A cup with a handle, a teapot with a spout, a lid with some extra decoration … For many pottery projects, you need to attach two clay components to each other. Always a bit nerve-wracking, because there is no guarantee that they will still in one piece when they come out of the kiln.
Luckily there is one technique you can use to minimise that risk: the so-called ‘slip and score’method. We explain step by step how it works.
Step 1: Check both components
Attaching different pieces of clay together is actually easiest when the clay is still wet. But that makes it tricky, because then it’s very easy to accidentally warp your two components.
This is why many potters let the clay dry first, until it’s leather-hard. An ideal consistency is when the clay no longer warps when you pick it up, but you can still change its shape with some effort.
The most important part is that both clay components are at the same stage of drying. If they’re not, then one component will dry faster than the other component. And that often leads to cracks.
Step 2: Prepare both components
Decide where exactly you want to attach the two pieces. Make sure everything fits together correctly, and then make a small mark in the spots where the components will touch.
Make a few parallel scratches in the spots you’ve marked, with a sharp tool or with a serrated rib. Repeat this step for both components.
Step 3: Add clay slip
Clay slipacts as a sort of glue that attaches different clay components to each other. How liquid your clay slip should be, depends on what you’re working on.
For clay that is still quite wet, you’re better off using a rather liquid clay slip. For rather dry clay it’s better to use a slightly thicker clay slip. In that last case, make sure to add the clay slip to both components. That will give you a stronger hold.
Step 4: Assemble the components
Join the clay components together. It’s possible that some excess clay slip appears around the joint. You can easily smooth it out and blend it with the rest of the clay. You can use a damp sponge to do this.
To strengthen the joint even further, you can also roll out a bit of clay into a small coil and attach it around the joint. Make sure to smooth out the clay from the coil and blend it with the rest of the clay.
