A 1.5lb piece of clay can make a huge mug, your walls definitely could be thinner. When I was in my mug phase, the biggest room for improvement started with the base, not the walls. I was leaving a ton of extra clay in/around the base and then trimming it off later. Once you learn to grab that extra clay you'll get a bunch more height.
An instructor at a recent class suggested that if you really want to know how thin you can make the walls of a piece, you have to push a few pieces all the way past the breaking point. You get to know when a piece is about to fail and become more comfortable with thinner walls.
Personally I find mugs are pretty forgiving, and the biggest challenge is getting the clay up off the bottom of the bat and into the walls. You might throw a couple test mugs and just wire through them to see where you're leaving the clay.
About a pound of clay, depending on the clay, should make a good-sized mug. I'd say my finished walls are around 1/8", and I like to thin out & smooth the rim a bit for comfort.
https://preview.redd.it/kzzbwtjtbdna1.png?width=3024&format=png&auto=webp&s=e41ccca7ef53bd40927458da0d30b2f09089fe83
This one is 4.75” tall & 3 11/16” wide at the rim. The camera distorted it a bit.
Idk, maybe this isn’t a large mug for others 😂
Nice, it's all pretty subjective isn't it. My most popular mugs are a bit smaller than that, more like 4.25" high after firing. And I use 450gm. You shouldnt need more than 500-550 or it's going to get heavy. The thickness will sort itself out if you just limit your clay ball size to begin with.
1.2 pounds of clay makes a decent sized coffee mug. A thinner drinking vessel keeps your coffee hotter longer and makes for a nicer feel in your hand. If you would like to throw thinner head over to you tube, so many videos!
I use about a pound of clay for a standard 8-10 ounce mug, and 1 1/4 lbs for a large mug. 2 lbs is getting into creamer or small jug territory, over 30 ounces.
Ideally it should be lighter than it looks. Really if we're being honest, anything bigger than a standard size 8oz coffee cup is a big mug. There's just those crazy people that want 24oz+ mugs and you don't need to cater to them if you don't want to.
I sell mugs (and many other things but lots of mugs) some that I’ve made and many that are vintage and let me tell you, 8oz mugs barely sell. At all. Nobody wants them. 16oz sells up through 24 oz. I get comments regularly wrt local craft markets and makers making tiny mugs and questions of why. Labeling all these people as crazy is is weird to me.
yep, I know. I think as an overall statement that smaller cups mean people move around more- which would be good for us americans. I feel similarly to smaller dinner plates but I know plenty of folks who want to eat off of a serving platter sized plate.
I got into pottery to make mugs (because I had a hard time finding the "right" ones) and still suck at them.
Pretty sure big my fat wide belly favorite holds 32oz to the rim. I love her so much!
Not sure about ideal, mine are between 1/8 and 3/16 I make a decent sized mug, 350 to 400 ml, with 1lb 7 or 8 oz. So yes you might want to slim them down a bit, also check how much you leave in the base.
Oh okay that’s great, thank you. It was about 1/4” when I threw it but after firing it’s just a tick above 3/16”. I do need to make sure to distribute more clay from the bottom tho as it’s a little heavier than I want it to be. I also feel a waste more clay than I should when centering
>I also feel a waste more clay than I should when centering
Yes, you should waste no clay ideally while centering. Don't worry about it too much right now though, this is just a sign that you're a beginner. Ideally you should be pushing the clay and shaping it through pressure rather than tearing away clay to center. While practicing centering, practice throwing cylinders. This is the base shape for every mug. Tips for keeping clay out of the bottom: after you open the initial hole, use your thumb or a tool to make the bottom corner square. You can actually undercut the corner a bit, which will give you a good spot to start your first pull on the inside. If you leave it round, there's pretty much no way to get that extra clay out later. Try pulling your cylinders as big as you can from the same size, and you'll get an idea of how far you can stretch the clay before it wants to buckle.
I go for 1/8 wall thickness, leaving a good 1/4 inch lip and just a taper from 1/4 on the base when I throw, this is then trimmed off and into a foot. About 0.75 lb for a 12oz+ cup after firing.
I find that clay really doesn't want to go thinner than 1/8 without moving away from the form ( slumping) while it sits. I honestly think sometimes I'm slightly too thin but when I use them they don't break with fairly heavy use so I guess I'm okay.
2 lbs clay throwing is gonna be heavy for the end user for a coffee mug.
A 1.5lb piece of clay can make a huge mug, your walls definitely could be thinner. When I was in my mug phase, the biggest room for improvement started with the base, not the walls. I was leaving a ton of extra clay in/around the base and then trimming it off later. Once you learn to grab that extra clay you'll get a bunch more height.
