ceramic workshop handbookmold, or you’re making a complex slip mold, you’ll need to mix plaster....

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2008Ceramic Workshop HandbookPottery Tools and Studio Reference

Brought to you by the publishers of


Publisher: Charles Spahr

Editors: Bill Jones, Pottery Making Illustrated

Sherman Hall, Ceramics Monthly

Assistant Editors: Brandy Agnew, Jessica Knapp

Production Editor: Cynthia Conklin

Editorial Assistant: Holly Goring

Advertising Manager: Mona Thiel

Marketing Manager: Steve Hecker

Online Editor: Jennifer Poellot Harnetty

Editorial and Advertising Offices: 600 N. Cleveland Ave., Suite 210, Westerville, OH 43082 USA

2008 Workshop Handbook is published by the American Ceramic Society, 600 N. Cleveland Ave., Suite 210, Wester-ville, OH 43082.

Opinions expressed are those of the contributors and do not necessarily reflect those of the editors or the American Ceramic Society.

Photocopies: Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use beyond the limits of Sections 107 or 108 of the U.S. Copyright Law is granted by The American Ceramic Society, ISSN 0009-0328, provided that the appropriate fee is paid directly to Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Dr., Danvers, MA 01923, USA; (978) 750-8400; www.copyright.com. Prior to photocopying items for class-room use, please contact Copyright Clearance Center, Inc.

This consent does not extend to copying items for general distribution, or for advertising or promotional purposes, or to republishing items in whole or in part in any work in any format. Please direct republication or special copying permission requests to the Publisher, The American Ceramic Society, 600 N. Cleveland Ave., Suite 210, Westerville, Ohio 43082.

Copyright © 2008 The American Ceramic SocietyAll rights reserved

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2008Workshop Handbook


ContentsWelcome

cover images: top: Participants at the Metchosin International Summer School of Art in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. middle (left to right): Processing native clay for handbuilding at Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado; a participant at Hummingbird in Jacksonville, Oregon; Steven Hill demonstrates slip application at Springfield Museum of Art in Spring-field, Ohio; Brian Taylor throwing at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, Maine.bottom: Ted Saupe details a piece at Santa Fe Clay in New Mexico.

2008Ceramic Workshop HandbookPottery Tools and Studio Reference

Brought to you by the publishers of

Often, in addition to heaps of inspiration and new-found motivation, what we take away from workshops are the little tips or techniques we never considered. Sometimes just one small improvement or one new idea we take away can be enough to justify the entire experience. We have handouts from instructor’s we keep around our studio sometimes for years, and we refer to them often.

There is only so much a presenter can fit into a workshop, and there is only so much information our brains can process and retain in a short period of time. Since most workshops span anywhere from a few hours to a few weeks, the extended experimentation and exploration usually happens afterward, in your own studio. It’s our hope that this publication serves not only as a reminder of your intensive workshop experi-ence, but also as a spark to ignite interest in other avenues of exploration.

The tools and reference material offered here are acces-sible enough to be applicable to all kinds of work, regardless of your current skill level or experience, and they’re refined enough so that they may promote experimentation or discus-sion at your current workshop.

Finding a new way of looking at what we do is part of why workshops can be so productive. Perhaps just a new way of looking at a familiar process is what we need to kick start our efforts in the studio. We hope that you’ll find some inspiration in these pages that opens your eyes, your mind and your hands to something new and exciting. Welcome to your workshop!

Sherman Hall Bill Jones

6 Perfect Plaster by Vince PitelkaWhether you want to slip cast, press mold or just make a drying bat, mixing plaster correctly will make the difference between success and—well something less than success.

8 Clay Tools: FormingIngenious gadgets and techniques to make studio life easier and maybe a little more interesting.

14 Dividing Web by Sylvia ShirleyA popular time saver, this handy tool is indispensable for sectioning the surface of a pot.

16 Colorant Chart by Robin HopperUnless you use no color whatsoever in your work, you’ll want to keep this one handy on glaze testing day.

22 Clay Tools: DecorationSimple items you can make that will let you spend less time preparing and more time decorating your work.

26 Kiln Firing ChartWhat happens in a kiln, and when does it happen, and why do you care? Look no further for the answers.

28 Using Cones by Tim FrederichIf you’re going to bother to spend the energy and hours making your work, you should spend the energy to learn how to fire it properly.

30 Clay Tools: FiringThere is always something we can do to improve our work at every stage of making—and firing is no exception.

32 Choosing a ClayThe most basic of our materials can sometimes be overlooked. Be sure you are using the right clay for the right job.

34 Primary Functions of Raw MaterialsSo you need to reformulate a glaze recipe you haven’t looked at in years. Here’s a handy guide to remind you of what does what.

36 Manufacturers and SuppliersDon’t lose this list! It has anything and everything you need to locate tools, equipment and supplies for the studio.


Whether you need a drying bat, a simple hump mold, or you’re making a complex slip mold, you’ll

need to mix plaster. Getting the plaster right requires a bit more than just “dumping and mixing.” Here are ten ways to get the best results for your next plaster project.

Prepare Your Mold A common mistake of potters is to mix plaster only to

realize everything’s not set up for pouring. Before casting, make sure your model is set, the mold boards or cottle are secure, and all the surfaces you’re pouring onto are coated with a parting agent such as mold soap.

Prepare Your Work Area You will need a clean mixing container for the plaster,

a scale for weighing the plaster, a measuring cup for the water and a rinse bucket. Note: Plaster cannot be permitted to go down the drain, because it will form a rocklike mass. Even small amounts will accumulate over time. Line a rinse bucket with a plastic garbage bag and fill it with water for rinsing your hands and tools. Allow the plaster to settle for a day, then pour off the water and discard the bag.

Use Fresh Water The mixing water you use should be at room tempera-

ture or 70°F. If the water is too warm, the plaster will set too fast and vice versa. Use only clean, drinkable tap water or distilled water. Metallic salts, such as aluminum sulfate, can accelerate the setting time, and soluble salts can cause efflorescence on the mold surface.

Use Fresh PlasterPlaster is calcined, meaning chemically bound water

has been driven off through heating. If the plaster has been sitting around in a damp environment, it will have lumps in it, in which case it is no longer usable. Pitch it. Use plaster that has been stored dry and is lump free.

