Already Registered? Please sign in.

To see more great work by up-and-coming ceramic artists and potters, download your free copy of Emerging Ceramic Artists to Watch: New Pottery and Ceramic Sculpture!

September 11, 2009

Handle Pulling Video: Tony Clennell Demonstrates How to Pull Great Looking Handles for Pottery

by Tony Clennell Read Comments (21)

Handle pulling can be one of the most tedious and stressful parts of the functional pottery making process. That’s why many potters choose to handbuild handles for their pottery. And while handbuilt handles have a charm and beauty all their own, sometimes you just want that subtle flow and grace that a well-pulled handle offers.

So today, in an excerpt from his DVD Get a Handle on It, Tony Clennell shares his expert advice on handle pulling. Tony shows us that, with a little practice and patience, great-looking pulled handles are within any potter’s grasp. - Jennifer Harnetty, editor. 

 

(Either JavaScript is not active or you are using an old version of Adobe Flash Player. Please install the newest Flash Player.)

A great handle is capable of making ordinary pottery exceptional!

Learn a variety of handle making techniques — pulled, thrown, hand built, altered –  on Tony’s full-length DVD Get a Handle ON IT!

Order your copy today!

Tags: , , , ,

Share this post with other ceramic artists:
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
  • TwitThis
  • Facebook
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • MySpace
  • StumbleUpon
  • Google Bookmarks

21 Comments

  1. nicklaus | September 11th, 2009 at 10:15 am

    Nice, how much clay (in LBS) is used when pulling the beginning 5 handles?

  2. Chris | September 11th, 2009 at 10:25 am

    What happens ? I can’t even see 1 min. of the video … ??? Please help !

  3. Chris | September 11th, 2009 at 10:38 am

    Sorry, I saw all of it now, but it had a lot of difficulties getting completely charged … maybe my provider ? or the video ? It’s the first time this happens with your videos. Anyway, cool way of making handles ! I wonder if we can make it slimmer too with this technique ? Just give it a try now ;-)

  4. Jean | September 11th, 2009 at 11:46 am

    I also battled to watch this video as it came over in fits and starts which doesn’t usually happen. Still, it was great to watch. I am rather isolated from other potters in my country studio and the videos are an invaluable source of inspiration and support.
    My first query was also how much clay does Tony use to start off with. 1kg - a little less or a little more? Be nice to have some idea.

  5. Myra | September 11th, 2009 at 11:48 am

    So disappointing–every 5 seconds there is an interruption of another 5 seconds (or more). I really like the videos, and it seems there aren’t as many as in the past. So when I finally got one, and it was just hard to stay with (I didn’t–gave up).

    I hope you can get back to at least 1-2 videos a week, and also that the technical problems get worked out. I’ll keep checking.

    Myra Ducharme

  6. Zygote | September 11th, 2009 at 12:10 pm

    I always enjoy watching an artists approach to creating their handles. Often they are as unique as the artist that creates them. Thanks Tony for letting us into your studio to watch.

  7. Christine | September 11th, 2009 at 2:21 pm

    The way I’d seen these done before, after pulling, they were curved and set out to firm up before the final fitting, cutting and attaching. Nice to see another approach… I’ll try them again!
    Thanks so much!
    btw… the first time thru, it did stop every few seconds to buffer more vid… but after that, I replayed it and the whole thing played without any pauses.

  8. Jennifer | September 11th, 2009 at 2:31 pm

    Hi Myra-
    We have been posting one video every week for about the last year. You can view them all in the video archives. Click “Video” in the navigation bar at the top of this page. Your email provider may be blocking our emails mistaking them for spam and that might be why you haven’t been notified of the videos by email. Please be sure to add editor@ceramicartsdaily.org to your contacts list or safe senders list to be sure you get your CAD emails.

  9. Jennifer | September 11th, 2009 at 2:34 pm

    To those who are having problems with the video, please check out our Video FAQ here:
    http://ceramicartsdaily.org/daily/faq/#Video%20FAQ

  10. ALICE | September 11th, 2009 at 3:57 pm

    My answer to the starts and stops on your great videos is to let the thing run on its own and NOT watch it until it is over then click on the arrow to let it run again and voila! It will run completely through with no stops for downloading increments.

