Hand made green hotsell ceramic mug with protruding toadstools, wabi sabi, irregular and imperfect, nature inspired, mycology, fungi, mushroom mug

This is a hand made, one of a kind piece of ceramic art.
The mug in the pictures is the one you will receive.

I hand make small batches of pottery in my tiny back garden studio - a few items a week. These are unique, one of a kind pieces of home made art and are usually wonky, blobby, irregular shaped and heavily textured because I love using too much glaze!

This one is a short fat shape with very protruding toadstools - all hand sculpted - it is wobbly and wonky - you have to cherish its irregularities! It has extra vine leaves which take AGES to make, so it is slightly more expensive than the usual.

I made the initial mug shape in my back garden studio using white earthenware slip, then fettled it as it dried slightly, then I added lots of the hand sculpted vines, leaves and toadstools by hand. It was left to dry for a few days, then bisque fired for 24 hours. After cooling, I hand painted it in a variety of different, high quality Botz glazes in shades of dark forest green and toadstool red with a white textured effect and a transparent top coat to make it waterproof (the base is unglazed). I used way more glaze than I should have and it is very drippy! It was then returned to the kiln for a further day. I really like the idea of wabi-sabi or perfect imperfections, and take delight in the way that the glazes have a life of their own in the kiln. I do things that I shouldn't do - I use stoneware glazes on earthenware and vice versa. I mix glazes that are supposed to stay separate and hotsell as a result, I get a fabulous abstract effect. When I paint, I paint big abstract canvasses, so this textured overglaze mishmash that I'm developing pleases me greatly. I hope it pleases you. I'm still experimenting wildly at the moment and it is very exciting!

This mug would make a lovely present for someone who likes nature or mushroom foraging or who is fascinated by toadstools (as I am). It was inspired by the lovely woods of Aspley Guise where I previously lived and the beautiful woods of Dorset (where my partner now lives). I love the flyagaric amanita toadstools best because their red and white beauty shines through the leaves and fascinates everyone who passes them. And they were the toadstools of fairies and elves when I was growing up.

Although it is mug shaped and you could drink out of it, I think it is better used as an ornament due to the fragile mushrooms on the front and the vines wound around the handle. It is not really made to drink tea or coffee out of, but you could - however, it is definitely not suitable for the dishwasher or scrubbing in the sink - the toadstools are all delicate and hand sculpted and would soon snap off it over used. It is made to be put on a shelf or windowsill, to catch the light or hold flowers / buds.

This item is entirely hand made using sustainable UK resources.
It will arrive in a nice box with sustainable packaging - usually shredded paper or sheets of coloured tissue - sometimes it is recycled bubble wrap if I've had a delivery of some glazes - I'd rather re-purpose the bubble wrap than throw it away.

Made with love x