How to throw a pitcher on a pottery wheel
This article is taking into consideration that the prospective potter has taken private lessons with a master potter or at the very least a workshop class in wheel-work. My clay of choice is earthenware, specifically Buncombe white although I prefer Highwater's speckle brownstone. Porcelain requires much more experience as it is a more delicate type of clay so we will stick with the basics here.
The most important part of throwing pottery on a potter's wheel, manual wheel or electric wheel, is to ensure the clay is pliable. In order to produce pliable clay, it is necessary to wedge clay using either the press and twist method or the ram's head method. It is best to wedge the clay approximately 100 turns ensuring no air bubbles exist in the clay or else all your hard work will simply explode or at the very least crack when firing in the kiln.
Once you are certain the clay is free of air bubbles, form a cone shape or a ball shape from the clay making certain not to reintroduce air into the clay form. It helps to press the clay back and forth on the wheel-head or bat although in the case of making a pitcher, a bat is the best method since it is rather difficult to remove the pitcher from the wheel-head without a thorough working knowledge of moving moist clay from one place to another without disfiguring the piece. If working on a manual wheel without bat pins, it is necessary to create a bat pad using a wedged ball of clay to form a pad beneath the bat and ensuring the bat is even on the wheel. If it is not even, then the pitcher will not be even. Electric wheels generally come with bat pins so it is a matter of matching the bats to the pins then compressing the bat firmly yet carefully to the wheel head.
Set up the pottery wheel with a bowl of water, preferably warm water in order to keep the hands and fingers as free flowing as possible, especially for those of us with arthritis. Keep a natural sponge and an elephant ear sponge handy by placing it into the bowl of water along with a piece of chamois cloth cut in a small strip. Some people attach a small fishing cork to the chamois to make it easier to locate when needed. Place a variety of ribs and cut-off tools within reach. Do not forget to place a beach towel or old bath sheet across your lap to prevent clay from going everywhere and to allow for drying one's hands when necessary.
Begin by throwing your lump of clay as near to the center of the bat as possible. If possible, use the bat pins as a marker to find the center. Wet hands with water and then turn on the wheel or begin spinning the wheel with your foot. Since most potters use electric wheels today, I will presume those reading this are using electric wheels.
Begin by cupping the clay with the palms of both hands at the base of the clay. Press elbows into the legs or thigh area to steady the hands and add additional force without causing damage to hands or wrists. This will prevent carpal tunnel syndrome over time. Compress the clay into a cone-like shape without allowing the top to form an open volcano shape, which will add air to the clay and ruin your piece when it comes time to fire it in the kiln. Compress the clay back down until it is only a few inches high before compressing the palms again to cone the clay up and then back down again. This helps the clay become more pliable and easier to work with as it comes time to manipulate the clay.
As the clay becomes the correct consistency to work with, cone down again using the palm of your hand to smooth the top of the clay. The width will depend entirely on the size and height of the pitcher one hopes to make although bear in mind that clay will shrink approximately 12 to 14 percent depending upon the type of clay one uses. It is generally safe to make the pitcher at least a third to twice as large as the size one wants the product to be when it comes out of the kiln.
Using the fingernail of the thumb, or whichever finger is more comfortable; remove the bottom skirt of the clay leaving a slight indention at the base of the clay. Once the clay is center, which means one can cup both hands over the clay and not feel any wobble in the clay, it is time to get to work with the opening process. Find the center using both thumbs and compress the clay to open the center making certain not to press through the clay to the bat in the bottom. Measure the depth of the bottom using the needle tool. Generally, professional measurements should be one-eighth of an inch thick; however for a pitcher, it is best to stick with at least half an inch to three-quarters of an inch to give the bottom extra strength.
Using the dominant hand, usually the right hand although there are left-handed potters as I am one of them, open the center of the clay by pulling the ring with the small opening wider and evenly outward on the bat until reaching the necessary width for your pitcher. Use the clay remaining as a gauge. Use your fingers to smooth out the bottom of the opened section removing any finger marks. If it helps, use a small soft rib to smooth the bottom well.
Some potters, again I am one of them, use an elephant ear on the outside to compress the clay against the fingers on the inside when pulling the clay from the bottom of the base of the pitcher pulling it up into a cylinder shape. Be slow. This is not a rat race. The common number of pulls to reach the full height is three separate pulls although someone without intermediate to advanced skills might require more. Take into consideration that the more pulls required, the less the clay will respond because it will become overworked to the point where it will not hold its shape. Shoot for three pulls but no more than four to bring the sides to the necessary height.
