The Art of Ceramic Dice with Fighting Chance Studio

29 May

Written By A.J. Weatherall

For more incredible photos, check out @FightingChanceStudio on Instagram.

Episode Summary

Coming Soon.

Links for Fighting Chance Studio

[00:00:15] Talking Dice: G'day, everyone, and welcome to the Talking Dice podcast. Whether you're a maker, collector, or just a tabletop rpg lover, we've got you covered. I'm the host of the show, Aaron, author of the Crit Maker Guide to Dice Craft, now available on Amazon. In today's show, we're going to be chatting with Andy from fighting Chan Studio. Andy makes incredibly unique and beautiful dice out of ceramic using a mixture of classic and modern techniques. It's great to have you on the show today. [00:00:39] Fighting Chance Studio: Well, I'm really happy to be here. [00:00:41] Talking Dice: Before we start chatting about your interest in dice, tell me, do you still like to play D&D? [00:00:45] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah, I do play D&D. I actually started with third edition, if you remember the old boxes that you would get with the dice inside and, like, the little pamphlet. That's how I first started out, and, you know, I kind of fell in love with it since then, I guess. Like, let's get divisive. Like, my favorite class. I want to ask. What's your favorite class? First. [00:01:06] Talking Dice: Oh, yeah. That's a tricky one. I don't know. I'm playing a wizard at the moment, but I'm not sure I'm totally in love with it. I feel like at level five, you've kind of got to make that choice to be a useful wizard and take fireball or a fun one and head down the necromancer road. [00:01:21] Fighting Chance Studio: It just depends on the group you're playing with, I guess. Because some people expect that fireball to be there, you know, just fly in the face of it. Right. But for me, all right, if we're getting divisive, I started with. And I still just have this passion for cleric. And with cleric, you can do the necromancer, and no one's gonna. You just be like, I'm not that kind of cleric. Right. [00:01:43] Talking Dice: Well, I mean, like, fireball, I'm guessing a lot of people would expect a cleric to have healing spells and revivify, right? [00:01:50] Fighting Chance Studio: Right. Yeah. You get. You get put into the portion of being, like, the band aid for the team. And, like, I'm always. Unless you're on the ground dying, you do not get a heal. [00:01:59] Talking Dice: That is so cold. Well, I feel like we could chat about D&D all day, Andy, but I reckon it's time we chat about your dice making. [00:02:08] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah. Probably a good idea. [00:02:09] Talking Dice: Now, as you know, my specialty is resin dice. And even when I was doing the book, I really wanted to chat with people who worked in different mediums apart from just resin. Now, you've gone down a completely different road and taken a much more traditional approach to dice making and decided to make your dice out of ceramic. Why don't you tell me a little bit about that? [00:02:30] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah. So Clay has been this. This thing that I kind of just fell in love with in college. Like, it wasn't one of those things that I went into life thinking I wasn't the kind of kid that played in the dirt. You know what I mean? That wasn't me. But whenever I went off to college, you know, I went to art school. I'm classically trained. Most of what I did was photography when I was in school. But when I took a ceramics course, I'm like, oh, my goodness, this is. You can do so much with this. And it's like, it's long lasting. It's. It connects you to the earth whenever you touch this piece. And people love ceramics. You know, they. They go to places to get cups and mugs and things like an art fair, and you pick it up and you immediately have this connection with this item. And, you know, I did that for a little while. I was kind of playing around with it. I had a kiln at home. I was making pottery, and then I found the resin dice making community through just using Instagram and posting pictures of my pottery, and I fell in love with that next. And I'm like, well, maybe I could make dice out of ceramics. And so I started doing that. Yeah. [00:03:42] Talking Dice: Yeah. And I must say, they're absolutely striking when you come across them on Instagram. Are there other makers out there making dice out of ceramic? I just haven't seen them around. [00:03:51] Fighting Chance Studio: You know, I'm not sure anybody is making glazed ceramic dice. So glazing is. Is a process of putting glass and fusing it to the outside of the clay body. So whenever you get, like, a mug or something, the part that makes it, like, you know, more waterproof is partially the glass that's fused to the outside. And then the fact that it's, you know, hardened through the process of being in the kiln. Vitrified is what it's called. So those are the two things that help make it waterproof. And I haven't been seeing anybody do the glazing part because that is when. When glass is hot, it's sticky, so it's really hard to get glass on all sides of an item unless you're very careful and delicate with how you place it in the kitchen. [00:04:39] Talking Dice: Yeah, that's absolutely fascinating. And I think before we talk a bit more about your process, I'm actually quite interested in the asymmetry that can be seen in your art. Now, I've commented about this before on your instagram. You know, the Japanese aesthetic of wabi-sabi, the beauty in imperfection, I can't help but notice that quality in a lot of your