Pottery Tips  
  • Share everything, there are no secrets.
  • Learn the skills. You may be creative You may tell me you just want to make one of a
    kind pots, but that is no excuse for not knowing your craft. Skills define how far you
    can push your art. Learn to make 100 pots all the same, then if you don't want to
    make anything but one of a kind pots, that is fine with me. Repetition hones all of
    your skills and senses. Work in a series. Make 10 cups, all different. Pick one you
    like and refine it then make 10 of them. Pick one you like of the refined series and
    make ten more. Make subtle adjustments. Think about the inside, the outside, the
    clay, the proportions, the glaze, the way it feels, the way you have to approach the
    piece. Pay attention to every detail you can think of. Trim, make a foot. Make it
    function, make it an experience to use your piece, make it sing in someones hand.
    Remember, we can all buy a mug that works at the local department store for only 2
    or 3 dollars... What makes your mug worth buying AND using.
  • ALWAYS help a beginner. It's not just nice, it is a duty and a responsibility you took
    on with your second class session. Even if you have just a bit more knowledge,
    SHARE.
  • Learn how to glaze to fit the function and the form. Blue is not necessarily the
    answer, though it may be part of the answer.
  • Don't get attached. You can kill this piece anywhere in the process. It doesn't count
    as anything until it comes out of the final firing intact.
  • EDIT! There are a lot of ugly pots in the world. You don't need to add to them. Clay
    can be recycled. Do it. Save enough pieces for a record of your work, but don't feel
    obligated to keep everything that comes off the wheel.
  • Save a few pieces from every series. Use them to reflect on what you learned
    and what you want your work to look like in the future.
  • If you keep ruining your kiln shelves due to glaze runs or warping, a diamond head
    grinding wheel may solve a lot of your problems. The diamond wheel cuts through
    everything. It takes it right down to the bare shelf. If you suffer from warped shelves,
    use the grinder to remove the nasty flakes of kiln wash in seconds, then flip the
    shelves  over. They will even out again in a few firings. a diamond wheel is best
    because it wastes no time..gets the job done fast. $120 for the wheel from
    Fastnel..$26 for the Angle Grinder at Wal-Mart. VERY worth it.
Glaze (and other) Recipes  
Ron Roy's Sapphire Blue

Frit 3134                            37
Kona F-4 feldspar             16
Strontium carbonate            4
EPK                                   26
Silica                                  17

Add to Base

Cobalt carbonate       2.5
Rutile                         4.5

Metallic Black

Spodumene     50
Gerstley borate     25
Silica     25


Add to Base

Black iron oxide     10
Cobalt oxide       2
Copper carbonate       4


Randy's Sunny Day

Dolomite     13.1
Lithium carbonate       3.3
Whiting       3.9
Frit 3134     27.5
EPK     22.2
Silica     30

Add to Base

Titanium oxide     10

Medium Shiny Green

Calcium carbonate       9
Frit 3195     21
Soda spar     23.8
Bentonite       2.4
Silica     19.1
Nepheline syenite     15.2
EPK       9.5

Add to Base

Black copper oxide       3.5


Temoku Gold

Cornwall Stone     67.8
Whiting       8.9
Dolomite       7.8
Lithium carbonate       6.1
Gerstley borate       3.3
Silica       6.1

Add to Base

Red iron oxide     10

Clear

Calcium carbonate       9
Frit 3195     21
Soda spar     23.8
Bentonite       2.4
Silica     19.1
Nepheline syenite     15.2
EPK       9.5
Magic Joining Cement for all white clays
and porcelain

You know how white clays and porcelain tend to
crack..the handles pop off for no apparent reason,
yeah..you know how it is, -you attach handles, let
them slow dry under plastic for a week, uncover them
and the handle pops off anyway?

THIS CAN HELP!

Take 1 cup of the slip from your throwing bucket add
about 1/2 tsp of Sodium Silicate, blend well, pass it
through a sieve then add about 1/2 cup  of Karo
Syrup or Honey. Blend it all together. Use it to
attach your handles or lugs, or join two halves of a
pot together. When it dries it will dry as hard as
cement. You'll be much less likely to have your
handles pop off or even crack. The sodium silicate will
help to weld the join, the Karo Syrup makes it hard.
It is wonderful. I attach handles then just set the
mugs on the shelf to dry. This stuff will ferment so
if you have leftovers refrigerate it or it will smell
BAD!

Black Decorating Slip Cone 4-10
6600 Mason Stain     34
Kentucky OM #4     33
Gerstley borate     33







How to wash wood ash
*warning, wood ash and water
produce lye which will dissolve your
hands. Wear gloves! Wearing goggles
isn't a bad idea either.

1) Add 2-3 Gallons water to a large bucket
2) Add a lot of wood ash, mixed, pure woods, whatever you
have available.
3) Stir
4) Allow wood ash to settle, dump water and floaty bits (This
water will dissolve your skin, be careful!)
5) Add more water
6) Repeat steps 4-5 2 or 3 times
7) Sieve through a screen, I use 80 mesh.
8) Allow to dry
9) crush it up and use it as you see fit.