Weigh Out MaterialsDo not guess about the amounts of plaster and water

you’ll need. Once you start the mixing process, you do not want to go back and adjust quantities. To deter-mine the amount you need, estimate the volume in cubic inches then divide by 231 for gallons, or by 58 for quarts. Deduct 20% to allow for the volume of plaster, then refer to the table.

Add Plaster To WaterSlowly sift the plaster onto the surface of the water.

Do not dump the plaster or toss it in by handfuls. Adding the plaster shouldn’t take more than 3 minutes.

Soak The PlasterAllow the plaster to soak for 1–2 minutes maximum.

The soaking allows each plaster crystal to be completely

WATER TO PlASTER Mixing ChART

1 quart . . . . . 2 lbs. 14 oz. (1,293 grams)1Z\x quarts . . . 4 lbs. 4 oz. (1,937 grams)2 quarts . . . . 5 lbs. 11 oz. (2,585 grams)2Z\x quarts . . . 7 lbs. 2 oz. (3,230 grams)3 quarts . . . . . 8 lbs. 9 oz. (3,878 grams)3Z\x quarts . . . . . . . 10 lbs. (4,522 grams)1 gallon . . . . 11 lbs. 6 oz. (5,171 grams)1Z\x gallons . . 17 lbs. 2 oz. (7,756 grams)2 gallons . . . 22 lbs. 13 oz. (10,337 grams)2Z\x gallons . 28 lbs. 8 oz. (12,923 grams)3 gallons . . 34 lbs. 3 oz. (15,508 grams)This table is based on USG® No. 1 Pottery Plaster mixed to a consistency of 73 (73 parts plaster to 100 parts water) recommended for most studio appli-cations. Excessive water yields a more porous but more brittle mold, and less water means a very dense, hard mold that will not absorb water.

surrounded by water and it removes air from the mix. Small batches require less soaking than large batches. If the soaking time is too short, it may contribute to pinholes; and if it is too long, it will contribute to fast set times, early stiffening and gritty mold surfaces.

Mix The PlasterSmall batches of plaster can be mixed by hand. Use

a constant motion with your hand and you will notice a change in consistency from watery to a thick cream. Break down lumps with your fingers as you mix. Mix only for a minute or two being very careful not to agitate the mixture so much that air bubbles are incorporated into the mix. Mixing time affects absorption rates—longer mixing times produce tighter and less-absorptive molds.

Pouring The PlasterAfter mixing, tap the bucket on a hard surface to

release trapped air. Pour the plaster carefully. Wherever possible, pour plaster carefuly into the deepest area so the slurry flows evenly across the surface of the mold. Once the mold is poured, tap the table with a rubber mallet to vibrate the mold and release more air bubbles.

Drying PlasterWhen plaster sets, it heats up because of a chemical

reaction. When it has cooled, it is safe to remove the cottles or forms—about 45 minutes to an hour after pouring. Molds must be dry before use. Drying molds properly promotes good strength development, uni-form absorption and reduced efflorescence. Dry molds evenly. Don’t set them near a kiln where one side is exposed to excessive heat or the relative humidity is near zero. Place them on racks in a relatively dry loca-tion away from drafts.

Sources: United States Gypsum (USG) Company and Clay: A Studio Handbook, by Vince Pitelka, published by The American Ceramic Society, 2001.

Perfect Plaster by Vince Pitelka


Clay Tools: FormingSqueeze and Score

With a little squeeze, this tool automatically supplies water to the clay you are scoring to make attachments. To make it, you will need an empty glue bottle and a piece of coat hanger or heavy wire that is 1 inch longer than the height of the bottle and slightly larger in diameter than the hole in the cap. Sharpen one end of the wire with a file or grinder and insert it through the hole in the cap. You will need to cut off the stopper inside the cap first. Bend the blunt end of the wire at a 90° angle so it rests against the bottom of the bottle (this will provide stability when scoring). Fill the bottle with water and squeeze. Drops of water will run down to the tip of the wire wetting the clay that you are scoring. If water does not squeeze out, just move the wire left and right to make the hole bigger and try again. —Paveen Chunhaswasdikul, Gadsden, Alabama

household Clay DryingDuring my first year of pottery classes, I found myself trying a num-

ber of the available clays to learn of their traits and qualities. I saved my scraps and kept them in separate buckets of water at home. I don’t have a plaster surface to dry out the recycled clays, so I improvised.

Pictured is a plastic sweater storage box with wood shavings in the bottom. To keep the shavings in place I use an old retired dish towel, or pieces of old sheets. On top of that I have a piece of canvas to contain the wet clay. That makes it very simple to lift the clay and roll it up when it’s ready to be bagged for future use. If the clay is getting ready to bag and I do not have time to deal with it just then, I simply put the lid on the box for a day or two.

After the clay is removed, the shavings underneath dry out and are ready for the next batch. I use a clean canvas for each clay type, espe-cially the white ones, to avoid contamination of color or texture. A note indicating clay type is taped to each bucket, then moved with the clay as it dries so I always know what clay I’m working with.

I hose off the canvas outside over a bush or under a thirsty tree. That keeps our plumbing free of clay. The wood shavings go on the compost pile. —Heather Bartmann, Fort Collins, Colorado

Don’t Sweat the DryingI am a part-time teacher and ceramics artist, and part-time home-

maker (or as I like to think, “domestic goddess”). Sometimes when I have the time to work and need to trim, but

my pots aren’t dry enough, I will set them on the sweater shelf of my

clothes dryer and allow the warm air to circulate around the pots until they are leather hard. This usually only takes 10–15 minutes and works perfectly! It results in nice, even drying, and the only limitation is the size of your dryer.

