Okay, so I’ve been seeing these “wide tea cups” all over social media, and they look super cool. I decided I had to try making one myself. I’m no pottery expert, but I do have a wheel and some clay, so I figured, why not?
First things first, I grabbed a chunk of clay – maybe about two pounds? I’m not great at judging that. I slapped it onto the wheel and got it centered. That’s always the trickiest part, right? Getting it perfectly in the middle so it doesn’t wobble all over the place.
Once it was centered (after a few tries, I’ll admit), I started opening it up. I pushed my thumbs down into the center, creating a little well, and then slowly pulled the walls outward. The key here, I think, is to go really slow and keep the clay evenly wet. Otherwise, it gets all uneven and cracks.
Making it WIDE
- Keep it low:Instead of pulling the clay upwards to make a tall cylinder, I focused on pulling it outwards, keeping the walls low and wide.
- Lots of water!seriously, I kept a sponge handy and made sure the clay was always nice and slippery.
- Even pressure.I tried to make sure my fingers were applying the same amount of pressure all the way around, to keep the shape symmetrical.
I kept working the clay, slowly expanding the diameter. It felt like I was making a giant clay pancake! I used a rib tool (just a flat piece of metal) to smooth out the sides and define the shape a little bit. I wanted a nice, gentle curve.
Once I got it as wide as I wanted, I focused on the rim. I used my fingers to gently roll the edge outward, creating a slightly flared lip. This part was tricky, because the clay was so thin at this point, it was easy to mess it up. I almost ripped it a couple of times!
Finally, I used a wire tool to cut the cup off the wheel. Then I carefully lifted it onto a board to dry. It looked… pretty good! A little wonky in places, but definitely wide and definitely a cup (sort of).
Now it’s just a matter of letting it dry completely, firing it in the kiln, and then glazing it. I’m thinking a nice, deep blue. Wish me luck! I’ll update when it’s all finished.
