charge it up
while you visit Barrington Pottery.

  On a more pot related theme
I made this 10 jugs for showroom stock.
 and these Tankards are an order from 
 Last Friday night Marion and Me Ran the Bar in the Village hall
for the Barrington Diamond Jubilee fund raising event.
It was a great success and the event raised enough funds
to enable us to offer a totally free event for the village.
 This is something you don't see from me every day.
Highly decorative mugs.
 can you guess which is the 30 year old original
of course you can its the 3rd in from the left.
the lady that ordered them is coming in this afternoon
to pick them up.
so we shall see what she thinks about them?
 Do you remember ths Mug
I felt sorry for the guy after the comments I made about it
that I decided to make him my version.
But two months on and he still hasn't come to collect it.

Thursday 22 March 2012

Now I know what busy means!

Just a quick blog, as I have realised I have been neglecting
my blogging duties this week.
Things seem to have changed here this month.
and I'm not sure how I'm going to keep up with everything.

A new Tonne of clay arrived last week, and I'm already getting into it.
Here is a cheeky shot for you.
Four live simply bowls all ordered waiting to be turned.
I'm very busy at the moment, so it's nice to have Caddy around 
to put it all into perspective for me.
with his "Don't worry be Nappy" attitude!
I've had the Pajero fixed , but it keeps failing to start in the mornings,
so walking to work is still a viable option.
I made more of these Devon style jugs for the showroom.
Harvest jugs and casseroles on order.
This was ordered and so will be made again, the crack goes right through.
I re fired this jug but it still has bubbles, so i'm making another one.
but I'm going to try and rub it down with a rubbing block
and re fire it yet again.
and I found this little chap on the path outside the workshop
this morning.
great to see the fantastic colors of nature.
We have some great New news that I should be able to share with you
towards the end of April
That's going to keep me very busy .
so make sure you look out for that
over the next month.

Tuesday 13 March 2012

Slipware Jugs. More Questions than Answers...

I seem to be having more than my fair share
of strange things happening in the workshop at the moment.
Have a look at these two jugs
 Both made at the same time.
Both slipped at the same time with the same bucket of green slip
 Both Biscuit fired in the same kiln
The one with the new elements
The one on the left as you look at them was laid on it's side
in the bottom of the kiln and the other stood upright
at the top of the kiln
 Both then glazed at the same time in the same bucket of glaze
 Both then come out of the firing exactly the same.
what the hell is going on ?
Am I the only person who makes these ? 
and this jug was in the same firing
but looks to be just slightly over fired.
I'm going to re fire this to see if I can get rid of the bubbles.
but I love the richness of the glaze, could it be that the glaze
is a bit on the thick side.?

Friday 9 March 2012

A Question about Glazes

Your not going to thank me for these pictures.
But I do need to ask a question.
My clear glaze seems to have started creating bubbles
when it's in the bucket.
 I've tried to take some close up shots
but it's a bit like
taking a picture of a cat called snowy in the snow.
 It is irritating to say the least
as it's transfering onto the pots, and I'm having to rub the pots down.
 Is there something I can add to stop this?
 I've scooped off some of the bubbles and put them in this small dish
to try and give you a better view.

The help on the last post about the elements was great
and I'm hoping you can help me out again.

Wednesday 7 March 2012

Replacing Kiln Elements.

You May remember that back in June last year
I showed you this picture of the elements in my oldest Kiln.
They were described by one blogger as Elephants!
and this was a stampede.
 I kept putting off ordering new elements, first because a new set costs
about £160
and second because I didn't fancy the job of replacing them.
Well I finally ordered some last month and having had then hanging around
for two weeks I finally took the plunge and had a go at
replacing them.
 I have a thin layer of 3mm ceramic fibre paper around the edge
which acts as a kind of gasket.
This was irritating my arms as I worked on it.
so I covered it with an old towel.
I would stress that before I started this job I made sure the fuse was out of the electrical box.
( just covering my arse here )
 The best thing I did was to order a new set of ceramic connectors
if ever you are fitting new elements on an old kiln
I would suggest this is essential, 
 The whole job took me about 2 hours and was much easier than 
I had anticipated.
 Here are the old elements
and below are the tools I used.
I now have a question to ask.
When Firing a kiln for the first time with new elements 
do you need to do a trial run ?
I mean I've checked they work and took it up to about 40 oc
But can I fill it full of pots for a bisc fire ?
I'm thinking it's like replacing a flat tyre on a car, as long as you do it 
properly then you can just carry on driving.
But with so much experience out there reading this stuff
I would value your comments.
Thanks.

Sunday 4 March 2012

New Pots on the Shelf, New Season.

Barrington Court re opened on Thursday 1st March
and we have new stock on the shelf.
I do like this Large dish.
 I have some more small jugs back in stock.
 and in a range of colours.
 also some more garlic pots.
 This Pancheon is 16" wide and has been made for an order.
 and this dish was going to be a diamond Jubilee bowl 
but at the last minute I just came up with this design
and I'm pleased to say it sold straight away.
 Two large harvest jugs slipped today
the plain one is for a Jubilee Jug and the one with the wave design 
is for an order.
 I'm still walking to the workshop
and spotted this owl the other morning
looking for his breakfast.
 and these Devon style jugs have some nice markings
that make them look like they have been wood fired.
It's been a good start to the new season.
all I have to do is keep making.
It's the start of a season and I feel  cream cracker-ed already.

Harvest on the Farm TV appearance

It’s great to be back on the Blog! The most exciting thing that’s happening right now, is that I’ve been asked to appear on Channel 5’s TV s...