  11. Dr. David | September 11th, 2009 at 4:28 pm

    Did anyone notice the size of Tony’s arms and hands? If I were built like Tony I too might eventually pull handles with the ease that he did. While watching this video, I attempted to hold both hands in front of my face trying to imitate Tony’s moves. After about 30 seconds the pain in my arms and shoulders forced me to return them to my sides. At a younger age I probably could have mimicked Tony’s moves. I enjoyed the video but will need to build up my muscles or just stick to hand built handles. There were some good suggestions for attaching handles even when hand built. I look for to the weekly videos which I find very informative and inspiring. Never had a technical problem watching any of them.

  12. KATHE | September 11th, 2009 at 4:44 pm

    GREAT VIDEO. I KNOW SOMEWHERE I HAVE THE RECIPE FOR MAGIC WATER, BUT CAN SOMEONE GIVE IT TO ME AGAIN? THANKS FOR THE GREAT VIDEOS–MAKES ME WANT TO TRY DIFFERENT TECHNIQUES!! THANKS KATHE STRANTZ

  13. Dr. David | September 11th, 2009 at 5:16 pm

    I too am interested in the ingredients of Magic Water. I have been using, “SPOOZE” which is 1/3 slip, 1/3 Karo syrup and 1/3 vinegar. That seems to hold clay together like glue.

  14. Helen F. | September 11th, 2009 at 8:35 pm

    Great action - once it started to happen. I didn’t hear a word, as I am hearing impaired. Have you considered subtitles? Then I might buy your videos.There are a lot of us with this affliction, out there, who need this information and suffer discrimination.

  15. Lucia | September 12th, 2009 at 12:27 am

    I FOUND THE MAGIC WATER RECIPE IN THE OTHER GREAT VIDEO BY TONY CLENNELL
    http://ceramicartsdaily.org/bookstore/get-a-handle-on-it-by-tony-clennell/

  16. Gil | September 12th, 2009 at 5:50 am

    not ending the video/lesson is kind of frustrating. It’s like showing a kandy to a chiled and not letting him have it, unless his parents will pay..

  17. Cindy | September 12th, 2009 at 12:41 pm

    Thanks for the video–very well done, and the presenter is really personable and clever with his hands. Another suggestion for watching on a slow connection (I’m an expert on that!): Start the video. When it is ready to start, press “pause” and go do something else. The video will continue to load, and when it has finished (indicated by the shaded bar across the bottom being completely shaded in), then play it. You will have a pleasant experience with no pauses.

    For the lady with weak upper body strength: I start my handles by making a coil and cutting it up into measured lengths. You’ll have to experiment to see what length works best for your cup size and handle style. After a while, it is easy to always roll the coil to the same thickness, or you can use an extruder, however I find the extruder to usually be more trouble than it’s worth for this function.

    So, cut up your coil to the lengths you want, and then roll them so that you have a carrot shape (not too narrow on the pointy end, though). If you want a flattened handle, whap the carrot gently down on your table on both sides. After this, tap the large end (the part that will be attached to the top of the cup or pitcher) down on the table to enlarge and flatten it a bit. I score this end and also the attachment point on the cup, then dip the carrot in the water. I used to use magic water, but plain water works fine with my clay. After this, you can just follow the video. You’ll find you have your handle pulled within 4 or 5 strokes this way and that–long before your arms wear out.

    I don’t do the backbone thing. It’s pretty, but, I think, less comfortable to hold. With practice, though, you can pull your handle into all sorts of shapes–round, oval, square, vine-shaped. Lots of options. For comfort, I think the flattened oval is king, but you can always use your thumbnail to create a bead if you want some decoration for it.

  18. Myra | September 12th, 2009 at 5:59 pm

    Much better. This time the video was smooth, uninterrupted.

    I appreciate the detailed description you gave, verbally, and must add that I LOVE pulling handles. Though I have pulled a lot over the years, I always learn something, and this time I liked the finishing touches you added to the process.

    Thanks.

  19. Carole | September 13th, 2009 at 7:55 am

    Thanks for the clip, Tony.

    I still, after (double digit) years working with clay, don’t like pulling handles. There is no reason for this phobia….hope I find a cure for it some day! I know that after making 500 handles it gets easier….but I am still working on my first ‘really decent’ dozen handles!

    Maybe I could hire Myra (comment above me)to pull all my handles since she enjoys it!

  20. p | September 14th, 2009 at 7:02 am

    Does anyone know what surface he is using there? He does say it but it’s too quick for me to understand. It looks plastic-y and almost like a mat?

  21. Cindy | September 20th, 2009 at 4:33 pm

    Does anyone know what surface Tony is working on, the actual material of the table top. He mentions it, but I have never heard of it before?

You must be logged in to post a comment.