Slip testing on Staffordshire stoneware bowls - updated with glaze results April 26

The first bowl, E1, is the most layered in terms of both process and imagery. It began with a single coat of porcelain paperclay slip, creating a pale ground to work into. From there, I built up a sequence of marks: a monoprinted brown slip, followed by imprinted circles using a cardboard tube and bamboo straw. Over this, a black slip monoprint introduces fragments of text, adding another visual layer. Finally, a sapphire blue porcelain slip was applied in wave-like motions using a five-toothed bamboo tool. The result is a composite surface—part image, part texture—where each layer interacts with those beneath it. Following bisque firing, transparent glaze was applied inside and out.

The second bowl, E2, takes a more minimal, material-led approach. It has been built up with five layers of Parian slip, allowing the surface to develop through accumulation rather than mark-making. I’m particularly interested here in how the Parian behaves at this thickness—whether it begins to soften edges, how it responds in the firing, and whether any subtle variations emerge across the layers. After bisque this bowl had black underglaze applied on seagrass around the textured part in the middle and triangular sponge stamps applied, also in black underglaze, before transparent glaze was applied inside and out.

The third bowl, E3, returns to a more gestural and tactile language. A white slip was applied using the longer end of a homemade hakame brush, made from seagrass gathered from my coastal garden. The marks are loose and directional, emphasising movement across the form. Into this, a black slip was then “stabbed” onto the surface using the shorter end of the same brush, creating a sharp contrast—both visually and physically—against the softer white ground. Following bisque firing, a transparent glaze was applied inside and out.

Together, these three bowls form a small study in contrast: layered imagery, material build-up, and expressive mark-making. Each approach pushes the slips in a different direction, from controlled composition to more immediate, responsive gestures.

I’ve included photographs for E1 and E2, showing the source imagery they’re working from. It’s useful to see how these references translate—or perhaps transform—through the making process.

Glaze results

I’m really pleased with E1 and E3—the black on white is simply beautiful. In hindsight, and after some advice from Jim Malone, I’d apply less transparent glaze to E1 and let the slip take center stage on the bowl. E2 was an interesting experiment in mark-making, but it feels a bit too haphazard and should have been more thought out. E3, however, has me excited to experiment more with the sponge technique.