Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Teapot Evolution

Well, it's really decoration evolution.  I like to use a soft pencil to draw out the basic design.  Linda Arbuckle uses brush and diluted food coloring, but I like pencil because I can rub it out easily.  This is Amoco's ^04 Opaque White so it has a lot of sizing in it.  When I use glazes I have mixed myself I use a lot of unscented hair spray as a fixative.


Below, I've laid down the main colors in the design.  Because of the sizing the colors stay on the surface.  When I lay in the highlights I will blend them after they dry.

The process is time consuming but I enjoy doing it.  If you don't enjoy the making you should be in another field.  (That nugget of wisdom is courtesy of an art instructor when a student was complaining about the medium he was using.)

I usually work on one piece at a time.  I tend to lose the focus of the design if I glaze in multiples.  My trusty hair dryer speeds things up considerably.  And I can always go make tiles or whistles or something.

Looks like it will be up in the 60's today.....which means I can actually work in my real studio this afternoon.

Thanks for stopping by............~s~


7 comments:

  1. It's funny how each of us has patience for different things. I will sit and work on one piece all morning but would never be able to sit still long enough to paint like this!

    It took me four tries to get the right word verification, blogger really needs to change this!

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  2. I keep saying I am going to get a hair dryer and I always forget when I get to the store, the hair spray trick sounds like a good one.

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  3. Suzie - your t-pot is lovely. It's great seeing it's evolution. I can sit and paint for hours too. I'm finding I'm not missing clay too much. Although I am going to set-up a room just for clay and maybe do some hand building and painted surfaces again. You are an inspiration.

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  4. Very nice, I love the way this is looking. It will be fun to see the finished product after we've been shown the stages of development.

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  5. Heee heee. So true you have to enjoy it! I like your yellow tone and the amazing shape of the tea pot. Brilliant.

    I also use a pencil when sketching out a design.

    :-} Happy April thanks for sharing what your up to!

    Lorraine

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  6. Hi Tracey....I look at your houses and envy the patience it takes to make them....to each her own.

    Word verification....BLEAH!!...I can thin of a zillion ways they could do it and not turn us into head banging crazies!

    Hi Linda.....my studio hair dryers (Yes, I have more than one.) were cheap ones....you don't need to much heat.

    Hi Judy....Thanks, that means a lot to me.

    Hi Gary....stages or staggers?

    Hi Lori....thanks....we'll see, grasshopper, we'll see.....

    Hi Lorraine....The surface will be shiny, but the colors remain pretty close to unglazed. I use mostly Mason Stains; what do you like?

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