I started adding overglaze decals to mugs and cups in summer 2025, and I hope to keep using them! These are drawn by me, scanned, and sent to the Archie Bray Foundation to be made into ceramic transfers. I apply them to fully glaze-fired pieces (they go on like temporary tattoos), and fire them again to bisque temperature to sublimate the design into the glaze.
The first batches of pots with this process have drawings of creatures and designs called "marginalia" – illustrations found in the spaces and margins of medieval manuscripts. I’ve loved these little guys since encountering them in my college Medieval Studies/Art History classes. The idea of these “doodles” decorating objects that take weeks/months to laboriously create was a bonus to their general cuteness and whimsy; as was how wonderfully they play over my dots and designs.
If you’re interested in reading a bit about marginalia, here are some links ~
"Why medieval manuscripts are full of doodles of snail fights"
"An 800 year old prayer book that's decorated with puns"
"The Medieval Menagerie: Animals in Illuminated Manuscripts"
"The Strange and Grotesque Doodles in the Margins of Medieval Books"
"Mysterious and mischievous medieval doodles"
"A Selection Of Weird & Disturbing Medieval Manuscript Art"
"10 Scary Medieval Drawings to Keep You Up at Night" (lol no they won't)
Marginalia mugs with carved, slip, & underglaze designs // spring 2026
