How To Smudge Pottery Like a Pro

[@Dexox2009]

Hi Andy, I want to express my gratitude towards you and your channel. I have been fighting depression for many years and never could really find a hobby I liked until I came across one of your videos a couple years ago. It was love at first sight! Your content is amazing, the way you explain things in your videos is just perfect. I remember extracting dirt from my backyard and processing it into pure clay and doing my first ever pottery work, which was a mug. I'm now fully invested in this and love that I can do beautiful art and crafts with clay. Thank you again and please never stop. We need people exactly like you on this platform. Me and my wife watch all of your videos ! Merry Xmas and happy new year, Brazil is with you!!!

[@AncientPottery]

Thank you so much for telling your story. I am glad my videos can help you with depression, I feel like primitive pottery helps me stay commented with nature which helps my mental state.

[@doriswlongAgoandfarAway]

The music selection was perfect. Thank you.

[@AncientPottery]

Glad you liked it!

[@crowznest438]

Great information and it's not fun for you but is helpful for us to see what happens when things don't go as planned. It's a beautiful pot.

[@AncientPottery]

Thanks, yes I do appreciate that a mistake on my part results in a great learning experience.

[@groforit]

Beautiful! We have similar pottery in Ghana as well :)🏺

[@AncientPottery]

That's cool, thanks for that info.

[@angeladazlich7145]

That black smudging is really attractive contrasted with the outside decoration. Good points in the video to remember if I try smudging.

[@AncientPottery]

Thanks Angela.

[@mihailvormittag6211]

👍 Your pedestal pit is very ingenious.

[@AncientPottery]

Thanks

[@mihailvormittag6211]

@@AncientPottery 👍

[@markgibsons_SWpottery]

This is more like the style that the Choctaw do out in the homelands! Great work, Sir! That looks like you are starting to have even more fun than ever!!! I know I am! I have seen those smudges so shiny that iridescent colors relflect off of it!

[@AncientPottery]

That's cool, I didn't realize that Choctaw pottery was smudged. Yes, I am always having fun making videos, at least when I can get out of the house.

[@markgibsons_SWpottery]

it may be more of a modern thing, but most of the Choctaw potters that I know practice smudging but they don't use paints...The old Choctaw pots have paint and no smudge on some of them... they just scratch the design into the surface of the finished clay on the newer ones... I have to watch it again! love the video! @@AncientPottery

[@glynnphillips9703]

I absolutely love your channel Andy I am so grateful you are still teaching and making videos for us. All good blessings to you and your family

[@AncientPottery]

So nice of you

[@tebooho8582]

i know nothing about pottery i just enjoy this chanel😅

[@AncientPottery]

Thanks for watching.

[@Anaesify]

I love how comfortable you are sharing your failures, its cool to see how you know yourself so well and can acknowledge it, accept it and move on

[@AncientPottery]

Thanks, it's all part of the process.

[@ChadZuberAdventures]

The slow motion shots of the flames are just beautiful!

[@AncientPottery]

Thanks

[@that_canadian_guy_8316]

Started the video and I immediately was questioning, "Dude, are you wearing squeaky shoes?!" 😂 Really enjoying your videos! I'm very glad I found them, thank you for putting in all your effort and sharing your passion and knowledge with everyone else 🥰

[@AncientPottery]

Ha ha! Sorry the birds out there were noisy. Thanks for watching

[@Anaesify]

I thought it was a little kitten meowing at first!

[@andrewsackville-west1609]

​@@Anaesifysame! I actually checked to see if the cat was at the door, lol

[@lisah336]

There's a bird south of my area called a Cat Bird. I wonder if they're the same birds in AZ?

[@vixwolf2037]

​@AncientPottery I'm very fond of those birds so thank you for not getting rid of them in the edit it's a reminder of how natural pottery making truly is

[@c2rail]

The photos of the "all-over" smudged pots were breath-takingly beautiful. Would you consider doing a demo for an "all-over" smudge firing where the pots end up smudged inside and out? Great video! Thanks Andy!

[@AncientPottery]

Thanks, maybe. It is not something I have ever tried before.

[@c2rail]

All the more reason to do it! @@AncientPottery

[@onironius8008]

Some of them were so amazingly smooth and shiny.

[@davidgharrod8174]

Excellent series of videos. Even living in Tucson for thirty years, I had no idea about these pots and the techniques for creating and firing them.

[@AncientPottery]

I am glad you are enjoying my videos.

