Tea Mechanica

Okay, here's the rest of the how I did it.
Finishing up the second thingy, the first won't get done as I've decided that I don't like the form, I fooled around with connecting the bottom track section to the top.
My original idea wasn't going to fly, not this time anyways, so I sort of had to improvise.
That didn't work out either but I start fooling around with this:



Basically a coil wrapped around a wooden dowel.
Hmmm.
Okay, looks better that what I had so I took everything apart and added a springy section instead:



I had to prop it up a bit until it set up and stiffened up a bit.
Actually I had it propped up like that all way until it was fired.
Using the kiln posts worked out well as it allowed the top portion to sort of slide down as the clay dried and shrank.
Okay, out of the bisque:



Now the glazing.
Which I sort of dislike, especially when I have no idea what to do.
So I left it and went to work on No.3:



I was going to add some strap looking things, but when I took out my mini extruder thingy, I found a triangular die and tried that out instead.
I liked it.
So I began to add the triangular strips to the sides:



I used the end of a brush to add the indentations for some detail.
I liked the look so I decided to do four strips.
I was going to add some horizontal lengths, but decided against it in order for the strips to sort of enhance the piece by "stretching" it and making it look taller.
Then I added the spout:



I threw two different looking spouts, one was a bit pointier than the one I used. I also ringed it with the triangular strips, but you can't really tell as they look flat, and I added the details pukas with the end of the brush.
Okay, now for the feets.
Or treads.
Or whatever you call them.
I sat and I looked at this piece for some time before decided what exactly I was going to do.
I had done some sketches, but I wasn't sure I wasn going in that direction for the chucks I had sitting around weren't going to let me do what I wanted.
As luck would have it, I found a piece of green ware sitting around from a left over lid project and it fit the bottom of the piece perfectly.
Okay, not perfect as I had to cut some grooves in it to clear the triangular strips:



Now I could do the tracked gear I had planned.
I put the gear together much like I did the ones above, only I needed two sets.
I then attached them with some extruded and flattened coils.
They didn't turn out exactly how I imagined, something was missing.
I used more of the triangular strips to match the rest of the body and it looked a bit better:



I had some trouble with this piece as it dried for I attached the triangular strips when the body was sort of dried out. I had numerous cracks that I had to patch, one on the top where the lid sat gave me the most worry.
In the end, it all turned out okay:



Now comes the glazing.
What to do?