Handmade Tea Cup from Yunnan Highlands | 600 Years of Pottery Tradition
(Side View)
We make pottery in Yunnan, up in the highlands.
This place has been doing ceramics for over 600 years. A lot has changed over time, but we still prefer making each piece by hand, instead of relying on machines.
This cup is small, about 5 cm tall, and feels light in the hand. I didn’t try to make it perfectly uniform — the rim opens slightly outward, just to make it easier to drink from.
The glaze is applied slowly, and in the kiln it moves on its own. That’s how you get this soft blend of pink and white. Each one turns out a bit different — this one settled into a balance I personally like.
(Inside Detail)
What you see inside the cup only really appears after firing.
Those small speckles aren’t painted — they form naturally in the kiln, from the heat and the glaze reacting together.
When we work with this kind of glaze, we watch the temperature very closely. Even a small difference can change everything inside.
This cup holds about 90 ml — small enough to slow things down when you drink.
(Rim & Transition Detail)
For me, the rim matters the most.
It’s the first part you touch every time you use the cup.
In the kiln, the glaze flows slightly downward, so the transition from white to red isn’t a sharp line — it happens naturally.
At around 1300°C, this kind of movement is something you guide, but never fully control.
We keep making things by hand for this reason — to hold onto that slight irregularity. It’s what makes a piece feel real over time.
