potsblog

Friday, August 22, 2014

Tea-pot Tips

A short youtube video- Please remember to click on some of the advertisements so that I can make some money! Thank you!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhyo8i16iQg


Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Getting ready to assemble teapots (side-handle) for Anagama

Sunday, February 09, 2014

The End [Part Two]

I thought I might have finished the current round of crystal glaze firings, but #6 is firing today, probably the last one unless I have time to make a few more pieces to test the new batch of silver nitrate I just bought, and which otherwise may have to wait until next year, since I seem to fire the crystals on an annual cycle. I was going to post a bunch of pictures to wrap up the blog [it's been running for 9 years] so that might wait another day or two. I've been thinking about this blog, and the difference between it and Facebook, where I have taken to posting: the blog has always been more personal,more like a diary written primarily for myself, whereas Facebook seems to me more public, seen by more people [4 times as many] and therefore more guarded and limited. On the other hand it's much easier to respond to FB posts, and the ability to be in contact [however limited and restricted] with a wider circle [and to know who they are] is apparently a deciding factor.
      Meanwhile, here's a bowl from a recent firing; the shape is inspired by a bowl from the Song period [10th-13th C]
that I saw on my last visit to the Percival Collection [now in the British Museum]- I haven't done any bowls in the crystal glazes before, am quite pleased with the results and am waiting to see how people take to them.

Thursday, October 31, 2013

The End, My Friend

I thought I might keep on blogging 'til February,which would make it a full 8 years, but I see that you, my loyal readers, are few in number, and that I post everything on Facebook now, and I suspect that Google+ is something similar, not to mention Linkedin, who continual pester me [I'm not part of either]- so I think this is it. Many thanks for your readership- totally unexpected when I started out- now up to nearly 100,000 page views. You are all invited to join me on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/daniel.flatauer  [but please don't request "friend" status] and/or watch my videos on Youtube http://www.youtube.com/user/flatauer. I'll probably blog again some time around Feb to wrap things up- meanwhile I'd be happy to hear your thoughts [if positive] at flatauer@gmail.com

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Moon/Fire @ Tel Hai

Salting again...with Natasha and Angela...

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Katyusha


Katyush, for short- named after the rocket. We acquired her during the last war as a diminutive baby tortoise - she's a tribute to what a diet of lettuce can do for you. My idea of an ideal pet- low maintenance, undemanding, reliable and surprisingly nimble.

First Crack


Green Beans

Gilad & Yifat brought us some unroasted coffee-beans from their recent South American caper; I've never roasted coffee before, so it was quite exciting- I remembered reading about the first and second "cracks" the beans are supposed to undergo, which they duly did: the culmination of the process [it took about 15-20 minutes] was a very respectable fresh-tasting cup of coffee.      



Wednesday, September 11, 2013

What the Pumice Did

I wasn't shocked- I've always imagined pumice as a sort of aerated glass/rock combo. Next to the rather nice grey melty test tile [pumice powder] is a piece of glass someone gave me, supposedly from a volcano...I suppose the next step would be to fire it on a vertical surface to see if it runs- if not,I'd probably use it straight as a glaze, probably on some porcelain, probably on a shape I'd dream up to show off its particular charms- I wonder what that'd be...