Birch Shark Art

Sideblog for posting art! Tumblr old, she/her, dabbler in pottery and fiber arts and occasionally other stuff as it takes my fancy. Transphobes and other bigotry not welcome. I do not and will not use so-called AI in my art at any point.

[birch-shark-art]

Oh wow, the Uffington White Horse mug got some traction, huh? Hello! I'm so glad so many of you liked it!! I absolutely will be making more things with that design; it's so satisfying to me. I'll definitely post more pictures when I do!

In the meantime: HAPPY PRIDE, HAVE SOME QUEER SLUGS 💜💙💚💛🧡❤️

Okay, I'm pretty sure all slugs are inherently queer by human standards on account of the whole thing where most species have both kinds of genitalia, and some of them can asexually reproduce, and so on (and also that if they have any kind conception of gender it's wildly incomprehensible by our standards all around), etc etc. But anyway, these ones are also having a little rainbow parade, and I like to think they're having a lovely time of it.

It's quite a small mug -- enough for a double espresso, maybe, or a small cup of tea or rich hot chocolate -- but I'm happy with it!

[ooo-silly-worms]

Pottery sounds terrifying to me. Every post I see is like "Here's this awesome art I made!! Pray for me that it survives The Kiln™ :')" I don't think I could cope with making art that could quite easily blow up and I have no way of controlling that. You guys are true heroes.

[birch-shark-art]

Oh wow, the Uffington White Horse mug got some traction, huh? Hello! I'm so glad so many of you liked it!! I absolutely will be making more things with that design; it's so satisfying to me. I'll definitely post more pictures when I do!

In the meantime: HAPPY PRIDE, HAVE SOME QUEER SLUGS 💜💙💚💛🧡❤️

Okay, I'm pretty sure all slugs are inherently queer by human standards on account of the whole thing where most species have both kinds of genitalia, and some of them can asexually reproduce, and so on (and also that if they have any kind conception of gender it's wildly incomprehensible by our standards all around), etc etc. But anyway, these ones are also having a little rainbow parade, and I like to think they're having a lovely time of it.

It's quite a small mug -- enough for a double espresso, maybe, or a small cup of tea or rich hot chocolate -- but I'm happy with it!

[birch-shark-art]

Uffington white horse cup!

It looks a bit blurry in the close-up, but it's not really; that's an artifact of reflections on the glaze. I'm super pleased with how this came out.

I painted the horse in white underglaze and then painted over my lines with wax. (That was the most fiddly part -- covering it all up without going over.) The wax resists glaze, so when I dipped it in the slightly translucent dark green, it didn't cover the horse. In person the green isn't quite as dark as it came out in pictures -- it's still dark, but grassier -- and the horse looks carved out of it.

I would say "I need to do this design again," but as a matter of fact I already have -- these pictures are from a while ago, and the progress pic above is from the second. But I'm gonna keep doing it again, because I really love the effect.

[birch-shark-art]

Uffington white horse cup!

It looks a bit blurry in the close-up, but it's not really; that's an artifact of reflections on the glaze. I'm super pleased with how this came out.

I painted the horse in white underglaze and then painted over my lines with wax. (That was the most fiddly part -- covering it all up without going over.) The wax resists glaze, so when I dipped it in the slightly translucent dark green, it didn't cover the horse. In person the green isn't quite as dark as it came out in pictures -- it's still dark, but grassier -- and the horse looks carved out of it.

I would say "I need to do this design again," but as a matter of fact I already have -- these pictures are from a while ago, and the progress pic above is from the second. But I'm gonna keep doing it again, because I really love the effect.

[birch-shark-art]

Easter Flegg parade!

...This one may require a bit of explaining.

My wife and I are fans of the actual play podcast Friends At The Table. It's a lot of fun if you enjoy getting a look at the underlying bones of narrative by listening to smart people collaboratively improv a story together! including wrestling with the messiness of when dice rolls don't turn out the way an author would do it! and also if you enjoy games other than D&D, which I do (no shade to D&D, which I also enjoy).

One of their current campaigns is Perpetua, an absolutely delightful collection of JRPG-inspired nonsense (using the game Fabula Ultima). And in that game, there's a kind of low-level... antagonist is not the word. Irritation? Inconvenience? Minor monster? CONTINUAL MENACE AND DELIGHT OF MY HEART called a flegg. Fleggs are little walking eggs with pointy noses and angry eyebrows and wee stick-figure limbs and they love to cause mayhem. They're like cats crossed with toddlers and made semi-invulnerable. I never want them in my house and I cackle every time they show up.

