When people come in to the showroom and buy a piece of hand made pottery, most don’t realize the many processes behind the goods. The initial concept of a piece of pottery is drawn then redrawn, trying to figure out the stresses and strains and other design features. On completion of the drawing phase, a plaster of Paris cylinder, or bloc, is then made of the design. The plaster cylinder is then machined or hand cut into the desired shape, then sanded. A plaster of Paris mould is then built around the model in maybe three to four piece moulds. Due to the large amount of water used in the building process the mould is then placed in a drying cabinet for two days. When it is completely dry, a design is drawn and carved into the inside of the mould.

White earthenware clay is mixed with water in a 35 gallon tank called a blunger, then transferred into a mobile slip caster, a tank on wheels with a pump motor, hose and trigger nozzle. The moulds are filled with liquid clay called ‘’slip’’ and left for an average of 15 mins. After tipping upside down the liquid slip runs out leaving a clay shell inside the mould. On opening, the piece is gently removed to air dry on a wooden board for a day. The next day the casting line is fettled on the piece with a sharp blade, and then sponged to give a smooth finish.

Once the items have been sponged they are ready to be loaded into an oven and bisque fired slowly to 1150 degrees centigrade. When the firing has cooled, the door is opened, and the pieces will have shrunk around 15%, they are then ready for a coating of glaze, a yogurt like paste which is either painted, dipped or sprayed on, then fired at 1050 degrees centigrade. On loading the oven again, great care is taken to make sure that none of the pieces are touching, otherwise they will fuse together in the final glaze firing.

This process here is just one of the many different ways of manufacturing, so the next time you lift a piece of pottery, think about some of the processes involved. All our pottery is designed and hand crafted on Islay by islanders.