Kamin – Making Process

Our beautiful Kamin pendant is hand made by Justin Page in the UK and it’s always a pleasure to share some of the process, care and attention that goes in to making each piece.

The process starts by weighing out the clay to just the right quantity of about 800 gramms. The clay is then knead about 40 times to get all the air out of the clay before turning. Once the clay has been located on the turning wheel the clay is drawn up and pushed back down to get the plasticity right and work the clay before finally turning it up into the desired shape. Justin uses a range of tools and devices to check the measurements are about right internally and externally during this stage.

The turned piece is left to dry to a leather hard state. During the drying the clay shrinks considerably and it will shrink further still after firing. Therefore the maker has to oversize the lamp to ensure we get the desired form at the end of the process.

Once the lamp is leather hard the lamp is returned to the wheel carefully turned down to the final form. Naturally every piece is unique but Justin works to create a high degree of consistency checking all the key dimensions.

The next step in the process involves adding the engobe colour to the rim on a wheel. Engobe is a mix of clay and glaze that adheres to the main body clay during the firing and creates a colourful rim. The colour will change dramatically in the kiln.

The pieces are then fired to a bisque finish and then glazed in a beautiful soft white glaze and a final firing is required to a higher temperature. The process of developing the lamp and practicing to get them right takes time as does the production of each piece once the process has been perfected. It’s a labour of love and we love the result.