So! We were laughing at one point about Easter Fleggs dying themselves colors and stomping off to throw some protagonists' supplies into a river or whatever, and my wife was like I WANT THAT ON A MUG!!! and here we are. I hope you enjoy their little angry eyebrows half as much as I enjoyed painting them.

[birch-shark-art]

Reblogging for the later crowd, with a couple of process pictures under the readmore for the curious!

Little painted guys before they were glazed and fired!

This is underglaze, which is a sort of ceramic-specific paint made of clay and colorant. As the name implies, it's meant to go under glaze; you can use it when the clay is greenware (not yet fired) or bisqueware (fired once, but not yet glazed and fired a second time). This is bisqued. That means the clay has already been fired into ceramics, and I could use water to wipe off the fleggs without worrying about dissolving any of the mug itself.

I knew I wanted the rest of the mug to be white (like an egg!) but I debated between leaving the Easter Flegg Parade unglazed and covering it with clear glaze. The glaze makes it shiny and gives extra protection against long-term wear, but is more of a pain to apply in a strip like this. It also makes the underglaze colors more saturated. As you can see above, I did go with the glaze! (I brushed on clear glaze, brushed wax over it, and then dipped the whole thing in white glaze. The wax resists the white glaze, and then burns off in the heat of the kiln. The multiple rounds of brushing a strip are why it's more fiddly to do this way.) I think the increased color saturation works better for some of them than others. The Fleggus (bunny-eared lead guy) in particular darkened a LOT -- mental note about the green underglaze!

Also, shout out to the MitchiriNeko cat parade!! I can't find a link right now but they were an obvious influence and I DO hear tootling music in my head every time I look at these little miscreants.

[birch-shark-art]

Easter Flegg parade!

...This one may require a bit of explaining.

My wife and I are fans of the actual play podcast Friends At The Table. It's a lot of fun if you enjoy getting a look at the underlying bones of narrative by listening to smart people collaboratively improv a story together! including wrestling with the messiness of when dice rolls don't turn out the way an author would do it! and also if you enjoy games other than D&D, which I do (no shade to D&D, which I also enjoy).

One of their current campaigns is Perpetua, an absolutely delightful collection of JRPG-inspired nonsense (using the game Fabula Ultima). And in that game, there's a kind of low-level... antagonist is not the word. Irritation? Inconvenience? Minor monster? CONTINUAL MENACE AND DELIGHT OF MY HEART called a flegg. Fleggs are little walking eggs with pointy noses and angry eyebrows and wee stick-figure limbs and they love to cause mayhem. They're like cats crossed with toddlers and made semi-invulnerable. I never want them in my house and I cackle every time they show up.

So! We were laughing at one point about Easter Fleggs dying themselves colors and stomping off to throw some protagonists' supplies into a river or whatever, and my wife was like I WANT THAT ON A MUG!!! and here we are. I hope you enjoy their little angry eyebrows half as much as I enjoyed painting them.

[birch-shark-art]

Birch Shark Art Pottery Stall

Offering 1 custom handmade ceramic dish for the Fandom Trumps Hate Craft Bazaar (auction form here)

What: a custom glazed ceramic piece made by me to your specifications

Cup, small bowl, mug, set of 2-3 tiny bowls (those would count as 1 piece for this)

Potentially open to discussing other types of dishes (plate, cereal bowl, perforated berry bowl, etc)

Food safe, microwave safe, dishwasher safe

Will ship: anywhere in the US; international is negotiable

Style: see the pictures above for some examples, and my pottery tag for more!

I can do a wide range of glaze colors – happy to discuss options. I can also do painted designs in underglaze, sgraffito (carved designs) and incised/cutaway/texture decorations. And, of course, these can be combined.

My underglaze painting and sgraffito style tends to used limited colors and relatively stylized designs; I’m going to be better at motifs than realistic portraits. For example, see this or this. Happy to discuss until we find something that works for us both!

Any fandom, ship, etc. is an option for design. If I don’t know it, I’ll ask for some references or more detailed description of what you have in mind.

