I am still working my way to attractive, reliable glazes that work well in combination, here in my new environment at Gladstone Clayworks. I am not there yet, but I feel I am making progress. In contrast to the distorted bowl I made earlier this month, this time I dipped the pieces first in a transparent/white glaze before applying the dark, iron-rich glaze. This combination turns dusty brown (of the bowl) to a much lighter, caramel-like colour. On the one side, over that, a wide squirt of a white gives the caramel an even lighter, more golden tone; on the other side, the squirt of Bailey’s Orange Red gives some red, but far less than in the distorted bowl. The last, very thin squirts of my old faithful Blanc Beurré (from former Brussels days), kept it’s line nicely where it fell over two layers of glaze. However, not surprisingly, it ran badly where it fell over the broad squirts of the white and the Bailey’s; here the line broke, and left erratic blotches of white.

I misjudged how much all these glazes would run; but I got lucky. Though the glazes settled too heavily at the foot, I only lost one, out of a series of six. Live and learn…

Ht: 9 cm; di: 7.5 cm. Fired in oxidation, Cone 6; porcelaneous stoneware.

Next time I really must remember to photograph my pieces, even if I don’t like them. Because sometimes, when I reglaze a piece (hoping that an extra touch will make all the difference), it would be good to confirm the difference. Believe me, these are much improved. This time, I have no photograph to show what these three looked like before: though nice oil spots showed where the tenmoku was reasonably thick, elsewhere it was thin and weak, showing the stoneware surface beneath; the contrasting white both on the inside and outside was also too faint. Had I been using porcelain clay, my thin coating of the buttery-white glaze on the inside would have been fine; however, it being stoneware, the clay showed through. Like tea stains without the tea: not something anyone would be tempted to drink from.

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I like them now. I gave the inside a second coat of the buttery white. Then I actually took a brush (I always squirt my glazes), slapped a thick brush stroke of the dusty-white glaze over the unsightly areas, and finished up with a few squirts of my hard, buttery white.

A good save…

Reverse, below: the drips from the squirted glaze almost meet at the bottom;

and the brush stroke of white sweeps up from the right.

Ht: 8 cm; widest di: 7.5 cm.

I seem to have moved on to lidded pots, but still the goblets continue. Here again, tenmoku, overlaid with the zinc white 66. I’ve been making sets of six, each goblet in the set of similar shape and size,  with splashed glazes linking them together. I quite like the stark glaze drips at the back; however, some (who shall remain nameless) tell me the back should be less obviously a back, and also be a front (I think). I’ve been working on the idea, and the next lidded pots (awaiting a glaze kiln fiting) have an additional upside-down splash here. I was not entirely successful in making the splash ‘fit’… I will keep you posted.

Ht: 7.5 cm; di: 6.6 cm.

I wanted to cover the outside in the dark tenmoku (DMM4), but leaving some porcelain visible, emphasizing the porcelain body. I poured transparent 51 on the inside, then, after dipping the rim into the same glaze and leaving it to dry, I dipped the rim into latex. With latex also on the bottom, I dipped the goblet into the DMM4, holding from the rim. Then a big squirt of DMMH2 from a wide-nibbed bulb, followed with a couple of thin squirts of 11A. Thanks to Daniel de Montmollin and Carol Youngner for the glazes.

Fired to 1260°C, in oxidation.

Porcelain goblet. Dipped, slanted, into tenmoku (DMM4); dipped, slanted, into DMMH2; fine nibbed squirt of 11A (a white, with rutile – turns blue over the iron-based tenmoku). Inside: transparent 51. For glazes, thanks to Daniel de Montmollin, and Carol Youngner.

Fired to 1260°C, in oxidation.

Stoneware, base coating of tenmoku DMM4 all over, inside and out, showing oil spots on inside and outside, at bottom, and where it has run a little more thickly; DMMH2 wide squirt with big-nibbed bulb (shows tan), then a second layer of same squirted with finer nib; two final fine squirts of Blanc Beurré. The DMM4 speckles nicely through the two surface glazes. The trick is to hold the pot and the squirting nibs at the right angle, for the drips to converge attractively at the back (see photo at top). For next time: I should have left some porcelain visible. (Thanks to Daniel de Montmollin and Alain Losa for glazes).

My intention was to repeat the DMM4 goblet with the 66 (which turns golden), and add a squirt of BB (white). The effect is quite unexpected: the covering layer of 66 does lighten the tenmoku, but does not turn to gold; here it settles at the lower edge, turning blue. The tin white (BB) works well. Transparent 51 poured inside, dipped on rim, and lightly sprayed over the outside

Fired in oxidation, to 1260°C

Compare with the earlier DMM4 +66:

A quick, thick squirt of tenmoku; then, after heating the piece with a hair dryer to avoid having the second glaze run more than it should, I squirt a narrow band of a somewhat crystalline, titanium oxide white glaze (which, when fired, turns gold over the tenmoku), trying to keep it within the first splash of colour. Then I glaze the inside with transparent, also covering the top outside edge of the rim, making it easy on the lip. Finally, I take the spray gun to coat the outside with the finest layer of the same transparent, still leaving the surface matte, but giving it some protection against furutre stains. Porcelain; fired in oxidation, to 1260°C.

1260 °C, oxidation

Transparent glaze inside only, outside background left bare. White glaze squirted thin over tenmoku, which during firing flows down the surface, settling into a finely-speckled smooth creamy green/blue wave. In contrast, where the white hits the bare porcelain, its turns grainy, like sand.

Same glazes as above; but different kiln firing, with the white glaze a little thicker; here it turns a creamy gold, with flashes of blue. With the squirted highlights done, I sprayed a fine dusting of transparent glaze over the entire outside surface, leaving it just slightly mat. This does not change the colour of the tenmoku  (the tenmoku would lose its intensity were the transparent under the tenmoku), and also helps the white, where it strays beyond the tenmoku and onto the porcelain, to become smooth and creamy.