New Cappuccino Cup Design

I was talking with a friend who's a barista, and he was saying that the handles on espresso/cappuccino cups are almost pointless because he can't fit his finger through the loop. It made me think, "Why even bother making a loop-style handle, then? Why not just make a solid handle that you pinch with your forefinger and thumb."

Here's the initial result in white porcelain with carbon trap Shino glaze, reduction fired to cone 10 in Cleveland by Junji Miyazawa.

Decal Mugs - Round One Results

I recently posted about my foray into the world of decal firing. Well, the results are in, and my efforts were met with both success and failure. One huge factor was that I used soda-fired pottery, which inherently produces various and hard-to-predict results. So some of the items cracked, warped or bubbled along the way.

The most successful pieces were the simple forms made with plain old stoneware and glazed with our most reliable white glaze. Shown at right is an example of one such piece, perhaps the best of the bunch. My favorite, however, was a lucky combination of Junji's white slip with clear wood ash glaze. It featured an image of Major Taylor. I gave it to MBC's new VP of Operations, Paulo Nzambi.