I can’t tell you how excited I am to be sharing this project with you!!!

In collaboration with my girl, Michelle, of Meechi Ceramics, we’ve created my new favorite spot in my home. From concept to execution, I’m sharing the steps we took to bring this installation to life.

Concept

I reached out to Michelle I think in 2022 (?), with an idea for an installation in my home. From there, we started dreaming up the logistics. I had a good idea of what I wanted the finished product to look like, but I hadn’t a clue how to make it happen. I was early in my ceramics journey and knew I didn’t have the skills to do it myself. I showed the (v professional) mock-up below to Michelle, as well as the photo of the gold and white bowls as a starting point. I knew I wanted to do a darker teal, a mustardy yellow, and a lighter blue as my colors, but I liked the organic shape of the bowls pictured.

Determining Quantity and Spacing

Again, like a real professional, I cut out 50 paper circles and used a Swiffer and some painter’s tape to attach them to the wall along our stairs. This helped determine spacing and the quantity we’d need. As one probably could have guessed, they all fell off within a couple hours of me hanging them. Good thing I took photos!

Test Bowls

Once we had a game plan, Michelle threw some test bowls so we could try out shapes, mounting hardware, and glaze colors. We met to talk through glazes and selected a few to try out. Here’s a video of Michelle preparing, throwing, and shaping the bowls!

Testing Glazes and Mounting Hardware

After Michelle threw and trimmed a few test bowls, she fired them in the kiln, glazed them with the colors we selected, fired them a second time, and tested out some mounting hardware.

I brought the test bowls home to see the colors in person and hung the first few to ensure they would stay securely on the wall for a period of time before moving forward.

Throw, Trim, Fire, Glaze, Fire, Repeat!

I loved the colors we chose and the mounting hardware worked perfectly! So, we decided to move forward and Michelle entered production mode. I wanted to share the process behind this project because I don’t think many people understand why handmade ceramics can take so long, and why they cost significantly more than ceramics at a big box store. Here’s why:

There’s planning and testing that first goes into a product.
There are also years of built-up knowledge. I’ve been making pottery now for about 2 years and I still don’t always make the item I set out to make. Sometimes I intend to make a mug, and somehow I end up with a plate.
Cost of tools and materials is high. Kilns, wheels, throwing tools, trimming tools, clay, glazes, brushes, packing materials, studio space/rent, etc. And then there’s the ongoing costs to run a small business too.
Here’s the process for making a piece:
1. Throw the piece on the wheel
2. Allow the piece to dry slowly until it’s “leather hard” (timing varies, have to monitor closely)
3. Trim the piece while it’s leather hard
4. Allow the piece to fully dry (timing varies)
5. Fire the piece once (8-12-ish hours, plus cooling time)
6. Glaze the piece, let it dry, glaze it again, let it dry, glaze it again, let it dry (yes, three coats of glaze)
7. Fire the piece again (8-12 ish hours, plus cooling time)

It takes a lot of time, skill, and supplies! Ya feel me????? Each piece is handmade and one-of-a-kind, made by a human instead of a machine. I think it’s well worth the extra cost.

Anywho, I love comparing glazes before and after they’re fired, seeing how much they change with heat! The video below shows Michelle loading the kiln and then opening it up after firing to see the final glaze color.

Here’s the before and after of the yellow glaze (different bowls, but you get the idea). So interesting, right?

Installing Hardware

Once I finished glazing and Michelle fired the pieces for a second time, she passed them off to me to install the bolts we’d use to mount to the wall. This was much harder than I anticipated, given that each bowl is an organic shape and doesn’t lay flat. Andy saw me struggling, so he ordered some tiny paper cups I could drill holes into. That way I could have the cup hold the bolts in place while the epoxy dried. I used shims to place under the bowls when needed to try and keep them as level as possible. Timelapses always make things look easier than they are, right? I’m so grateful for Andy’s cup idea, otherwise I’d still be gluing bolts to this day.

Installing 60 Bowls

I imagined the final step - installation - would take us quite a long time. To my surprise, Andy and I found a system that worked well and we knocked it out in two sessions.

I took photos of a few of the bowls, as well as the wall, so I could map out a plan on my computer. Once I had the plan mapped out, I got the fun job of using a laser pointer to show Andy where each bowl would go. He’d drill the hole, insert the wall anchor, and twist the bolt/bowl into place. We had a system down unless we ran into a stud, in which case things took a smidge longer.

Finished Product!

Here’s the finished product. I’m so happy with it, and love that it’s the first thing I see when I get up each morning. Seeing the shadows change throughout the day is really special too. Thank you, Michelle, for bringing my vision to life!

Ceramic Wall Installation