How to Make Slab Built Mugs

[@ruthweissart]

Such a thorough explaination step by step with your sweet gentle, “you and do it” encouraging voice. Thank you.

[@suzanneadams9371]

Such a lovely “visit” to your studio. I watched this while also building slab mugs. You offer so many great tips! Thank you.

[@fighterfighter9340]

You're very brilliant and kind. I enjoy watching all the techniques making different type of mugs.❤You gain my knowledge. Thank you.

[@maryjeanallen6189]

Fantastic, clear, patient video! Thank you very much for sharing your time and talents!

[@ThePotteryWheel]

thanks Mary Jean, I'm glad it helped :)

[@bethholt1517]

What a great video. You’re very peaceful way of explaining is refreshing. Love the variation of shapes. Just lovely. Glazes are also very nice.

[@wendycornish3683]

Thank you for the detailed explanations you provide of every step in the process of making the various mugs. Lots of hints and tips that obviously come from years of making!😊

[@emilygodwin9412]

Thank you so much for sharing your talent through these instructional videos. After watching this (many times) and your video on how to make a conical template, I was able to hand build my own mug at home! Verified these are great videos for learning :) thanks again,

[@wwpetko-6760]

You are BRILLIANT! Thank you so much for this. And you’re so calming & soothing!❤

[@allsop91]

I really wanted to give pottery a try and had kind of given up on the idea because I couldn't justify buying a wheel. This is really helpful, thank you! :)

[@aldeirrodrigues411]

It's simply fantastic the way you teach! Thank you for sharing your art🙏🌺🌺🌺

[@ThePotteryWheel]

Thanks Aldeir :)

[@barbsl5597]

Wonderful presentation. You were through and clear on how to make these beautiful slab mugs. Thank you.

[@sharonatseanicstudios9970]

What an incredibly descriptive video that is super easy to follow. I now feel as if I can try any of these mugs with some success. Thank you!

[@ThePotteryWheel]

Glad it was helpful!

[@lorraineschiodtz3627]

Thank you for sharing your knowledge, such nice and easy teaching to follow. I was wondering if you had videos on glazing too?

[@mcberridge8180]

So helpful clear and informative! Thank you

[@vulcanswork]

BTW, the Relief stamps are of outstanding quality, I know because I got me some.

[@corysantiago3299]

Wonderful instructions

[@Maryzlem]

I reallly love your videos ! Your work is so clean and precise.

[@concernedcitizen8968]

Thank you so much for sharing your gift!!!

[@mokshaji5406]

So inspiring!!! All the best!!

[@tatianasattin5452]

Beautiful!!!

[@LLOYD3D]

You works so clean, i'm learning a lot whit your video. 15:40 Can you use the compass directly on the clay?

[@wendydee3007]

Brilliant - so many really useful tips, thank you :o)

[@ThePotteryWheel]

Hi Wendy, thanks, I'm glad it's helpful :)

[@gabriellawilhelm9718]

Fantastische Arbeit 👍👏👏👏

[@thehallhive9425]

Great tutorial!

[@clifforddalton3067]

very interesting, thank you. some say all this scratching and slipping isn't necessary but I don't know really.

[@gnarbeljo8980]

It really depends on how firm your pieces are when joining. The timing and consistency of your clay dictates your technique really. For instance, say you were working with a reasonably large production of mugs, then these techniques would be too timeconsuming and for me personally, too fiddly. I used to have a studio and am watching lots of videos to learn how to possibly teach courses, besides for my curiousity how others work. I personally learned alot more about workflow and form from working with professional potters than I did at my full time art college ceramics course back in the day. I see alot of potters on yt doing extremely tidy, painstakingly slow work I do admire but don't have the patience for. Even people with perfect nails (mystifying). You can slab build using more hybridized techniques I'd describe as a combo of sculpting, slabwork and pinching/ coiling. Making it very fast, but much trickier if using delicate texturizing in the beginning, better then to carve or use rollers after the basic form is all done. (Also any real height like vases and big pots require leaving a bottom section to firm up naturally). The handle- making using the "milking method" (she refers to it as "carrot") can be done off the hump as well, if you're producing a set of several mugs, ie a larger sc hump of clay on a low table, pulled out at an angle, making a set of six or sixty one after another simple. I'd make mug shapes several at a time, let them firm up, then make and attach handles one by one and I never used alot of scoring and slipping, but attatched the handles more or less straight away, so the clay is soft and adheres. A little scruffing with an old worn toothbrush on the point of attatchment on the mug if you want to be super sure is enough. I'd attach the top end, curve it out and down, then attach the bottom end and stand the whole mug upsidedown if going for this ear shaped handle she's using, bc gravity will support that shape with those curves upside down alot better. It saves ALOT of time and fiddling. But my muggs often had a larger attatchment area to the top part (which is the stress point) of the handle, with a pressed thumb indentation or a stamp decoration. Her method involves two very small flat cut and perfectly angled surfaces to hold the whole handle and weight. If you look at various handmade muggs I think you'll see the differences I mean. For throwers it's a common look and technique the way I do this, it sortof keeps the work flow going, and insures also that matching larger vessel with same type handle (like a pitcher or teapot) can withstand alot of wear and all the extra weight. But these are different aesthetic considerations too. I like pieces that convey movement in the curves, and mostly threw muggs or thew and altered, built and carved with some speed expressed. I wanted that fluid quality visible to the finished piece. Ie the softness of the raw clay. Her work is more angular, clean cut, and still in expression. I think it's a question of personal temperament, and whether you do production of matching pieces and need to economize with your time and labour to make your technique viable. If you work with softer slabs you don't need to join them with slip, scoring and a little water will do, if you run your finger round the seams. But if you want visible seams, overlapping ones even, a whole third aesthetic, you want firmer slabs and slip bc there's no blending at all on the visible bits, if this makes any sense? I think this video is an awesome, detailed tutorial for beginners, and beginners don't have all these considerations, it would just confuse the goal of making a single, sound, pretty and proportionate piece of table wear to enjoy for a long time. It's also so interesting to me, as it breaks down how I did things differently, which isn't something I thought about much on my own, it's just how my routine evolved,"the knowing of hands" . That's the beauty of good teachers, they can explain every step, how to and why. To me, ceramics is so physical. Imagine you where to explain how to skateboard, bicycle or swim in detail from afar. It's not that easy to explain what it is you do. It's a valuable talent!

