Maid O'Mud on sun 11 nov 01
1/2 my kitchen is in my studio! My better half is forever looking around
the studio for things he used to find easily in the kitchen. As soon as
something is missing, he asks "is it in the studio?" I use plastic mixing
spoons, soup ladles etc. for glaze mixing; laudry detergent scoops are great
tools for pouring (free in every box!); dryer lint for supporting the
interior of slab work; pump spray bottle for clean up etc.; hmm, I guess it
depends on what you mean by "unusual"
>
> What is the most unusual or outrageous thing you use in your studio? I am
> simply curious and thought this could make for a very interesting thread.
Merrie Boerner on sun 11 nov 01
In planning a Thanksgiving dinner for 17 relatives, I searched my kitchen
for necessary tools like a basting tool ( the long tube with a bulb on the
end that you squeeze to suck up the juice)....it's in the studio, garlic
press....in the studio, ...cheese slicer, measuring cups, forks, hot pads,
funnel...all in the studio. When my friends get together and talk about
recipes, I think of glazes. Pity the poor fools who come to my house for
Southern home cookin.
Cheers,
merrie
Penni Stoddart on sun 11 nov 01
After reading only a couple of the green scrubbie posts I got to thinkin' (a
VERY dangerous occupation for me!)
What is the most unusual or outrageous thing you use in your studio? I am
simply curious and thought this could make for a very interesting thread.
My input;
*not so wierd maybe but I have a can of cooking spray on a shelf I use to
help release small plastic molds. (I use the objects on pots, as ornaments
and in mugs -imagine a frog, fish or lady bug in 3D at the bottom of your
mug!)
~~~~
Penni Stoddart of Penelope's Pots
President, Artisans London (Ontario, Canada)
"When I die, I want to die like my grandmother who died
peacefully in her sleep. Not screaming like all the passengers in her car."
* Author Unknown
Valice Raffi on mon 12 nov 01
One of my friends thinks it's way unusual that I now have rulers in the
studio! (worked for many years without them)
Because most of my work has mixed media elements, I couldn't live without my:
little teeny anvil
SharkSaw (pull saw)
metal lazy susan turntables
tea whisk
torchiere lamp base with threaded rod (for tall skinny sculptures)
clips, clamps and a small bench vise
and my 24 types of glue (yup, I counted them for this message)
but the items that really cause raised eyebrows are my clear plastic
containers (neatly labled of course) of:
horse hair
snake skins
porcupine quills
agave leaves
anthill sand
seaweed, dried cactus parts
petrified salt crusted twine (from the Salton Sea)
feathers, to name a few
plus boxes & boxes of rusted stuff, copper doohickies (pipe, fittings,
sheets, wire, etc.), beads and bits of leather
For Christmas one year, I got a baggie of road kill hair - too cool!
boraxed it for a while, then shampoo'd & cream rinsed it before using.
Used it on several different pieces (didn't tell the customer what it was
though!).
Valice
in Sacramento
Marianne Lombardo on mon 12 nov 01
Yummm. Gravy thickened with EPK.
> funnel...all in the studio. When my friends get together and talk about
> recipes, I think of glazes. Pity the poor fools who come to my house for
> Southern home cookin.
Marianne
Deeclay@AOL.COM on mon 12 nov 01
I have found a tiny grater magnet (for refrigerator decoration) to be a great
sub for my shur form that I can never find. Must be in the kitchen.
It is just small enough to fit in the palm of my hand and has 3 different
size holes.
Also have several blenders all marked poison so no one uses them for pina
coladas.
Diane in sunny Miami
chris clarke on mon 12 nov 01
I have several bowls with stuff in them. One is full of tiny, tiny little
shells I collected on spring break in Boston (yes, I went to Boston for my
spring breaks from college, museums and history). Another has larger shells
from Jamaica (my brother went not me) and one more has these tiny delicate
colorado blue spruce pine cones and crape murtle seed pods. I also have a
small pile of rocks that I like.
My strangest tool is one of the sushi mats, you know, the sticks tied
together. Makes kickin' textures. Press it into clay, roll clay on it.
Roll up the mat and texture with the end. It's great. Also hot glue
textures on wooden boards.
And I have several antique scales, one that doesn't work yet, that my father
brought me from his job(they were being thrown out). Let's see, I have a
great big self retracting air hose, it's about 50 feet long, and needs to be
bolted to the floor. And boxes of huge clear plastic bags that I cover my
kiln with, they are really big.