I’ve shared this tip with several potters and they all love it. Most dryers now come with these shelves (mine is fifteen years old!). Hope it helps others with home studios. —Peggy Breidenbach, Indianapolis, Indiana

Quick-Change ArtistFor throwing mugs and small bowls, I use a quick-change bat

system. To make one, you need one square plastic bat that attaches to your wheel head with bat pins, PVC molding from the hardware store, PVC cement, and some commercial 6-inch-square terra-cotta tiles. Cut the PVC molding into two 5-inch lengths and two 4¼-inch lengths. Place one of the terra-cotta tiles in the center of the plastic bat and dry-fit the PVC molding around it, leaving two corners open to make it easy to remove the tiles. Glue down the molding with the cement and let it dry. Remove the tile from the assembly while it dries or you won’t get it out later. Once it’s dry, mount the plastic bat on your bat pins, insert a terra-cotta tile and throw your pot. You can quickly remove the tile and insert a fresh


The splash pan that came with my wonderful new wheel was a little short for the thick bats I use for large platters. This created a lot of problems with slip and trimmings splash-ing everywhere. Out of frustration came this an-swer to my problems:

I cut a piece of I-inch foam pipe insulation (the kind with a slit all the way down the length) and a piece of H-inch clear vinyl tub-ing to fit the circumfer-ence of the splash pan. I inserted the tubing into the insulation foam and placed it on top of the splash pan rim, working it down gently onto the rim, making sure the vinyl tubing stayed on top of the rim. I taped the two ends of the foam insulation tightly together with duct tape. This ring can be removed and replaced when extra height is needed, and it also provides a good deal of cushion for your arms when throwing.—Ann Krestensen, Bozman, Maryland

one for your next pot. A terra-cotta tile costs about 30 cents, so it makes a really cheap bat. —Sylvia Shirley, Pittsburg, Kansas

height and Comfort

pipe

insulation

vinyl

tubing

splash pan

Sponge BrushFor making a sponge-

on-a-stick, I use one of those 3-inch-diameter round yellow sponges. I cut off about 1 inch on opposite edges and glue an old paint brush into the center of the remaining sponge using Superglue. This gives the sponge long, sharp edges that reach all the way into the corner of a pot. The two pieces that are cut away are excellent for fettling excess glaze from the bottoms of pots and smoothing rims. Since they are triangular at their ends, they can easily get into tight corners.—Eugene Prial, Westfield, New Jersey

Make a name for Yourself

Having not yet come up with a good, clean way to sign my pots, I decided to try to make a signature stamp. Using a broad-tipped marker, I signed my name on plastic wrap, flipped the plastic wrap over to the reverse side and traced the outside lines of my signature onto a pad of clay with a needle tool. After letting the clay dry until just before leather hard, I carved away the excess clay with small tools and, voila, the signature ap-pears in relief. Create an embossed signature using the same plastic wrap but this time use a dull pencil to impress and don’t carve. —Gini James, Silver Spring, Maryland

leftover sections

center section of sponge

Clay Tools: Forming


Extrude Anywhere

In order to make an extruder portable (those of us who have limited studio space need to make all sorts of things portable), purchase an adjustable roller stand and a piece of steel tubing

the same size in cross-section as the adjustable tube. Mine is 5 feet long, and that seems to be plenty tall enough. Drill holes in this piece of steel tube to correspond to your extruder’s mounting holes and attach it. That’s really all there is to it!

The adjustable roller stand is designed to be used with woodworking equipment like a tablesaw or planer, so it can be found at most places that sell woodworking power tools. —Fujie Robesky, Fresno, California

Temporary TemplateI have found that rigid foam-core board, used by artists and fram-

ers, is a handy material for creating templates for repeated shapes to be thrown on the wheel. It can be easily cut with a single-edge blade or a mat knife, and it can be sanded smooth. Since it is paper on both sides, it must be made waterproof, and emulsion wax resist works great. Do not use an acrylic spray, because it will melt the foam in the core. I have used these templates for as many as 25 duplicate forms. They can be used for interior as well as exterior shapes. —Robert Brown, Miami, Florida

Serious PlayA tool that has become an indispensable part of my studio, and

that of several friends, is a simple, economical childs toy. My wife was watching me work in my studio while I was handbuilding a small piece, attempting to roll out a small coil to caulk a clay joint. She mentioned that I should use my daughter’s Play-Doh Fun Factory to form the coil. How simple.

Clay Tools: Forming

Remove

this part.

Add this part and

attach your extruder

at the proper height.

Since then, I use the Fun Factory for making various shapes, small handles as well as coils. I purchased a flat plastic fluorescent light cover from a local hardware store and make my own dies to fit into the Fun Factory for additional shapes and designs.

I use it with stoneware and porcelain, and it handles each with ease. The tool has only two parts, which snap apart for easy cleaning—much easier than using and cleaning an extruder for a small task. You could donate the Play-Doh that comes with the item to your favorite tot and everyone wins! —Rick Erickson, Green Bay, Virginia

Sphere PerfectionTo make a hollow clay ball perfectly smooth and spherical, it must be

closed so the air can’t escape, but it does not have to look good at first. After you pinch or throw the ball, rotate it on a table until it is reasonably round. Now you need a rigid plastic hemisphere. I bought a clear plastic sphere made of two halves that come apart (used to hold ornaments) at a crafts-supply store. You can also use a bowl, but it must be perfectly round and smooth inside—no bottom. The diameter of the bowl should be at least twice as much as the desired ball. Put your clay ball in the bowl and swirl it around. In a few seconds, you will have a very smooth ball, perfect for creating all kinds of fruits and vegetables. — Talli Barr, Nahalal, Israel

Rolling AwayUse discarded casters or bed-frame

rollers as clay rollers. Even new ones will work, and they are not that expen-sive. Drill a hole the same diameter as the caster stem into a piece of wooden dowel to create a handle. Caster posts can be glued into this hole if they are loose. The surface of some of the softer wheels can be carved with designs. — Charley Farrero, Meacham, Saskatchewan, Canada

The rolling surface of the wheels can be carved.

Drill a hole in the handle that is the same diameter as the caster post.


Dividing Web by Sylvia Shirley

Making the WebUse a photocopier to enlarge this wheel to the desired size. Attach it to a wheel head-sized circle of cardboard.

Cover with plastic wrap or have it laminated at an office supply store.

This handy guide makes it easy to divide the surface of any round pot into as many as twelve equal sections. Whether your decorating, darting, paddling or attaching handles and spouts, you’ll want to keep a few of these around the studio.


ideas to get Started

Accurately marking off divisions on your form opens up a world of potential design work. Once the desired number of marks are made, decorate as desired, using sgrafitto, trailed slip, brushed oxides, etc.

Using the Dividing Web

Center a pot on the wheel. Draw circles on the pot using a red felt-tip pen. Align the pointer with the selected line and posi-tion the Popsicle sticks to to pot. Tighten the wing nuts. Make a tic mark at the end of the Popsicle stick using the red felt pen. Move the pointer to the next position and repeat.