[@DoveCeramics]

What a wonderful and instructive video. May I ask the thickness of the clay you roll out. I was using 3/8 of an inch but it seems a bit thick …. Thanking you in anticipation.

[@Sheepdog1314]

excellent

[@ErinSafley]

Do you have a link for your letter stamps? They look lovely to work with.

[@ThePotteryWheel]

relyefpotterytools.com/

[@davidarsenault9]

Thank you for the detailed, clear instructions. What size is your lettering?

[@kathygodfrey3158]

Fantastic, thank you. Would you please share which glazes you used? They are also beautiful 😍

[@breck112000]

Hello, thank you for the wonderful tutorial. Could you please tell me the size of your rectangular template? Thank you!

[@maha-kj3504]

So beautiful, but I have a question do you have to wedge the clay before ? And my clay gets dry so fast and starts to have some cracks at the ends of the slaps when I roll it I don’t know why

[@ThePotteryWheel]

Hello Maha, I definitely wedge the clay if I'm reusing it, but if it's straight out of the bag and seems like it's in good shape, I often don't. Slab can crack at the edge because the clay is being stretched so much when it's being rolled. If my clay gets very dry, I wrap it in a damp piece of cloth and put it back in the bag overnight. That usually moistens it up enough.

[@emmadwyer3169]

I have the same problem with the cracks 😢

[@Pherine1]

Excellent tutorial, can you tell me what clay you are using?

[@ThePotteryWheel]

Scarva Earthstone ES10 extra smooth :)

[@micheledickey4066]

Really love this video!! I’ve always had issues with the ends of the clay where the seams go together where the clay doesn’t bend very well. When I’ve added texture and fiddled with it it seems to have dried and it doesn’t want to be round. Any way to help with that? Thanks soo much for your videos.

[@ThePotteryWheel]

Do you mean that the mug stops being round when it dries? That happens to me sometimes too. I just try to make sure that once it's formed, the rim is round when the drying starts. It starts drying wonky then it will stay wonky. Slightly thinner slabs seems to help too.

[@micheledickey4066]

@@ThePotteryWheel Yes. Thank you so much.

[@archisne]

Hello ! Thank you for sharing your slab building process. I use 4mm thick slabs to make my mugs and find that they begin to warp as they dry at the seam junction. I realised that I wasn't finishing the seams well, so I am now making sure to finish the seams really well and maintain an even thickness. However do you think the slab thickness is too less and is also contributing to the warp issue ? Would 6mm thick slabs work better ?

[@garymullins4815]

I Love your work! May I ask what script you used. It is so easy to read. thank you!

[@ThePotteryWheel]

Sure, they are stamps by Relyef hope that helps :)

[@shellylipman5465]

Go and buy circle cutters they come in packs with 10 sizes

[@OGDogscanlookup]

So. Much. Extra. Work!

[@frauscharflein3070]

Thank you for this good Demonstration 👌 do you use Clay with a grogged body? (In deutsch: schamottierter Ton)… Kind regards, Ines

[@patriciaoswalt6464]

What size is your template for the rectangle mug?

[@DoveCeramics]

Sorry, just watched again, you mention 5mm! Bless you xx

[@eleonoramosila6903]

🥰🥰🥰

[@heididerksen8227]

Wondering what is the template size for the tankurd mug

[@ThePotteryWheel]

Sorry for slow reply Heidi, the dimensions of the tankard mug are Top edge 4 inches, bottom edge 3.5 inches, and height is 5 inches. Hope that helps :)

[@heididerksen8227]

@@ThePotteryWheel thank you and no worries

[@blancagarciaboente4449]

Hola:me gustaría saber si estos mug los meten al horno ?

[@ThePotteryWheel]

sim, eles precisam ser queimados em um forno

[@blancagarciaboente4449]

Gracias

[@kathrynwade5112]

I don't see the link or the template

[@ThePotteryWheel]

sorry ran out of time yesterday, I just added a link in the description to how I make the templates.

[@teetracyfrazier5162]

Do you sell your mugs?

[@ThePotteryWheel]

only locally :)

[@bkirstie]

mine don’t look like that

[@ArtisteBleue]

Where's the template?

[@ThePotteryWheel]

sorry ran out of time yesterday, I just added a link in the description to how I make the templates.

[@davidhumphrey1651]

Will you marry me?

[@patriciakoenig3966]

I need those letter stamps where can I purchase them can you help.

[@ThePotteryWheel]

Hi Patricia, you can check out where I bought them here...thepotterywheel.com/letter-stamps-for-clay/