There are a wide variety of forming methods, from throwing on the wheel to hand building. You can learn more about them in the lesson: Methods of Making. For the purpose of this lesson, we'll just define this stage of the process as the 'wet stage'. The artist takes a lump of moist clay and shapes it into the desired form, whatever that may be.

Once the piece is shaped, it must be allowed to dry completely. This process can take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks, depending on the size of the piece and the humidity of the environment in which is is left to dry. All of the water must leave the clay before it can be fired. This is because water turns to gas at 212° F. Water expands during this phase change, so if there is any still trapped in the clay body, it will cause the piece to crack or explode in the kiln.

Once the piece is completely dry, it is put into the kiln and fired. This first firing is called the bisque firing. While bisque firing temperatures can vary slightly, the vast majority of artists will bisque at cone 04, which is around 1950° F. During this firing, the clay goes through a structural shift that hardens the clay into a more durable form.

Once the piece has been bisqued, it's time to apply the glaze. You can learn more about glazes in the lesson: Glaze 101. The glaze is a layer of glassy material that gives color and finish to the piece, once fired.

The second firing is called the glaze firing, and is usually the final step in the ceramic process. Glaze firings vary in temperature depending on the clay and glazes used. During this firing, the glaze matures (goes through a chemical change to become the desired finished product). If a stoneware or porcelain clay is used, the clay also matures during this firing.

Once they come out of the glaze firing, most pieces are considered 'done', but there are instances where additional firings or finishing treatments might be applied. Gold luster, for example, requires an additional firing after the glaze has been matured. Many potters sand the bottoms of their pieces to smooth them and prevent scratching the table surface. Some artists apply more layers of glaze and re-fire multiple times to build up complex surfaces. Most often, though, this is where the process ends.

Ceramics is an ancient art form that dates back to mankind's earliest ancestors, the skills and traditions passed down through countless cultures over millennia. All around the world, you can find artisans practicing methods from hundreds (if not thousands) of years ago. Clay is a medium of both necessity and expression that links humanity, defying borders and spanning generations.

And anyone can do it.

Many beginners we encounter have experienced clay in a high school or college art class, but if you have never touched clay before (or have simply forgotten what you learned in the past) don't let that stop you! A few simple rules and guidelines can get you started. In this lesson, we'll cover some basics that can help you dive right in, even with zero experience.

Want to put a handle on that cup or some ears on that dog you sculpted? Attaching two pieces of clay together might seem like a no-brainer, but there are a few critical details to get right if you don't want your dog's ears to fall off during the drying process.

• Moisture: Make sure both pieces are at a similar stage of wetness. Don't attach a fresh piece of clay to a piece that's already half-dry.
• Score and Slip: Before attaching the two pieces, scratch up the contact surfaces with a fork or toothpick. Dab a few drops of water or vinegar onto the scratches, then scratch again for good measure. This creates a slurry of wet clay that acts like glue.
• Press Like You Mean It: You're not adding garnish to a supper plate. Press those pieces together with gusto! A slight twisting motion helps, too.

A potter's wheel is often the first thing people think of when they think of ceramics. Thanks to the 90's film Ghost, those imaginings may or may not include Patrick Swayze or Demi Moore. Throwing on the wheel is still an extremely popular method thanks to the speed and consistency with which a skilled potter can produce work. However, this approach is just that - a learned skill - and can take years of diligent practice to master. Don't let that scare you off, though! An absolute beginner can expect to be able to produce at least a rudimentary vessel over the course of an 8-week class.

Hand building is exactly what it sounds like: building a piece with your hands. This may seem like a silly misnomer - after all, you use your hands when you throw on the wheel - but the term refers more to the primary tool with which you are making the piece: your hands.

Like throwing, hand building is a skill that takes years of practice to master, however it is much more accessible for beginners and requires very little upfront cost.

There are a huge number of approaches to hand building, covering a wide range of forms. Sculptures, tiles, and functional ware can all be created through variations of this process, and there are far too many methods to list here, but we will cover a few popular terms you might come across when learning more about hand building.

