Ceramics: Watermelon Tea Set


Watermelon Tea Set

I made a watermelon tea set for my niece’s first birthday. Read about it below.

THE STORY

It is amazing how time flies. It seemed like just yesterday my sister and I were at home, playing with our American Dolls and Barbies, dreaming of our future weddings and husbands. In the blink of an eye we were both graduated, married, and Christy was pregnant.

The nine months it took for us to meet Payton Grace was incredibly fast and painfully slow, all at the same time. I couldn’t wait to meet my third niece, the first for my side of the family. The day she finally decided to come into this world, she was perfect. I was thrilled to be an aunt once again.

My sister and I live in the same city, which means I get a good amount of Payton contact time. I love making her laugh, chasing her around, and giving her snuggles when she allows. I was shocked when summer returned once again, July 21st hit, and Payton turned one.

When my first niece, Rylie, turned one, I made her a tea set that matched her first birthday theme, Rylie in One-derland. I loved having the opportunity to make her something special, that she could treasure later in life. After Rylie, came Kyla and Payton. I realized I couldn’t favor one niece, they all deserved their own special teapots.

Payton’s first birthday was watermelon themed, and came and went before I had a chance to get hers complete for her first. However, her watermelon tea set came just six months late, for Christmas.

As soon as Christy shared the theme I knew I wanted to create a watermelon tea set. The teapot designed with a slice taken out of it, showing the bright red and dark seeds on the inside. When I finally got started, I allowed the body of the teapot to dry out slightly, before cutting the triangle shape out. I added clay slabs into the area, creating the watermelon slice. I added a stem-like handle, leaves, vines, and the easy-to-recognize watermelon striping.

Teapot

After the body of the teapot was complete, I made small teacups, with corresponding colors and patterns to match. I used black glaze to splatter the interior of the cups, to reference the black seeds of a watermelon.

Teacups

After completing the set, I decided it still wasn’t finished. I took the cut out section from the teapot, added slabs to it, and turned the watermelon slice into a creamer pitcher. A small vine was added for the handle, and a section was cut out of the top, to create a lid.

Cream Pitcher

I was excited to finally hand Payton’s teapot over to her. I hope she will cherish it for years to come.

Teapot and Pitcjer

Kyla’s teapot is currently in the works, hers will be Carnivale themed for her second birthday. Check back for an update in the coming months. Check out Rylie’s Alice and Wonderland teapot here.

Thanks for taking the time to check out my blog! Help me spread the word about arts and crafts by sharing with others. Check out more blog posts here. Shop my education resources here. Don’t forget to follow me on Instagram and TikTok for weekly visual journal demos. Until next time!

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