How to Bisque and Glaze the Daily Vessels Tea Cup
Last week I showed the full build for the Daily Vessels tea cup, start to finish. This week: what happens after it dries.
Bisque Firing
Once the piece is bone dry it goes into the kiln for bisque. I fire to cone 06 on a slow schedule in my Skutt FireBox 8x6, one of the smallest kilns Skutt makes, and perfect for test pieces and single runs like this one. The firing takes around 6 hours, and by the next morning the piece is cool and ready to glaze.
Glazing
For this cup I'm using a clear glaze, applied to the interior and about halfway down the outside. That leaves a raw band of exposed clay on the lower half of the body.
The clay I'm using, Standard 112 Brown Stoneware, fires to full maturity at cone 6 with an absorption of 2.25%. It's not fully vitrified, true vitrification would bring that number closer to zero, but at this level it's food-safe and functional. The raw area will absorb a small amount of moisture over time, which softens the surface and gives the piece a more tactile, natural quality. If you prefer a fully sealed exterior, just glaze the whole outside.
Glaze Firing
Once the glaze is dry the piece goes back in for the glaze firing: cone 6, medium schedule. This firing usually runs about 10 hours to reach temperature, then another 5 to 6 hours to cool. By the next day it's out of the kiln.
The result is a cup with a glazed interior and a partially raw exterior — two finishes, one piece, built entirely from a slab.
The templates are in Booklet Nº2, available as a physical booklet and digital download here.
