I became obsessed with sewing in 2022 and knew that I wanted to create some ceramic sewing notions to go with my new hobby, but I wasn’t sure what to make. One day, I found some mass-produced metal magnetic pin dishes, which gave me the idea to make ceramic ones as a fun and exciting project!
Throwing and Trimming
From about 12 ounces (340 g) of clay, throw a small and relatively thick dish, about ½ inch (1.3 cm) at its thickest and 5 inches (12.7 cm) in diameter (1). You want excess thickness to be able to trim out a pocket deep enough to fit a magnet and to make the dish solid and stable enough to use during sewing and pinning.
When the dish is leather hard, use a foam bat to trim the foot. I trim it just like a regular dish, but again, leave the clay a little thicker to account for the recess for the magnet (2). The tricky part here is making sure that the foot ring clears the magnet. Otherwise, you get a wobbly pin dish, because it is resting on the magnet, rather than on its foot. Test the depth of the magnet’s recess with the magnet itself throughout the trimming process to make sure it is deep enough. It is also important to trim the clay in the recess to be as thin as possible (an ⅛ inch (3.2 mm) or less). The thinner the clay, the more strongly the magnet will capture the pins from the surface of the dish—but it can’t be too thin! Otherwise, there is a risk that the dish becomes very delicate, maybe even translucent, above the magnet. Of course, the other tricky aspect of the process is that you have to trim the recess to be a bit larger than the actual magnet to account for the clay shrinkage during firing.
Decorating
After trimming the dish, but while it is still leather hard, you can start decorating. I especially have fun referencing quilting patterns when deciding on how to decorate the surface of the dish. Usually, I start with a layer of inlay. Inlay involves cutting or stamping into the clay and then filling in the grooves with colored underglaze (3). After inlay, plan out a pattern to stencil onto the dish, leaving the rim empty to frame the artwork. Once the design is complete, hand-cut paper stencils and apply them to the clay by soaking them in water (so that they stick to the surface), using a sponge to dab away excess water (4). Then, paint on three layers of underglaze to bring out the pattern. Once the underglaze is no longer tacky, peel off the stencils (5). Finally, use a metal rib to clean up the edge of the dish.
Firing and Finishing
I bisque fire to cone 04. For the smoothest foot possible, wet sand the foot and any imperfections away from the dish at the bisque stage. After bisque firing the dish, I sign it, wax the foot, and dip it in glaze. I use Campana Clear glaze (6). Finally, glaze fire to cone 6 in an electric kiln.
When the dish comes out of the kiln and has cooled, first polish its foot with 220- and then 400-grit sandpaper for a very smooth finish. Then comes the magnet! I attach a 22-mm-diameter by 2-mm-thick neodymium magnet (Powerful! Be careful!) using super glue (cyanoacrylate, or “CA” glue, to be specific) into the recess on the bottom of the dish (7, 8). Let the glue cure for 24 hours. Then, the dish is ready to be put straight to work holding sewing pins!
Rachel Donner holds a BFA from the University of Northern Colorado. She has been an artist in residence at the Archie Bray Foundation, University of California Long Beach, Red Lodge Clay Center, and Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts. She currently maintains a full-time studio practice in Santa Fe, New Mexico. You can find her on Instagram @racheladonnerand her website racheladonner.com.
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I became obsessed with sewing in 2022 and knew that I wanted to create some ceramic sewing notions to go with my new hobby, but I wasn’t sure what to make. One day, I found some mass-produced metal magnetic pin dishes, which gave me the idea to make ceramic ones as a fun and exciting project!
Throwing and Trimming
From about 12 ounces (340 g) of clay, throw a small and relatively thick dish, about ½ inch (1.3 cm) at its thickest and 5 inches (12.7 cm) in diameter (1). You want excess thickness to be able to trim out a pocket deep enough to fit a magnet and to make the dish solid and stable enough to use during sewing and pinning.
When the dish is leather hard, use a foam bat to trim the foot. I trim it just like a regular dish, but again, leave the clay a little thicker to account for the recess for the magnet (2). The tricky part here is making sure that the foot ring clears the magnet. Otherwise, you get a wobbly pin dish, because it is resting on the magnet, rather than on its foot. Test the depth of the magnet’s recess with the magnet itself throughout the trimming process to make sure it is deep enough. It is also important to trim the clay in the recess to be as thin as possible (an ⅛ inch (3.2 mm) or less). The thinner the clay, the more strongly the magnet will capture the pins from the surface of the dish—but it can’t be too thin! Otherwise, there is a risk that the dish becomes very delicate, maybe even translucent, above the magnet. Of course, the other tricky aspect of the process is that you have to trim the recess to be a bit larger than the actual magnet to account for the clay shrinkage during firing.
Decorating
After trimming the dish, but while it is still leather hard, you can start decorating. I especially have fun referencing quilting patterns when deciding on how to decorate the surface of the dish. Usually, I start with a layer of inlay. Inlay involves cutting or stamping into the clay and then filling in the grooves with colored underglaze (3). After inlay, plan out a pattern to stencil onto the dish, leaving the rim empty to frame the artwork. Once the design is complete, hand-cut paper stencils and apply them to the clay by soaking them in water (so that they stick to the surface), using a sponge to dab away excess water (4). Then, paint on three layers of underglaze to bring out the pattern. Once the underglaze is no longer tacky, peel off the stencils (5). Finally, use a metal rib to clean up the edge of the dish.
Firing and Finishing
I bisque fire to cone 04. For the smoothest foot possible, wet sand the foot and any imperfections away from the dish at the bisque stage. After bisque firing the dish, I sign it, wax the foot, and dip it in glaze. I use Campana Clear glaze (6). Finally, glaze fire to cone 6 in an electric kiln.
When the dish comes out of the kiln and has cooled, first polish its foot with 220- and then 400-grit sandpaper for a very smooth finish. Then comes the magnet! I attach a 22-mm-diameter by 2-mm-thick neodymium magnet (Powerful! Be careful!) using super glue (cyanoacrylate, or “CA” glue, to be specific) into the recess on the bottom of the dish (7, 8). Let the glue cure for 24 hours. Then, the dish is ready to be put straight to work holding sewing pins!
Rachel Donner holds a BFA from the University of Northern Colorado. She has been an artist in residence at the Archie Bray Foundation, University of California Long Beach, Red Lodge Clay Center, and Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts. She currently maintains a full-time studio practice in Santa Fe, New Mexico. You can find her on Instagram @racheladonner and her website racheladonner.com.
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