Popular with mass production facilities, slip casting is the method of pouring liquid clay (slip) into a plaster mold to create a form. Unlike hump/slump molds, slip molds are mostly enclosed with the negative space inside creating the shape of the piece. The porous plaster draws water out of the slip, creating a "skin" of solid clay that grows the longer the mold is left to set. Once the desired thickness is achieved, the remaining slip is poured back out of the mold, the mold is opened (after a short waiting period), and the piece is removed.

This is probably the first clay tool you ever used. Cutoff wires allow you to cut chunks of clay from the block with ease. When throwing on the wheel, this is the tool you use to separate the finished pot from the bat or wheel head. With a steady hand, they can also be used to cut facets in the outside of a soft piece.

A toolkit staple, needle tools can be used for all sorts of applications, especially when throwing on the wheel. The sharp point can remove an uneven rim, score a guide line, pierce air bubbles, draw surface designs, and even be used as a scoring tool in a pinch.

This term refers to any broad, flat pottery tool. Ribs can come in many different shapes and sizes, and be made from a number of materials including wood, metal, polymer, rubber, and plastic. Even chunks of coconut shells can be used as ribs! Ribs can be rigid or flexible, with smooth or serrated edges.
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Most often, ribs are used to shape pieces being thrown on the wheel, but they also have many uses in hand building. Ribs can be used to smooth slabs, compress seams, and even stretch and form pieces just like on the wheel.

Loop tools are just what they sound like: a tool made from a loop of wire. This wire can vary in thickness and be bent into an endless variety of shapes. Loop tools are typically used for removing clay during decorating and sculpting, but can also be used as trimming tools on the wheel.

Ribbon tools look a lot like loop tools, with one major difference. Instead of wire, the tool end is made from a flat piece of metal. Usually the edges of this metal are beveled and sharpened, but not always. Ribbon tools cut through clay more easily than loop tools, and are more often used for trimming on the wheel.

Calipers come in two main styles: single-ended and double-ended. They are used to measure and compare things like rim sizes. Double-ended calipers can be used to convert interior measurements to exterior ones, which is useful when making lidded forms. Calipers can be made from wood, metal, or plastic.

Wood tools are probably the most varied of all clay tools when it comes to shape. The different styles are endless, from rounded sculpting balls and pencil-like points to tapered blades and flat wedges.

These rubber-tipped tools are great for cleaning up seams after attachments are made. They can also be used in sculpting or as a stylus for decorative marks or signing pieces.

Scoring tools come in many different styles. They are used for scoring the clay prior to making attachments. The only prerequisite for a scoring tool is that it has some sort of coarse edge that can make scratches in the clay surface. Most students start out using a serrated metal rib as their scoring tool, but other options exist that are smaller and more precise. Kemper offers several that are made from groups of wires crimped onto a handle. Other companies make retractable versions that keep you from accidentally poking yourself.

(Left) Also called 'sponge-on-a-stick', these are used to remove excess water from the inside of a pot when throwing on the wheel.

(Right) These extra-long tools are used to belly out pots from the inside when the neck of the pot is too narrow to fit your hand or the pot is too tall to reach easily.

These are a style of cutting tool that is specifically designed for a decorative technique called fluting. Fluting is basically carving repetitive sections of clay out of the surface of a piece. Fluting tools are designed to help you cut consistently without digging too deep into the clay. Different blade shapes can provide a variety of looks.

Paddles have a number of uses. They can be used by hand builders to compress seams or flatten areas. When throwing on the wheel, they can be used to form the finished pot into a more geometric shape. Textured paddles can be used to apply surface design quickly to a soft pot.

A common tendency, especially with beginner-to-intermediate clay hobbyists, is to accumulate dozens upon dozens of tools. The idea behind this trend is the thought (conscious or otherwise) that if only we could find just the right tool, our pots would be so much better! In reality, the only way to make better work is through practice. Lots and lots of practice. While having the right tool for the job is important, there comes a point in time where we must pause and remember that age-old saying: It's a poor craftsman who blames his tools.

