grumble.

I've only been wheel throwing for 3 years. The first year was horrible; I cried nearly everything I made something and had to bully myself into persevering because I knew I loved the end result and I wanted to improve. I'm glad I did stubbornly continue, as I can now produce work that I'm rather proud of (if only quietly, so as not to jinx myself.). I'm at the stage now that I can do a day of repetition throwing and produce anywhere from 4 to 20 pieces, almost at identical sizes (albeit in limited forms).

However, today I felt like a complete newbie all over again and it stung. Foolishly (oh so foolish!), I purchased a bag of SOFT porcelain last week, thinking it would be easier to work with. Nu uh. Difficult to centre, way too sensitive to moderate pressure and very questionable structure. Out of 11 attempts, 3 completely failed, 2 are cracking due to the awful shape, 1 is wonky and 5 *might* be ok.
AND there is very little skin left on my fingers, due to spending 3 times as long centering the damned clay.
Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew that soft clay of any kind does not make good cups. Where was that logic at the pottery supply store?

Hopefully my fingers will heal enough overnight and allow me to return to trusty stoneware tomorrow to make some cups for ANOTHER project, linked to the Miro dishes.

[*Please note: I don't cry when I wheel throw anymore; I've learnt to take deep breaths and tell myself that I learn from every piece I make, even if I screw it up.]