I just realized I'm a pact rat.
chris
temecula, california
chris@ccpots.com
www.ccpots.com
annelorre dostal on mon 12 nov 01
i have a large range of texturing tools, everything from knobs to childerns
toys. icing combs work great for texture.
i am not sure what my strangest tool is, i have the habit of walking around
with my eyes to the ground looking for things to press into clay.
recently i even used tumbleweed(we have an abundence here in west texas).
beauty in function
annelorre
_________________________________________________________________
Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp
H.M. Buchanan on mon 12 nov 01
We get the strangest reaction at the store when we buy baby enema bottles,
ear syrenges, or veternarian's hypodermics by the dozen. All of which are
great for slip decorating.
Scronging useful recycables can also get you strange looks. My delight at
finding 2 inch brass staples on a shipping container definatly had them
scratching their heads at the local hardware store. They make great loop
tools and sharpen nicely for small carving blades. Glued into salvaged ball
point pen makes the price right too. But furniture upolserers and rug
installers are no longer surprised to see us digging in their trash.
Our chemical shelves might give non-potters a surprise also. I bet none of
you think it odd to have: epsoms salts, washing soda, twenty mule team
borax, floor wax, liquid starch, glyseren, or anti-freeze there.
Judi Buchanan, Flutter-by Pottery, Heidelberg, Mississippi
Alan D. Scott on mon 12 nov 01
> When my friends get together and talk about
> recipes, I think of glazes. Pity the poor fools
> who come to my house for Southern home cookin.
What cone do you fire your "Southern home cookin" glaze to? Oxidation or
reduction? Color? I'm sure it looks mouth-watering ;-)
Alan
P.S. Regarding the "pity" (did you mean "pitting"?) -- it sounds like a
problem of the glaze "fitting" the body, I'll defer to someone who knows
more than I... :-)
ken swinson on mon 12 nov 01
my favorite tools are from the kitchen.
i could not trim without my steaknife, or burnish without the metal
spoon. the cheese slicer is ultimate when faceting and of course i use
a rolling pin for slab.
this goes without mentioning the strange things i have started to use
for TEXTURES!!!
peace love
ken in kentucky
Merrie Boerner on mon 12 nov 01
> When my friends get together and talk about
> recipes, I think of glazes. Pity the poor fools
> who come to my house for Southern home cookin.
What cone do you fire your "Southern home cookin" glaze to? Oxidation or
reduction? Color? I'm sure it looks mouth-watering ;-)
Alan
Hi Allen,
When I was a child, and my Mother cooked supper in Vicksburg,
Mississippi.....we knew it was "done" when we smelled smoke. She cooked the
juice right out of the turkey....dry and dark brown is how I use to like
it...that is how I was raised.....I'd call it over reduced. Now, my family
prefers flashes of orange and a little sprinkle of carbon trapping (spices
and lots of pepper) and tons of ash (crusty). Wood fired salmon or mountain
river trout on a grill is great. Seems like food is low on my priority list,
though. My hubby is in charge of the meat, my oldest son does fish and
veggies, my middle son does the entertainment, and my daughter is in charge
of sweets.....I could eat like a rabbit if allowed to .....but, just give me
a fire to poke at.....I'll flatten cone 12 in a heart beat....it's the way I
was raised.
Merrie
Now......I'll have to admit, when I have a wood firing workshop here, we put
the feed bag on for meat lovers AND vegetarians....everybody cooks....except
me.....Kickasswoodfiringmerrie would rather be stokin ; )
Katheleen Nez on tue 13 nov 01
This may not be unusual, but it is My Favorite Tool -
I bought a 12" (not incl. handle) stainless steel
spatula at a restaurant supply store. I use it to
remove plates/platters/large bowls/etc. from plastic
batts, by placing the metal edge under the edge of the
piece and turning the electric wheel head SLOWLY. I
have a friend who uses a plastic paint texturer (w/
semicircles and jagged tooth edges on one side) to
texture her slabs before she handbuilds cups, bowls,
cannisters, rattles...
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Find the one for you at Yahoo! Personals
http://personals.yahoo.com
pammyam on tue 13 nov 01
I have a rubber spatula whose handle broke off in a kitchen
blender fiasco. It's the very best tool for cleaning clay
off a metal wheel head. It's also not a bad rib.
A plastic flea comb is great for subtle textures.
My very favorite handmade tool is a cluster of broom straws
tied together or bound with a rubber band for applying slip,
underglaze, glaze, or wax resist. Just pluck your broom and
make any size you want.
