How a sgraffito platter gets made

People often ask at the markets whether the animal plates are printed. Fair question, and the answer is the best part: every line is carved by hand.

Slip first

Each platter starts as a slab of stoneware, shaped over a mould and left until it firms up to what potters call leather hard. Then a layer of coloured underglaze goes on, which is just liquid clay slip with a stain in it. Deep green for the stags, orange for the monarchs, yellow for the bees.

Then the carving

Once the underglaze has set, the design is drawn on lightly and then cut back through the slip with a small loop tool, so the clay underneath shows through. There is no undo. One slip of the hand and the piece could end up in the recycling bucket, which is why the carving happens early in the morning with a strong coffee or late at night with no distractions.

The kiln decides

After carving comes the first firing, then a clear glaze, then the glaze firing up to around 1220 degrees. The kiln always has its own ideas about how the colours land, and honestly that is half the magic. No two platters ever come out quite the same, and that is exactly the point.

If you would like a particular animal or design carved for you, get in touch through the contact page. Commission spots open each season.