Clay is harvested in fall from pueblo land. It is crushed, hand washed, and sieved three times for silkiness. Then sealed in buckets to ferment for 8 months. In spring, the buckets are opened, water is drained, then the stratified clay is removed. The bottom layer, now fine mica, is removed & saved for slip. Clay is kneaded, to wake it up. The potteries are made using the coil & scrape method. Clay is pressed into baskets or old pottery bowls. Coils are added to form walls. Dried corn cobs & gourds are used to scrape and shape the vessels. Vessels are dried slowly. They are sanded with sandstone to smooth. The vessels are slipped & polished with the fine mica saved from the stratified clay. River rocks are used to burnish for a watertight seal. Wool is used to buff. The vessels are pit fired with pine bark. Note: No additives are put in the clay. The result is a pure organic cooking vessel. Prayers and fasting are done throughout the process to adhere to sacred traditions.
