Making a Mess of the Shop

Before I started work on the commission for 195 foot-soaking bowls, my plan was to finish my tool shed and "future workshop." The deadline for the commission, however, allowed no time for finishing the workshop. I wired up a 100-amp box, ran a wire for the pugger and one for the wheels, moved in two wheels, a wedging table, shelves and went to work. I work on two rubber mats, the kind with holes, so at least I'm not creating a lot of dust when I'm at the wheel, although it's time again to empty the holes.

The pieces I'm making don't allow me to use my splash pans, so I just set a big block of upholstery foam on the deck of the wheel so the bat I'm throwing on rubs against it. This catches a lot of the slurry, but there's still some that gets spun out away from the wheel.

When I trim the pieces, I try to catch most of the trimmings and throw them into a bucket, but there's plenty of trimmings that fall around the wheel. I suppose I could clean up directly after a day of throwing, but I'm too tired, and to tell you the truth it's just not how I work. I'm kind of messy. It's kind of cool to be messy sometimes.

This chimney block is where I set my tools and
slop bucket.

I've begun to leave these outside the house.

I like working on a clay floor.

There's piles of this everywhere. When I need the
room, I put it in bags.

I've found if I let this sit overnight, I can
scrape it up and use it as slip for joining
the pieces together.

I have to go outside and hose off
my apron several times a day.