Stone monkey build a bonsai pot day.

Today we had Andrew Pearson’s bonsai pot making workshop at the http://www.marieprett.co.uk singing soul gallery. The aim of the day was to build one main slab built pot and a couple of pinch pots.
For those who don’t know Andrew Pearson bonsai pot maker who trades as stone monkey ceramics entered this years Gafuten pot class for unglazed and glazed pots where he won the gold award in the unglazed class. So we new we were in very good hands. See his site http://www.stonemonkeyceramics.co.uk

Thank you to Marie for a wonderful lunch spread and keeping our tea and coffee levels up.

We started with a couple of pinch pots with very cold clay.

We started with a slab of clay to the right thickness already prepared by Andrew.

Once smooth we decided what we were making and cut out the 4 walls.

Time to start building, we fixed two wall together so we had two sections fixed.

We then got the 4 walls all fixed together.

This made it a bit more handleable, so we got the base put on oversized to begin with.

Having got this well fixed to the base and some coils in to strengthen the seams we put in the drainage holes. I had a Ginko leaf cutter which I have used before for this job.

Trim of the excess, know now looking a bit more pot like.

At this point I felt the pot was a little to harsh on the corners for me and what I have in mind for it. So I set about changing the corners.

With the image softened our attention turned to feet this can be a real make or break feature. I decided to make this a bit more tricky with a stepped foot. I set them back a bit to stop it looking anymore chunky. The height was also reduced which leaves a nice straight finish.

After a whole load of smoothing, final job was to pop in the wire holes.

Flip it back over check it over and there you have it best part of 4 1/2 hr work. Now it will be wrapped in plastic and left to dry for about 6 weeks before having its biscuit firing.

Then we have to choose the glaze, I am sure you all have your own ideas so go on let me know what you would go for. This is the tree that will go in the pot. (It’s a test to see if you got this far)

Will do an update when and hopefully the kiln gods are kind to me.

Below is Andrew at work on the cascade pot he made to show us each stage as we went along.

See andrews work at http://www.stonemonkeyceramics.co.uk

Good grief you still with me.

😥

Update 1/3/15

The pot has dried and here it is after the bisque firing. Another firing to go with the glaze and to make it frost proof.



Masashi pot

I mentioned in the Heathrow post I had a new pot. So here it is a very small accent pot by Masashi so small he signed it inside.

Swindon bonsai show 2014

The swindon show has become over the years a real must view bonsai show on the UK bonsai calendar, and while the lighting this year had been replaced in the main hall for crisp white light giving superb conditions. The trees where of a superb quality, while all sizes where on show I was drawn to the shohin trees.

Very nice cork bark elm without as many have the inverse taper.

Another but this one has that classic inverse, but has good ramification.

Hornbeam size wise this is just outside shohin.

This one was interesting, while a nice idea I feel for me it was too large for the pagoda as the framework broke lines of the tree.

This chojubai is a favourite for me for shohin bonsai.

Here are a few of the accents that caught my eye.

Nothing quite says spring like snow drops.

This is a rare little fellow a bittersweet not something we see very often but what a superb verity it has to go on my wish list. The whole combination of pot and stand compliment it superbly. I feel its time for a tidy and trim to build the framework.

If it’s a pot and tree combination your looking for then this chojubai has it all.

O look another chojubai that’s a shame.

Juniper bonsai like this are so useful in shohin compositions.

The apple green foliage of this white pine has a soft lush feel that shows the health of this little fellow over a rock.

This perfect broom style zelcova is a real classic style but a hard one to get to this standard, I think the pot is a koyo one and a super match for the tree. I would love to see this in leaf one day.

Pyracantha clump, this will look superb with a few berries on.

What can you say super tree, super pot, but I have a real problem with this display every time I went near it I couldn’t as it always had a crowd round it. I just hope all those people appreciate the time that goes into this level of shohin bonsai.

I love the landscape pots, you don’t see many, but they are a great part of the shohin display.

Well the show is not all about shohin, that’s in a couple of weeks up at Willowbog. So here are a couple of trees I would have taken home.

This scots pine is a real inspiration as it was collected in the new forest about 10years ago good trees can be found in the southern lowlands.

I love the movement on this pine as well, just the way I like them.

A couple of chuhin trees to finish off, the trident over rock has been a regular on the show circuit for a good 10 years always was good but the ramification just gets better.
If you made it down this far, thank you and I hope to see you at the next show.

Black pine pot

It’s time for this black pine to get a new pot, with Nolanders at the weekend I hope to find a suitable pot. It’s a feminine tree and needs a pot with rounded features.

Well I did find a pot, but it won’t get into it for a month or so.

Not totally happy with it but it will do for the year.