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About pottery.

Tom

Tom

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Someone on here was surprised that my main avocation/love is/was pottery. (Now retired.) So I thought you might be interested in a post about the process, since it seems most musicians are also interested in craft in general.

Today I am “firing” a “bisque” or “biscuit” kiln which prepares the raw pottery for glazing and the final firing. In particular I am making 40 small flower vases as table settings for my lovely daughter’s upcoming wedding.


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The vases are done getting dried.

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These “cones” are made to melt at a predetermined temperature and rate of heating. I will fire this kiln to about 1100C (cone 04).


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One sits in the kiln as a sort of primitive automatic shutoff.

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I share my pottery studio with my lovely wife who is a silversmith/paper artist.
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They get loaded in the kiln on a series of shelves held up by stilts.

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You can just about see the cones through a peephole in the side of the kiln. Can use them to gauge temperature.

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Kiln is full and ready to roll. Will take about 8 hours, enough to get a little cordeening in.

Maybe I’ll make a video of “throwing” some more stuff today. Now where’s my bunnet?

Here’s some stuff I like to make. Some big mixing bowls, milk pitcher and vase.

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and have you a glaze formula to match the Piatanesi ?

it would look good on a custom Haggis serving platter..

and yes, congrats on getting Doris married off..
what besides the Vases is the Dowry costing you ?
 
Ventura said:
and have you a glaze formula to match the Piatanesi ?

it would look good on a custom Haggis serving platter..

and yes, congrats on getting Doris married off..
what besides the Vases is the Dowry costing you ?
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With any luck my first born son. 😉 Actually the color is not that good in the photo but if you look at the bottom of the accordion it’s pretty close to the bowl next to it. I haven’t figured out how to get the celluloid look though….
 
Tom said:
Someone on here was surprised that my main avocation/love is/was pottery. (Now retired.)
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Tom, thanks for sharing and congratulations on your daughter's wedding!👏🙂
Your pictures stirred pleasant memories of my mother who was a potter herself for many years, "throwing" pots on an electric wheel firing them in a kiln and compounding various glazes from the basic ingredients.
I don't particularly remember the " cones ", but she did use a thermocouple pyrometer and made temperature charts of the firings.
My daughters and I still have some of her works as keepsakes.🙂
 
Hello Tom

Congratulations to your daughters upcoming wedding.
And thank for sharing nice views into your workshop and the objects of your craftsmanship.

All the best from Bavaria.
 
Thanks everyone!

…….in which I demonstrate how to “throw” this pitcher, similar to the one in the picture above. With my man Giorgio on his Beltuna, who got me into this whole accordion thing. On repeat. Sorry Jerry, you will cringe deeply at my video production, no one is allowed to take it seriously!

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Dingo40 said:
Tom, thanks for sharing and congratulations on your daughter's wedding!👏🙂
Your pictures stirred pleasant memories of my mother who was a potter herself for many years, "throwing" pots on an electric wheel firing them in a kiln and compounding various glazes from the basic ingredients.
I don't particularly remember the " cones ", but she did use a thermocouple pyrometer and made temperature charts of the firings.
My daughters and I still have some of her works as keepsakes.🙂
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Super cool Dingo, I would love to see a picture of your mother’s pottery.
 
Dingo40 said:
I'm trying to send a picture of some of her stuff (I'm not very confident about downsizing the picture so it'll be accepted).
The wall tiles in the background are 6" square for scale.🙂
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Wow, super beautiful Dingo! She was really talented. Love the glaze and decor. Thank you!
 
JerryPH said:
Seriously? Are you looking at the same video I am above? That is absolutely incredible!
Later once you are less busy, I may need to commission you to make something for us!
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Thanks so much Jerry! Pm me what you want. Long as you like the colors in the above photo my finished pottery, we can do it!
 
The pitcher dried up a bit overnight. 4F (-15C). I made a big planter too. Today I will try to demo how to trim up the bottom and put on a handle. I’ll try to not repeat the same song on background……. Nothing to do with accordions (except Giorgio). Sue me if you don’t like it. Or complain to Knobby. Maybe he’ll kick me off and I can spend my quality time actually getting better on the old cordeen! 🤣🤣

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Ok, on to the demo of trimming up the bottom and adding the handle.

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Final shaping will be done after it dries up a bit.



Now I need your help. Can you show me another accordionist who has a duo or band with such a fine singer who also makes his/her own backing tracks as interesting as Giorgio? I have been searching high and low. Extra points if the accordionist also posts the sheet music and backing tracks like Giorgio used to do before they seem to have left the scene? Fortunately I downloaded a number of them. Anyone here from Le Marche? Are they still active?
 
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Thank you for 'throwing' the pottery thread onto this ever-turning forum wheel, Tom. Since my first days on the Accordionists Forum you made a big impression on me. You have so many qualities; kindness, humour, generosity, openness, honesty, loyalty, resourcefulness and a willingness to treat others in a charitable way. You are a great craftsman in so many different fields, a very fine multi-instrumentalist and you have a oneness with nature and of living off the fat of the land. I know a wise man when I see one Tom, and though we may have never met I have learned so much from you. I continue to learn from you every day. Tom, you embody the spirit of the greatest of the American people. God bless you!​
 
Walker said:
Thank you for 'throwing' the pottery thread onto this ever-turning forum wheel, Tom. Since my first days on the Accordionists Forum you made a big impression on me. You have so many qualities; kindness, humour, generosity, openness, honesty, loyalty, resourcefulness and a willingness to treat others in a charitable way. You are a great craftsman in so many different fields, a very fine multi-instrumentalist and you have a oneness with nature and of living off the fat of the land. I know a wise man when I see one Tom, and though we may have never met I have learned so much from you. I continue to learn from you every day. Tom, you embody the spirit of the greatest of the American people. God bless you!​
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Awwwwwwww🥹🥹🥹
 
Thanks so much Walker, Ventura and everyone!

I consider myself jack of all trades, master of one. With all humility I believe my 50 years of learning pottery has put me equal to anyone I care to admire. Accordion? Not so much!

And I’ve only gotten as far as I have in all trades due to the help and mentorship I have received, including from the experts on this forum. In fact because of the people on this forum, it’s about the most sane place on the internet, and why I spend way too much time here.

And I believe in giving back, which is why I try to help and offer advice where I can, and host the zoom, etc.

As my great Italian friend Rokko says, and I quote, “You’re the best!”
 
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