art. Could you tell me a little bit about how that kind of aesthetic influences your art and how you kind of get over that need for symmetry in your dice? [00:05:09] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah. So I think part of the reason that makes ceramics so appealing is the imperfection in that when it's handmade, whenever I am buying, like, a mug or something like that from, you know, one of my maker friends, I like to see thumbprints in it. I like to see the mark of the person that made it. And with. I don't want to, like, bash resin dice, but they come out just so perfect. Right. And that's not what I wanted to do with what I was making. It wasn't kind of a consideration whenever I was going into it, you know, I was looking at pieces of, you know, ancient dice that were dug up in, like, Greece or Egypt, and they're not perfect. And there's something beautiful about that, that, you know, that this thing that you're holding in your hand was made by another human being. [00:05:57] Talking Dice: Yeah, it's funny you mentioned that, Andy. I had a chat last week with a professor and historian who's done a lot of research into dice, and he sent me through a number of photos of ancient dice carved out of bone, and they're absolutely exquisite, and they've lasted centuries. And I can't help but wonder, you know, a lot of collectors and players these days tend to think of dice as these mathematical, precise instruments and how you respond when people might question your dice and whether or not they. They're fair or they. They roll, you know, mathematically perfect. [00:06:31] Fighting Chance Studio: You know what I'll say? I'll say the bad word. Balance. Right? That's what. That's what a lot of dice makers, if you talk to a lot of dice makers, and I know you will, they're going to get really upset about that balance thing. But for me, it's not the primary consideration. It's making something that's beautiful. And to me, like, when I'm thinking about balance and playing a game, like d and d, for example, or anything tabletop role playing game, I'm like, balance? It doesn't matter as much to me. I'm like, are we actually playing the same game? Because to me, we're getting together around a table to collaborate on making a story, and that's the beautiful part about it. And using beautiful things while you're playing this game and creating this wonderful story is much more important to me. That's the art, right? And not to bash the balance thing, because I get it. Some people really, really want to make sure that it's as fair as possible, but we're talking microns of difference. If you're thinking about a polyhedral die to begin with, some of them are a little less fair, I'd say, than others. Like, if you're looking at a d ten, for example, that's kind of got the pointy ends. If you throw it a specific way, you're going to be more apt to get one side than the other side. Right. If you're rolling a d six, for example, that's also got a very similar issue. A D 20 might be arguably the most fair, but, you know, you can only arrange those numbers in certain ways on the outside of the dice to make it as fair as possible. So that's what we're really aiming for. And I think I'd be really interested whenever you talk to the historian about this, about how ancient peoples thought of it. Like, I've done a little bit of research myself, and I think that at least the Greeks, for example, they felt that it was more influenced by the fates, you know, some sort of spiritual thing, than by a physical, you know, interaction with, with the play surface or something like that, you know. So when I'm making dice, I'm thinking more about that spirit than I am about, you know, the physical of it. [00:08:36] Talking Dice: You know, and I'm really glad you touched on that because a lot of d and d players and, you know, a lot of tabletop role players tend to be quite superstitious anyway. You know, they're talking about the mathematical precision of the dice and then they're, you know, they're talking to them and they're putting the favorite one back because it's rolling ones for them, I think. [00:08:54] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah, I think you're right. I mean, every table's got, like, the dice jail or something similar to that. But I think it's fascinating that people that at least the customers that I run into that are buying my pieces, they buy them for a specific character. You know, they're thinking about that character when they're making, whenever they buy the dice and when they're role playing this, this person. And I think that, you know, in a way, if you want to get spiritual about it, your character spirit is in those dice. So why put them in dice jail? You know, just roll with what you've got there, because that's your person, and that's how their quirks work, and, you know, that sort of thing. So that's the way I think of it, at least I think we've got. [00:09:33] Talking Dice: A whole episode there we can talk about, Andy, and we might pull that one aside for another. Another episode. But something I wanted to chat about was, for anyone who's followed you on Instagram or threads or anything like that, you'll see some disturbing videos of Andy hitting his dice with a hammer. Now, trust me, for anyone who loves dice, this is probably the most horrific thing you can ever watch. They should probably have some kind of content warning or not suitable for work. But, um, yeah, Andy, obviously your dice can take quite a beating. So, um, why don't you. Why don't you tell me a little bit about that? I think probably it's something that you get asked