Last semester I talked about how I made my fist hand thrown teapot but I never talked about the glaze I used to finish it. Now I made this teapot specifically for my grandmother because she collects them and she does not have any handmade ones, especially from me!

Well, in her kitchen she actually has a pretty nice collection of handmade pottery that she has just found over the year. For instance, her sister bought her a set of mugs that are from Arizona. These mugs were my favorite growing up because they are not shiny or really even glazed that much. They are rather rough. The start at the base of the mug with this bluish color, then go to a subtle red and then turn into a beige color. These mugs also have a flat side across from the handle and when you drink out of them, you basically are drinking from a corner. They also stack on their sides perfectly.

When I was really little I knew nothing about Arizona (not even where is was) expect for these mugs. They really were my favorite thing in the entire house and as I grew up I would look at pottery that was similar to these mugs and I would just see Arizona even though I was never there. She still has them and when I visit her those mugs are what I drink out of.

When I glazed this teapot for her I wanted a similar effect. Nothing too shiny or too bold. But yet, I did want my teapot to be different so I glazed it with one of the studio’s glazed called yellow salt. I think it turned out beautiful and my grandmother really loves it. Whenever people come over she shows it off and uses it to pour tea. It makes me so happy that she really liked it and I know that the color I choose was inspired by her Arizona mugs.