I Got My Clay (76+) Pieces Fired (opinions Welcome) Dial Up Beware&#33

[Torrean]

Click here for my webpage

(pics start on page 2 of this thread)

Hi. I got my clay today. I just "finished" my first piece and I was wondering if you guys would like some pics to rate/look at/critique. I would like your opinions before I cut the holes but if you don't really care then I'll cut them without any advice. I have a window of about an hour between assembly and cutting so I can get some opinions before I cut. Or I can wrap the piece so it stays moist, then I can get opinions for a day or two before I cut. If you guys don't care then I'll just do it all myself which I don't mind one bit.

BTW mods if you read this I'd like to put the tff website on my tags if william would like that but I don't want to bother him with it. Should I contact him and ask him or just leave the website off the tags and forget about it. I'd like to say on the tag that people should research fish before buying and that this is a good website to start that research on.

Thanks guys

Since I can't post any pics of my new stuff yet here is my first piece it's about 11" tall for perspective

 

[Ethos]

I voted the same thing you did.
All:Both.

 

[Torrean]

I am glad that people are interested. The only problem is I can't find the &$*(&()@ &^(#&(! ^&(*%^* ^&($ cord that hooks my camera to my computer. GRRRRRR. I will look for it some more. I've already cut the first piece. I'll post pics as soon as I can. I need that thing pretty badly. I'm going to be e-mailing pics to my potential customers so I either have to find the cord or buy a new one.

 

[Mr Miagi]

From your previous thread, could i make one suggestion?

They look great, but touching on what some others have said, a natural look is un-beatable and hard to replicate. So, i wondered if you could use a tool that showed a wood feel.I cant think of the name for them ATM, but i have seen them in use. They are a hand held gajet that you scroll down wet plaster to create a wood testure and pattern. (Ill look at a few DIY stores webpages if you dont kow what i mean).

 

[Torrean]

I know what you mean. I am not wheel throwing anything yet because well I don't have a wheel. do you think the wood grain will look ok with the coils or should I take the time to smooth the outside of the pot too? That way the grain will be smooth and look more like wood. I went to a art supply store today and they had rock molds. I thought about making them look more like rocks but I don't think I can. I will go to a hardware store tommorrow when I go to buy a new cord, cause I still can't find the thing. I'll look at the umm grainer for lack of a better word and see if i can use it somehow. Thanks for the suggestion Miagi. I was so excited about getting my clay that i couldn't sleep last night. I thought about designs all night and I came up with something pretty nifty if I do say so myself. It could be used for to things hiding places or planters. The idea will only work if you are setting up a new tank but do you guys think that makeing an ornament and cutting it in half then siliconing it to the side of the glass would be a good idea? I thought about how much of a pain it would be to get a dead fish out of one of these things so I thought that I could make a cradle for the piece to sit in. Attach the cradle to the glass then set the ornament in the cradle. Fill it with gravel and a plant and you have a rather unique background.

 

[Jules H-T]

Want my advice?

Sounds like you have a good plan. Stick to (1) what you want to do, and, (2) what sells.

Try to remember you're attempting to build stuff fishkeepers in general want, which is not necessarily what you want. It's hard, but stand back from the issue if you can.

Build some pieces, in different styles, for different functions. Stick them on ebay. See what sells. Let the auction value drive your direction. The opinion of someone who is never going to be a customer is great, but what difference does it make?!

Good luck! Although I personally am not fan (in terms of wanting it in my tank) of the individual piece you previously posted, it's entrepreneurs like you that make the world go round!

Some ideas you could try:

Flat broad spawning caves
Arches to swim through
Long thin low caves
Tall nook and cranny type structures
Massive cubby hole type structures

Seems like the natural look is en vogue, so think about how you can meet that requirement.

Identify the market, find the niche, then rob the fcukers blind!

Consider shipping. How are you going to deliver what you show in the photo? At what cost? What if it shatters because the UPS guy is a clumsy oaf?

Hope that's given you sonething to think about. I appreciate some of it could be taken being as negative towards your work, and that's absolutely not the case.

ps. I picked: yes pics, after, and after. YOU decide!

 

[Torrean]

Thank you. Shipping is a dimension I haven't looked into yet. Right now I am planning on personally delivering my pieces to LFS'. Several around me have agreed to put them on there shelves on consignment, (they pay me when they sell the piece) Shipping is a problem that I have not looked far into yet. Your right though it is very important for me to find out the cost of shipping and insurance. I undersand what you are saying about making different pieces in different styles, and that is what I am doing. I am trying to eliminate as much of the trial and error as I can by talking to you guys. I am planning on posting on ebay once I get the local stores stocked but maybe it should be my first stop. I'm not sure. I'm thinking that the people on ebay and the people in LFS will want different things.