quite a lot as people see your dice. [00:10:15] Fighting Chance Studio: See, now that you've asked about it, I have a rule that I have to smash another dice. But so people think that ceramics are this delicate thing that, you know, if you roll it in your dice tray, it's gonna smash to a million pieces. And, I mean, maybe I took my anger out on, you know, somebody that didn't deserve it out on that dye, but I think it's important to show people just how strong they can be. I mean, when you put a piece of this clay into a kiln and fire it, it strengthens it through that process, through the process of temperature. They put these things on space shuttles, like ceramics around space shuttles. They're used in very high tech industrial situations. So it really just depends on how it's constructed and how it's fired that makes it and gives it that strength. So, you know, sometimes one or two dice have to get smashed to prove that point. And it's surprising how many times I have to hit it before it actually breaks. So many times. In fact, the last one that I did, it didn't even break, and I just couldn't bring it within myself. Hit it more times with the hammer. [00:11:30] Talking Dice: You know what? And I feel like if there's a sales pitch for your product, Andy, it should just be those videos. I think anyone who sees them will realize that, you know, they're going to last. They're going to last a lifetime. [00:11:41] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah. And I think you should take care of the things that you have. You know, I think you should roll the dice in a dice tray. You should put them in a nice box, because part of the reason why I started this was having something that you could hand down to your children or your children's children and continue this custom of playing tabletop role playing games, you know, disconnecting from the Internet once in a while and playing with your friends. Um, so, yeah, you know, I think. [00:12:10] Talking Dice: That's such a beautiful sentiment, Andy. And I must say, I look at my own dice and go, I don't think that they're going to be something that my, you know, children's children's children are still going to be enjoying. Now, let me preface that with the fact that, you know, I'm an engineer and a maker. I'm definitely not an artist, but, um, yeah, the. The thought of creating heirlooms like that is just absolutely beautiful. And I think it's a sentiment not often seen in modern manufacturing and gaming today. [00:12:41] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah. So I think there's something to be said, first of all, about something that is temporary. And I think resin, in a lot of ways, isn't going to last forever. Forever. Right. It's something that you get to enjoy in that moment and is beautiful then. But, you know, also, it is nice to pass something down. I remember my dad gave me a handful of his dice, probably from first edition or before that, and, you know, I still have them today. And I look at those and, you know, they don't look so great anymore. And I wanted to make something that, you know, lasted forever that you could pass down because there's some charm in going through, you know, your grandfather's old stuff and pulling out something cool or going to an antique mall and seeing something interesting. So those are kind of the things that inspired me when I was thinking about making these. And I wanted to make things that had a little bit more of a timeless sort of quality to them. And I hope, it's my hope that people are going to be playing at least this game or something similar to it generations from now. [00:13:49] Talking Dice: Right. Yeah. The kids are playing d and D, 20th edition, but, yeah, I get what you mean. I mean, I've never been one to seek out antiques, but I live in a city where the whole circular economy and antique shopping is absolutely massive. Melbourne, Australia. And I think, you know, there's no doubt the popularity of that. People are trying to touch the past. They're trying to recapture something or understand something of the old world, both in their aesthetics and in their own lives. [00:14:18] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah. They just don't make things like they used to make them before. Old homes. You go and look at new homes now, and they look like shoeboxes, and it's just not the same. Sometimes I watch on YouTube these people that go through abandoned places and look at things. Power plants were beautiful, so I think that's something that we could bring back into society. And I think, you know, through tabletop role playing, you can describe those places, too, and share in that beauty of, you know, buried treasure. Right. [00:14:52] Talking Dice: And that's the thing. Like, if we're thinking about the dragon and his horde, I can't imagine him think, you know, having all of these plastic dice around. I think if he was going to fill his hoard with dice, it would probably be, you know, precious precious metals and, you know, ceramic handmade things. [00:15:07] Fighting Chance Studio: One should hope so. I think a dragon should have some paintings, too. I don't know how he'd hang them up on the wall. I think that'd be pretty cool if he had some paintings or, you know, some. Some pottery in there, uh, you know, some priceless little heirlooms and things. That's how I think of it. Dragon, you know? Yeah, sure, gold is great, but in gems are wonderful, but, you know, antiques, those can be cool, too. [00:15:30] Talking Dice: You mentioned painting in there. Apart from ceramics, are there any other art forms that you're into? Any