Behind the Design: Katie Marks Makes Some Rocking Crystal and Astral Ceramic Mugs

Ceramic craft is considered to be one of the most primitive and natural examples of product design. For Seattle-based artist Katie Marks of Silver Lining Ceramics, that means quite literally taking inspiration from under the Earth’s crust for her latest collection inspired by crystal formations.

But just as mesmerizing as her final product—is the way she creates them:

Katie first sculpts the generic primitive mug form with her hands. Once the initial shape is done, she starts grafting down the mug and adding her own ceramic crystals into the crevices. The whole thing is slathered with her own hand-mixed paint before being fired in a kiln to solidify.

This isn’t her first foray into mimicking Mother Nature though ceramic wares; Katie previously made mugs heavily inspired by astrology. Unlike the harder edges of her crystalline mugs, the astral mugs have a smoother, almost milky feel to them (which probably makes them ideal for holding milk).

What’s really interesting is how Katie learned how to sculpt. Rather than attending spending thousands of dollars to attend school, she simply watched a ton of YouTube videos in her apartment and taught herself step-by-step. It just goes to show how easy it is to learn something nowadays with the power of WiFi at your side.

You can find more of Katie’s creations over on her Instagram and Etsy pages.

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