Challenge yourself. Pick a limited number of tools to work with and stick to them. By forcing yourself to make do with only 8 or 10 tools in your kit, you'll find yourself innovating new ways to use them and identifying exactly what it is you need in a particular tool.

The most common type of kilns out there are electric kilns. These are just what they sound like: a kiln that uses electricity to produce heat via coils of special wire called elements that line the inside of the insulated chamber. Modern electric kilns are capable of reaching temperatures up to cone 10, though they are most often used for low- and mid-fire temperatures (cone 06-6). Even studios that run gas kilns (more on those next) will have electric kilns in-house for bisque-firing purposes.

Most universities and teaching studios use gas kilns for their glaze firings. These typically consist of a large square chamber and a tall chimney at the back. Natural gas or liquid propane is injected into the chamber through burners that mix the fuel with oxygen. The flames produced by this fuel are what heat the inside of the kiln.

Gas kilns can be modified for use as salt kilns or soda kilns, and sometimes as both in one. Portholes are created in various spots all around the kiln, allowing for a liquid mixture of sodium chloride (for salt) or sodium carbonate (for soda) to be sprayed into the firing chamber. These chemicals vaporize in the high heat and react with the clay, slips, and glazes to create unique aesthetic effects. You should always wear protective gear and a properly-rated respirator when injecting salt and soda.

One of the most beloved firing processes is wood firing, a time-honored traditional method that uses wood as its fuel source. A fire box - a combustion chamber at one end of the kiln - is constantly stoked for days (if not weeks) to gradually bring the kiln up to temperature. As the wood burns, ash is produced and travels through the kiln on its way to the chimney, sticking to the pots and creating beautiful, glassy surfaces, colorful flashing effects, crystal growth, and interacting with glazes in unique ways. The longer the firing, the more ash can build up. For this reason, some wood firings can last a week or more, though a day or two is much more common. Depending on the size, these kilns can take over a week to cool. They are typically fired to cone 10-12.

Given the immense amount of work that goes into this process, both in preparing copious amounts of wood and the long hours spent stoking and monitoring the kiln, wood firings are typically a community event. Participants work in shifts under the direction of one or two firing masters who are familiar with the kiln and experienced in the wood firing process. Every wood kiln fires slightly differently, and every firing produces different results.

While the above-mentioned kilns are the most common, they are not the only options. Kilns come in all shapes and sizes, with all manner of firing processes in mind. Experienced potters can get incredibly creative with their kiln-building. The "Glo Worm" pictured here is a temporary kiln (constructed for the firing and then broken down immediately after) that makes a periodic appearance down at the Eye of the Dog Art Center in San Marcos. It is built mainly of kaowool (ceramic fiber blanket), wire mesh framing, and an old barrel for the fire box, though salvaged electric kiln sections have sometimes been used in past years.

These alternative kilns can be a fun challenge, but always keep in mind that you are dealing with extreme temperatures that can cause 3rd degree burns in seconds. Appropriate safety measures should always be in place before attempting to build or fire any kiln, but these precautions are doubly important when dealing with alternative kilns and firing processes.

Reduction is the process of starving the firing chamber of oxygen during a firing. This requires the use of combustible fuels as a heat source, which just means 'flames'. Any kiln besides an electric kiln will meet this requirement. This oxygen-deprived atmosphere causes unique and sometimes dramatic reactions in clay bodies and glazes.

To achieve reduction, the burners and damper (a mechanism used to partially close off the chimney) are adjusted to maximize the efficiency of combustion. When a kiln is in reduction, you will often see flames shooting out from the top of the chimney. This is because the flames have consumed all available oxygen within the chamber and are forced to seek oxygen elsewhere. While it is possible to fire a gas or wood kiln in oxidation, it is far more common to aim for at least some level of reduction.