On the other hand, I have some gorgeous handmade bamboo
pottery tools from Bowen Dickson: a wonderful cutoff tool
with a cord at one end in lieu of a wire, and a toothed
blade type instrument and a basic cutoff tool. Lovely. Just
lovely.
Pam
Imzadi D. on tue 13 nov 01
gilois@BELLATLANTIC.NET writes:
<< I use condoms...and I've never lost one yet in a bucket of slurry. >>
Boy I'd hate to be a woman browsing through your studio and see one floating
in your slurry bucket! LOL
Fredrick Paget on tue 13 nov 01
We have been going bonkers (adj.) over Bonkers ( noun) (Oxford Dictionary
please copy).
Our professor showed a couple he had made -one from a gearshift knob and
one from a fishing sinker.
This lead me to beleive there might be a market among the 60 or so students
in our handbuilding classes - so to benefit our Club Mud (equipment fund)
we organized a production line to make about three dozen using plaster
filled balloons on the end of a stick, Also some made of fishing sinkers on
the end of a welding rod. All nicely finished off with tool dip, tape,
twine whipping, and varnish.
All but two have sold already at 5 bucks a throw and we haven't even hit
the Friday class yet
Fred Paget.
From Fred Paget, Marin County, California, USA
L. P. Skeen on tue 13 nov 01
Wood fired salmon or mountain river trout on a grill is great
hehheh....wait'll you get your cookbook and see the recipe for Grilled Fish
a la Plank! YUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM.
I shoulda been testing some of these recipes before they were
printed..........
L
Yann Ferric on tue 13 nov 01
I'm not sure if this comes under the categouy of unusual, but I have found
it very useful (my most used tool). I use it for scoring clay before adding
slip when joining slabs etc. It is simply a rubber erazor with four or five
clothes pins pushed through the end at 90 degrees. some erazors used for
rubbing out pencils are a bit weak. I suppose any piece of rubber would do.
I find it works better than a knife for scoring, as it 'gives' and is
flexible, so the pins don't dig in too far, and the pressure is easy to
control. It speeds up the process of scoring, which I had previously found
time consuming as I did alot of it. Good for thin slab-work.
love and light
Yann
_________________________________________________________________
Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp
Cindy Strnad on tue 13 nov 01
Hi, Yann.
I puzzled over your post for a few minutes, but I
think I understand now. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Erazor is eraser--that part is easy. Clothes pins
are the sharp pins we use in sewing, and you stick
them right through the eraser so they come out the
other side, with points all in a row.
This was confusing at first only because the term
"clothes pins" refers (in the USA) to a wooden
clip used to fasten clothing to a clothes line for
drying. I'm writing this so that, I hope, you
won't get a flood of mail asking you what you
meant. It's a great idea. I don't do a lot of
scoring, but I use a large steel brush. That's
sometimes a bit awkward for smaller things. I'll
give your method a try. Thanks!
Best wishes,
Cindy Strnad
Earthen Vessels Pottery
RR 1, Box 51
Custer, SD 57730
USA
cindy@earthen-vessels-pottery.com
http://www.earthen-vessels-pottery.com
wshirley1 on tue 13 nov 01
I have a tool that looks like a huge potato masher. It's about 6"
across at the business end, and with the handle it's about 30" tall. It
is made for mixing grout or something, and I bought it in a construction
supply store. I use it for mixing scraps of reclaimed clay, which I
have dried out, crumbled, and added to water in a 5-gallon bucket.
Also, I have a milkshake mixer, but that's not very odd. Every potter
probably has one of those. It's great for mixing glaze tests. No need
to sieve.
Sylvia
Don Goodrich on tue 13 nov 01
For me it'd have to be the logs and sticks. Lately I've gotten heavily
into impressing textures from bark and broken branches into clay slabs, then
filling the impressions with colored glass frits before firing. Makes for
some rather unique candleholders. Portions of the shelving look as though
they just migrated in from the woodpile for the season, what with all these
"tools" stacked there.
Not that there aren't stranger things in the studio. The Van de Graaff
generator, for instance. Doesn't count, though, as I haven't yet figured out
how to use it for pots. Come to think of it, I could throw some Leyden jars,
and use it to charge 'em. Save those for the truly obnoxious customers...
Thanks for the inspiration, Penni!
Don Goodrich still struggling to reconcile the mad scientist with the
naturalist
in Zion, Illinois
goodrichdn@aol.com
http://members.aol.com/goodrichdn/
Lois Ruben Aronow on tue 13 nov 01
I use condoms (non-ribbed, non-lubricated) for smoothing rims and
stuff. I can really feel the clay through 'em, and I've never lost
one yet in a bucket of slurry. They can be washed and reused too.
