Back in early December of 2022, I took a Christmas ornament making class at Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts, located nearby in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. We were creating ornaments using pinch pots. I tend to be a bit of a slow worker and do get anxious when there are time constraints. So I didn’t complete either of my designs that day and they also weren’t ornaments. Ha, I’m also a bit stubborn and don’t give up easily. So instead of tossing them uncompleted, I brought both pieces home to finish constructing and carving.
At different points, I was afraid that I was adding too much water to the clay and then conversely I was worried they were gonna dry out. Basically they were on the back burner for awhile but I was determined to finish them. So a little over three months later, they are both finally finished. I completed the pineapple first. I added underglaze and finished with a clear glossy glaze. Then I finished the frog prince, layering different green underglazes and finished with clear glossy glaze on his crown and eyeballs.
I had fun making both of them and it was nice to create something different – no gnomes. I’m now inspired to create more frogs and I am currently working on a large 3D frog – no crown. Fingers crossed it survives all the different processes.
