7.01.2011

Handmade ceramic spoons. A little tutorial.



Its been in my head for a bit to make some spoons. Inspired by the amazing spoons of Julie Whitmore and Diana Fayt. Their spoons are truly works of art.

I have a small salt jar with a ceramic spoon that I purchased from Anthropologie (I know, I know) a couple of years ago. I love it. The little spoon is so sweet. Every time I use it, I swear that I will make my own spoons.

And finally, I did!



I made some bisque molds. I used the ceramic spoon mentioned above to get the general shape that I wanted.







These steps took a little trial and error. That first photo has WAY too much clay, but you get the idea. Take some clay, push it into the mold.





Clean up and refine. This was a little tricky. I expected the bisque mold to "hold" the clay, but it did not. It easily released the spoon. So it was a challenge to keep the spoon in the mold while I worked on cleaning the shape up.





I used mishima to decorate the spoons. A technique that I have been wanting to explore. And the small surface of the spoons was perfect.



Ta-da! Some finished spoons!
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23 comments:

  1. RonJuly 2, 2011 at 6:42 PM

    Those spoons are lovely! Thanks for the tutorial.

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  2. jeanetteJuly 2, 2011 at 8:29 PM

    Thanks Ron. They were fun to make. Already have the next batch planned and will be making a bigger mold, too.

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  3. Cindy PowersJuly 2, 2011 at 10:05 PM

    Wonderful work. I have been drooling over those spoons too! Thanks for sharing your technique. I would have never thought to use a mold. Have you seen Kristen Pavelkas little spoons? yummmm.

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  4. jeanetteJuly 3, 2011 at 5:51 AM

    Hi Cindy!
    Oh yes! Kristen Pavelkas are so great! Don't know how I forgot those. Her scoops were probably the first ones that I saw and truly fell in love with.
    And checking her website just now, I see she has added some other utensils too:
    http://www.pavelkapottery.com/index.html

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  5. danielle distefanoJuly 3, 2011 at 6:47 AM

    Amazing! I love that you are always exploring some new work. Looks great. D

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  6. UnknownJuly 7, 2011 at 11:20 AM

    These are so great! I've been wanting to make ceramic spoons for ages, but had no idea how to go about it. Have to try this, thanks so much!

    Also, the mishima decoration is just lovely:)

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  7. bridgmanpotteryJuly 9, 2011 at 3:18 PM

    you are swell to share! can't wait to try them!

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  8. GinaJuly 16, 2011 at 10:05 AM

    Your spoons are great, and you did a wonderful job with your mishima decoration! I have made some spoons but formed each one by hand. I'll have to try making a mold for some of them.

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  9. UnknownJuly 17, 2011 at 4:33 AM

    I went ahead and made some, plus featured your blog. Hope that's ok:) Thanks again for the inspiration!

    http://15paintedcups.blogspot.com/

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  10. Tania JulianJuly 18, 2011 at 7:08 AM

    ugh, jeanette. i read the blog last night before and i could hardly sleep because of these spoons! At the ungodly hour of 6 i considered going to the studio...i didn't though. they are so beautiful and i'm jealous.. miss you!

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  11. Booth WatsonOctober 10, 2011 at 3:46 PM

    I've been thinking about making some spoons for some little condiment bowls I made and this is perfect! I found a little wooden spoon for the mold and I'll be firing the mold next week so I can use it. Thanks for posting this.

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  12. tammy gFebruary 25, 2013 at 8:20 PM

    Might I ask how you glaze fired them? Did you suspend them or were they stilted? If stilted, how did you get rid of the prickly spots in the glaze?

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  13. jeanetteFebruary 27, 2013 at 4:40 PM

    Hi tammy g!

    I fire them on stilts. And use a sanding block to get rid of any sharp edges. Often there is still a small black mark from the stilts, but that doesn't bother me.

    You can suspend them from rods in the kiln, too. I just prefer the stilt method.

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  14. AnonymousMarch 18, 2013 at 6:08 AM

    This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  15. tammy gMarch 20, 2013 at 6:46 AM

    Thank you! I have tried my hand after looking at your work and that of Diana Fayt and Julie Whitmore, as you suggested. LOVE the little spoons and won't drink a cuppa tea without one now! Thank you.

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  16. cynthiaApril 12, 2013 at 12:13 PM

    Fantastic tutorial!!

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  17. AnonymousJune 9, 2013 at 9:39 PM

    What cone are you firing at?

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  18. jeanetteJune 11, 2013 at 6:17 PM

    Hi anonymous,

    I fire to cone 7.

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  19. Hilda GogoJanuary 30, 2014 at 9:19 AM

    hi please tell me how you are glasing the spoons, do you hand them in the oven from something ??

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  20. Odyssey UrnsApril 26, 2016 at 2:07 PM

    Well, Duh..... I've been making little spoons "by hand" and no matter how much time I spend, they never look the same, and just take TOO much time to be "profitable". I am making a mold TOMORROW! Thanks for your inspiration!

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  21. AnonymousJune 2, 2016 at 8:16 PM

    Lovely spoons. Many thanks for sharing the tutorial.
    I notice you are using a wire loop either for hanging the spoons in the kiln, or to leave in. I would love to now what type of wire can be used for this, so that it does not melt at stoneware temperatures.
    Cheers
    Merilyn

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  22. Ceramic BIsqueMay 17, 2024 at 2:39 PM

    Omg those spoon rests are so cute! Love the pears.

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  23. PotteryPie_comMay 17, 2024 at 2:39 PM

    Did you use glaze?

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