Pine Cone Ornament by Mike Skiersch

Size: approximately 5" long

Handmade by Mike Skiersch of Skiersch Studio in Chicago, Illinois.

Our original designs and stylistic tributes enhance your home in ways that store-bought housewares simply cannot. Our process incorporates the timeless art of tile making - sculpting, casting, and glazing . Each of our tiles is created with the utmost care, knowing they will be a focal point in your home.

Designing and Sculpting: 

The inspirations for our architectural tiles come from our favorite things - Arts & Crafts interiors, Louis Sullivan and Greene & Greene buildings, and all that nature has to offer. Once an idea captures our imagination, we determine a desired scale and sculpt an original clay tile or set of tiles. The tools used at this stage are the ones artisans have been using for hundreds, if not thousands of years. We strive to capture the smallest of details resulting in the process taking up to several weeks.

Casting and Bisque Firing:

To enable the duplication of the original sculpted tile, a plaster cast is carefully made of it to create a negative space version of the tile. Fresh clay is then pressed into the void in the plaster to form a new tile, identical to the original. This process is repeated - one tile at a time. Tiles are then bisque fired.

Glazing and Final Firing:

Glazing can be as simple as selecting one beautiful shade that showcases the intricate pattern of a Celtic tile. It can be complicated by masking out branches or leaves on an Arts & Crafts tile to allow them to be a contrasting color. Or a tile can have the many colors of a Moorish Pattern that need to be carefully applied with the most delicate of droppers. After glazing, the tiles are once again fired, this time at a higher temperature, to liquefy the glazes and bring them up to their final brilliance and durable imperviousness.

Find more of Mike's work here.