This is my first clay project. It's just a simple pinch pot - with some added flare.

I first hand-built the main body. As with any hand-building, it was difficult to make a smooth and symmetrical shape, but I worked on it for a while and I was eventually satisfied. Next I built a foot for the pot, which offered stability and made for a nicer proportion in the artwork.

After it was all built, it had a nice shape, but it still looked a bit plain. I decided to add texture by scratching the outside of the pot with a fork. I made deep and rough scratches in a kind of spiral down the side of the cup. Then, it went into the kiln. After the bisque firing, I glazed the pot with a rich brown. I was surprised to see that when it came out of the kiln, the brown had become black inside the cracks. Thanks to this unintentional effect, the coloring was quite striking!

In the end, I'm happy with my first project. I think I'll use it to hold keys, coins and other small things. I now have a key bowl that looks quite wild!