The PointerThe pointer helps

you transfer marks from the dividing web to the pot. Make sure the bottom of the pointer is square and the front side is perpendicular.

Dividing Web


The potter’s palette can be just as broad as the painter’s. Different techniques can be closely equated

to working in any of the two-dimensional media, such as pencil, pen and ink, pastel, watercolor, oils, encaustics or acrylics. We also have an advantage in that the fired clay object is permanent, unless disposed of with a blunt instrument! Our works may live for thousands of years-a sobering thought.

Because a number of colors can only be achieved at low temperatures, you need a series of layering tech-niques in order to have the fired strength of stoneware or porcelain and the full palette range of the painter. To accomplish this, low-temperature glazes or overglazes are made to adhere to a higher-fired glazed surface, and can be superimposed over already existing decoration. To gain the full measure of color, one has to fire progres-sively down the temperature range so as not to burn out heat-sensitive colors that can’t be achieved any other way. Usually the lowest and last firing is for precious met-als: platinum, palladium and gold.

Ceramists looking for difficult-to-achieve colors might want to consider prepared stains, particularly in the yellow, violet and purple ranges. These colors are often quite a problem with standard minerals, be they in the form of oxides, carbonates, nitrates, sulfates, chlorides or even the basic metal itself.

The chart should help pinpoint mineral choices for de-sired colors (note that the color bars are for guidance only and not representative of the actual colors —Ed.). Colors are listed with the minerals needed to obtain them, ap-proximate temperatures, atmosphere, saturation percent-age needed, and comments on enhancing/inhibiting factors. Because of the widely variable nature of ceramic color, there are many generalities here. Where the word “vary” occurs in the column under Cone, it signifies that the intended results could be expected most of the time at various points up to Cone 10.

Red to OrangeFor the hot side of the spectrum—red, orange, and

yellow—there are many commercial body and glaze stains, in addition to the usual mineral colorants.

Minerals that give reds, oranges and yellows are cop-per, iron, nickel, chromium, uranium, cadmium-selenium, rutile, antimony, vanadium, and praseodymium. Varia-tions in glaze makeup, temperature and atmosphere profoundly affect this particular color range. The only materials which produce red at high temperature are copper, iron and nickel —usually muted. Reds in the scarlet to vermilion range can only be achieved at low temperatures.

Colorant Chartby Robin Hopper

COLORANT CONE ATMOS. % COMMENTS

Dark Red

Copper Vary Red. 0.5%-5% Best in glazes containing less than 10% clay content, and a high alkaline content. Needs good reduction. In low temperatures it can be reduced during cool-ing. Good reds as low as Cone 018.

Iron Vary Both 5%-10% Good in many glaze bases at all temperatures. Can be improved with the addition of 2%-5% tin oxide.

Nickel 4-10 Ox. 5%-8% Use in barium-saturated glazes.

Burgundy

Iron See Dark Red, Iron.

Copper See Dark Red, Copper. Owing to the unstable nature of copper, this colorant can produce a wide range of results. Very controlled reduction firing and cooling are important.

Maroon

Chrome-Tin Stains Vary Ox. 1%-5% Use in glazes with calcium. There should be no zinc in the glaze.

Copper Vary Red. 0.5%-5% Best in high alkaline glazes.

Crimson

Copper + Titanium 8-10 Red. 1%-5% Try various blends of copper (1%-5%) and titanium (2%-5%).

Calcium- 010-05 Ox. 0.5-5% Best with special frits.

Indian Red

Iron Vary Both 5%-10% Best in high calcium glazes; small amount of bone ash helps. Tin addition up to 5% also helps. Also works well in ash glazes.

Brick Red

Iron Vary Both 5%-10% Similar to Indian Red. Tin to 2% helps.

Orange-Brown

Iron + Rutile Vary Both 1%-10% Various mixtures (up to 8% iron and 2% rutile) in most glaze bases.

Iron + Tin Vary Both 1%-5% Various mixtures (up to 4% iron and 1% tin) in most glaze bases. Creamier than iron with rutile.

Orange-Red

Cadmium- 012-05 Ox. 1%-4% Best with special frits such as Ferro 3548 or 3278 or both. Helps to opacify with zirconium.

Orange

Iron Vary Both 1%-5% Use in tin or titanium opacified glazes.

Rutile Vary Both 5%-15% Many glaze types, particularly alkaline. More suc-cessful in oxidation.

Copper 8-10 Both 1%-3% Use in high alumina or magnesia glazes. Addition of up to 5% rutile sometimes helps.

Orange-Yellow

Iron Vary Both 2%-5% With tin or titanium opacified glazes.

Rutile Vary Ox. 1%-10% Best with alkaline glazes.

Yellow Ocher

Iron Vary Both 1%-10% Use in high barium, strontium or zinc glazes.

Iron + Tin Vary Ox. 1%-5% Various mixtures (up to 3.5% iron and 1.5% tin) in many glaze bases.

Iron + Rutile Vary Both 1%-5% Various mixtures (up to 2.5% iron and 2.5% rutile) in many glaze bases.

Vanadium- Vary Ox. 5%-10%Various mixtures in many Zirconium Stain glaze bases.

Lemon Yellow

Praseodymium Stains Vary Both 1%-10% Good in most glazes. Best in oxidation.

Pale/Cream Yellow

Iron + Tin Vary Both 2%-5% Various mixtures (up to 3.5% iron and 1.5% tin) in high barium, strontium or zinc glazes. Titanium opacification helps.

Vanadium Vary Both 2%-5% Use in tin-opacified glazes.

Rutile + Tin Vary Ox. 2%-5% Various mixtures (up to 2.5% iron and 2% tin) in variety of glaze bases. Titanium opacification helps.

Selenium Stains

Zirconian Stains

Selenium Stains

Note: Colors bars are for visual reference only, and do not represent actual colors.


The cool side of the glaze spectrum (from yellow-green to navy blue) is considerably easier, both to produce and work with, than the warm. In the main, colorants that control this range create far fewer prob-lems than almost any of the red, orange and yellow range. Some are temperature and atmosphere sensi-tive, but that’s nothing compared to the idiosyncrasies possible with warm colors.

