Tea cup, slip, thrown and faceted, recycled clay

I started to practice altering thrown forms this semester, beginning with faceting.  This requires throwing pieces with thicker walls (~1/2") and then using a wire to carve away facets.  In this case, I rotated the wire as I cut away clay so that the facets would be twisted.  I made 3 layers of cuts to create this pattern around the outside of the cup with octogonal symmetry. I brushed white slip inside and outside the cup and then bisque fired.  I then used choxils and soda ash, similar to the pitcher from last semester for the glaxing.  I think this is a very elegant and modern look for a tea cup and plan to make more.

Pitcher - horsley clay, oxidation fired, wheel thrown and altered, soda ash over choxils

This pitcher was faceted after the spout was added with a wire immediately after throwing when the clay was still soft and wet. The handle was paddled to add a faceted appearance to match the pitcher.  I used choxils (underglaze pencils) to shade the facets to create a pen/ink drawing aesthetic.  I wanted to highlight the facet shapes and this technique is good for that.  Brushing a few layers of soda ash solution over the choxil gives a soft gloss / glassy finish to the piece.  It also softens the roughness of the choxil marks on the bisque surface.  The attachment points of this handle is lower than others (near the rim of the pitcher).  It seems to work / feel ok for those pitchers smaller in size.