A few weeks ago I had a wonderful gal come into the studio to take my “Try it” class. She had done some pottery on the wheel in the past and really wanted to make a fruit bowl. She was a delight to work with because she really took her time to listen with her ears as well as listen with her fingers. She got centering down right away and in just 2 short hours she was able to make herself a big fruit bowl.
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While she was working on hers,I was sitting next to her on my other wheel making one too.
Normally my bowls are tall and deep but the bowls we were making this day were shallow and wide. I used my white stoneware porcelain for my bowl so I could “art it up” .
For some strange reason I just decided to go wild with underglazing this bowl
It ended up looking like a party scene.
I had no preconceived idea of what I wanted to do with this bowl. I had to start somewhere. So I swiped a big blue strip of Underglaze across the whole bowl. inside and out. I can’t remember which blue I used but it was either Amaco Velvet Electric Blue or Amaco Velvet Medium Blue
Then I swiped a stripe of yellow. I absolutely love this yellow, its so bright and cheery. This yellow is Amaco Velvet Intense Yellow
OK Where do I go from here?
Orange. This bowl was SCREAMING for Orange! I love this bright Amaco Flame Orange, especially next to Intense Yellow!! Happy Happy Happy
Of course, I couldn’t stop now and started splattering underglaze all over it. Now my workspace, my hands and my clothes were a splattery and colorful mess but I had a big old grin on my face.
But there was still something missing…..
Swirls
Swipes
Lines
And Dots
So I got out my fine line brushes, and my black underglaze and I went to town.
Overall the bowl made me happy to look at. After the Crazy 2020 year, this bowl brought color back into my life!! I love being able to express myself in my art. This piece was completely different then anything I normally do. But then again, it wasnt a normal year and maybe I just needed to cut lose a bit.
Blunt Needle Tip Applicator Bottle Set
I have been wanting to add this to my art work tools for a while now. They are soft and squeezable. I am hoping at some point I will use them to draw my underglaze line but that will take some practice on my end. Meanwhile I love that I can have my favorite colors on hand to dot, scribble and use them to fill in large pools of color.
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Detail Paint Brush Set - 12 Fine tip brushes
I needed a bigger assortment of fine line brushes and found these to be just perfect. They hold their point and plenty of underglaze. Each brush comes with a little plastic sleeve over the bristles that help keep them sharp. The also come in a clear plastic closable bag so you can keep them all together.
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Round Synthetic Silk Sponges
I don’t know about you but I tend to lose my sponges. Maybe thats because one of my studio cats, Emily, is a sponge thief! I imagine one day I will find her stash but for now I find these sponges to be well made and hold up really well!!
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My name is Dani and I am the potter behind this page! I am retired and having a ball being the artist I always wanted to be. My studio is located in SE Oklahoma and I share it with two cats, Emily and Max. Have a look around!
That is a beautiful splash of color! Truly a party going on there! I can’t wait to see it fired!
When you applied your underglaze colors did you do 3 layers of each color? The color on the final piece looks very nice, bright and opaque. Thank you for your post! : )
Thanks for this question. The amount of underglaze I use is based on whether I want a translucent, water color or opaque affect! Three layers is generally what I use for opaque color. But not all underglaze colors are created equal! I use primarily Amaco Velvets and some colors, like the royal and bright blues, will bubble up if applied to thickly. I have had reds crawl if applied too thick. Turquoise need 4 coats to become opaque. I suggest making test tiles of your colors and don’t forget to test them with your clear!