Friday, December 13, 2013

Upcycling


I have had an idea in my head for several years, stashing broken pots, and saving bits of pieces that did not survive the kiln firings. I am mesmerized by jewelry made from broken porcelain, and I am a sucker for archaeological anything, so I thought, "why not jewelry made from stoneware?"
A friend helped me with a great saying- "From stoneware to stonewear!" It's an archaeologist's and ceramic geek's dream! (I say this lovingly and playfully, and others who are not archaeologists or ceramic geeks may also take great pleasure in them!)
Earrings made from rims of a mug


I select pieces of broken pottery and break them down into smaller pieces. Then I grind the edges into shapes and make the edges smooth to the touch. Using a large drill press, I then drill a hole through the piece following by a little cleanup with a few tools and then the hanger! The drilling seems to be the trickiest and I am lucky to have another half who has a machining background!

Earrings made from the rim of a dish
I have this jewelry for sale on Etsy as well as at the Greensboro Farmer's Curb Market through Christmas. Stop in and see the upcycled stoneware! 


2 comments:

Dennis Allen said...

OMG I thought these were faux shards you made from slabs. You are really putting a lot of work into them.

Liberty Stoneware said...

I think making faux sherds would actually be more difficult than what I am doing! I can't imagine getting the patterns and variation that I capture from the broken pots with actually making the earrings like that! The drilling and the grinding is the biggest pain and I probably need to invest in a better air filter mask or some new filters with all of the dust!