other mediums that you, you like to dabble in? [00:15:38] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah, well, so I do a lot of printmaking on the side. It's one of the things that I did on my, on, on my instagram before I was doing ceramics. Printmaking was another wonderful thing that I learned in college that there's so many different ways of doing printmaking. And I've kind of integrated that a little bit into what I'm doing with ceramics. So I don't make the decals myself, but it's a printmaking process. So I kind of pick things out that have that printmaking quality so that I can add them to the clay body. And then the other things that I do, it's. I do street art, but my street art is ceramic. I actually make, like, little faces, or I'm actually going to make, like, little ice cream cones and things out of ceramics. And I put magnets on the back. I used to, back in the day, used to do the slap tagging with, like, you know, the post office sticker and put those out on the world in the world or, you know, glue things on things. But, you know, as I'm getting older, magnets are safer. If somebody catches you putting a magnet up, they're going to be like, what are you doing they're not going to, like, make you scrub it off. Right. But, you know, I think there's something to be said about making art for art's sake as an artist, and just having, like, a creative outlet that isn't one that is making you directly money so that you can kind of stay in that headspace of being creative. And, yeah, I like to put things out. Just give somebody, like, a little bit of joy when they're walking by and seeing something, and it being a magnet, they can just take it and put it in their pocket and take it home. And I don't mind. I don't think anybody else is gonna mind. And I think there's something cool about, you know, giving something away for free that you found. It goes back to that buried treasure. [00:17:18] Talking Dice: Idea, and, yeah, I love that idea that there's. There's treasure all around us. I mean, years ago, I was into geocaching. [00:17:25] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah, I love geocaching. [00:17:26] Talking Dice: It's that concept, like, you know, there's these little caches of treasure around you that you might not be able to see, but. But they're out there. And I love that concept of transient street art. I mean, you know, the fact that someone can pick it up and take it home. Do you ever kind of wonder, you know, where some of those little artworks have ended up, what they've seen, what. What. What stories they've encountered? [00:17:48] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah. You know, I often wonder, does somebody, like, have a refrigerator somewhere where my stuff is up on there? It's not just, you know, my parents putting stuff up on their refrigerator. Somebody else is at home. They've got my magnet on there. It's kind of cool to think about, right? [00:18:03] Talking Dice: Yeah, exactly. Someone's seen it, loved it, picked it up, and taken it home with them. [00:18:07] Fighting Chance Studio: And, I mean, I don't want to, like, sound self absorbed or anything, but I think that art, in a way, is the stuff that people decide to keep. Right. So it's. Yeah, we can make things that are art, quote unquote art, you know, in the world right now, but it really is applying to be art. You know, I think that's the way I think about it. So if somebody decides to put that thing in their pocket or keep it or, you know, pass it down, that's whenever it truly becomes its real thing, right. Because people love it enough to keep it. [00:18:42] Talking Dice: And I think that's key. And I think it's something that a lot of dice makers feel, you know, whether they're selling their dice through an online store or at a convention or something like that. Um, the fact that, you know, someone has come along, they've. They've picked up this. This dice that they've created, and they've, you know, whether it's because it speaks to their character or it speaks to, you know, something that they love, they've just decided that they want to part with their hard earned cash for it. You know, I know for myself that just. That just always gives me a thrill. But on the flip side of that, sometimes, you know, there's dice that I almost don't want to give away. I'm like, I kind of want to keep that for myself. But, you know, then someone sees it, and they. They love it, and, you know, I've kind of got. [00:19:23] Fighting Chance Studio: Because that's whenever the art is complete, right? It's because that person assigned some meaning to it and they found joy in it. And I feel that same thing. Whenever you make something that's really cool and you want to keep it. Gosh, like, it's really hard to let some of it go, but you also need to remember that you can make more of that thing. And that's what I always tell myself, and then I end up not keeping something, but, yeah, that's kind of how it goes. [00:19:49] Talking Dice: You know, it's funny. I got a little dose of that. The other day, someone left a review on my book, and you know what it's like. You put out any publication or put out anything into the world, and there's going to be people who love it and people who hate it and, you know, people who are just ambivalent about it, you know? But at the end of the day, it was a passion project for me. You know, it was about my love of dice making, and I really wanted to, you know, I wanted to put the collection together, and I wanted to, you know, to give people an insight into some of the incredible artists in the industry and things like