The other strange things I use: a variety of sea urchin shells for
texturing, and lead printers type for impressing letters and other
ornamentations. You can get tons of the stuff dirt cheap on ebay -
more than you'll ever use. I also have some bookbinders roulettes for
decorating.
Cindy Griffis on wed 14 nov 01
I have a friend who once was a Social Worker doing home visits. He
knew he was making the right change when he took his replacement for
a visit....the (female) client was washing used condoms the whole
while they did their interview. (They were part of her
'professional' tools, but she wasn't a potter! Tooo gross.....
Lois wrote...
>
> I use condoms (non-ribbed, non-lubricated) for smoothing rims and
> stuff. I can really feel the clay through 'em, and I've never lost
> one yet in a bucket of slurry. They can be washed and reused too.
>
>
______________________________________________________________________________
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your
> subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
melpots@pclink.com.
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Find the one for you at Yahoo! Personals
http://personals.yahoo.com
Marcia Selsor on wed 14 nov 01
I bought 4 gross of condoms to take to Uzbekistan when I went in 1994. I wish I
had them in Italy in 2001. Chamois were hard to find!!
(I gave the condoms away.) A condom cost $5 at the HotelUzbekistan and many were
rotten. As a Fulbrighter I considered it my duty to give them away to those I met.
One office mate didn't know what they were and she was already a mother.
Interesting world we live in and often communicate with. I also took many
hyperdermic needles. While I was there, many babies were infected with HIV from
one needle used too many times. As a Fulbrighter, I have been given the
opportunity to assist is aid to many. I did try.and I did help.
CVondoms can serve a lot of functions.
Ciao,
Marcia
Penni Stoddart wrote:
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Lois Ruben Aronow"
>
> I use condoms (non-ribbed, non-lubricated)
> You can get tons of the stuff dirt cheap on ebay -
> more than you'll ever use.
>
> Lois,
> please tell me you did not get the condoms dirt cheap on ebay!!!!!!!!
> =o)
> ~~~~
> Penni Stoddart of Penelope's Pots
> President, Artisans London (Ontario, Canada)
>
> "When I die, I want to die like my grandmother who died
> peacefully in her sleep. Not screaming like all the passengers in her car."
> * Author Unknown
>
> ______________________________________________________________________________
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots@pclink.com.
Marcia Selsor on wed 14 nov 01
I use hyperdermic needles as an attachment to my syringe for glazing fine lines.
Marcia
Stephen Cappelli on wed 14 nov 01
NOW, NOW, NOW Merrie.... you know that cone 13 is always present in most of
the cooking..... and you have not let me cook a good Italian dish on hog
chain....but enjoy the martini for me....
CIAO Stefano
----- Original Message -----
From: Merrie Boerner
To:
Sent: Monday, November 12, 2001 6:42 PM
Subject: Re: unusual tools in a pottery studio
> > When my friends get together and talk about
> > recipes, I think of glazes. Pity the poor fools
> > who come to my house for Southern home cookin.
>
> What cone do you fire your "Southern home cookin" glaze to? Oxidation or
> reduction? Color? I'm sure it looks mouth-watering ;-)
>
> Alan
>
> Hi Allen,
> When I was a child, and my Mother cooked supper in Vicksburg,
> Mississippi.....we knew it was "done" when we smelled smoke. She cooked
the
> juice right out of the turkey....dry and dark brown is how I use to like
> it...that is how I was raised.....I'd call it over reduced. Now, my
family
> prefers flashes of orange and a little sprinkle of carbon trapping (spices
> and lots of pepper) and tons of ash (crusty). Wood fired salmon or
mountain
> river trout on a grill is great. Seems like food is low on my priority
list,
> though. My hubby is in charge of the meat, my oldest son does fish and
> veggies, my middle son does the entertainment, and my daughter is in
charge
> of sweets.....I could eat like a rabbit if allowed to .....but, just give
me
> a fire to poke at.....I'll flatten cone 12 in a heart beat....it's the way
I
> was raised.
> Merrie
> Now......I'll have to admit, when I have a wood firing workshop here, we
put
> the feed bag on for meat lovers AND vegetarians....everybody
cooks....except
> me.....Kickasswoodfiringmerrie would rather be stokin ; )
>
>
____________________________________________________________________________
__
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
melpots@pclink.com.
claybair on wed 14 nov 01
Lois,
You win hands down! I'll not attempt to best that one!
