I’ve been having fun making soap dishes out of slabs of clay. A couple weekends ago, I poured some plaster slump molds using a cake pan and a stainless mixing bowl. I mixed the plaster, then poured it into the square baking pan. Next, I put the bowl into the plaster and weighed it down with some stones, until the bottom of the bowl was submerged into the plaster about 1.5 inches. 45 minutes later, the plaster was cured and set up. I removed the bowl and turned the cake pan upside down. Pressing on the bottom popped the mold out of the pan. The final step was to let the plaster dry for a few days on a rack. I repeated the process and ended up with five molds.

To make a soap dish, I roll a slab of clay out 1/4″ thick. For a square dish, I cut out the shape I want, impress the clay with a wooden tool, then lay it into the mold and gently press it in with a damp sponge. The round dish starts out larger and gets trimmed in the mold. The next day, the clay is dry enough to hold its shape. I can then remove it from the mold and round any sharp edges with a wooden tool and a damp sponge.

I love working on the potters wheel, but working with slabs gives me the freedom to be less strict with the forms. I really love handbuilding pots, as much as working on the wheel.