Non-fannish designs, words, cool glazes with no designs, etc., are all options too!

What I won’t do:

NSFW stuff (explicit sexual content, drug references, etc) – I make and fire my work at a shared studio, and this is their rule.

Please note that this is a custom ceramic piece, and I have limited studio time. Please allow 6-8 weeks for me to make it, fire it, glaze it, fire it again, and get in the mail to you!

Again, the link to bid is here! You can see the current top bid here.

[birch-shark-art]

I forgot to say, but the auction is open until 8pm EDT on March 18!

You can see the other Fandom Trumps Hate Craft Bazaar offerings here, and the digital Fandom Trumps Hate offerings here. There's a ton of super cool stuff -- I really recommend checking it out!

[birch-shark-art]

lol well this sure is some timing for reblogging anything to boost its visibility!

But tumblr update brouhahas aside, there's a little under 2 days left on my Fandom Trumps Hate auction, so check out the links above if you want to bid on getting a custom piece of pottery -- or any number of other things from other creators -- in trade for a donation to charity!

[birch-shark-art]

A little under one day left now!

[birch-shark-art]

Last reminder -- this closes at 8 pm Eastern time, which is about 4 hours from now!

[birch-shark-art]

Birch Shark Art Pottery Stall

Offering 1 custom handmade ceramic dish for the Fandom Trumps Hate Craft Bazaar (auction form here)

What: a custom glazed ceramic piece made by me to your specifications

Cup, small bowl, mug, set of 2-3 tiny bowls (those would count as 1 piece for this)

Potentially open to discussing other types of dishes (plate, cereal bowl, perforated berry bowl, etc)

Food safe, microwave safe, dishwasher safe

Will ship: anywhere in the US; international is negotiable

Style: see the pictures above for some examples, and my pottery tag for more!

I can do a wide range of glaze colors – happy to discuss options. I can also do painted designs in underglaze, sgraffito (carved designs) and incised/cutaway/texture decorations. And, of course, these can be combined.

My underglaze painting and sgraffito style tends to used limited colors and relatively stylized designs; I’m going to be better at motifs than realistic portraits. For example, see this or this. Happy to discuss until we find something that works for us both!

Any fandom, ship, etc. is an option for design. If I don’t know it, I’ll ask for some references or more detailed description of what you have in mind.

Non-fannish designs, words, cool glazes with no designs, etc., are all options too!

What I won’t do:

NSFW stuff (explicit sexual content, drug references, etc) – I make and fire my work at a shared studio, and this is their rule.

Please note that this is a custom ceramic piece, and I have limited studio time. Please allow 6-8 weeks for me to make it, fire it, glaze it, fire it again, and get in the mail to you!

Again, the link to bid is here! You can see the current top bid here.

[birch-shark-art]

I forgot to say, but the auction is open until 8pm EDT on March 18!

You can see the other Fandom Trumps Hate Craft Bazaar offerings here, and the digital Fandom Trumps Hate offerings here. There's a ton of super cool stuff -- I really recommend checking it out!

[birch-shark-art]

lol well this sure is some timing for reblogging anything to boost its visibility!

But tumblr update brouhahas aside, there's a little under 2 days left on my Fandom Trumps Hate auction, so check out the links above if you want to bid on getting a custom piece of pottery -- or any number of other things from other creators -- in trade for a donation to charity!

[birch-shark-art]

A little under one day left now!

[birch-shark-art]

Birch Shark Art Pottery Stall

Offering 1 custom handmade ceramic dish for the Fandom Trumps Hate Craft Bazaar (auction form here)

What: a custom glazed ceramic piece made by me to your specifications

Cup, small bowl, mug, set of 2-3 tiny bowls (those would count as 1 piece for this)

Potentially open to discussing other types of dishes (plate, cereal bowl, perforated berry bowl, etc)

Food safe, microwave safe, dishwasher safe

Will ship: anywhere in the US; international is negotiable

Style: see the pictures above for some examples, and my pottery tag for more!

I can do a wide range of glaze colors – happy to discuss options. I can also do painted designs in underglaze, sgraffito (carved designs) and incised/cutaway/texture decorations. And, of course, these can be combined.

My underglaze painting and sgraffito style tends to used limited colors and relatively stylized designs; I’m going to be better at motifs than realistic portraits. For example, see this or this. Happy to discuss until we find something that works for us both!

