If You're a Potter, Work with Ceramics, You Probably Need CrackZapIt!
And if you're a potter, you're probably more likely to listen to someone who also works with clay... has for many years... and has not only experienced painful finger cracks, but came up with a solution himself!
That's me...Jackson!
I took my first clay class from Jon Stokesbary, my favorite potter, at the old Laguna Beach School of Art...right next to the entrance of the Laguna Beach Festival of the Arts back in 1965. (Hey, I was only 22 - you can imagine how old HE is!).
When I got out of the Army at the end of '68, I went back to school to study Art, Ceramics, and Education.
By '71, I was exhibiting at one of the Summer festivals... then had a booth at the Sawdust Festival until 1978 when I moved to Colorado.
In '73 I had graduated from college and started teaching Art and Ceramics at Saddleback High School in Santa Ana, CA.
I continued teaching Art and Ceramics, K-12, from '81 to 2002 right here in Norwood, Colorado and then retired...kinda'.
So there's the 'resume', but I also wanted to have a bit of a gallery to show you a few of the 1000's of pieces made over 45 years, just so you'd know I knew (kinda') what I was talking about!
The Clay Gallery
I've enjoyed making a number of fairly tall (18"-24" range) pots with thrown tops, bases, and lids... putting hand built sculptures on top, and creating the body out of slab that I have impressed and drawn into.
The way you do that, of course, is to roll out the slab, make what marks and impressions from stamps on them you want to...
...then the potter takes a large diameter plastic pipe and wraps newspaper around it (helps to get the pipe out as soon as possible from the slab so it doesn't shrink and crack around the immovable pipe/mold).
From there, score and slip the joint. I try to make the joint something interesting to look at by cutting shape into the overlapping part.
BTW, those sculptures are mostly hollow, usually starting out as a lump I hollow out like a pinch pot, and then add on to.
Baleen Whale Lidded Form . In person you'd see a maelstrom of fish schooling below on the pot's body.
What's it for? Well, once when my dad looked at a pot I'd slaved over, he said: "Bet that would hold a lot of beans!"
It's really supposed to hold your attention. {;>) About 19", Cone 5 Electric.
Squid Sculpture Lidded Form , about 18-1/2", Cone 5 Electric, also with a school of fish on the pot body.
The 'fish' are actually stamped into the slab body of the pot. The stamp used was derived from a Chinese butter mold in the form of a stylized Carp...
...I had spied the fish carving stamp on one of Stokesbary's pots and he let me stuff some clay into the mold...I think we were getting ready to go surfing that morning, but it only takes a minute!
From there, it's a matter of drying, low firing, and, Voila! Fish Stamp.
A Potter always wants to be on the look out for interesting textures and carvings to take impressions from!
Here's a little bit better detail of the 'squid lid' .
In person you'd also see the fish he's caught, as well as that school of 'impressed' fish all around the tall body of the piece.
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Folks Who Love CrackZapIt! say,
"Because it Works!"
"Thank you so much for this wonderful product. As an art teacher and child care giver I was washing my hands quite a bit. It wasn't long before I developed those painful cracks on my fingers. It got to the point where I couldn 't do the crafts I enjoy. I've tried everything but nothing worked until I used CrackZapit! Hooray! I will certainly be spreading the word about this miracle in a tube as I keep spreading it on my sore, cracked digits.Thanks again ! "
-Janet in Philadelphia, PA
"We purchased CrackZapIt! On vacation this summer at Murdoch's in Craig, Colorado. My husband gets horrible cracks on his thumb and I noticed this at the checkout counter. I thought," Why not? "And purchased a tube. OMG! This was the best purchase ever !! His thumb cracks disappeared within a day. We both used it on our trip through Colorado to Yellowstone and Glacier. We now recommend it to everyone ... Thanks for a great product. "
-Nancy, Omaha, NE,
"This is the only stuff that worked on my hand cracks .... and I've turned it on to my bartender friends in Mexico Beach, FL and they loved it !!!" (Ed.Note: Yes! It works in humid Florida where folks STILL get finger and thumb cracks!)
-Florida
"I have eczema on my fingers and I tried CRACK ZAP IT and it was very soothing. It healed up so quickly like magic! It has helped tremendously and I decided to carry one tube in my purse all the time. My husband tried it on his cracked finger tips, it worked great and the result was amazing. We want to buy a few CRACK ZAP IT so we can give them as gifts to our friends and family .... "
-Colorado
" During the winter months, my fingers crack right at the tip on the edge of the nail. In addition to being painful it's hard to do small delicate tasks because of soreness and bandaids. I used CrackZapIt one time and over night my fingers were starting to heal and I could get rid of the bandaids. This is a "must carry in your pocket" for anyone who works outdoors. "
-Pennsylvania
"I carry a tube with me all the time. It's always available to use at any time and really stops the pain of finger cracking. It helps heal the cracks in the creases of my fingers. In the winter time I'm never without it ! "
-Maryland
"Great for those cracks on your fingertips. I love it so much I'm getting some for my mom. Better than anything I've ever tried!"
-New Hampshire
"Heals dry cracked and bleeding fingers like magic. Nothing else even comes close. Its the only way we can get through the winter around here! Don't ever stop selling it please!"
-Massachusetts
I have found they work best together by applying the CRACKZAPIT first to any open areas, then apply the O'Keefe's. Then enjoy your painfree healing hands! "
-Ohio