First Batch of Finished Ceramics

Today I did a bit more glazing, and was happy to find that some of my pieces had come out of the glaze firing, although I was not so pleased with the result.  So I spent part of the time "unglazing" or removing some of the glaze from the pieces which are not yet fired.

Anyhow, here are the first 7 pieces from my Fall work (some from the Summer).  All are made from grey stoneware :

#1 - This is a good sized bowl, featuring 3 Davidii involucrata (Dove tree) leaves, imprinted and painted in Green slip.  I dipped a border of Matt Green, then poured Celadon glaze over the top/inside.  Unfortunately, the Celadon glaze is too thick, so the result is a milky colour, and the texture of the leaves is largely lost (although the veins still show nicely).  In future, I will spray the glaze, to apply a thinner coat.  I learned this lesson the hard way with Clear glaze, now I know I'll also need to spray the Celadon.  It is stamped near the rim, on the underside.

#2 - This is my favourite in this first batch.  It is one of the pieces I started in the summer.  The Japanese maple leaves were pressed into the slab, and spattered with Green slip before removing them.  Once bisqued, the leaves were painted in Green over(under)glaze.  Matt Green glaze was applied to the rim and back, and then the whole piece was dipped in Celadon.  Again, the Celadon appears too thick on the back, but the maple leaves on the inside of the dish show quite clearly.  It is stamped on the underside, and sits nicely on the feet.

#3 - This bowl was started in the Summer also, made from imprinted fern fronds.  It has a nice round foot.  The fern imprint was colors with #3 underglaze (sponged off), and then the whole bowl dipped in Tam's Green.  Some of the texture from the fern is still showing through, although the glaze feels smooth to the touch.  I think this is a pretty good effect.  One day I want to experiment with not glazing the imprinted parts, but at least this way, it is food safe, so very practical.

The next three are small dishes formed from sunflower leaves.  All are glazed on the top with Tam's Green glaze, and unglazed underneath.  I would have liked the texture of the leaf to show through more, so may in future try spraying a thinner layer of glaze.  But at least they are smooth and easy to clean, and food safe.

#4 - This is the largest of the 3 leaves.  Nicely curved.  Stamped at the back.

#5 - This is the middle sized leaf.  Also nicely curved.  The tip touched the kiln shelf, but should clean up nicely.  Stamped at the back.

#6 - This is the smallest of the three, and the first sunflower leaf dish I had attempted.  I added the 3 button feet, which allowed me to glaze underneath also, which feels nice to handle.  It is also stamped underneath.

#7 - Too bad this dish cracked as I wrapped it in paper to take it home today.  I have no idea why.  Perhaps it had been bumped prior, since I didn't think I had mishandled it.  Anyhow, this one was glazed in Tam's Green and then Matt Green.  Even though the texture is lost in the leaf, the coloration is more interesting than the ones which are only glazed in Tam's Green.  I may try to glue it back together, so at least I can enjoy it.

Here's the four sunflower leaf dishes again.  I have a feeling that I should grow sunflowers again next year, and make these dishes again, trying a few more variations with glazing, or perhaps just staining and not glazing some of them, to retain the full texture of the leaf.