Gayle Bair-still laughing!
Bainbridge Island, WA
http://claybair.com
Lois wrote...
I use condoms (non-ribbed, non-lubricated) for smoothing rims and
stuff. I can really feel the clay through 'em, and I've never lost
one yet in a bucket of slurry. They can be washed and reused too.
Penni Stoddart on wed 14 nov 01
----- Original Message -----
From: "Lois Ruben Aronow"
I use condoms (non-ribbed, non-lubricated)
You can get tons of the stuff dirt cheap on ebay -
more than you'll ever use.
Lois,
please tell me you did not get the condoms dirt cheap on ebay!!!!!!!!
=o)
~~~~
Penni Stoddart of Penelope's Pots
President, Artisans London (Ontario, Canada)
"When I die, I want to die like my grandmother who died
peacefully in her sleep. Not screaming like all the passengers in her car."
* Author Unknown
Marcia Selsor on thu 15 nov 01
That was 6 years ago. I didn't use one but I did give many away.. $5/condom at the
Uzbek hotel was equivalent to one month's salary of doctor's and teachers. Many
women were on copper coils and having problems. Others were abstaining completely
in their marital relationships because they could not afford another mouth to
feed.
I tried to help.
M
vince pitelka wrote:
> > I bought 4 gross of condoms to take to Uzbekistan when I went in 1994.
>
> Jeese, Marcia, sounds like you were planning a hell of a trip.
> Best wishes -
> - Vince
>
> Vince Pitelka
> Appalachian Center for Crafts
> Tennessee Technological University
> 1560 Craft Center Drive, Smithville TN 37166
> Home - vpitelka@dtccom.net
> 615/597-5376
> Work - wpitelka@tntech.edu
> 615/597-6801 ext. 111, fax 615/597-6803
> http://www.craftcenter.tntech.edu/
>
> ______________________________________________________________________________
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots@pclink.com.
Earl Brunner on thu 15 nov 01
I just KNEW some one was going to say SOMEONE did this.
There's this old joke about the person that had 10 kids and was pregnant
again and was in hysterics visiting her doctor. Insisted that she
couldn't be pregnant, she used protection, kept it pinned to the
headboard--like always.
Cindy Griffis wrote:
> I have a friend who once was a Social Worker doing home visits. He
> knew he was making the right change when he took his replacement for
> a visit....the (female) client was washing used condoms the whole
> while they did their interview. (They were part of her
> 'professional' tools, but she wasn't a potter! Tooo gross.....
>
> Lois wrote...
>
>> I use condoms (non-ribbed, non-lubricated) for smoothing rims and
>> stuff. I can really feel the clay through 'em, and I've never lost
>> one yet in a bucket of slurry. They can be washed and reused too.
>>
>>
>
Earl Brunner
http://coyote.accessnv.com/bruec/
bruec@anv.net
claybair on thu 15 nov 01
Oh Boy!
Well at least I am confident you will not get
pregnant because you are practicing safe clay!
Just don't share this "tool" with a class of teenagers......
ever notice the sea of embarrassed, red faces and muffled giggling
when handle pulling is demonstrated?
Gayle Bair
Bainbridge Island, WA
http://claybair.com
..........................
From: "Lois Ruben Aronow"
I use condoms (non-ribbed, non-lubricated)
You can get tons of the stuff dirt cheap on ebay -
more than you'll ever use.
Lois,
please tell me you did not get the condoms dirt cheap on ebay!!!!!!!!
=o)
~~~~
Penni Stoddart of Penelope's Pots
President, Artisans London (Ontario, Canada)
Lois Ruben Aronow on thu 15 nov 01
On Thu, 15 Nov 2001 09:50:45 -0800, you wrote:
>Oh Boy!
>Well at least I am confident you will not get
>pregnant because you are practicing safe clay!
Actually, I just had a baby in June. My studio mate suggested I might
consider taking the condoms home..........
vince pitelka on thu 15 nov 01
> I bought 4 gross of condoms to take to Uzbekistan when I went in 1994.
Jeese, Marcia, sounds like you were planning a hell of a trip.
Best wishes -
- Vince
Vince Pitelka
Appalachian Center for Crafts
Tennessee Technological University
1560 Craft Center Drive, Smithville TN 37166
Home - vpitelka@dtccom.net
615/597-5376
Work - wpitelka@tntech.edu
615/597-6801 ext. 111, fax 615/597-6803
http://www.craftcenter.tntech.edu/
| |
|