that. And this person said exactly that in the review, and I've got to say, it kind of hit me in the feels. They, you know, they got. They got what I was trying to do. And, you know, I can't tell you, you know, how exciting that is when you. When you put something out there and someone understands, you know, what. What it was supposed to be. [00:20:39] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah. I think that there's something very human about that feeling of wanting to connect with another person on that level. And, you know, and it's not just about, you know, the weather. It's something much deeper than that, and I think that's a yearning that every human being has inside of them. So I think that's an art with a. That's. That's how art connects with people. And I think it also happens in tabletop role playing games, too. You can connect on that deep level with somebody else, and I think it's a really good tool to do that in such an intimate way with friends. Right. You can talk about very difficult topics and, you know, put it in this. This mode of play, and it brings back, because we all did that as kids. You play with things, and you would tell your stories and work through feelings with your toys, and now you get to do that as an adult. And I think that's something that a lot of human beings on this planet kind of lose connection with. And tabletop role playing can give back. [00:21:39] Talking Dice: You know what, Andy? I feel like that is an entire episode right there, and it's something that I might have to get you back on the show. And we can just spend a whole lot of time, you know, talking about that exact subject. But let's just continue on for a little bit and talk about your dice and, you know, what sort of process you go through when you were creating them. [00:21:56] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah. So it's. It's very different than what I. What I'm seeing these resin makers do. And it. I'll be honest, it looks like wizardry to me when I look at these resin makers, and they say the same thing to me. So let's maybe demystify it a little bit. So, ceramics, the process of making ceramic dice, is not too dissimilar to making, you know, like a mug or something like that. So I start out with a 3d print. I've worked with some really great people, like clerics, components, arcana cast, to make those original pieces. And I make a mold of it not too dissimilar to what you guys do. And I get a rough shape, generally, and a little bit of a rough impression of what numbers are and what sides. So the clay is wet at that point. And then as it begins drying and going through a process, it goes from, you know, workable plastic is what we call it in the ceramics world, clay that's kind of moldable. And then it goes into a process called leather hard, where it's kind of. It feels like leather. I think of it like, you know, wherever you pull a chocolate bar out of the refrigerator, that feeling. Oh, I love whenever the clay is like that. So I'll take a x acto knife, and I'll just cut off flashing, you know, mold it into a shape that's exactly what I want it to be. I use q tips and water to kind of smooth it out. And then once you've got that, that piece of clay molded and shaped, you can put it into the kiln where it goes through the first firing. It's called bisque firing. And that makes it porous but hard and ready to accept glaze. And then when it comes out, you paint the outside with decoration or, you know, the glaze that you're going to use, it goes back into the kiln again where the glass is fused to the clay, and then it comes out looking like the finished product. So there's a lot of steps in that process. And I know before we were actually, you know, started the. The stream today, we were talking about getting dice ready for a fair or something like that. And I'm always super jealous of these resin dice makers who can make stuff, you know, a few weeks ahead of time and be ready. Me, I need three months to go through the whole process of making these dice. And I do big batches so that it's more worth it, because when you fire up a kiln, you got to fill it. Right, because it's expensive to turn it on. [00:24:34] Talking Dice: You know, I'm absolutely fascinated hearing about the process there, Andy. I've got to say, my, my knowledge of pottery or ceramics or anything at all like that is from my, my high school days of creating, you know, gargoyles and, and funny shaped cups and things like that. But, you know, seeing some of the stuff you've done recently on Instagram, you've been doing a lot of work with some really, you know, incredible looking glazes and even gold. You know, what's it like working with gold as a material? [00:25:04] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah. So gold is a very difficult thing to work with. With ceramics, it does require another go inside of that kiln. So it's another huge step in the process where you have to fill up a whole chamber full of. Full of these dice. But gold, the product that I use is called gold luster. So it's gold that's suspended in, like, a pine resin. And you have to meticulously paint pine resin onto your dye ahead of time. And I don't know if you've ever, like, painted something, but painting with, like, pine resin is like painting with molasses or, like, you know, what you'd put on your pancakes and you have to put it on the outside of the glass, and you can't bump it or touch it or anything or it will smear. So it's really difficult to work with. So you have to be very perfect about it. Let it dry the right amount, and then it goes back into the kiln