I made a rookie mistake yesterday. I put the majority of my pottery in the kiln before it was bone dry. The result is all of my vessels exploded from the moisture contained in the clay.


![C525D108-344E-4831-B3D3-935872A4FA27.jpeg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/jluvs2fly/23u6HrYm4ReF8bJSZD1CK5whSB8E83fjwAnPxtFczU8rt2oYSy5QYGmJ6St3RqgsMvCEj.jpeg)

The sight of my bowls in pieces was very disappointing. The bowls had been in my garage for a week which is usually long enough for the moisture to evaporate. The problem was that the garage was cold and dark during that week. My bowls and vessels also had a lot of clay in them.


![FDF119FA-42BC-43EA-843E-95143B2BED7C.jpeg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/jluvs2fly/EpCCFviaeUf1Tb4S1QKGnGakFxGD3p2k2mZCK52Xb3hMWhSFzsyDcLWSmcBkEhq5Xot.jpeg)

I can usually tell by lifting the bowl if it still has a lot of moisture in it. I thought that the heaviness was due to the thicker walls. I was so excited this morning when I woke up to open the kiln. Obviously, I expected different results.


![79CE6860-36B6-4AB5-93E5-EAA4DD00A1EC.jpeg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/jluvs2fly/23uR3Q49RgXq3Kw4Hw7NSxodvsM491nvTcoYvyuP5QdSbgqi43h1CncFichUnG3PErGbh.jpeg)

Not one piece was salvageable. Everything was broken or cracked. The lesson learned is that you can’t rush the process. I was away from home during the week that my bowls were drying, otherwise, I could have placed them in the sunlight for a while.

![AC4CC5E8-D89A-46F9-AD54-001C6FE15936.jpeg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/jluvs2fly/23yJR517ht4DA1TyUNg3b4SyUPcwRgF48Mn1VwRSn6aoCebjGb5S3NsnF6TGmJ3gb66Yr.jpeg)

My kiln is very small and I was not able to put the last two pieces in it due to lack of space. I am now grateful that I get an opportunity to let those bowls dry out some more before I attempt to bisque fire them.

I won’t make the same mistake twice. This was a lot of effort, time and clay to waste.

Enjoy your day.


![4F00EA84-77B6-46A9-9A48-A0ECC8A533C4.jpeg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/jluvs2fly/EpA5PyC3KycEY33YWSkwaqiCuLxRiuYqLDusjQeTWvNmGNcToeiqhzb8gPGBsWrigxo.jpeg)