Ways to Play this Summer: Design
Look closely at the pattern on this beaker
This beaker was made in south-east England. The scroll and dot decoration was drawn freehand in a technique similar to piping icing sugar on a cake. The beaker was made from a white clay, but was dipped in a dark brown slip (liquid clay) before the pot was fired so that the finished cup was fashionably dark-coloured. The tan-coloured patches are the result of chemical changes that occurred when the pot lay in the ground.
Can you have a go at creating your own freehand design?
You can do this by icing your own biscuit with a piping bag and seeing how creative you can make your design.
If you are feeling really creative, you could make your own shortbread biscuits which you can then ice (but remember to let your biscuits cool down before you ice them). Alternatively, you could buy some digestive biscuits and then add your icing design to it.
