Last night, I put handles and stamped logo “plates” on a bunch of mugs. It took a lot longer than I had planned, but it was a lot of fun.

Before I could put handles on, I had to trim them, and this gave me a chance to try my new Mudtools “Do•All” tool. I’m a sucker for tools for shaping and trimming, so when I saw this one, I was helpless. I have another japanese-style trimming tool similar to this, but it’s mostly flat and square, with one rounded blade on one end. The Do•All is nothing but subtle curves. It looks very capable, almost trimming something before you pick it up. And do be careful, it is sharp. Once in your hand, it feels good. The body is rounded and fits well in all orientations.

One end has a square, yet curved blade, and the others a tapered, curved hook kinda thing. It’s hard to describe, but immediately looks useful. Both ends do really nice work. I was very pleased with the range of trimming and shaping this tool can do. All the sharpened edges are sharp but smooth, allowing a nice finish without any little hairlines, a problem I’ve had with other sharpened flat tools. I used the both ends to quickly trim the mugs. The clay was firm leather hard, and the tool ends worked quite nicely. I’m looking forward to using it on larger pieces that need more sculpting, like feet on big bowls. I think it would work well for that kind of work, too. I’m impressed with the initial experience and would not hesitate to recommend the Do•All.

Now, I’m back to throwing. I need another 18-24 mugs for a disc golf tournament on January 11th, so there’s not much time to complete them.

Season’s Greetings, Merry Christmas, and whatever else might be appropriate to extend my best wishes to you for a happy and peaceful end of the year and start of a new one! Tomorrow is the Winter Solstice, so the days start getting longer again, finally! Cheers!