again for still like a thousand degrees or, you know, something like that. It's still very, very hot, but much less hot than it is for the glaze fire or the bisque fire. And it burns off all that resin and it leaves behind gold, pure, pure gold on the surface of your. Your dye. I also use something called a pearlescent overglaze. It's very similar, and that comes out and makes it kind of look like you've pulled it out of an oyster. So that's cool as well. So you can do, you know, yellow gold, you can do white gold. A lot of different possibilities with that. [00:26:40] Talking Dice: You know, and I also love hearing on Instagram, Andy, that you're always experimenting with new techniques and things. Just curious as to a lot of artists, is there a huge pile of, you know, failed dice there as well as, you know, all the pretty ones that we see on Instagram? [00:26:52] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah, and I love taking those old ones and comparing them to where I am now. So people out there, if you're an artist, save your old stuff. Save this stuff for whenever you were a kid, put it all in a folder, put it in the closet, forget about it. But when you pull it again, compare it to what you've done before. Yeah. But people will ask me, like, how do you make these? Or how do you do this? And it's hard to kind of go into the level of detail that they want because a lot of it requires a lot of practice. And I think on a basic level, especially with, like, your book, that's a good entry level into getting people into, you know, making dice or taking a ceramics course is a good way to get them into making ceramics. But you have to put that time and those hours in to know how the material works so that you can kind of play around with it and push the boundaries of it. Right? [00:27:46] Talking Dice: Yeah, absolutely. And I know you said before that you felt like, you know, resin dice making was a little bit like magic. But, you know, I've got to say, what you do is so elemental. It's like elemental magic. You know, you're taking something from the ground, from the earth, and you're adding fire to it. And, you know, when you open the kiln, after all of that, you've got this, this incredible magical artifact. [00:28:08] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah. Yeah, it is kind of magic. So I have thought about it because here's the thing, and I think any ceramicist, anybody that makes pottery is going to tell you the same thing when you go to that final firing and you open the lid and you look inside. It's like Christmas morning every time you open that kiln, because you don't know for sure how those things are going to turn out. Because there's so many factors about how much air is in that kiln, how much, you know, material burned off inside in the firing, how thick or thin you put on the glaze. There's a lot you can't tell until you pull that lid open. And it feels like being a wizard. Whenever you open that. That kiln top and you look down inside of there, and I think they never look as beautiful as they do immediately when it's opened. And then every. Every moment after that, it looks just teensy bit worse than it did the moment you pull that. That kiln open. But that's just me. [00:29:06] Talking Dice: Yeah, but is that just the artist seeing all of the imperfections that you didn't see before you put it in. [00:29:11] Fighting Chance Studio: There, or, oh, I did this or that wrong? [00:29:15] Talking Dice: I don't think it's just you. I think it's any artist. And, Andy, have you thought about writing your own book, the fighting chance guide to dicecraft, maybe? [00:29:23] Fighting Chance Studio: Gosh. I never thought of myself, really, as an educator. And if I'm being honest, I'm not very good at throwing. The throwing is the process of putting the clay on a wheel and putting it into that form, the pot. I was never very good at that. So if you want to become a ceramics pottery teacher, you've gotta. You've got to know how to do that, first of all. So, you know, maybe in the future. I'm not gonna say no, but. [00:29:49] Talking Dice: All right, I'll hold you to that one, Andy. And you're starting to build quite a good following on your social media accounts. You know, are there any other dice makers or ceramicists that you're really interested in that you follow on Instagram, or, you know, dare I say TikTok? [00:30:04] Fighting Chance Studio: I am. I am kind of on TikTok. I need to do better with TikTok. I gotta do. I gotta smash more dice on video. But I think most of. Most of my experiences with Instagram, so I'm kind of like, I'll name drop some people that are Instagram people, but I think we should probably talk about potters, and I also think we should talk about dice makers. So the people that are here for dice, let's start with that, because that's the candy that'll get you in right so one of the people that I really like seeing is archival dice. They use polymer clay to make their dice, so it's a different process than what I do. And it's really kind of cool to see how they work with, you know, a polymer clay. Make this, like, beautiful marbled, sort of intricate design. Delve wood is another one. I'm a huge fan of Delve wood. They. They mix a little bit of resin, but it's like, like burl or, like. Like a knot in the wood. It's so beautiful. And every time that they post stuff, my wallet cries, like, every time. And then, um, another person was Jody's dice farm. She does jasonite. I don't know anything about that process. It's like this faux stone. So I would encourage people that are into dice looking at resin. Resin's