I
was looking for a particular set of photos to show a customer that was
interested in ordering a dinnerware set as a wedding gift and stumbled on a
folder of thrown and made oval lidded pieces. This particular "low and slow"
teapot started off life as a bottomless cylinder with a gallery thrown into the
top to later accommodate a lid, once dry enough it was pushed oval and allowed
to set up over night. The next morning I threw the spot that I felt best fit
the form, applied a slab base and using a piece of the slab, used the top of
the teapot as a slump mold to form and fit the lid. Once the lid was fit and
knob applied, the handle was the last piece of the puzzle in a process that is
summed up in one step at a time. The pot was decorated once close to leather
hard and then once bisque, glazed and fired. The firing process is a bit tricky
in that I want the temperature to go up slowly so as not to warp of alter the
existing oval shape to the mouth or in the end the lid doesn't end up ever
fitting right. In this case the lid fits quite snug and is easy to put on and
take off and stays put while pouring which is about the best you can ask for.
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