About the not being a fan thing, I truely appreciate your opinion. The people who don't like what I do honestly matter more than the people who do like it, because I've already made the people who like it happy. That doesn't mean that I don't want to hear from fans. If all i hear is that I am not doing good then I may lose my drive.

I like all of your ideas but the arch thing may not be feasible. I'll give it a shot but I have a feeling it's gonna end in a messy pile of mud. It will give me some much needed experience though.

I am thinking that I will post pics of before I cut and then cut them however I want to. Then I will post pics of what I did and you guys can critique me and help me figure out how I can do better next time.

Thanks you for your input, I hope more people come along like you.

Mods if you have a problem with the number of pics I'm posting at any point then just PM me and tell me what I need to do differently and I will happily oblidge.

 

[Jules H-T]

Torrean, ask yourself the purpose of your venture.

If it's to make fantastically ornate and elaborate pieces that you can be proud of (like the plant/cubby structure you posted, which is clearly quality pottery) at cost or loss, then crack on with the complex stuff.

Maybe opinion seems to be against that though, from a commercial point of view?

If it's to try and make some money, then you need to assess what you can make quickly and easily, and get good sales on. Use your LFS connections to see what sells (ebay was just an idea- a few LFS is loads better). When certain types of stock are moving, find out why! Then meet the demand you've just identified.

That sort of stuff is what I'm trying to make you think about.

 

[Dorkhedeos]

would be more helpful if you give me the link to the thread

 

[Torrean]

BTW just so you don't think I'm wasting time chating I'm in the process of making that arch we we're talking about. Its turning out pretty good.

At first I want to develop my skills so I'm going for complex but that's just gonna be my next one or two pieces. Then I'm going to pump out a bunch of generic (but pretty) little pottery houses and other simple but functional pieces that i can produce quickly and cheaply, and are likely to sell because of the low price and high quality as wel as the functionality. I spent a lot of time looking at pieces in LFS' seeing what is pretty and what is functional. for now I'm going to try to meet in the middle of that. I hadn't thought about asking what moves quickly though, thank you very much for that tip.

To answer your question My purpose is to make incredibly complex and beautiful pieces of artwork for the fishtank...one day. I need to make some money and earn some customers before I can do that. Eventually I would like to design tanks from scratch. Thank you for making me think.

EDIT: ummm dorkhedeos what link are you talking about I must've missed or forgotten something.

 

[Dorkhedeos]

oh whoops, i thought there was another thread because of the title. Read 1st Thread. when i was scrolling down, i didnt see the picture because it was probably still loading(yes i have 56k) wait, is this clay bisqueware? if it isnt, its going to turn into slip pretty soon, and im sure that isnt good for your tank.

Edit: nevermind, didnt read the poll. i should really read everything before i reply

 

[Torrean]

HAHAHA

I'm an idiot. It's supposed to say read first post before voting. You didn't see the picture because it wasn't there yet, I added it after your post. The clay in the picture is bisque fired. The rest of the pieces will be bisque too. I can glaze them but I'm reluctant to. Can't really say why though. Maybe I should consider it.

BTW I finished the arch but it didn't turn out so great. I kinda morphed it into a ornament that will sit against the glass on the side of the tank.

 

[prankster705]

Well yes and both twice, that is the answer that I say to you Torrean...

 

[Torrean]

I've been making pieces for the past couple days. I have 7 ready to be fired. I've been thinking about this thread too. I believe for the sake of bandwidth (it does take space on the forum to post pics right?) I will post pics after I cut but before I fire and after I fire. Then you guys can talk about what i could do on the next round of pieces to make them better. Posting before I cut would only make sense if I was willing to wait for responses before I cut you can kinda guess what parts I cut out after the fact (I hope ) In the past couple of days I've learned that the sooner I cut the easier it is to make odd shaped cuts, After a couple hours I can make square cuts but I'm going for natural here. I'm going to office max tommorrow to pick up a new USB cord for my camera so I'll start posting pics tommorrow afternoon. I can't wait to hear what you guys think. Oh I've done a bit of math in my head while I was working and at the moment I could charge an average of about $11 per piece (7 pieces) and break even, Keep in mind that I have only used about 15 of the 50lbs of clay so that price will go down as I make more pieces. I wish I could estimate how many pieces I'm going to end up with but I don't know what a particular piece will look like until I start it. It cost $40 to fire a kiln load and the 50lbs of clay is $20 then I pay about $20 in gas each time I go to fire a load and pick up clay. Still haven't looked into shipping costs, I'm such a procrastinator.

 

[dgwebster]

ok, ive skipped a huge chunk of this and i apologise if its been mentioned before, but i suddenly had the though of recreating an industrial waste look to a tank, eg broken sewer pipe, toxic drums etc. I reckon it would make a pretty good statement piece.

Hell if someone can make a pile of bricks art, I can make a fish tank art too!!!!!