The colorants known for creating cool hues are copper, chromium, nickel, cobalt, iron and sometimes molybdenum. For variations, some are modified by titanium, rutile, manganese or black stains. The usual three variables of glaze makeup, temperature and atmosphere still control the outcome, though it is less obvious in this range.

Yellow-green to navy Blue

Yellow Green

Copper + Rutile Vary Both 2%-10% Various mixtures in a wide variety of glazes, particularly those high in alkaline materials. Almost any yellow glaze to which copper is added will produce yellow green.

Chromium Vary Both 0.5%-3% In yellow glazes without tin or zinc.

Chromium 4-8 Ox. 0.25%-1% In saturated barium glazes.

Chromium 018-015 Ox. 0-2% In high alkaline glazes with no tin.

Cobalt Vary Both 0-1% In any yellow glazes.

Light Green

Copper Vary Ox. 0-2.5% In various glazes except those high in barium or mag-nesium. Best in glazes opacified with tin or titanium.

Cobalt Vary Both 0-2% In glazes opacified with titanium, or containing rutile.

Apple Green

Chromium Vary Both 0-2% In various glazes without zinc or tin. Good in alkaline glazes with zirconium opacifiers. Also use potassium di-chromate.

Copper 1%-2% See Light Green; use in non-opacified glazes.

Celadon Green

Iron Vary Red 0.5%-2% Best with high sodium, calcium or potassium glazes. Do not use with zinc glazes.

Copper Vary Ox. 0.5%-2% Good in a wide range of glazes.

Grass Green

Copper 010-2 Ox. 1%-5% In high lead glazes; sometimes with boron.

Chromium 018-04 Ox. 1%-2% In high alkaline glazes.

Olive Green

Nickel Vary Both 1%-5% In high magnesia glazes; matt to shiny olive green.

Iron Vary Red. 3%-5% In high calcium and alkalines, usually clear glazes.

Hooker’s Green

Copper + Cobalt Vary Ox. 2%-5% In a wide variety of glaze bases.

Cobalt + Vary Both 2%-5% In a wide variety of glaze Chromiumbases: no zinc or tin. Good opacified with zirconium or titanium.

Chrome Green

Chromium 06-12 Both 2%-5% In most glazes; no zinc or tin.

Dark Green

Copper Vary Ox. 5%-10% Many glaze bases, particularly high barium, stron-tium, zinc or alkaline with a minimum of 10% ka-olin.

Cobalt + Chromium Vary Both 5%-10% Blends of these colorants will give a wide range of dark greens.

Cobalt + Rutile Vary Both 5%-10% Dark greens with blue overtones.

Teal Blue

Cobalt + Rutile Vary Both 1%-5% In a wide variety of glazes.

Cobalt + Chromium Vary Both 1%-5% In most glazes without tin or zinc.

Turquoise

Copper Vary Ox. 1%-10% In high alkaline and barium glazes. Bluish with no clay content; tends toward greenish tint with added clay.

Copper + Rutile Vary Both 1%-5% In high alkaline and barium glazes.

Copper + Tin Vary Ox. 1%-10% In high alkaline and barium glazes; usually opaque.

Light Blue

Nickel Vary Ox. 1%-2% In high zinc or barium glazes.

Rutile Vary Red. 1%-5% In a wide range of glazes; best with low (10% or less) clay content.

Cobalt Vary Both 0.25%-1% Use in most glazes, particularly those opacified with tin. Also use mixed with small amounts of iron.

Celadon Blue

Iron 6-10 Red. 0.25%-1% In high alkaline or calcium clear glazes. Black iron is generally preferable to red iron.

Wedgewood Blue

Cobalt + Iron Vary Both 0.5%-2% In most glazes; small amounts of cobalt with iron, manganese or nickel yield soft blues. Added tin gives pastel blue.

Cobalt + Manganese Vary Both 0.5%-2%

Cobalt + Nickel Vary Both 0.5%-2%

Cobalt 4-10 Both 0.5%-3% In high zinc glazes.

Nickel 4-10 Ox. 1%-3% In high barium/zinc glazes; likely to be crystalline.

Blue Gray

Nickel Vary Ox. 0.5%-5% In high barium/zinc glazes.

Rutile Vary Red. 2%-5% In a wide variety of glazes, particularly high alumina or magnesia recipes.

Cobalt + Manganese Vary Both 0.5%-2% In most opaque glazes.

Cobalt Vary Ox. 0.5%-5% In high zinc glazes.

Ultramarine

Cobalt Vary Both 0.5%-5% In high barium, colemanite and calcium glazes; no zinc, magnesium or opacification.

Cerulean Blue

Cobalt Vary Both 0.5%-5% In glazes containing cryolite of fluorspar.

Cobalt + Chromium Vary Both 2%-5% In most glazes except those containing zinc or tin.

Prussian Blue

Nickel 6-10 Ox. 5%-10% In high barium/zinc glazes.

Cobalt + Manganese Vary Both 5%-10% In most glaze bases.

Cobalt + Manganese Vary Both 5%-10% In most glazes; for example, cobalt 2%, chromium 2% and manganese 2%.

Navy Blue

Cobalt Vary Both 5%-10% In most glazes except those high in zinc, barium or magnesium.

COLORANT CONE ATMOS. % COMMENTS COLORANT CONE ATMOS. % COMMENTS


Colorant Chart


indigo to Purple The indigo-to-purple part of the color wheel is small

but significant. The colorants that produce this range are nickel, cobalt, manganese, umber, iron, chromium, rutile ilmenite, copper, iron chromate, and black stains. In short, one could say that the colorants needed include just about the whole group that are used for all the other colors in the spectrum. The only ones I haven’t talked about previously in this articles series are umber, ilmenite, iron chromate and black stains.

Black stains Formulated from a variable mixture of other colorants, black stains are usually rather expen-sive due to their being saturations of colorant materials. Various companies produce black stains usually from a combination of iron, cobalt, chromium, manganese, iron chromate and sometimes nickel mixed with fillers and fluxes such as clay, feldspar and silica. I use the following recipe:

This mixture is best ball-milled for a minimum of four hours to limit its tendency toward cobalt specking, and to make sure that the colorants are thoroughly mixed. Because any black stain is a very concentrated mixture, only small amounts are normally needed to cause a strong effect. In a clear glaze, a maximum of 5% should produce an intense black. In opaque glazes, more stain than that may be needed. Black stains and white opaci-fiers mixed together will produce a range of opaque grays. Stains, like other ceramic materials, are subject to the three variables of glaze makeup, temperature and atmosphere.