At this point, the pottery piece should resemble a straight cylinder. It is at this time when one must be extremely careful because now is the time when the potter begins to bow out the sides to form a pitcher shape. Using your fingers or even a sponge on the inside with a rib on the outside, begin by pressing out from the inside to widen the cylinder into a pitcher shape but making certain not to press too hard. Heavy pressure will cause one to punch through the clay leaving a whole, thus requiring the need to start all over again. Slow and steady is the name of this portion of the game. It is important not to bow the sides more than the clay can handle.
As the top begins to open wider due to centricular force, it becomes time to perform a collaring technique where one places both hands around the mid to high area of the pitcher making sure both hands are wet so the clay slides through as one compresses the clay slightly causing it to narrow at the neck.
Once the size and the neck width is in the shape you wish it to be, it is time to either stop manipulating the clay or adding a bit of decoration. Instead of cutting the skirt using the wooden knife, one can use the Ultimate Shaper to give the bottom a rounded appearance. It is possible to run the wooden knife lightly down the sides in equal widths to give a sense of height to the pitcher.
Finally, once all the adjustments are complete from the base, it is time to cut the base from the bat while spinning at a relatively slow speed, much slower than when pulling the cylinder or adding the bowed sides. It is much slower than the force required for centering the clay. In fact, it is almost at a standstill yet it still moves enough to help the wire cross beneath the base of the unit.
Cover the pitcher with a plastic bag or even two while creating the handle to prevent the base piece from drying out. If the piece dries out before the handle is complete and added, it will break free and you will lose your pitcher completely.
Roll or extrude a handle using your hands, an extruder, or a hand tool that one pulls through clay to make handles. The hand tools come in two sizes, mug size and pitcher size.
If pulling the handle by hand, hold the clay over a bucket of water or a running faucet while holding a good size piece of clay with the other hand as you pull a handle straight down as if milking a cow. It is possible to add lines or even make a square-shape handle when pulling by hand. Once the piece is long enough, break it free from the clay in your hand and then shape it on a counter into the shape you want while also patting a flat area where the handle will attach to the pitcher from the top and the bottom.
If using an extruder, insert a die in the size necessary to hold the pitcher. Pat both ends into a flat section in order to score it later to attach to the pitcher.
When coiling by rolling the handle like a snake, it is important to following the same rules; however, make certain the coiled snake has enough moisture to prevent cracking yet not so much it falls apart when attaching to the pitcher. If necessary, use a spray bottle with a light spritzer spray to keep the pitcher and/or the handles moist until completely assembled.
If using the hand tool, run the wire loop through a piece of clay then tap pat the ends to attach to the pitcher.
Once the handle is dry enough to hold its shape yet not so dry it will crack, score the ends of the handle and the corresponding areas on the pitcher where the handle will attach. It helps to add a bit of slip or vinegar to the area to give the handle more grip to make it stronger. Burnish the handle into the pitcher until it appears as if it is part of the pitcher.
Finally, before the pitcher dries, use two fingers in an open pinching shape against the area where you wish to add the spout. Using the opposite hand, pull with a single finger or double fingers gradually pulling the shape into a spout but doing so carefully so as not to crack the pitcher spout.
Before completion, take the chamois from your water bowl, turn the wheel at a slow pace as you place the chamois across the top of the pitcher to give it a smooth soft edge giving it a more aesthetically pleasing appearance. Using the wire cutter, cut the base against the bat once more to ensure the pitcher separates from the bat.
Easily remove the bat and place somewhere safe to dry. Cover with a plastic bag in order to allow the pitcher to dry evenly to avoid any cracking. Check the handle again to ensure there are no cracks. If so, patch the cracks with moistened clay and burnish using an easy finger brushing to repair the cracks. Cover again.
Wait a few days until the pitcher reaches the leather stage before trimming the bottom of the pitcher. Use a bisque-fired chuck with coiled clay to maintain the shape without ruining the top as you trim the bottom of the pitcher or place the picture on a foam-covered bat to trim without ruining the top. Apply your potter's mark carefully making certain to place fingers on the opposite inside area so the mark does not punch through the clay.
Allow the pitcher to dry completely before running in a bisque fire. Once fired the first time, apply a food-safe glaze that removes any porous marks. Add a bit of scraffito decoration if the notion strikes you. Finally, glaze the inside and outside of the pitcher, allow the glaze to dry, and then fire again this time in a glaze fire. Once the pitcher comes out of the glaze firing process it is ready to use. Wash well and then fill with your favorite drink such as lemonade. If desired, while waiting on the pitcher to dry, throw a series of cylinder cups to use with the pitcher to make a set.