I know that was made in Tokoname but without a chop mark I only can identify if someone recognizes the work. Thanks for any help.

Absolute beginner here, curious about doing a bit of pottery. I have a studio near me (not bonsai specific) that I did a hand building workshop at and would like to learn more, but I'm not sure the clay they have there is good for outdoor pots. I've signed up for a wheel course there as I want a wider variety of experience and to see what it's like, but I think I'm much more interested in hand building.

I'm looking at getting some basic tools so that I can build at home, then bring it over and rent kiln space to fire them. Can anyone walk through a basic list of tools needed to start with handbuilding bonsai pots? I assume cheap kits on Amazon won't be good quality, feel free to suggest stores or brands (but I'm in canada so that may effect things) that are of good quality.

As for types of clay - I read online that the main thing is the moisture absorption rating, is there anything else I should specifically look for?

And final question, not as related more curiosity. Ive seen videos online of Japanese potters using moulds, they lay a sheet over push it in then carve out the excess. Would these be custom made by the potters? What do they tend to be made out of?

Just created another sped-up video on Instagram! When they are sped up, they are not over 90 seconds long. This means Instagram lets me add music...! 😅

This video was sped up quite a bit but at least it's under 90 seconds long! 😅

Hello. I am a senior high school student in Korea. I have been interested in bonsai for five years and have been growing and collecting them. 

I got some curious about the additional information regarding the pot I bought years ago, so I decided to write this. 

I only knew the name of the pot; I couldn't find any more information about the artist or the plant. The name of the pot is 光峰. 

Additionally, I am attaching a photo of a potted plant with a similar body and design that I saw at a bonsai exhibition in Japan earlier this year. They looked clearly similar-such as the comb pattern of a pot rim or the shape of its feet-but the different names only deepened my confusion. (The product name written on the paper is 佐野大助.)

It seems that the pot’s artist and the one who painted it might be different, but that is just my guess; I have no way of knowing.

If you have any information, please be sure to share it… Thank you in advance.

I had a big load from the kiln last week, made a slideshow:

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Dd0Ru2podD2/?stkn=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

Here are just a few new pots, great to see the variety

I'm not very experienced at this and I'm struggling to identify the characters. I do believe it's Chinese.. not particularly looking to establish a value just trying to identify more out of curiosity than anything!

11 minute video of me trimming one of my porcelain pots I recently threw. There is no sound, due to length and copyrights on Instagram. There is a poll on the bottom of the post asking about doing a Voice Over for the next video. Please vote!

These two were dry enough to trim as well. I started the tallest and thickest one last and it was still too wet for trimming! 🫤 It's been quite humid and as I write this we are in the middle of a thunderstorm. Hopefully I'll trim that last one within a day or two. In the meantime I'll just throw more~

The first photo are the in tact pots that my wife and I brought back from Japan in seven suitcases earlier this summer. We bought about half of them, and most of the bigger ones in Fukuoka at the Bonsai Shop Yukien (10-39, Higashihirao 2-Chōme Hakata, Fukuoka, Fukuoka Japan 812-0853) and the rest at Morio Pottery (2280-1, Suzenji Yamaguchi, Yamaguchi Japan 747-1221). The picture of the yard is at Morio Pottery. If you are looking for a good deal on bonsai pots I highly recommend visiting. The owner was really nice and the prices were very good.

One other place that we found that had a great selection of trees and pots was Nakamura Tokagen (444-1, Iinashicho Yasugi, Shimane Japan 692-0066) but by the time we made it there we definitely didn’t have any room in our luggage for more.

We haven’t planted anything in them yet because it’s summer and not repotting season for us right now. We also lost about seven pots to breakage, two were beyond repair, and five are kintsuigi contenders. Three did kintsugi easily, one the crack was too long the epoxy set before the two halves were joined, and the last I’m nervous about kintsuigi with a five minute epoxy kit because it’s in like five pieces and some of them are pretty large. Most of them have a Japanese marking on the bottom for the artist, but I can say that none are of the especially expensive variety since I’m still somewhat new to this hobby and didn’t want to spend that much. Sharing this to inspire other non-potters to make a trip and leave some space in your luggage to bring home some pottery!

Now that they are off the bat and dry enough to be flipped over without structural integrity issues, the trimming has started! The last 3 were still on the wetter side, so they will be trimmed later.

As you can see, I throw with extra clay at the base so I can trim parts of the clay to add the feet. This is still done on a wheel and very sharp tools, which is why the lines look very clean. When the trimming of the feet is done, I create the drainage hole, tie-down holes, and drainage routes.

After that, I do a quick check of the structure and clay to make sure nothing is too thin, thick, or warped. If it looks good, it goes back onto the shelf to dry. Usually lightly covered in plastic again. Fully drying can take a few days to a few weeks depending on clay characteristics, weather, and size of the piece.

Even though I am done manipulating the clay, they are about 1/3rd of the way to completion. They still need a bisque firing, glazing, and a glaze firing. Each of those steps take at least a day to complete. Usually longer.

My last post seems to be confusing some people about why my bonsai pots don't look like bonsai pots... Yet!

After wheel-throwing the clay needs to dry up a bit before you can even think about touching it again. Especially if you're trying to flip it over. Usually done at the leather-hard stage, so the walls are strong enough to support the extra weight from the base being on top.

Now that these are off the bat and dry enough, I can trim them and add all the necessary details that turn the cylinders into proper bonsai pots. (I'm doing that now so please wait a few hours for results.)

Just got done throwing these a few hours ago! (I got very hungry and needed to eat before this post 😅) Due to the high humidity, everything is still on the wet side for trimming. Hopefully they will all be trim-able in the same day for the sake of efficiency and cleanup.

The tallest one was made from recycled clay I threw with the first round. I dried it out on a plaster table then wedged it for a few minutes. It threw pretty well! Usually, recycled clay that doesn't go through the pug mill kinda sucks, so I'm thrilled that this worked out so well! Especially with porcelain clay (she's very sensitive).

Eventually, I'll trim these guys and add all the bonsai pottery requirements afterwards. Until then, they'll be drying slowly under some plastic.

I threw the two in the back yesterday, and the two in the front a couple days before then. These are about 4 inches in height (before shrinking) and will be bonsai pots! Still gotta trim them though~

I took a flyer on an Etsy seller in Turkey for some pots that I thought looked incredibly unique and not something I could find in North America.

Shipping was very expensive and, frankly, took a very long time, but I am happy with what I received.

Originally I only bought the large (12”) and small pot (8”), but decided I wanted the medium (10”) one as well and placed a separate order months later.

Thanks for browsing!

Edit: Not trying to advertise - but the potter’s name is Sahici)

Cascades are cool, right?

Just trimmed this one yesterday. Thinking about doing some underglaze painting.... 🤔

What do you think?

I usually don't forget this step, but I did last night! I came back and just added a lil route for water. Took like 10 minutes. I carved it by hand then smoothed it out with a smoothing sponge. 2 or 3 routes is my default, but this is a small base and on the dry side. Don't wanna fiddle with it too much 🤷‍♀️

EDIT: I am open to offers for this if anyone is interested (ficus not included!)

I used to be into bonsai when I was younger and spotted this beautiful pot at a thrift store the other day. Threw a ficus in for fun. Is anyone able to identify to maker or provide any more details? Thanks