great. You should definitely check out resin makers, but there's people out there doing these really cool other things. Now, as far as pottery goes, are you familiar with the pottery world at all? Do you, like, buy any of those sort of things? [00:31:30] Talking Dice: You know, I haven't been up until now, but after this chat today, I think I'm definitely going to be. [00:31:34] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah. Yeah. So I think Earth Nation ceramics is pretty well known because he's got a YouTube channel, but his friend, Lindsey M. Dillon, she is just an artist all on her own, and she doesn't do just, you know, pottery as far as, like, mugs and stuff. She does sculptural stuff, too. So I think you should kind of, like, go check her out as well. And then some of my. Some of my friends that are on there is. Is trillium pottery and little laoshop, and they do some really cool stuff. Trillium does, like, these, like, beautiful moth drawings and, like, foresty sort of things on, like, carved into this, like, matte black surface, which is really cool. And little out does cute little faces on things. So I have some donuts that she made that have, like, a little face on the donut, and it hangs on the wall and it just makes me smile every time I see it. So your listeners should check out more of these ceramic mug makers and artists, because there's nothing cooler than sitting at your D and D table and having a mug and having your dice. And if they match, that's even cooler. Right? [00:32:44] Talking Dice: And is that a product you're going to be offering as well, Andy? The Dyson mug combo? [00:32:49] Fighting Chance Studio: You know, I think that there are better mug makers out there, like Lindsey or little hour trillium, that make mugs way better than I ever could. So I would encourage you to kind of mix and match and find an artist that matches along with the dice that you're using. Doesn't have to be my dice. You could find a resin thing that, that matches with, you know, a mug that you like to use, and then you can come to your d and D, you know, group and, and have something really cool to show off and drink, you know, whatever your preferred beverage is for that night out of it. [00:33:22] Talking Dice: Depends on your character. Sometimes I like to drink out of one of those, uh, viking drinking horns. Yeah, that's always good. Depending on the character of choice for the day. [00:33:31] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah, I've always wanted one of those. Yeah. And then I've seen people make dice out of, like, bone. So that would be a cool one to kind of mix with that horn, and then you can kind of mix and match those two together. That'd be pretty cool. [00:33:44] Talking Dice: Yeah. Andy, if someone was wanting to get into dice making and didn't want to go down the traditional avenue of, you know, resin or, you know, 3d printing and all of that sort of stuff, what sort of advice would you give them? How would you recommend that they get started with something like, you know, ceramic or, you know, something different? [00:34:02] Fighting Chance Studio: I mean, just, just do it, first of all. But that's, that's not a satisfying answer. It's about lowering that entry level, like, barrier of entry. And a book is a great way to do that, and taking a class is a great way to do that. So, you know, anybody out there that's, like, thinking of getting into these things, pick up, you know, a book like your book, or, you know, go to a class, you know, learn how to do pottery from, from somebody that's been doing it longer than you have, you know, and learn how to do that process through, through that way. [00:34:32] Talking Dice: And what about practically someone who's maybe dabbled in pottery before and wants to, you know, give dice making a go? [00:34:38] Fighting Chance Studio: So, you know, I would, I would aim to make a product that isn't necessarily perfect. It doesn't have to be exactly right, you know, and put it up on Instagram, start posting, tell people about it. Join the community that is online that is making dice. Because one thing that I've learned, at least in dice making, is that the dice makers themselves are very welcoming. They're, they're very kind. And, you know, there's some people in there that, you know, may be a little gatekeeper or not, but I think, by and large, people are going to support you for making something cool, and especially if that cool thing is unique and different, and it doesn't have to be perfect by the time you put it out there. Oftentimes we think we have to hone our craft before we show it to somebody or we'll feel embarrassed. But I think most people are going to cheer you on when they see, you know, what you're making and how you've improved. Because early on, whenever I was making dice, people were buying them. You know, I'm sure that people still have my dice that were like, you know, way underpriced, not very good. But they fell in love with it and liked it and they encouraged me to continue going and improving and look where I am now. Right? [00:35:53] Talking Dice: Absolutely. And you know what? I love that idea of makers putting out their videos even, you know, even if it's not perfect, even if they're learning, even if it's a failure. And I think, you know, when you see that it not only did you learn something, but it helps everyone else to learn around you as well. I think something thats a bit of a bugbear of mine on Instagram is a lot of fake demolding videos where people go, oh, look at these dice I just made. And ive just pulled them out of the pressure pot and theres no flashing or theyve been completely polished. And I dont think thats always a fair way for other makers who might be looking at your work going, my dice dont look like that when they come out. [00:36:31] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah, theres people that are there for the journey. They want to see what it turns into. And they also want to see that you're like, whenever you're a bigger dice maker, I would encourage them to put their mistakes out there as well and show people that they're human, you know, because we all make mistakes. Even I will have situations where, you know, something didn't quite turn out right. I had a mishap with my kiln once where it over fired and got too hot. And gosh, it is, it's, it's hard to look at still. I still have the pictures, but I posted about it online where it's just like little blobs of glass and cera, like on the top of the, the kiln shelf. And it's just awful to look at. But people relate to you. Then they see that you're a human being and they want to connect with you as an artist. Right. [00:37:19] Talking Dice: And speaking of failures, Andy, something that I always get asked by people is what do I do with all of the dice that just didn't work out? [00:37:26] Fighting Chance Studio: They but they do. They do. So I keep a misfits jar. So if there's ever one that doesn't turn out quite right, there's jewelers out there that like to make things with reject dice. And there's people that just fall in love with having this random, cool thing that isn't perfect. And it goes back to that thing that we talked about earlier where, you know, something imperfect can still be beautiful and still have joy from that person that holds it right. There's even this person, their name is escaping me at the moment, driving me nuts. But they're doing this project where they're making pottery from the very beginning, and their first piece is going to be one penny. And every piece they make after that goes up a cent. So they're like, you know, seven, $8 right now. But I've been following this journey. It's just fascinating because, like, you can see how they're improving over time. [00:38:15] Talking Dice: And I think that's an amazing concept and probably saves a lot of makers from that inevitable conversation of, are they charging enough? Do they need to raise their prices? And all of that sort of stuff? [00:38:26] Fighting Chance Studio: That's another really important point because I think that a lot of new makers really do undervalue themselves. And sometimes it creates a little bit of animosity between the people that are a little bit higher up and little ones that have just started. If you're selling your stuff for less than what it costs to make it less than the amount of time that you're spending doing, you're doing yourself a disservice. I think that if you're going into it, think to yourself, if this doesn't sell, I will keep it because I like it. Right. And price it accordingly. Because that time that you spent making it is valuable. The time you spent learning is valuable, and you should be compensated for your work. Right? So if you're giving yourself minimum wage or less when you're making these items, that's not cool, that's not good to you, that's not good to the people around you, and you should value yourself. Right? It shows that, you know, you respect what you're doing and your own yourself. Right? [00:39:29] Talking Dice: Yeah. Andy, look, that's such a key conversation. And I think, you know, it's definitely one that I want to have you back on the show and talk about in depth. You know, I think there's a whole lot to talk about in terms of pricing yourself in the market and valuing your work and all of that sort of stuff. But to be honest, I think that's all we've got time for today. [00:39:48] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah, that was great. [00:39:48] Talking Dice: So, you know, it's been absolutely amazing having you on the show. If people want to reach out to you or find out more about fighting Chance studio, what's the best place to get in touch with you or see more of your work? [00:39:59] Fighting Chance Studio: Yeah. So you could go to Fightingchancestudio.com and check out my website that's got a link to most of my socials, but I'm most active on Instagram. So I would recommend that people follow me there at fighting chancestudio and just kind of see what I'm doing and working on at that moment. I do sales about every three months or so because that's how long it takes me to make a batch of dice. So you kind of have to be watching to get your hands on a set. [00:40:23] Talking Dice: And it sounds like those dice will be very hotly contested. So, yeah. If you have the ability, please follow fighting Chance Studios and buy their dice. Andy, it's been an absolute pleasure chatting to you and can't wait to chat to you in another episode. [00:40:36] Fighting Chance Studio: Thank you. Thank you. [00:40:44] Talking Dice: And if you're hearing this message, you've listened to the entire episode of talking Dice and we want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts. We hope you enjoyed this episode. Please give us a big thumbs up and leave a review and we'll catch you in the next episode of talking Dice. Goodbye.

We need your support!

If you like the episode, consider buying us a coffee! If you love the podcast, please consider supporting us on Patreon 🙂

Running a podcast is expensive! With monthly subscriptions for recording and editing software, hosting, and countless hours of post-production (not even mentioning hardware), we really need your support!