| THROWING ON THE WHEEL --- CLAY ART STUDIO ALAMEDA, CA |
| Wedge or kneed clay on plaster to remove air bubbles & distribute water. |
| Repeat pushing up & "mushrooming" down until the clay is centered, turning wheel at a rapid speed.. |
| Smack clay on wheel & as wheel turns quickly, hold round & push down; then push in & up, into a cone. |
| Open by holding round on outside & pushing down in center with thumbs. Leave 5/8" for trimming foot. |
| Pull up "ring" or coil of clay from inside & outside to raise walls. Repeat & repeat & repeat.... |
| Trim uneven walls of pot with pin tool. Push in while wheel turns & remove quickly with left hand. |
| Final shaping & sponging of extra water inside & outside will prevent later cracks. |
| Shape Pot from inside & outside at points with pressure of hands, ribs & sponges. |
| After clay dries to leather hard, it will be turned over onto the wheel & a foot is trimmed with metal tools. When pot is "bone dry", it is bisque fired in a kiln & finally it is glazed & fired again in a glaze firing. |
| During shaping, remember to move back from pot to observe the shape. When done, cut under with pin tool & wire, then move pot onto wood or plaster bat. |
| If needed, "collar in" the thinned walls so they do not collapse & to begin to define the shape. |
