{"id":1,"date":"2019-10-24T17:28:55","date_gmt":"2019-10-24T17:28:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ilenaleepottery.com\/\/\/?p=1"},"modified":"2021-09-29T23:10:05","modified_gmt":"2021-09-29T23:10:05","slug":"hello-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ilenaleepottery.com\/?p=1","title":{"rendered":"Burn Beautiful"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

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Hello,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Happy Mabon! I hope you all are have a rich and fulfilling Fall. Im going to post some things here that I wrote ages ago for my email newsletters. I thought a wider audience might find them interesting as well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let me tell you a little about my wood firing process.
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To celebrate Mabon I fired some pottery in my backyard, with an ancient technique – very similar to the way I learned to fire pottery in Mexico. If you are interested\u2026 I\u2019ll take you through how its done. You\u2019ll just have to imagine the smell of hardwood smoke and the gentle crackle of the fire.
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I started with a hand built pinch pot, which I have burnished, or polished, to a shine. I also made a rune bead set; 24 beads, each with a Viking rune letter. These go into a tin can with some paper, wood shavings, and scrap bits from my friend who is a carver.
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I get the ol\u2019 Webber grill going in the traditional way\u2026 charcoal briquettes! As those are doing their warm up thing\u2026 I put the can with the pottery in it just next to the warming charcoal. This pre-warms the pottery so it doesn\u2019t get heated too fast when the big fire happens, which might cause cracking. Once the charcoal is all warmed up and mostly white, I spread out the coals, put the can with the pottery nestled into the middle, and stack as much firewood as I can in the grill.
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I kinda play the rest by ear; lid or no lid, add more wood, etc.. I am aiming for that tin can in the middle to glow light orange for about an hour or two. How hot is that? One of these days I\u2019ll stick a thermometer in there. But for now its\u2026 hot\u2026 hot enough (I think. I hope. Um\u2026 yeah).
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This photo is steaming tea in one of my \u2018ugly mugs\u2019 while watching the fire. An altogether enjoyable way to spend a Vancouver \u2018winter\u2019 day! (I make these big fat mugs with felt covers and cork tops. I don\u2019t know why I call them \u2018ugly mugs\u2019, they are really more like \u2018snuggly mugs\u2019. I sold all but one of them over Yule. I\u2019ll make more. Oh, I\u2019m off topic. Sorry)
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Eventually I put the lid on tight, and just leave it be. I need to wait several hours for everything to burn out, and cool down. It\u2019s so hard to wait! I\u2019m so worried things cracked or exploded, or didn\u2019t fire all the way, leaving the pot crumbly. Aaaaagggghhh! But finally\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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(How cool is this shot?)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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And\u2026Viola! It\u2019s not broken or exploded…
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When the pot is all cleaned up, I give it a tap test; gently tap it with something metal, like a nail. If it makes a ringing noise, sort of like glass, its fired all of the way and has no cracks. If it makes a sort of \u2018tonk\u2019 sound, it did not fire right.
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It rings beautifully! And the rune beads look like all but one came through perfectly! At the next full moon I shall sit outside with this little bowl filled with water. Reflecting the moonlight it will made a perfect black mirror – like a crystal ball – and we shall see what it has to say to me.
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Thanks for sticking with me though that. I hope you liked hearing about a different way to make pottery.\u00a0
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\nhttps:\/\/www.wyldewoodcollective.com\/\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Blessings,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ilena Lee<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start writing!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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