Any fandom, ship, etc. is an option for design. If I don’t know it, I’ll ask for some references or more detailed description of what you have in mind.

Non-fannish designs, words, cool glazes with no designs, etc., are all options too!

What I won’t do:

NSFW stuff (explicit sexual content, drug references, etc) – I make and fire my work at a shared studio, and this is their rule.

Please note that this is a custom ceramic piece, and I have limited studio time. Please allow 6-8 weeks for me to make it, fire it, glaze it, fire it again, and get in the mail to you!

Again, the link to bid is here! You can see the current top bid here.

[birch-shark-art]

I forgot to say, but the auction is open until 8pm EDT on March 18!

You can see the other Fandom Trumps Hate Craft Bazaar offerings here, and the digital Fandom Trumps Hate offerings here. There's a ton of super cool stuff -- I really recommend checking it out!

[birch-shark-art]

lol well this sure is some timing for reblogging anything to boost its visibility!

But tumblr update brouhahas aside, there's a little under 2 days left on my Fandom Trumps Hate auction, so check out the links above if you want to bid on getting a custom piece of pottery -- or any number of other things from other creators -- in trade for a donation to charity!

[birch-shark-art]

Birch Shark Art Pottery Stall

Offering 1 custom handmade ceramic dish for the Fandom Trumps Hate Craft Bazaar (auction form here)

What: a custom glazed ceramic piece made by me to your specifications

Cup, small bowl, mug, set of 2-3 tiny bowls (those would count as 1 piece for this)

Potentially open to discussing other types of dishes (plate, cereal bowl, perforated berry bowl, etc)

Food safe, microwave safe, dishwasher safe

Will ship: anywhere in the US; international is negotiable

Style: see the pictures above for some examples, and my pottery tag for more!

I can do a wide range of glaze colors – happy to discuss options. I can also do painted designs in underglaze, sgraffito (carved designs) and incised/cutaway/texture decorations. And, of course, these can be combined.

My underglaze painting and sgraffito style tends to used limited colors and relatively stylized designs; I’m going to be better at motifs than realistic portraits. For example, see this or this. Happy to discuss until we find something that works for us both!

Any fandom, ship, etc. is an option for design. If I don’t know it, I’ll ask for some references or more detailed description of what you have in mind.

Non-fannish designs, words, cool glazes with no designs, etc., are all options too!

What I won’t do:

NSFW stuff (explicit sexual content, drug references, etc) – I make and fire my work at a shared studio, and this is their rule.

Please note that this is a custom ceramic piece, and I have limited studio time. Please allow 6-8 weeks for me to make it, fire it, glaze it, fire it again, and get in the mail to you!

Again, the link to bid is here! You can see the current top bid here.

[birch-shark-art]

I forgot to say, but the auction is open until 8pm EDT on March 18!

You can see the other Fandom Trumps Hate Craft Bazaar offerings here, and the digital Fandom Trumps Hate offerings here. There's a ton of super cool stuff -- I really recommend checking it out!

[birch-shark-art]

Birch Shark Art Pottery Stall

Offering 1 custom handmade ceramic dish for the Fandom Trumps Hate Craft Bazaar (auction form here)

What: a custom glazed ceramic piece made by me to your specifications

Cup, small bowl, mug, set of 2-3 tiny bowls (those would count as 1 piece for this)

Potentially open to discussing other types of dishes (plate, cereal bowl, perforated berry bowl, etc)

Food safe, microwave safe, dishwasher safe

Will ship: anywhere in the US; international is negotiable

Style: see the pictures above for some examples, and my pottery tag for more!

I can do a wide range of glaze colors – happy to discuss options. I can also do painted designs in underglaze, sgraffito (carved designs) and incised/cutaway/texture decorations. And, of course, these can be combined.

My underglaze painting and sgraffito style tends to used limited colors and relatively stylized designs; I’m going to be better at motifs than realistic portraits. For example, see this or this. Happy to discuss until we find something that works for us both!

Any fandom, ship, etc. is an option for design. If I don’t know it, I’ll ask for some references or more detailed description of what you have in mind.

Non-fannish designs, words, cool glazes with no designs, etc., are all options too!

What I won’t do:

NSFW stuff (explicit sexual content, drug references, etc) – I make and fire my work at a shared studio, and this is their rule.