[@clementramon8589]

Enjoyed the video. Thanks for sharing. Good info. Also loved the quail. Sounds of home. 😊

[@AncientPottery]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@chiaraconsoli3567]

I love your work, it's so fascinating

[@AncientPottery]

Thank you

[@mojavebohemian814]

thank you

[@AncientPottery]

You're welcome

[@astrobreaux]

does smudging help to seal the inside?

[@AncientPottery]

That's a good question but I don't know the answer. I have never read that anybody has experimented with this, maybe I should make a video about it.

[@IceLynne]

I'm a nervous anxious person too, I totally understand. Such an awesome video. You always make my day with your videos. Have a great day!

[@AncientPottery]

Thanks, I'm glad you are enjoying my content. Getting out in nature is my therapy for anxiety.

[@glynnphillips9703]

Wow Andy you are a Master Potter. Thank you for the wonderful knowledge

[@AncientPottery]

You are very welcome

[@coopart1]

A fantastic video production ! And of course, always great info as well !

[@AncientPottery]

Thanks Jeff, glad you liked it

[@tammyandkiki]

Absolutely gorgeous ❤ Thank you for sharing!

[@AncientPottery]

You are welcome.

[@joshuawarner1437]

One of the best parts of my week is seeing a new upload from you! Always learn something new and get inspired to get back at it. Thank you for sharing your passion with us. Question: because the smudging is entirely very fine carbon, does it to some extent help the vessel hold water better?

[@AncientPottery]

Thanks! That's a good questions, but I don't know the answer. I have seen people speculate that it had something to do with sealing but I have never seen any experiments done on this. This might be a good idea for a future video 🤔

[@4quall]

Timed it to the second apparently.. I signed on and a second later you posted ha

[@4quall]

Is that some scrub bird or a cat you brought along ha I hear something making a noise ha

[@AncientPottery]

Birds, there are a lot of desert birds around here, even in the winter.

[@dianesmigelski5804]

I enjoy watching your firings and learning as you show your actual results. You’re not afraid to show how your work came out. Whether it’s was not expected or came out perfect. I liked how you showed the interior of the bigger bowl with the fine cracking. This is exactly how to learn! By trying new things and seeing what works. You’re a great teacher!

[@AncientPottery]

I appreciate that! The way I look at it, we are learning together, you the viewer and me.

[@eaknoble]

Awesome! So inspiring! It’s so important to see bot success and how things don’t always go to plan in ceramics. I’m a MS ceramics teacher in Marana, and it so great to show your videos to my classes so they can see what is being done right here in our own back yard!

[@AncientPottery]

Awesome, thanks

[@redrackham6812]

That black-on-black pot at 6:42 is gorgeous. Do you ever make pottery in that style?

[@AncientPottery]

No, I never have, maybe someday

[@Timmyjg2004]

If i use a bellows to make the fire hotter, could that make cracks in pottery

[@AncientPottery]

Maybe. You want to keep the ramp up in temperature and the ramp down as slow and even as possible. Things like the wind I experienced in this video are like a bellows that causes the fire to heat up very quickly and unevenly. I'm not saying it couldn't work, but you would need to be careful.

[@owlgirl1998]

I love that you share youre failures, we can learn just as much from what we shouldn't do as hiw to do it the right way! Id be interested in learning more about the techniques behind the black on black but i understand if thats not your wheelhouse

[@AncientPottery]

There are lost of good videos and books showing the black on black technique. kzbin.info/www/bejne/iZy4eKBubKl4Zs0si=QhKh-0VANC7WEX62

[@llanitedave]

That was a fun watch, Andy! As always, I loved your music choices, and I suspect you brought the bird with you for the ambiance! I haven't tried organic paint yet, but I'm working my way towards it.

[@AncientPottery]

You should have seen me trying to wrangle all those quails back into the truck after I was done filming! I'll never do that again.

[@banjiegirl2001]

😂

[@GadBoDag]

Very cool! I'm here in Finland and you've got me wondering if I could fire some small earthenware in my stone fireplace! Guess I'll just have to try it and see! Worst case, I turn some wet clay into some dry clay.

[@AncientPottery]

I know some people who have done it, but I don't know any details so can't offer any advice.

[@marleneruddell9395]

Great results Andy, you did indeed set yourself a lot to do, but gorgeous pots!

[@AncientPottery]

Thanks 👍

[@glynnphillips9703]

I would have cried cracking a pot that beautiful

[@AncientPottery]

Well they are just small cracks, so the bowl is still a bowl. It will reduce the resale value a little though.