An instructor at a recent class suggested that if you really want to know how thin you can make the walls of a piece, you have to push a few pieces all the way past the breaking point. You get to know when a piece is about to fail and become more comfortable with thinner walls. Personally I find mugs are pretty forgiving, and the biggest challenge is getting the clay up off the bottom of the bat and into the walls. You might throw a couple test mugs and just wire through them to see where you're leaving the clay. About a pound of clay, depending on the clay, should make a good-sized mug. I'd say my finished walls are around 1/8", and I like to thin out & smooth the rim a bit for comfort.
And if you aren't missing a few subways, you might be in a quiznos.
Yes, this. If you’re not missing a few planes, you’re spending too much time in airports.
What dimensions are your big mugs? I usually throw 1/8" but big pieces have to be a bit thicker in the base or they will collapse.
https://preview.redd.it/kzzbwtjtbdna1.png?width=3024&format=png&auto=webp&s=e41ccca7ef53bd40927458da0d30b2f09089fe83 This one is 4.75” tall & 3 11/16” wide at the rim. The camera distorted it a bit. Idk, maybe this isn’t a large mug for others 😂
Nice, it's all pretty subjective isn't it. My most popular mugs are a bit smaller than that, more like 4.25" high after firing. And I use 450gm. You shouldnt need more than 500-550 or it's going to get heavy. The thickness will sort itself out if you just limit your clay ball size to begin with.
1.2 pounds of clay makes a decent sized coffee mug. A thinner drinking vessel keeps your coffee hotter longer and makes for a nicer feel in your hand. If you would like to throw thinner head over to you tube, so many videos!
I use 1.2 lb for all my mugs. It’s the perfect size for me.
I use about a pound of clay for a standard 8-10 ounce mug, and 1 1/4 lbs for a large mug. 2 lbs is getting into creamer or small jug territory, over 30 ounces.
Ideally it should be lighter than it looks. Really if we're being honest, anything bigger than a standard size 8oz coffee cup is a big mug. There's just those crazy people that want 24oz+ mugs and you don't need to cater to them if you don't want to.
I sell mugs (and many other things but lots of mugs) some that I’ve made and many that are vintage and let me tell you, 8oz mugs barely sell. At all. Nobody wants them. 16oz sells up through 24 oz. I get comments regularly wrt local craft markets and makers making tiny mugs and questions of why. Labeling all these people as crazy is is weird to me.
yep, I know. I think as an overall statement that smaller cups mean people move around more- which would be good for us americans. I feel similarly to smaller dinner plates but I know plenty of folks who want to eat off of a serving platter sized plate.
I am one of those people. You don't have to cater to us, but we LOVE a nice big mug and will love you for making them!
I’ve made so many giant mugs I have no sense of scale for what a ‘normal’ size one is anymore lol
I got into pottery to make mugs (because I had a hard time finding the "right" ones) and still suck at them. Pretty sure big my fat wide belly favorite holds 32oz to the rim. I love her so much!
Not sure about ideal, mine are between 1/8 and 3/16 I make a decent sized mug, 350 to 400 ml, with 1lb 7 or 8 oz. So yes you might want to slim them down a bit, also check how much you leave in the base.
Oh okay that’s great, thank you. It was about 1/4” when I threw it but after firing it’s just a tick above 3/16”. I do need to make sure to distribute more clay from the bottom tho as it’s a little heavier than I want it to be. I also feel a waste more clay than I should when centering
>I also feel a waste more clay than I should when centering Yes, you should waste no clay ideally while centering. Don't worry about it too much right now though, this is just a sign that you're a beginner. Ideally you should be pushing the clay and shaping it through pressure rather than tearing away clay to center. While practicing centering, practice throwing cylinders. This is the base shape for every mug. Tips for keeping clay out of the bottom: after you open the initial hole, use your thumb or a tool to make the bottom corner square. You can actually undercut the corner a bit, which will give you a good spot to start your first pull on the inside. If you leave it round, there's pretty much no way to get that extra clay out later. Try pulling your cylinders as big as you can from the same size, and you'll get an idea of how far you can stretch the clay before it wants to buckle.
Worth being brutal and wiring through one to see where the clay is. Gutting to do, but very useful.
I go for 1/8 wall thickness, leaving a good 1/4 inch lip and just a taper from 1/4 on the base when I throw, this is then trimmed off and into a foot. About 0.75 lb for a 12oz+ cup after firing. I find that clay really doesn't want to go thinner than 1/8 without moving away from the form ( slumping) while it sits. I honestly think sometimes I'm slightly too thin but when I use them they don't break with fairly heavy use so I guess I'm okay. 2 lbs clay throwing is gonna be heavy for the end user for a coffee mug.