There is a new video up on the Karatsupots youtube channel. On it, I explain the process of glazing Chosen Karatsu ware, from applying the ame glaze, to trimming the ame, and subsequent application of the wara glaze ..read more

Today I want to post the results and thoughts about the latest CG firing. This firing was more successful than the CG firing in March, but I’ve uncovered some other problems, namely uneven reduction. My first thoughts on troubleshooting this are: 1. possible leaking kiln door fiber seal? 2. open the shelf placement to promote more air circulation? 3. Check the burners on the over reducing side, and possibly adjust secondary air? 4. look inside the car to see if any airways are obstructed? Next, a look at the before/afters, with special attention to the thickness and trimming of the rice straw ..read more

I’m lucky in that I can walk out my door and head up the hill for a walk, and I rarely encounter anyone else. Today, I was passed by one car and was otherwise completely alone. It was a beautiful spring day after a day of rain and the mountain was lush. Several times on my way up I could smell the wild boars that must have been lurking nearby quietly. I don’t worry about them. The only time I ever see one is when they jump up to run away when I get too close on the road. The road is roped off now, because of a landslide that damaged the road higher up, but it’s no problem for walkers to go thr ..read more

Gas kiln firing, 2020/03/16. Chosen Karatsu and Madara glazes. 3 types of Madara glaze from old buckets in which the exact contents were largely forgotten. The normal madara glaze ended up being too low in silica, and going clear in most cases. Shirakawa madara pinholed in most cases. I’d forgotten about this behaviour. New Madara glaze test shows good color, but also, low in silica perhaps, needs more straw ash added (1kg). Shida madara much too clear, only showed white where very thick. Maybe miscalculated when mixing the glaze? Add more Shida (2kg?) to overall batch. Test again ..read more

This last firing of the gas kiln I used draw rings to get a better idea of when certain glazes matured. I’ve known this for a while, but was struck again at how colorless and boring the colors of the glaze and clay were when yanked and doused in a bucket of water. So colorless, in fact, that two different glazes appeared to be virtually identical when crash cooled. The sandstone body, also, is an uninteresting greyish white. left: sandstone/ash 7/3 right: high silica ash / oak ash/ spar 6/4/3Here are those same glazes after firing for 16 hours and cooling slowly in the kiln for 36 hours ..read more

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Pontificating on the joys of kiln bisquits ..read more