From Earth to Fire
Handmade art personalized for you
Our Craft
All of our pieces are hand made using organic materials and traditional artisanal techniques. Each artist connects to your story to design a piece that reflects your intention with thoughtfulness and love.
Horse Hair Raku is an ancient Japanese firing method combined with the Native American practice of incorporating horse hair onto pottery.
At Sentimental Ceramics we adapted this technique to use human hair and animal fur to bring personal meaning to this art form.
The Significance of Hair
Besides creating beautiful markings on pottery, hair has special meaning.
At the most fundamental level hair and fur are a part of us, scientifically they carry our DNA, all the genetic information that is unique to us.
Chinese medicine believes that hair is an extension of blood. That the blood holds our life’s experiences and is what roots the Shen (an aspect of our spirit) in our bodies.
Several cultures around the world believe hair to be related to vitality and spirituality. Some cultures don’t cut their hair and some shave it as an act of renunciation. Hair is also seen as the growth of thoughts and ideas that represent the expansion of self.
There’s definitely something to it that adds to the beauty and energy of the pieces.
The Ceramics Process
Each piece is thrown on the wheel, left to partially dry for a few days, trimmed, then allowed to fully dry for 1-2 weeks. Then we apply 3 coats of terra sigillata with colored mica to the piece, polishing between each coat. It is left to fully dry overnight, bisque fired for 3 days, then ready for raku firing.
The Raku Process
The bisque fired pieces are then loaded into the raku kiln and slowly brought up to 1300 degrees Fahrenheit and held at this temperature for half an hour. Each piece is removed at this temperature, allowed to cool a little, then tested with sugar to see if it’s ready for the hair/fur. The hair/fur is then burned onto the piece. There is a limited window of time where this can take place, before the piece cools too much. Once finished, the piece is allowed to cool, cleaned, then treated with UV protectant.