Outside the color wheel one finds tones of brown, gray and black. These moderate other colors. A color wheel could, I suppose, include the range of opacifiers since they also have a strong role in affecting color. The toning influence of brown, gray and black is just as much opacifying in result as are the white opacifiers such as tin, titanium and zirconium compounds such as Zircopax, Opax, Superpax, and Ultrox. Slight additional increments of any of these colors will render most glazes, colored or not, progressively darker as they are added.

Excerpted from Glazes: Materials, Recipes and Techniques. For the full text and complete explanation of these colorant charts, refer to Robin Hopper’s book, The Ceramic Spectrum: A Simplified Approach to Glaze and Color Development, Krause Publications, 2001.


BlACK STAinChromium Oxide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 %Cobalt Carbonate or Oxide . . . . . . . . 20Manganese Dioxide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20Red Iron Oxide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20Feldspar (any) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Kaolin (any) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Flint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 100 %

Indigo

Nickel Vary Ox. 8%-15% Use in high barium/zinc glazes. Also likely to crystal-lize.

Cobalt + Manganese Vary Both 5%-10% Various mixtures in most glazes.

Cobalt + Black Stain Vary Both 5%-8% Various mixtures in most glazes.

Violet

Cobalt Vary Both 5%-10% In high magnesium glazes.

Nickel Vary Ox. 1%-10% In some saturated-barium glazes.

Manganese Vary Both 5%-10% In high alkaline glazes.

Copper Vary Ox. 8%-10% In some saturated-barium glazes.

Purple

Copper 6-10 Both 8%-10% In high barium and barium/zinc glazes.

Copper 8-10 Red. 1%-5% In copper red glazes opacified with titanium.

Nickel Vary Ox. 5%-10% In some high barium glazes.


Manganese 04-10 Ox. 5%-10% In high alkaline and barium glazes.

Iron 8-10 Red. 8%-10% In high calcium glazes; likely to crystallize.

Copper + Cobalt Vary Red. 2%-8% Various mixtures in many glazes.

Chrome + Tin + Cobalt Vary Ox. 2%-8% Various mixtures in many glazes.

Mauve or Lilac


Nickel Vary Ox. 1%-5% In some saturated-barium glazes.

Pink

Cobalt Vary Ox. 1%-3% In high magnesium glazes opacified with tin. Also in very low alumina content glazes.

Copper Vary Red. 0.2%-2% In copper red glazes with titanium.

Copper 6-10 Ox. 0.2%-3% In high magnesium or high alumina glazes.

Copper 8-10 Red. 5%-10% In copper red glazes opacified w/min. 5% titanium.

Chromium Vary Ox. 1%-2% In calcium glazes opacified with 5%-10% tin.

Iron Vary Ox. 1%-5% In calcium glazes opacified with tin.

Rutile Vary Both 5%-10% In high calcium and some ash glazes.

Nickel 018-010 Ox. 1%-3% In high barium glazes with some zinc.

Manganese Vary Both 1%-5% In alkaline glazes opacified with tin or titanium. Also in high alumina glazes.

Brown

Iron Vary Both 3%-10% In most glazes.

Manganese Vary Both 2%-10% In most glazes.

Nickel Vary Both 2%-5% In high boron, calcium and lead glazes.

Chromium Vary Both 2%-5% In high zinc glazes.

Umber Vary Both 2%-10% In most glazes.

Ilmenite Vary Both 2%-10% In most glazes. High calcium may yield bluish tint.

Rutile Vary Both 5%-10% In most glazes; golden brown.

Gray

Iron Vary Red. 2%-4% In many glaze bases; gray brown.

Iron Chromate Vary Both 2%-5% In most glaze bases without zinc or tin.

Nickel Vary Both 2%-5% In most glaze bases; gray brown.

Copper 8-10 Both 3%-10% In high magnesium glazes. Warm gray in reduction; cold gray in oxidation.

Cobalt + Nickel Vary Both 1%-5% Blue gray in most glazes.

Cobalt + Manganese Vary Both 1%-5% Blue gray to purple gray in most glazes.

Black Stain Vary Both 1%-5% Shades of gray in most opacified glazes.

Black

Iron Vary Both 8%-12% In high calcium glazes — the temmoku range.

Copper Vary Both 8%-10% In a wide range of glazes.

Cobalt Vary Both 8%-10% Blue black in most glazes except those high in zinc and magnesium.

Black Stain Vary Both 3%-10% In most zinc-free, nonopacified glazes.

COLORANT CONE ATMOS. % COMMENTS

Colorant Chart


This process has several advantages over wax. It is cleaner, safer and cheaper than waxing. It is reversible; if you screw up your glaze job, you simply let the piece dry out and in a few hours you can try again. It works better for heavy iron glazes. It is easier to wipe the glaze off of saturated bisque than wax. —Anthony Merino, San Marcos, Texas

Spray MaskingI spray a lot of my glazes and stains, and I do a lot of masking. The

best thing I have found to keep this spray off a particular part of a pot is open-cell foam. I use pieces that are slightly thicker than those that come in Or-ton cone boxes (although those work pretty well). I hold the foam with my left hand and can get a straight or curved line. Also, the foam catches drips when I’m spraying up close. It can then be rinsed out and reused. —Diana Pittis, Daniels, West Virginia

Mini BlungerI am pretty lazy

about blunging, and because of an arthritic condition, stirring lit-tle batches of cement-hard slip becomes quite wearisome very quickly. I recently found a wonderful device to help me do this: an immer-sion blender—one of those handy-dandy drink mixers that has a wee, tiny little blade and generates a tre-mendous amount of agitation while turn-ing fruit into puréed smoothies. It only costs about $10. It’s easy to clean and thoroughly works over the most gloppy, dried-out glazes and slips. Just add some water to the dried slip or glaze and whiz away!

The device draws quite a suction on the bottom of a container, so be advised that a sturdy container is necessary. And the tiny blades are very sharp, so be careful!

