Heath Ceramics in Sausalito hosted a bud vase making workshop at their studio this weekend. I brought my eight-year-old daughter, who loves to get down and dirty, to find out exactly how to make one of those little goodies. It was interesting to experience all the steps of the process, from pouring the clay into the mold, to adding the glaze, and I now know just how easy it is to mess it up. (Hey, it wasn’t me!) It takes over one hour to make just one vase, and it all has to be made by hand.

These vases from Heath may be labour intensive to make, but are very easy to work into any vignette or still life around the house. The hard part is deciding on which color…

I’ll be back, letting you know how our new “buddies” turned out.

Photos: Charlotte Coffey

Above: Let’s do this!

Above: Stirring the clay to reduce bubbles and then pouring it into the mold where it needs to sit upside down for 30 minutes.

Above: While the clay is in the mold, we get another bud vase to play with, that has already been fired.

Above: The staff showed us some already made vases as inspiration for the glazing.

Above: Pick a color. Then, focus and dip!

Above: The vase that just came out of the mold, together with one of our glazed (but not yet fired) vases, and a little piece of clay.

Above: This is what it looks like when the pros do it.