Ceramic prototypes for KickStarter

So Kick starter doesn't know this yet, but I'm working on ceramic prototypes for the kinds of products we plan on selling. I'm designing functional and distinct forms that I would like to use myself. I'm focusing on teapots because I love tea. I drink tea continually while I'm awake. There are many considerations to designing a good teapot. 

A good teapot should:

• Brew enough tea to satiate your thirst
• Keep the tea warm
• Filter out the leaves from your drinking cup
• Be comfortable to hold and pour tea
• Not dribble down the side and leave rings
• Keep the lid on secure while tilting/pouring
• Make you happy!

As the prototypes come out of the bisque kiln, I test them out and note what needs adjustment in the design. I don't want you buying my teapot after seeing it online and then be disappointed in how it functions. 

In addition to a good teapot design, I'm exploring other functional/beautiful forms for the home. Large vases take a lot of careful skill and concentration on the pottery wheel. These are considerably more physically demanding as any imperfection in the centering process on the wheel will manifest themselves as the form is pulled. *sigh* I'll get there, and it will be sick, I promise. I will be developing a sexy porcelain vase today so we'll see how it goes ;)

Pottery

Today was my first day at the local-ish(Berkeley) pottery studio. It was perfect, epic, tranquil, homey, open, clean, fair, exciting and humble. Not my first time with my hands in some dirt mind you. Not some yard dirt either, I'm talking some mean B-mix or porcelain. I return home exhausted after warming up with some glaze testers. Planning on mixing my own glazes to get the look I'm after, so I need some little cylinders to observe the glaze properties. I'll try to get some pictures of the place up sometime soon. Things are still hectic.