How do you feel about ceramics glazed with the ashes of a loved one?

No, it kind of creeps me out.
I visited a potter who used horse hair on the outside of pottery. It was really beautiful.

@chyna -That is horsehair raku and it is beautiful!
A friend of mine does that and goes to local stables to collect the hair for his work.
Another friend goes to the stables to collect horse poop for another firing method. She once straddled an electric fence to get at the poop and said it changed her entire outlook on life. Lmao!

No, I too find it creepy. To each his own.

I have seen promotions for pendants and other jewelry made out of loved ones ashes in fact my secretary is wearing her husband around her neck.

@anniereborn -Especially the serving dishes for food
@Vignette -Is it a choker?

@lucillelucillelucille It’s a bead shaped pendant and it was her daughter that had it made so I can’t offer more details.

Oooh no, sounds a little too Ed Gein for my liking.

@Vignette He was a small fella…
@ucme -I thought of making my own urn but ceramics do break and I’d hate to make a mess.

The raku all of a sudden does carry some appeal as I have a lot of my moms hair I saved when I shaved her head for chemo I have been trying to find a reason to continue to hold on to and this could be cool. I could have an urn made and horsehair her hair onto it and put my dads ashes in it!

@lucillelucillelucille I do have more details in that the pendant is blue with metallic sparkles. The blue is the daughters favorite color. It was made by a lady in CA who sends out a collection baggie for the ashes and what is not used is either sent back or taken out to the ocean.

@Vignette- I know that the reason horsehair is used is because of it’s thickness.When placed on the hot pot, it makes a thicker,blacker line.
As for pet hair or human hair, it could be done but the lines will be much finer.That might be pretty cool

@Vignette -What is the blue and what are the sparkles made of?

@lucillelucillelucille MIght have been an idea to do this on a teapot with my grandma, she loved singing “I’m a little teapot short & stout…” did the actions & everything.

@ucme My mom did that too Lol

@lucillelucillelucille I do not know for sure but I would wager the blue is a pthalo blue and the sparkles would be a metallic cast in an epoxy resin binder.

All remnants of dead people should be disposed of.
Anything else is just occultism.

@Vignette -Is the pendant a container that holds the ashes? Do they mix the ashes with the metal flakes?

Same as @anniereborn. Creepy but to each his own.

@anniereborn – A friend informed me that she wants to do this

Bury ‘em deep or one might be scattered all over the forest.

@lucillelucillelucille The blue pigment, metallic and ashes were mixed in the epoxy and cast into a mold.

@Vignette-Are the ashes visible?
I use bone ash in some glazes, most notably chun & some iron reds. It is sourced from slaughter houses and at only 2% in my recipes, it lasts a long time.
I imagine they used a tiny amount for a pendant.

@lucillelucillelucille I would assume as much. I am sure the items size will limit how much ash they can use and why they have their return policy for any unused ashes.

@Vignette -I only need about 50 grams of ash for a 5 gallon bucket of glaze.not a lot when you think about it

I have been wearing my husband’s ashes around my neck for 12 years & you would NEVER know it unless I made a point of telling you!!! Some of the jewelry is glass where you can see the ashes. I chose a silver heart that only holds 1 cubic inch of ashes. It looks like this. I have the rest of his ashes in an urn on my desk. Having him with me always was a GREAT comfort right after he passed. I could NOT bring myself to simply throw him away!!! He requested to be cremated, but had NO special request as to what to do with his ashes. I chose to keep him close to my heart!!!

@LadyMarissa -I think that is lovely.
I have also seen “cremation diamonds”. Also an interesting idea.

^ Yes, I love the idea of the diamonds, but the cost is way on out there!!! I decided that as long as I was the ONLY one who knew I was wearing a mini urn, I wasn’t creeping anyone out & it definitely has helped me through some terribly sad days!!! He was my soulmate & his body was just an added benefit!!!

To answer your Q, I like the idea of the ashes infused in the glaze for pottery. It’s another of those quite personal things that you don’t “have to” share with those who would feel uncomfortable!!!

@LadyMarissa – I can understand that and I am sorry for your loss.
I still can’t get past the dinnerware idea even though the body is reduced to carbon & trace minerals in the glaze. I could however, do a decorative object using a bone ash glaze.

@lucillelucillelucille The dinnerware idea does kind of put me off; however, a glazed knick-knack sitting on my coffee table does sound interesting to me. Say maybe an angel figurine or angel wings or a ring cozy so I have a safe place to keep my rings while working around the house. I remember looking at one site when I first started considering the mini urn that also offered to add pieces of the deceased hair inside the urn in place of the ashes.

@LadyMarissa -Like hair in a locket, I suppose.

How many ceramics? No doubt the ashes from a human would glaze MANY!

@kritiper -It would at an average of 4 lbs of ash per cremation.
When I have purchased bone ash, I usually only buy a 10 lb bag as it lasts a long time.
My glazes require anywhere from 2–5% bone ash, which is a small amount but essential for certain glazes like chuns

Jewelry and decorative objects seems okay to me, but vessels for food and functional items is kinda weird.

The ashes, or “cremains” in a lamp or vase seems no different than keeping them unfired in an urn. But dinner plates and coffee mugs is strange.

@Yellowdog – I have sold many pots for that purpose (cremains)
One guy wanted a quantity discount. Lol!