This is another example of flexibility potters have compared to manufacturers. These 3D printed gizmos are stuck on using the casting slip. Dipping their flat surfaces and attaching them takes seconds. Another feature of this mold for potters only: There are no notches (the halves were poured into disposable 3D printed PLA masters - and mate perfectly). Using the rubber band to hold them together was not ideal because realignment of the halves damaged the square inside edges. By using this method the mold halves can be aligned without pressure and fit perfectly. The 3D printed pouring spout is likewise attached using the slip (it also helps hold the mold halves together).

This glaze is 49% Wood Ash, 24% Soda Feldspar and 27% Ball Clay. 10 copper carbonate and 10 manganese dioxide are added to that. This beautiful sculpture was made by Dan Ingersoll, aesthetically this glaze is perfect for it. But there are two red flags here. Significant manganese and copper metal fumes are certain to be generated at cone 10 (they are seriously not healthy) so anyone using this must be very careful. But there is something much more serious - this glaze is being used on functional ware. Copper is well known to destabilize other metals in the fired glass. This 10:10 combination is a perfect storm for leaching heavy metal into food and drink. This is not an argument for the use of commercial glazes, it is one for common sense application of the concept of limit recipes.

Would you like to be able to use your own found-clays, ones native to your area or even your property, in your production? Follow me as we evaluate a mystery clay sample provided by a potter who wants to do exactly this. I will use ordinary tools that any potter either already has or can buy at low cost. We will describe this clay in terms of plastic clay bodies and common ceramic materials that most potters already use. The potter who submitted it has worked enough with the material to suspect it has potential and he wants to know how to best utilize it (e.g. at what temperature, with what glazes, mixed with what, processed in what way). In technical terms what we are doing is called "characterization".

This is G3948A (similar to the popular Ancient Copper product). To get this stunning result it needs to be applied thickly. Therefore it runs a lot. But the catcher glaze on the bottom cm of these mugs has stopped the flow. The catcher is a glossy black glaze and is hardly noticeable. I use G3914A as the catcher but Amaco Obsidian would also likely work. The inside glaze, G2926B, is one I have tested and developed to fit our clay bodies really well.

This is the G3948A recipe fired to cone 6 using our standard C6DHSC schedule. The color "breaks" to black where thinner around contours so it seemed like a natural that the inside glaze should be G3914A Alberta Slip black. The contour of the foot ring is important or the glaze will run onto the kiln shelf. My standard fluted ring foot is working well. Perhaps a better option would be to glaze the bottom inch or so with the black as a catch glaze.

Yes. Ancient Copper, as of Nov 2023, it is no longer available. Right is G3948A, our iron red (a publicly available recipe). Both of these have been fired using the C6DHSC slow cool firing schedule. As you can see the PC-56 crystallizes more, matting the surface in the process. But if cooled normally (e.g. using the PLC6DS schedule) it does fire similar to G3948A. Likewise, G3948A can be made to crystallize more if the iron oxide percentage is increased in the recipe (we use black iron, it is a little less concentrated than red but does not gel the slurry). The recipe offers excellent slurry properties when mixed as a dipping glaze. Our version uses Spodumene (which has 7% Li2O). Of course, lithium materials are very expensive these days, but that is what is needed for this effect. If you make a brushing glaze of it using our instructions only about 70g of spodumene is needed to make a 500ml jar. At current material costs, we could make 3 jars for $10 worth of powdered materials!

Left is G3933G1, it is part of a project to create an Alberta Slip and Ravenscrag Slip versions of our G3933A recipe (repeated issues with crawling was the motivation). During the process the silky matte texture was lost and thus the opportunity to add lithium. The glaze on the mug on the right, G3933G1, it the same except for the addition of 6% lithium carbonate. Lithium is a super powerful melter, turning this into a very reactive glaze! Our current lithium price is about 15 cents/g. To make a 500ml jar of this would require 330g of powder, at 6% 20g of lithium would be needed. That is $3.

Left: G3933E oatmeal based on Ravenscrag Slip.
Right: G3933 oatmeal based on a mix of G2934 matte and G2926B glossy base glazes.
The Ravenscrag version features a number of advantages. Most importantly much less tendency to crawl. It is also more responsive to cooling differences (more matte on slow cool, more glossy on fast cool). And its recipe is adjustable, it is easy to raise the MgO if a more persistent matte is needed. And it is easy to adjust slurry properties by changing the ratio of roast-to-raw Ravenscrag clay. And, it looks better, transmitting the brown body color on thin sections more effectively.

Casey Larson, our shipper and a pottery enthusiast, found this while breaking lumps on a stockpile. This is a very unusual find. The vast majority of fossils we find are preserved in iron stone concretions in our A1 raw clay, the top layer. Layers below that are highly plastic, as their lumps weather (many of which arrive the size of microwave ovens) they shrink and break down into smaller and smaller sizes. But our 3D material (the majority ingredient in Ravenscrag Slip and the lowest layer we mine) is less plastic so the lumps shrink much less as they dry. This keeps larger ones intact and has preserved this beautiful fossil imprint. This lump has been bisque fired to make the impression durable, thus the lighter color.

Dipping glaze applies and dries in seconds. Brushing glazes dry slowly and dry hard. Brushing glazes simply have gum in the recipe, dipping glazes typically do not. This is the Alberta Slip cone 6 base, made jet black with 4% black ceramic stain (our code G3914A). We normally mix this as a dipping glaze but I have made a 500ml jar of low SG brushing version using both of the following methods. These methods will work for almost any glaze recipe (for those having exceptionally high clay content less Veegum is needed).

1) Shake together, in a plastic bag, 340g of mixed glaze powder with 5g of Veegum and 5g of CMC gum. Add that to 440g of water in a kitchen blender and mix on high speed until it gels (the gums resist mixing so the highest speed for at least 30 seconds is needed to prevent lumps).

2) Take 680g of dipping glaze (assuming it is about 50:50 water:powder you get 340g of dry), put that in the blender with another 80g of water and proceed as in method 1. Less total water is being used because the dipping glaze might not be exactly 50:50 water:powder. During mixing, if it gels too much add the extra 20g of water.

This is so exciting that I make fancy labels, they are just ink-jetted onto regular paper, cut 62mm wide (2 7/16") and held securely on with 2 7/8" transparent packing tape.