cricut

More Bowls from Templates

March 03, 2022

Been making more bowls from the templates I made with the cricut. brown bear bowls

These are all made with KY Mudworks Speckled Brown Bear clay. I still don't really see the speckles in the clay this dark, but I do really love how the brown bear looks. It's such a soft and smooth clay. This clay was so wet I had to leave it out extra long before I could shape the bowls. This first bowl is 7 inches on the top, 6 on the bottom, and 5 inches tall.

brown bear bowls

I love these outdoor stamps from Dela Designs.

brown bear bowls

This bowl is 9 x 4 x 4.5, but I think the next time I would try a 4.5 inch bottom. I don't know if I stretched the clay or something else, but it felt like the bottom was too small.

brown bear bowls

The last bowl uses an MKM roller.

brown bear bowls

This last bowl is 8 x 4 x 5. I really like the shape of this one. I think it might end up making a really nice planter.

brown bear bowls

cricut

Template Bowl from my new Cricut

March 01, 2022

I got a Cricut Maker 3 for my birthday. My intension is to use it for ceramics, but I think there are also a few t-shirts in my future as well. The software is relatively easy, although there are simple things that you just can't do (why can't I just add a square border?!). My first use has been making templates for bowls. One of the awesome things about not just Cricut, but die cutting in general - there are a ton of resources out there.

Through various web sites I found Template Maker which has an option for cones - aka bowls. I started with a bowl that is 8 inches in diameter on the top, 6.5 on the bottom, and 5 tall. It's a little big right now, but it's bmix so there will be significant shrinking.
Once I had the template from Template Maker, I used Adobe Illustrator to cut it into two pieces so it wouldn't be too big for my matt. I also cleaned up the grey line in the middle so it would not cut that. On the Cricut I used the deep cut blade and the purple sticky cricut mat. Everything I read said to make sure the foam is really attached so I used my pony roller, and then realized I should have cleaned it first. I taped it together using painters tape and voila! For the bottom I used one of my GR Pottery forms.

template bowl

The making was fairly basic - bevel the sides, slip and score really well, add a coil to the bottom. I also used one of my large puzzling forms from Michael Harbridge as a rounder. You can see it started off a little wobbly.

template bowl

It's drying now. I still need to decide whether or not I'm going to add feet. At this point I'm thinking no, but when it's dry enough to flip over I might feel differently.

template bowl

I've already made more templates to try, but haven't had the chance to make more bowls. I realized that I could make my process simpler if I use the smart vinyl. As long as the template isn't greater than 12 inches wide then I can cut it all in one piece (which also means not worrying about using the sticky mat). Then I can lay it on the craft foam, use a marker to trace, and cut it out. Bonus: if I have pottery friends who want forms I can use the vinyl again without having to cut more on the cricut.

template bowl

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