[@coenanderson6231]

I live in the verde valley, the sinagua here (they hate that name) made beautiful smudged pots

[@AncientPottery]

Yes they did. Who hates that name? The Sinagua? It seems being dead kind of negates their opinions.

[@coenanderson6231]

@@AncientPotteryWell they moved into the Hopi. The name is Spanish meaning “without water” and they had plenty.

[@coenanderson6231]

@@AncientPotteryhave you been around the Verde Valley area? I’m sure you would love it

[@ChadZuberAdventures]

Who let the cat out? 😂

[@AncientPottery]

Should be a song

[@Timmyjg2004]

Is there actually any difference with the clay that stayed blsck? Or its just a different colour

[@AncientPottery]

As far as I know it is just the color, but maybe some experimentation is needed to see if it helps to seal the surface or some other practical benefit.

[@anndriggers6660]

I love this channel!

[@Kapplin1]

Hello Andy, I love your videos, you are a great Potter and teacher, very thorough and easy to understand, I'm wanting to learn how to do black on black pottery,, can you do a video on this sometime ?

[@AncientPottery]

I agree black on black is fascinating pottery. But I only make pottery like the ancients, that stuff was invented in the mid-twentieth century and is still being made by Native potters in New Mexico so I won't be making a video about it unless one of the Native potters volunteers to let me follow them around with a camera. Here are a couple old, good videos about Maria Martinez and her process for making it kzbin.info/www/bejne/pKqki4yOp9F_adksi=Glcs2glP_ncxMPcu kzbin.info/www/bejne/iZy4eKBubKl4Zs0si=M2nw0LHy-QBvtLH0

[@tombrown407]

Your work and this channel is such a gold mine. Do you know how to replicate the surface on Ramos Black?

[@AncientPottery]

No I don't although I have some ideas. You just need to smother the hot pot with small organic matter, leaf litter, pine needles or some other such thing.

[@margaretlemmon1143]

Thanks to you I went out and brought back three pails of clay over the last couple of days. What else can you use for smudging than yucca? Don’t have that in Canada. Plan on taking some of your online classes.

[@AncientPottery]

You can use anything that will burn. Grass, cow pies, wood chips, bark.

[@mrForestBeard]

meow meow meow! lol! meow meow!

[@AncientPottery]

It was a bird

[@mrForestBeard]

@@AncientPotteryyeah, ofc, I knew that. Just weird mocking bird :D

[@CitizenAyellowblue]

@@AncientPotteryAlmost certainly a Grey Catbird.

[@lairdhaynes1986]

It's funny because grey catbirds are kind of shy, secretive creatures and here this one is getting all kinds of unanticipated attention. I❤catbirds

[@jergarmar]

Great video! So I've seen both recent and historic examples of smudging AFTER primary firing, moving the pots while they are still hot, on top of organic matter. Is that still called smudging? Are there ancient examples of it in the SW?

[@AncientPottery]

Yes, I have done both in the past and the results are the same. I think this method is easier and more idiot proof. There is no way to say for sure how the ancient pots were smudged, you can't tell the difference by looking at the pot.

[@jergarmar]

@@AncientPottery Ah, thanks! I've been experimenting with firing multiple smaller bowls, and trying to smudge them that way.

[@sarahjarden8306]

Wow, great video. Thanks, I feel I learned an awful lot of history and some small understanding of the areas involved. Also loads about the firing process. You say the personal foid bowls were all smudged, did food stick less to the smudged bowls? It looks sort of glazed. Thanks again for a really interesting video. 👍

[@AncientPottery]

It is possible that there was some practical benefit to smudging such as the food will stick less or the pot is less porous. But as far as I know nobody has ever tested this.

[@isaiasxd4453]

Un video muy bello y con mucha información valiosa , muchas gracias ✨

[@airstreamwanderings3683]

Really like the idea of the pedestal, good thinking. Too bad about the big pot.😢

[@AncientPottery]

Thanks Wes, as you know, it's all a part of the process to crack pots once in awhile.

[@Aspen7780]

I’ve had good luck smudging the inside only using a flagstone base. If the pot has a very even rim and the flagstone has a flat surface they can make a fair enough seal. I lay the flagstone on top of the hot coals and stick 1 or 2 dried corncobs inside the bowl laying that upside down on the stone.

[@acavoxnegledajtelevizor401]

Always draw black color right to the rim. And instead of getting cloudly black spots after firing you'll get nice black color everywhere. And people will think this is just part of the pattern which is planned be black 😎

[@AncientPottery]

Good point!