This could easily fit under the "Kilns" portion of this lesson, but the design of raku kilns varies so widely that it is more helpful to talk about it as a firing process rather than a kiln type.

While firing relatively slowly is usually best for the work being fired, raku contradicts this entirely. The pots are heated quite quickly in a kiln, usually bringing them up to around 1800F to mature any low-fire glazes that may have been applied to the surface. Once at temp, the kiln is opened and the pots are removed while still glowing and deposited into a reduction bin. This is a fire-proof container (like a metal trash can) filled with combustible materials such as sticks, leaves, wool, paper, etc. When the red-hot ceramic piece touches these materials, they immediately catch fire. By closing the lid of the container, you starve the atmosphere inside of oxygen, resulting in heavy reduction.

The raku process has many variables and the results of these firings can range from brilliant metallics to elegant crackle effects depending on the glazes and combustibles used. Any pottery clay can be fired in raku, but the thermal shock can cause cracks in dense bodies like porcelains. More open bodies (ones that contain grog or sand) or clays that are formulated to resist thermal shock (like Armadillo Clay's Raku body) will have a better chance of surviving this process without cracking.

Protective equipment is imperative. Leather welding gear, kevlar gloves, raku tongs, and a heat-resistant face shield should all be employed to keep you safe from the extreme temperatures. We do not recommend this process to novice potters without direct, experienced supervision. Raku-fired work is typically not food-safe.

Pit, smoke, and barrel firings are fun experimental processes that can be achieved without much upfront investment, however (like raku) the results are typically not food-safe. These rudimentary 'kilns' can be made from old BBQs, steel barrels, or just pits in the ground. They don't get hot enough to mature the clay or glazes, but you can achieve a number of interesting effects by experimenting with the types of combustibles you add or extending the length of the firing.

​When selecting a clay body or glaze, you will most likely see reference to its “cone” range. For example, Balcones White is a 'cone 10 clay'. But what does this even mean? In this lesson, we'll take a look at cones, the pyrometric chart, and help you get a basic understanding of what they are and how they fit into the ceramic process.

A cone (technically a pyrometric cone) is a physical object in the shape of a tall pyramid that serves as a visual tool for measuring heat work. When heated, the cone will begin to bend and eventually melt within a specific temperature range. Cones have a number assigned to them, typically 022-14 for ceramics, and thus a different chemistry for each number. Although there is a temperature related to each of these numbers, it is often presented as a range rather than one specific temperature. This is because heat work is dependent on time as well as temperature. A kiln fired quickly will require a higher peak temperature than a kiln fired slowly to bend the same cone. The chart to the left (click to enlarge) is split into three columns. You will notice that the temperature listed in the "Slow" column is lower than the ones listed for "Medium" or "Fast" firings. This is heat work in action.

​Modern kilns have come a long way. Today most electric kilns are controlled by a computer that interprets temperature via a thermocouple, a probe that translates heat into an electric current that is then translated into a specific temperature. Since the computer only reads the temperature and not heat work, an average temperature for each cone is used. Although digital kilns are very reliable it doesn’t hurt to double check with witness cones every now and then. You may find it necessary to put a hold on your kiln (maintain the peak temperature for a short time rather than shutting off immediately) in order to fully bend the cones.

Since their invention in 1892, pyrometric cones are still the most reliable indicator of the heat work achieved by your kiln.

​At the back of the showroom at Armadillo Clay, there lives a rack of small packages of Mason Stains. The rainbow of powders is eye-catching, but what are they even for? Though they draw many a shopper's eye, their uses can be somewhat of a mystery.

​So what are they? Mason Stains are specially formulated combinations of colorants that create specific hues. For example, #6371 Dark Teal is made up of aluminum, cobalt, and chromium. The resulting combo-colorant is a deep, rich, ocean teal that is powerful in small amounts.

But how do you use them? Mason Stains can be used in a variety of ways! Because they are colorants, they are very flexible in their applications. Here are the four most common uses: