Casting: Molds and casts are used to produce duplicates of a specific pattern, shape, or detail. Casting is performed when the artist wants to limit any variance between products of a series. This technique is often used in fine factory porcelain or upscale china tableware.

 

Crystalline Glazing: A speciality glaze with a high percentage of zinc, titanium, or lithium that encourages visible crystalline growth in the glaze during the firing process. Crystals inhabit many glazes but are typically too small or invisible to see. The crystals are made visible when the firing environment allows them to grow large enough. This means the glaze must remain molten for an extended period. It must be fired for a longer duration and at a hotter temperature of around 1140°C, or 2084°F. The crystals form when the kiln is cooling and therefore it requires great skill to precisely achieve the necessary temperatures. Because crystalline glazes are quite runny, a pot's base typically has to be ground and polished after it has been fired.

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Coil Method: Coil pieces can be almost any shape or size. The pieces are joined by layering and blending them together. 

 

Embossing/De-embossing: The process where textures and images are either raised or imprinted into the clay, which is then baked in the oven, fixing the design in the material. Tools for this process include rubber stamps, textured plates, and sandpaper.

 

Glazing: Earthenware ceramics are glazed for both decorative and practical reasons, as the glaze works to seal up their pores. Earthenware typically uses two types of glazes: either tin, which has a white finish, or lead, which is either clear or cream. Lead glazes are less common as they are often avoided for health concerns, especially when intended for food products. Earthenware's low firing temperature allows for a wide range of glaze colours through the addition of metal oxides such as copper, iron, or cobalt. The glaze used on hard-paste porcelain is solely for decorative purposes, as it is a non-porous material.

 

Hand Building: A technique that quite literally embraces the 'handmade touch.' Hand building is the earliest clay forming practice, where pieces are made by rolling coils and slabs of clay together, and then using one's fingers to join the various parts with water. Designs and textures are hand-printed with stamping tools and the artist's hands.

 

Raku Firing: A traditional type of Japanese pottery used for tea ceremonies which has since taken on some Western applications. Artists enjoy Raku for its unpredictability and vibrant colours. The pot is heated at an extremely high temperature, then rapidly cooled. It is this rapid cooling, by water, air, or a combustible material, which stops the chemical reaction of the glaze, fixing the vibrant colours and patterns. Western artists have experimented by applying horsehair, feathers, or sugar upon removal from the kiln, burning organic patterns onto the pot's surface, similar to salt firing. Due to the extreme thermal shock involved, stoneware is typically the material used with Western Raku.

 

Salt Glazing/Firing: When salt or soda (sodium chloride) is added to the kiln during high-temperature firing to produce a pattern. The salt vaporizes and combines with the silica in the clay surface, forming an extremely hard sodium-silicate glaze. This technique gives the clay a glossy, translucent look with an orange-peel-like texture. Salt glazing is specific to stoneware as it requires its durability and tolerance for high temperatures to cultivate the desired effect. This glazing technique creates a finish that is food safe.

 

Slip Casting: When liquid clay is poured into an absorbent plaster mold. This method is used in industries producing large quantities of a piece, or by potters wanting consistency in their product's shape, thickness, etc. Items that are commonly made with this technique include modern, fine factory porcelain such as sanitary wares (toilets and basins) or smaller, more intricately detailed figurines and teapots.

 

Throwing: A manual clay-forming technique involving a turntable, either electric or manual. First, the clay is centred by pressing the clay upward/downward, into perfect rotational symmetry. Second, the clay is opened, forming a hollow in the centre of the clay. Flooring is the process of flattening the pot's inner base, while throwing or pulling shapes the sides and thickness of the pot. Once the piece has begun drying, excess clay is trimmed and a foot is created. Unlike slip casting, throwing results in visible variations between each piece, as it relies heavily on the artist's own hands to produce the final result.