[@alexthemle]

Hi Andy, is there any chance you'd be interested in covering ancient Cypriot pottery? Maybe red slipware or bichrome ware?

[@AncientPottery]

It sounds interesting but I have my hands full with the pottery of the Southwestern United States

[@TheInfoworks]

I'm learning about the organic and inorganic carbon content of wild clay, and temperatures needed to burn that carbon out of the clay. Pottery, the never ending tale, cheers

[@AncientPottery]

Sounds interesting.

[@TheInfoworks]

Andy, you may remember I have had problems with staining at the bottom of pots in the kiln. Well it turns out that the inorganic carbon burns out at about 900 C and it needs plenty of oxygen. If there is insufficient oxygen then it will take it from the red iron oxide, changing it to black iron oxide (less oxygen in the molecules). This can cause black heart and pitting. So I need the temperature rise to be slower above 600C hold the kiln at 900C for longer. Making the pot bottoms thinner certainly helped but this bit of info certainly has cretaed a path for further experiment, cheers@@AncientPottery

[@andrewsackville-west1609]

As always, good stuff. Im amazed at the smudging effect. The glossy finish is beautiful. How much of that is hand polishing and how much is from smudging?

[@AncientPottery]

A little of both I suspect. Obviously the clay plays a role too because the one pot is quite a bit glossier than the other.

[@diydiscover]

Hey Andy, super weird question but would you ever consider coming to a small town in Pennsylvania and doing some education stuff? I recently moved to a town that used to ahve the largest brick/terracotta factory in the world. That went out of business due to changes in materials for construction (PVC/Plastic sewer pipe etc, wood frame houses with vinyl siding etc) and of course, the steel and coal industries have died as well. The town has shrunk by more than half in 50 years. There's so much to offer here, including a clay rich soil, and I think the place could really benefit from some influx of knowledge and purpose. I'm not asking you to move here but you have such great knowledge, experience and talent that I think possibly doing some courses here would be amazing. Obviously it wouldn't be for free etc.

[@rvhill69]

You got the land for it. have you thought about a pit with three walls for firing?

[@LesterJennings-y7j]

Dose smudging help seal the pot

[@johnnywapstra9973]

Does the smudge make the pottery water tight or less porous?

[@Timmyjg2004]

Can temper particles be too fine? I’ve grinded up some fired pottery but it is super super fine and seems like it won’t do anything. Your temper is quite big and see it in the clay clearly

[@AncientPottery]

I don't think temper can be too fine. The difference between clay and other material isn't just the particle size but also the particle shape as clay is flat plates and others and little chunks. That is why volcanic ash and diatomaceous earth work as temper even though they have very small particle sizes.

[@angeloestrada557]

Question, were your bowls already fired before you did the smudge firing?

[@AncientPottery]

No. Southwest pottery is always fired only once.

[@lavendereyesgal1125]

What does smudging do to pottery? I am looking into how to make my own pottery and never head of smudging it and am curious as to why you do it and what does to the pottery?

[@AncientPottery]

I am not aware of any practical benefits but it looks pretty and that is something too

[@amospena2046]

I live in New Mexico, what else can I use besides yucca? Yucca is our state plant.

[@AncientPottery]

Anything, just use something that will burn, dry grass, cow patties, whatever.

[@kimberlydrennon4982]

Does smudged pottery hold water better than unsmudged and unsealed pottery?

[@AncientPottery]

It's a good question but as far as I know it has never been answered by science

[@jillatherton4660]

😄👍

[@PSC9634]

Andy: the latest KZbin video on the Trek Planner, entitled, "What I found on top of this boulder was amazing" shows some interesting pot sheds. One in particular is the rim of a pot with black in its center and a heavy slip on both sides. I'd really like your comment on this piece if you watch it.

[@AncientPottery]

It is not slip. This is all the same clay all the way through, but in the firing only a rind oxidized and the inside became black from the carbon that was naturally in the clay. This is actually very common.

[@PSC9634]

@@AncientPottery I continue to learn from you. Trek Planner sees lots of pottery shards

[@headybrew]

This makes me think about their culture, and if they might have had aphorisms such as "Don't dig your pots before they're cool"... which would mean be patient or else you'll screw everything up and destroy your hard work.

[@sarahjarden8306]

Wow, great video. Thanks, I feel I learned an awful lot of history and some small understanding of the areas involved. Also loads about the firing process. You say the personal foid bowls were all smudged, did food stick less to the smudged bowls? It looks sort of glazed. Thanks again for a really interesting video. 👍