Throwing Thursday - Sounds of Spring

I'm getting so excited for spring.  I decided this year with the vardo creation kicking out what a great way to wake up in the morning than with the sound of wind chimes.  Here's the creation process.

First we roll out a piece of clay and cut or shape the chimes.

Potter & Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson

Once the clay becomes leather hard it is time to drill the holes and add some detail.  A word of caution here.  As you can see in the photo some of my clay bits (hats and cauldrons) are darker than the others (boots and brooms).  This is because the clay was thicker when I cut the darker pieces so it dried slower.   The thinner pieces will dry faster and be more brittle when it comes time to carve them.  A work around would be to lay a wet rag over them to soften them a bit or work gingerly.  We ended up losing one broom and a boot in this set.

Potter & Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson

We used a drill bit to put the holes in and then the needle tool to etch some design detail on the other pieces such as a shoe buckle for example.

Potter & Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson
Detail work by Elijah Olson

 The detail was applied to both sides of the chime pieces.  The brooms turned out amazing.  I can't wait to see how these bisque and finally glaze fire.

Potter & Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson
Detail work by Elijah Olson

Here are a few examples of the types of chimes I'm going to try to carry.

Wolf & ravens with full moon.

Potter & Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson

Bear with full moon.

Potter & Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson

Cat & mouse with full moon.

Potter & Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson

Mermaid/Siren with seashells and full moon.

Potter & Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson

Owl with full moon

Potter & Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson