Have you ever picked up a newly fired mug, only to find that the handle that fit ever-so-comfortably when you first made it is now only big enough if you were a hobbit? Or perhaps you were going for a 1-quart casserole, but now it's not even big enough to bake a serving large enough for Stuart Little?

No, you aren't going crazy. And no, this isn't some sick magician's idea of a joke. Take a deep breath, relax, breath out...and repeat after me: "It is all right that I shrunk my pot. My pot has the need to shrink. I may need a shrink, after all this...."

Seriously, though. Pottery does shrink. It's all a part of taking raw damp clay and bringing it to its fruition as a ceramic material. Reassure yourself that you are sane; read more about clay shrinkage in Why Clay Bodies Shrink.