To clean the device, simply place the stirring mechanism into a container of clean water and whiz away! Any residual glaze or slip can be wiped off with a damp sponge. What used to take me twenty minutes now takes about three minutes. Happy blunging! —Lisa Reiser, Greenwich, New Jersey

Mini TongsWhen space is limited, a pair of staple removers make great

miniature glaze-dipping tongs. They fit inside the palms of your

Pinning Parallel linesI became frustrated by not being able to draw parallel lines in curves

or arcs on my work when it is leather hard. If I tried to draw the lines separately, it would never work, and even if I held two tools at once, one would always wander. I found that a clothespin actually performs this task wonderfully.

I sharpen the ends you use as a handle (if you were actually using it as a clothespin) and use these points to draw the lines. They are held at

a consistent distance apart, and are infinitely adjustable between open and closed. To adjust the space be-tween the points, I put various small cy-lindrical objects in the groove of the “mouth” of the pin (pen caps, pencils, dowels). The larger the object in the mouth, the closer the lines become. This tool has become a staple in our studio. —Ken Magee, Talahassee, Florida.

Fixing Finger FatigueI recently attended a

wonderful clay workshop focused on the sgraffito process of decoration. Because this involves very controlled carving, at the end of the day ev-eryone was complaining about finger strain and calluses, especially as the clay surfaces gradually dried, making it more difficult to carve.

I have made a comfortable device that will ease finger fatigue and calluses: I slip a 1H-inch plastic straw over a tool, with H inch of the blade sticking out. I then slip a pencil grip over the straw. The straw supports the grip beyond the handle, so your fingers are closer to the working tip. —Ellen Kong, Durham, North Carolina

Turning Water into WaxTry using water instead of wax as a resist when glazing. Simply

set out a tray with about G to H inch of water in it. Set your piece in the water for at least two minutes. Glaze sticks to bisque primar-ily because the water in the glaze gets absorbed into the piece. If the bisque ware is already saturated with water, the glaze will not stick. It can simply be wiped off with a wet sponge.

Clay Tools: Decoration

very handy,

very fast,

very sharp!


hands, so they can be more easily maneuvered in a glaze bucket than regular-sized dipping tongs. Don’t forget to round off the sharp teeth with a file so they won’t scratch your bisqueware. —Paveen Chunhaswasdikul, Gadsden, Alabama

Pencil PushingWhen making beads, I use a pencil to push the hole in on one end

until the point of the pencil comes just barely through the bead (1). I then remove the pencil and push it in through the small hole made by the tip on the opposite end of the bead (2). This makes a nice, clean, finished hole. To glaze the bisque-fired bead, I simply insert the pencil

into the hole again and dip it into the glaze (3). Since the angle of the hole is the same as the pencil, friction keeps it from falling into the glaze. You can also use small dowels or chopsticks for smaller beads instead of a pencil; just sharpen them in your pencil sharpener.—Kathy Sandberg, Plymouth, Michigan

Rolling StampsThe simplest method of creating rolling stamps is to wrap a clay

slab around a tubular shape (a cardboard tube, wooden dowel or plastic

Points have

been filed to

avoid scratching

bisqueware

1

2

3

glaze

pipe), which pro-vide a rigid back-ing when applying a texture to the slabs. A piece of newspaper placed between the form and the clay will prevent sticking when removing the support. Stamps also can be made by throwing a cy-lindrical or conical form. The center spout is pulled up first, then the outer wall is then raised to form the working surface of the stamp, which will be carved when leather

hard. Make sure that the outer surface is perpendicular to the wheel head. An extruder can also produce tubular shapes for rolling stamps. Just cap the ends with slabs, leaving small holes in the center to allow dowels to be used as handles. Interesting surfaces can be obtained by cutting the cylinders into sections and reassembling the parts into different positions.

After bisque firing, simply roll the stamps over the surface of the clay with the palm of the hand while varying the pressure to correspond to the width of the stamp. The roll-ing stamp is ideal for quickly

decorating a platter rim. The stamp, held rigidly in a fixed position, quickly prints out the repeated pattern as the wheel spins. Lifting at the right moment can be tricky, but a little practice is all you need.—William Shinn, Santa Maria, CA

Clay Tools: Decoration


TEMPERATURE

°C °F 1400 2552

1300 2372

1200 2192

1100 2012

1000 1832

900 1652

800 1472

700 1292

600 1112

500 932

400 752

300 572

200 392

100 212

COnE

(approx.)

141312111098765432010203

04

05

06070809010011012013014015016

017

018

019

020

021

022

inCAnDESCEnCE

Brilliant white

White

Yellow-white

Yellow

Yellow-orange

Orange

Red-orange

Cherry red

Dull red

Dark red

Dull red glow

Black

EvEnT

End of porcelain range.

End of stoneware range.

End of earthenware (red clay) range.

1100–1200˚C: Mullite and cristobalite (two types of silica) form as clay

begins to convert to glass. Particles start melting together to form crystals,

and materials shrink as they become more dense. Soaking (holding the

end temperature) increases the amount of fused material and the mount

of chemical action between the fluxes and the more refractory materials.

800–900˚C: the beginning of sintering, the stage where clay particles begin

to cement themselves together to create a hard material called bisque.

300–800˚C: Carbonaceous materials (impurities in the clay along with

paper, wax, etc.) burn out. The kiln requires ample air during this stage

since after 800˚C sintering begins and the clay surface begins to seal off,

trapping unburned materials and sulfides, which can cause bloating and

black coring.

573˚C: Quartz inversion occurs where the quartz crystals change from an

alpha (a) structure to a beta (b) structure. The inversion is reversed on cool-

ing. This conversion creates stressses in the clay so temperature changes

must be slow to avoid cracking the work.

Between 480–700ºC chemical water (“water smoke”) is driven off.

Upon cooling, cristobalite, a crystalline form of silica found in all clay bod-

ies, shrinks suddenly at 220ºC. Fast cooling at this temperature causes

ware to crack.

Water boils and converts to steam at 100ºC. Trapped water causes clay to

explode so keep the kiln below 100ºC until all water has evaporated.

Firing converts ceramic work from weak greenware into a strong, durable permanent form. As the temperature in a kiln rises, many changes take place at different temperatures and understanding what happens during the firing can help you avoid problems with a variety of clay and glaze faults related to firing.

