Misadventures in Glazing, or How to Make a Potter Sad
In last month’s blog post, “Testing 1, 2, 3,” after choosing some glazes to work with, I was all like: “Pistachio, blueberry and nutmeg! Woot!” I still feel that way about these glaze colours. But there’s this thing in pottery called the “kiln gods”.
Despite my enthusiasm for these shades, the spirits in my kiln want better offerings. As it turns out, well-intentioned testing hasn't appeased them.
My last two glaze firings left blisters on several items, particularly where the pot has a more rounded exterior curve--something I haven’t experienced before. It’s disheartening, especially since it happened to pots that I was so happy to make, like some bundt pans. After feeling down for a bit…aaand maybe enjoying some salted chocolate caramels…I put on my problem-solving cap:
- Test the glaze on the particular clay for fit. Check.
- Bisque fire hot enough to burn out organic gases. Check.
- Keep items away from the kiln elements that will heat up. Check.
- Leave room between pots for air flow. Check.
- Don’t apply glaze too thickly. Check.
- Avoid overlapping incompatible glazes. Check.
- Use witness cones to ensure the kiln fires to the right temperature. Check.
- Feel frustrated. Check, check.
My diagnosis? Where the glaze had a harder time running when melted, like over some steeper curves, the bubbled-up material got stuck and froze in the cool down. Whelp. Let's say it did.
As a result, I don’t have as many items available for the holiday season as I hoped. But I'm in a more philosophical mood now (check). I know that if a particular glaze produces less consistent results, there’s no need to get stuck on one shade. It seems the road ahead is taking me towards the fun of exploring more. Hmm, maybe the kiln gods know what they're doing after all.Â