Handbuilt Tableware: Making Distinctive Plates, Bowls, Mugs, Teapots and More: (A Lark Ceramics Book) [Hardcover]

Kathy Triplett (Author)

Book Description

Series: A Lark Ceramics Book | Publication Date: June 30, 2001

Imagine making serving dishes perfectly suited to the food you're preparing--perhaps a cone-shaped bowl on a pedestal, filled with shrimp and corn, with the husks shooting up gracefully. What an impression this would make on your guests...and what a pleasure for your family to sit down to such a beautifully prepared table. With clay, and guidance by a best-selling author who's a real pro at ceramics, it's simple to hand-build stylish, customized tableware that's just like the pieces you covet in pricey galleries. Even beginners will easily follow the illustrated instructions for making slabs, extruding, molding, and more. Every seasonally themed project showcases a complete table setting, with a delicious extra in each--a teapot in one, a pitcher in another--and features a new technique to try out. For more creative inspiration, four top potters share detailed expertise in the special section on surface decoration: they'll reveal the reasons behind their stylistic choices and walk you through the entire process. And, if you're a "rebel" who likes to do it your own way, the book is simply packed with options for adapting and substituting!

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Like Triplett's earlier Handbuilt Ceramics (LJ 10/15/97), this offering consists of whimsical ceramic pieces made from slabs and coils. The emphasis here is on creativity and distinctiveness. While the technical tips and step-by-step projects are for reasonably practical tableware, the gallery items would be fine for staging one's own Mad Tea Party. While not an essential purchase for ceramics collections, this book is full of ideas and would make a nice addition to a specialized collection.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Weaverville, NC

Product Details

• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Lark Books (June 30, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1579902049
• ISBN-13: 978-1579902049
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,708,036 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

61 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Quirky tableware in an otherwise well-written book, June 28, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Handbuilt Tableware: Making Distinctive Plates, Bowls, Mugs, Teapots and More: (A Lark Ceramics Book) (Hardcover)

I was misled by the cover of this book thinking that the tableware inside would be clean, simple and elegant. I couldn't be more wrong. I find many of the pieces featured looking weird and overly-decorated. Maybe that's what the author means by "distinctive". This is my greatest misgiving about the book. Otherwise, the author did quite a good job explaining the basics of pottery (with helpful tips along the way), guiding the reader on how to make tableware to suit the four seasons, and demonstrating the surface decoration styles of four different artists. There is a glossary at the end of the book and appendices detailing cone-firing ranges and glaze formulas.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sparked new ideas for my own work, August 2, 2004

By 

CatCreekPottery (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Handbuilt Tableware: Making Distinctive Plates, Bowls, Mugs, Teapots and More: (A Lark Ceramics Book) (Hardcover)

The technical information in this book is excellent: well presented, illustrated and explained. While I agree with the other reviewer that most of the actual projects shown are not fitting with my taste, the ideas and techniques presented have proven helpful to me. I also found myself wishing that the cover art was included in the how-to projects (which it is not). My only other criticism is that darting is not covered, but great examples of it are, so the reader never gets the explanation of how such forms are achieved.

Overall, this is one of the best technique books I've come across. I would recommend it, especially for the hobby or beginning potter. If you have a formal education in the ceramic arts you will know most of these tips already and find the suggested projects lacking in sophistication. It may however spark some new ideas for your own work.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Terrific Handbuilding Book, March 22, 2008

By 

H. Jones "clay artist" (Denver, CO) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Handbuilt Tableware: Making Distinctive Plates, Bowls, Mugs, Teapots and More (Paperback)

This is a terrific book with really detailed instructions for building one-of-a-kind pottery. I believe that the ideas generated by the author, along with her instructions will help any beginning potter to put some finesse into their pottery. What it does for someone like me, a potter with 16 years experience, is to give me a little dose of inspiration since I know most of the techniques. However, don't pick up this book and expect to become an expert handbuilding potter.