Pulling handles that don't look like afterthoughts
My mugs looked fine from one side. From the other side the handle looked like a separate decision made by a different person in a hurry. So February was handles: pulling, attaching, and throwing most of them in the reclaim bucket.
I pull handles off the mug now rather than pulling a strap separately and sticking it on. A thick wad is scored and attached at the top, then pulled down with a wet hand, letting gravity do the thinning. It takes longer, and the first dozen were dreadful, but the join disappears because there is no join to hide.
- Attach when the mug is soft leather hard, so both pieces dry together.
- Look at the negative space, not the handle. Two fingers should fit, or three for a big mug.
- Dry slowly, upside down, under plastic for the first day.
The batch I kept are on the shelf in the photo. I still turn them all to face the same way when nobody is looking.