Please note that this is a custom ceramic piece, and I have limited studio time. Please allow 6-8 weeks for me to make it, fire it, glaze it, fire it again, and get in the mail to you!

Again, the link to bid is here! You can see the current top bid here.

[birch-shark-art]

I forgot to say, but the auction is open until 8pm EDT on March 18!

You can see the other Fandom Trumps Hate Craft Bazaar offerings here, and the digital Fandom Trumps Hate offerings here. There's a ton of super cool stuff -- I really recommend checking it out!

[birch-shark-art]

Birch Shark Art Pottery Stall

Offering 1 custom handmade ceramic dish for the Fandom Trumps Hate Craft Bazaar (auction form here)

What: a custom glazed ceramic piece made by me to your specifications

Cup, small bowl, mug, set of 2-3 tiny bowls (those would count as 1 piece for this)

Potentially open to discussing other types of dishes (plate, cereal bowl, perforated berry bowl, etc)

Food safe, microwave safe, dishwasher safe

Will ship: anywhere in the US; international is negotiable

Style: see the pictures above for some examples, and my pottery tag for more!

I can do a wide range of glaze colors – happy to discuss options. I can also do painted designs in underglaze, sgraffito (carved designs) and incised/cutaway/texture decorations. And, of course, these can be combined.

My underglaze painting and sgraffito style tends to used limited colors and relatively stylized designs; I’m going to be better at motifs than realistic portraits. For example, see this or this. Happy to discuss until we find something that works for us both!

Any fandom, ship, etc. is an option for design. If I don’t know it, I’ll ask for some references or more detailed description of what you have in mind.

Non-fannish designs, words, cool glazes with no designs, etc., are all options too!

What I won’t do:

NSFW stuff (explicit sexual content, drug references, etc) – I make and fire my work at a shared studio, and this is their rule.

Please note that this is a custom ceramic piece, and I have limited studio time. Please allow 6-8 weeks for me to make it, fire it, glaze it, fire it again, and get in the mail to you!

Again, the link to bid is here! You can see the current top bid here.

[jabberding0]

Pottery troubles

[gayahithwen]

Ah, the feeling you get when you watch a blooper reel, and find yourself thinking "yeah, I could show this to someone who lived five thousand years ago, and they'd laugh, too".

[birch-shark-art]

Tiny little pitcher!

I have absolutely no idea what this is good for, tbh. One serving of milk for your tea, if your mug isn't too big? Using as a vase for very small flowers? Just decoration? idk! Would love to hear if anyone has any ideas -- I use small bowls a lot, but I'm curious what people might use tiny pitchers for, if anything!

Anyway I was on a kick of making tiny things last month, so I ended up making a bunch of little bowls and jugs in both white and black clay. Expect more posts with 'em!

[birch-shark-art]

My piece for Asidian for the 2025 @fandomtrumpshate Craft Bazaar!

This was my first time doing pottery for a charity auction, and I had a GREAT time. Asidian liked the style of my fossil pots and is into Dead Boy Detectives, so we tossed around a couple of options and came up with this design.

...And then due to various life and studio delays I didn't get it completed until late May and didn't get it back from the kiln until early June. At which point I hastened to get it mailed off before I left the next day on a trip, which is why these pictures are in poorer light than usual: I had to take them at night and then get the package ready to go out in the morning, rather than waiting for good sunlight. Sorry about that!

Anyway, I'm honored and delighted to have gotten the chance to make this in thanks for Asidian's donation to a good cause!

Progress pics below the readmore:

[birch-shark-art]

My piece for Asidian for the 2025 @fandomtrumpshate Craft Bazaar!

This was my first time doing pottery for a charity auction, and I had a GREAT time. Asidian liked the style of my fossil pots and is into Dead Boy Detectives, so we tossed around a couple of options and came up with this design.

...And then due to various life and studio delays I didn't get it completed until late May and didn't get it back from the kiln until early June. At which point I hastened to get it mailed off before I left the next day on a trip, which is why these pictures are in poorer light than usual: I had to take them at night and then get the package ready to go out in the morning, rather than waiting for good sunlight. Sorry about that!

Anyway, I'm honored and delighted to have gotten the chance to make this in thanks for Asidian's donation to a good cause!

Progress pics below the readmore: