In this video, I'll show you how to throw a cylinder on the wheel.
Hi Marie here back with another informative pottery making video for you.
How many of you want to give up because you're having a hard time making a
cylinder? When I started the only thing that I
could throw was a cup and half the time it would turn into a
bowl, so I know how hard it can be. In this
demonstration I'll show you how to throw a cylinder so
you can have the confidence to make things like
large mugs, utensil holders, and vases. Once you get the hang of it you'll be
pulling a cylinder like a pro. With that said let's get throwing.
I have two pounds of clay already centered. My last video was on how to center so
I'll get right into making the cylinder,. I'm using
Amaco 38 stoneware white clay this is a high
fire clay. It has no grog but it can still throw
a large amount of clay.
For this demonstration, I'll make the base
about four inches across and we'll try to get up to
at least seven inches high. With your anchor hand on the side of the
clay press down the clay until your base is about
four and a half inches across.
Looks good.
Give it a little water. Now let your thumbs find the center. The spinning wheel will
draw your thumbs into the center.
Now press down.
If you feel friction introduce more water.
Once your thumbs can't go any further use your middle and index finger to
continue.
Now stop to check the thickness with your needle tool.
Remove the excess water first.
Take your needle tool to the bottom and put your finger
right up against the clay.
That's a good half-inch. I'll be trimming so that's perfect.
Now create a flat bottom before you pull up the walls.
Introduce a little more water.
Place your anchor hand on the side of the clay
as you place your index and middle finger on the inside
and push the clay outward.
About a good three and a half inches.
That looks good.
Use your sponge to remove any water. Compress the
clay and even out the bottom.
Now that you have the base you can start pulling up the walls.
You don't want your wheel to go too fast or too slow.
Right in between is good.
Using a thin sponge with a little water in it gives you more control over the
clay and helps you to pull up the clay more
evenly. Now, you don't want your sponge too damp
or loaded with too much water. Just a little is fine your outside
fingers are going to be pushing the clay up and
inward while your inside fingers are going to
be just above your outside fingers and guiding the clay upward.
Squeeze the clay at the base and move it up allowing the wheel to rotate at least
once before moving your fingers upward. Anchoring your left thumb against your
right hand helps to keep the pressure of your
fingers consistent keeping the thickness of the sides even
throughout your piece.
Once you get to the top compress the rim this makes the rim stronger.
When introducing water on the inside squeeze your sponge on your finger
so the water cascades down onto the side of your cylinder
and slowly spin your wheel. If you squeeze the water just on the
bottom you won't have enough water on the sides
as you're bringing up the clay.
Don't grab too much clay at once. Now pull up the walls again slow
and even
pushing inward as your fingers are guiding on the inside.
Now compress the rim.
After your second or third time
soak up the water with your sponge. This helps to keep the clay stronger by
compressing the clay particles together and stopping the water from penetrating
and weakening the clay. Now you can introduce more water.
Get the sides on the inside good and grab some more clay. About medium
speed is good.
Touch your thumb to your right hand as soon as you can.
Continue with even pressure
and compress your rim.
One of my teachers showed me this trick. It was very helpful when I was learning
how to throw a cylinder. Use a needle tool to check the thickness
of the sides until you get the feel of the thickness
with your fingers. Start at the bottom and
put your index finger on the inside until the needle tool touches your
finger. Now put your other index finger up
against the clay and pull it out. Now I know I have about
a half an inch of clay. Go up a little higher
and see how much clay I have.
I have less.
About a quarter of an inch. Quarter of an inch.
Quarter of an inch.
And a quarter of an inch. So now I know I can pull more
clay up from the bottom.
More water cascading down.
And grab that clay on the bottom and
pull her up.
Slow even pressure with your fingers.
Great.
Soak up the extra water with your sponge
and compress the bottom again.
Grab the clay
and pull up again.
Make sure it rotates at least once before you move upward.
Nice and even pressure.
Now use your metal scraper, wooden,
or rubber rib to straighten out the
cylinder.
Use your inside fingers
for support on the outside.
All that slip. Wow.
Now remove any excess water from the bottom and compress
the clay on the bottom.
Compress your rim.
You can use a wooden modeling tool to make a foot.
Like this.
Get rid of the extra clay on the
wheel or bat.
My favorite tool for making a foot is the ultimate edger.
Check out my first video on youtube for the ultimate edger
where i show you how to make a perfect foot every time.
Now you have a cylinder. You can add a handle
and have a good size mug.
The tips that I shared with you should help you to pull up a nice cylinder.
If it doesn't happen right away, grab a few balls of clay and just keep
practicing. Pretty soon you'll be throwing like a
pro. Don't forget to hit the like button,
subscribe if you haven't already, and hit the bell icon to get notified
whenever I upload a new video. With your newfound skills head on over
to this, How to Make a Mug video or How to Throw
a Vase video. If you do I get to play with more clay.
Let's stay dirty.