Question:

How do I apply glaze?

Layering glazes

Some of the most interesting effects can be obtained by layering glazes. Try dipping an already glazed pot part of the way into another glaze. This greatly increases the chance of the glaze running, so don't try to doubling up the glaze all the way to the bottom of the pot. The best results usually come from trying a matt glaze over a gloss glaze. If the first layer of glaze isn't good and dry before applying the second, there is a good chance the glaze will crawl. A piece of bisque can only absorb so much water before it becomes saturated, so let it dry first. Anytime you notice the glaze cracking or peeling, it's probably too thick, so you're best off washing all the glaze off and starting over. Keep in mind that the glaze that falls off your piece can land on somebody else's and ruin it also.

Recipe: Bright Bronze

Bright Bronze
Cone 03
Oxidation
Ferro Frit 4508 8.8
Ferro Frit 4363 69.0
Kaolin 3.0
Potash Feldspar 9.0
Manganese Dioxide 7.6
Copper Oxide 1.0
Nickel Oxide 1.4
Titanium Oxide 0.2
Not suitable for tableware!

Thin pieces

When glazing a thin piece, glaze the inside, making sure you don't over apply, as the thin walls will absorb a lot of glaze, then wait for it to dry thoroughly before glazing the outside. Otherwise the clay may be saturated and glaze won't absorb and stick to the outside. Some people wait overnight.

Mottled brown ash glaze

Edouard's Brun veiné cendré (Mottled brown ash glaze) Cone 4. Thank you to Edouard Bastarache for supplying this glaze recipie.
Nepheline/Syenite 25%
Hardwood ash(washed) 20%
Silica 20%
Ball clay 5%
Gerstley borate 30%
Bentonite 2%
Ultrox 15%
Cobalt oxide 5%

Transparent Flowing Glaze

Transparent Flowing Glaze
Cone 04
Oxidation
Lead Bisilicate (Toxic!) 76.5
Kaolin 8.0
Nephelene Syenite 15.5
Comment: variations can be achieved by adding small amounts of oxides and carbonates ( 2-5%).
Not suitable for tableware!

Remove unwanted wax

To remove unwanted wax from a piece, rebisque it or microwave it on high for 5 minutes.

Smooth White Matt

Smooth White Matt: Cone 4 - 7 Oxidation
Ferro Frit 4616 60.0
Nephelene Syenite20.0
Ball Clay 20.0

Handy glaze pourer

Handy Glaze Pourer: The green straight handled cups that come with dry
detergent can have the
handle bent straight down by heating over a flame. They then will hang over
the edge of your glaze
bucket, and they pour a nice small stream from the corners of the cup.

Save little dabs of glaze

Be sure to save those little dabs of glaze left oven in a jar. You can pour the excess in a larger jar and save it for later. You probably would not want to use it as a decoration after mixing all the colours together, but you can use it inside of something such as a flower pot where it will not be seen.

Recipe: Bleu de Sorel (Sorel blue)

Bleu de Sorel (Sorel blue)
Cone 04
E.P.kaolin 20%
Frit #3134 78%
Bentonite 2%
Zircopax 18%
Cobalt carbonate 4%

‘low-fire'

The types of glazes used in hobby ceramics fall under the ‘low-fire' category since the kiln only uses the medium temperature ranges to mature the glazes

Maiolica Glaze

Maiolica Glaze
Cone 07-06
Oxidation
Ferro Frit 4364 (Lead Bisilicate!) 31.5
Ferro Frit 3271 (Borax Frit) 68.5
Kaolin 10
Tin Oxide 10

Brilliant Ink Blue

Steve's Brilliant Ink Blue Cone 4 Oxidation or Reduction
Ferro Frit 3134 50.0
Potash Feldspar 20.0
Ball Clay 20.0
Zinc Oxide (dense) 10.0
Cobalt Carbonate 1.5
Cobalt Oxide 1.5.

To remove glaze from fired pieces

To remove glaze from the bottom of pieces that you want to dryfoot, mount a piece of sandpaper on a board or table top and simply rub off the glaze in that area.

Recipe: Clear Gloss

Clear Gloss
Cone 04
Oxidation
Frit 4064 (Lead Bisilicate!) 78.0
Kaolin 13.5
Silica 4.5
Whiting 4.0

Not suitable for tableware!

Test tile attributes

Texture: It is generally a good idea to add texture to part of your test piece so you can see how the glaze will respond to texture and carvings.
Holes: Put a hole somewhere to hang your tiles on a wall board or to hang off the handle of the bucket.
Marking: Put some type of word or code that reminds what glaze this was, what clay it was on, and perhaps even firing temperature. Or simply number them and keep the details in a notebook by number.(One way to number is with one of those adjustable rubber stamps, the ones with wheels to change the number).
Dipping: Usually best to do three dips. First dip covers the whole area. Second dip covers 2/3 of the area. Third dip covers half the previous dip. So you have 1/3 with 1 coat, 1/3 with 2 coats, and 1/3 with 3 coats. (Keep the thickest coat the furthest from the kiln shelf in case it runs)
Layer multiple glazes:
For example, take a circle, dip 1/3 in glaze 1, dip 1/3 in glaze 2 (overlapping glaze 1), dip 1/3 in glaze 3 (overlapping glaze 2 on one side and glaze 1 on the other). So you get 3 solid colors, plus 3 overlap colors. Another example: take a square, dip ½ in glaze 1, turn, dip ½ in glaze 2. At this point you have two solids, plus 1 solid over the other. For the 4th section you could try layering the opposite way (glaze 1 over glaze 2 instead of glaze 2 over glaze 1), have an underglaze coat, or introduce a texture or a third color.
Other layering effects: For example, undercoat a section with underglaze, or paint an iron oxide and a cobalt oxide line so you can see if the oxide runs or stays put during firing.

Recipe:Clear Gloss

Clear Gloss
Cone 08 - 04
Oxidation
Ferro Frit 4110
Whiting
Kaolin 85.0
5.0
10.0
Clear Gloss
Cone 04
Oxidation
Ferro Frit 3124 85.0
Ball Clay 15.0

Clear Matt

Clear Matt
Cone 9
Oxidation or Reduction
Talc 30.0
Whiting 25.0
Potash Feldspar 34.0
Silica 11.0
Rutile 2.0

Transparent glaze Over-application

It is important that you do not over-apply transparent glazes since too much colour will give a milky finish over colours

Semi Opaque Tan/Cream

Semi Opaque Tan/Cream E/W
Cone 04 - 03
Oxidation
Calcium Borate Frit 8.0
Lead Bisilicate (Toxic!) 60.0
Rutile 8.0
Bentonite 4.0
Silica 4.0
Potash Feldspar 16.0
Not suitable for tableware!

Recipe: Brilliant Ink Blue

Brilliant Ink Blue
Cone 4
Oxidation
Ferro Frit 3134 50.0
Potash Feldspar 20.0
Ball Clay 20.0
Zinc Oxide (dense) 10.0
Cobalt Carbonate 3.0
Comment: possible to fire in reduction

Frit

Those little chunks of colour that are found in crystal glazes are called frit. They are pieces of dried glaze.