our new kiln

We never thought we would outgrow our first kiln! Shortly after we began to make small batches of our designs to sell at our local markets and online shop, the word of our little business started to spread.

Before we knew it we were firing our kiln back to back, it was full of larger bowls, vases and dinnerware now. We were even forcing the cooling down process to speed things up where we possibly could! It felt like we were chasing our tails and couldn’t keep up.

We realised quite quickly that we needed to invest in a new kiln. As you may know the pottery process isn’t a quick one. After each piece has been made from the raw clay it needs to dry out fully before it can be fired. This usually takes a week or more over winter, or a few days during the warm summer days. When a piece is what potters call ‘bone dry’ it’s at it’s most fragile, so we have to ensure we store them carefully on our studio shelves away from any passing elbows! When it’s their turn, they’ll be gently placed into the kiln for their first firing.

This initial firing is called a ‘bisque’ or ‘biscuit’ fire, where the kiln reaches around 1000 degrees. This step turns the piece from clay to ceramic and it can now be handled without too much worry. With much of the moisture gone from the clay each piece is noticeably smaller! Which is why everything is made much larger than its final size . At this stage we’ll sand any rough edges or imperfections and glaze it ready for the second ‘high fire’ which reaches 1230 degrees.

Those high firings are great in the winter for keeping your brew warm, but less appreciated in the summer! Although we always time the schedule to run overnight so we’re not working in there during the main firing time, only the cooling. It’s also super important to have a well ventilated area as gasses are released from the raw clay or the glaze components..

So in 2020, after a good few months of researching and planning, we finally placed the order for our second kiln, a Rohde 135L. This was a good size capacity without needing to make the switch to 3-phase power. After 4 months of being built in Germany it began its journey to the UK

It was a very exciting day when we could fill it up for the first time, and such a difference in the amount we could produce. It meant we could finally fire some larger pieces we’d made which would have originally taken the the entire kiln! Not something we could afford to do time wise.