Kiln Firing Chart


Manual Kilns: Place small cone in kiln sitter in offset position with small end toward center or place next lower cone in kiln sitter.

Controller Kilns: Decrease small amounts of “hold” or “soak” time if this has been set, or lower your end setpoint temperature in custom programs.

“hold” or “Soak” TimeWhen you “soak” a kiln, you hold

the kiln at a certain temperature. As shown here, you can see that it takes a significant amount of soaking to cause the next cone to deform. Soak time can be used to equalize the temperature distribution within the kiln and ware.

Pyrometric cones, often referred to simply as “cones” (or more

formally as “witness cones”), are used in pottery making to indicate the amount of “heat work” (or energy) needed during a kiln firing. Cones are shaped like elongated pyramids made of specified mix-tures of ceramic materials, and they come in a variety of standard shapes. To get the best results from cones, they must be used correctly. Here are a few guidelines . . .

Cone MountingThree cones are typically used

when firing: a “warning cone” to indicate that the target firing temper-ature is close; a “firing cone,” which indicates that temperature has been reached; and a “guard cone,” which indicates that the maturing tempera-ture has been exceeded.

• Large cones should be mounted with the face at an 8° angle.

• Large cones can be mounted at a height of 2 inches above the plaque or conepack. If you mount at the 1¾ inch height, you can use the temperature for self-supporting base (SSB) cones.

• SSB cones are made to sit at the correct mounting height and angle without the need to mount them.

Cone Placement

• Mount cones in a straight line (A), turned to an angle (B) or spaced diagonally (C). Diagonal placement is handy when viewing SSB cones through a peephole.

• Place cones at least 6 inches from the kiln’s inner wall to protect the cones from the effects of drafts.

interpreting Cones• The difference between 60° and

90° bending angles is usually a small amount in equivalent temperature.

• If your firing cone deforms to a lesser bending angle than desired, you may need to increase the firing time.

Manual Kilns: Place small cone in kiln sitter in offset position with large end toward center or place next higher cone in kiln sitter if firing cone has hardly moved. (Note: You cannot adjust a pyrometric bar by moving it.)

Controller Kilns: Add small amounts of “hold” or “soak” time or raise your end setpoint tempera-ture in custom programs.

• If your firing cone is deformed to a greater bending angle than desired, you may need to decrease the firing time.

CAUTION Always use proper safety glasses when viewing

cones during firing.

A.

B.

C.

Using Cones by Tim Frederich


best, with minimal warping. When making and trimming plates, always make sure that the foot is the same size. The more variation in size, the more warping you will have.—Linda C. Klaus, Sandy, Oregon

in the Soda ZoneInspired by Gail Nichols’ article “Soda, Clay and Fire” (Ceramics

Monthly, December 2006) and her book of the same title (American Ceramic Society 2006), our firing group conducted an experiment to introduce soda into one segment of a kiln rather than dedicating an entire chamber to it.

We fire a small wood kiln with a 50-cubic-foot cross-draft chamber. This chamber has an “in-chamber” firebox in the front and one stoke hole in the middle that helps fire off the back half of the kiln.

Two-foot-long pieces of 2-inch tree bark covered with a soda paste were introduced in the rear stoke hole, beginning at Cone 8 and continuing every 15 minutes until Cone 10 was reached. The draft carried soda vapor through the bottom and rear quarter of

the kiln and then out of the chimney, not affecting the other parts of the kiln. We call this area our “soda zone.” We gained effective distribution of soda in the zone with excellent traditional firing results in the rest of the chamber.

The placement of the soda-bearing wood must be done with caution as direct contact between the paste and a pot leaves a per-manent scar. Soda does make a mess of the kiln floor and shelves, so we lay a bed of oyster shells in and around the zone floor, which seems to help in clean up.

—Mark Bollwinkel, Los Altos, California

PotlifterHandling large pots may be awkward and can even be difficult, es-

pecially after pieces are glazed. After glazing, the only surfaces one wants to touch are unsprayed or unseen areas. This can make pots difficult to transport and load into the kiln.

When lifting these pots into the kiln, I use a piece of wood cut just a bit shorter than the interior diameter of the pot shoulder. I place the

wood into the pot vertically and, once inside, turn it horizontally and lift the pot into the kiln. To remove the wood, I simply return it to the vertical position and lift out. In a top-loading kiln like mine, the inside of the pot is still accessible, so any unwanted marks left by the wood can be touched up before closing the kiln. —Rick Erickson, Green Bay, Virginia

Consistent WaddingWhen wadding a stack of plates for wood firing, use a template

and pencil eraser to neatly facilitate glaze removal and stacking. Make a triangular template to mark a consistent configuration for the wads on the foot. After a plate is glazed, use this template and a pencil to transfer the markings to the top of the plate. Re-move a ½-inch area of the dry glaze at each wad mark with the pencil eraser. Knock down the edge of the glaze around these areas with a damp sponge and proceed to wadding.

Although I have stacked as many as six small plates together, three or four works

A piece of wood, cut slightly shorter than the interior diameter of a pot’s shoulder,

acts as a handle for carrying and loading the large pot into a kiln.

triangular template based on footring

transferred marks with glaze removed

Wads should be placed directly above one

another to prevent warping.

Clay Tools: Firing


Choosing a ClayMost potters use commercially prepared clays, and

ceramic suppliers have met their needs by offer-ing a vast, though sometimes bewildering, selection of clays to choose from. If you’re using the clay someone else just handed you, maybe it’s not the right one for the work you’re doing. Every clay body is formulated for a specific use, and finding the right one for your needs takes a bit of research and experimentation. There are several decisions to make when finding a clay body or bodies that meet your skill level, tech-niques and aesthetic.

SupplierNow why would you choose a supplier first? They

work with amateurs, professionals, students, teachers, sculptors, tile makers, etc., and have solved a wide vari-ety of problems. There are three types of suppliers: those that manufacture their own clays, those that sell clay from other manufacturers and those that do both. And, if you have problems a supplier can’t answer, either you or the supplier can contact the manufacturer.

ApplicationClay bodies are formulated for different applications.

Throwing tableware requires a clay body that is plas-tic (malleable) and smooth, while constructing a large sculpture may require “toothier” (coarse-grained) clay. In many cases, a clay body may be used for several applica-tions, but some are highly specialized—raku or oven-ware, for example. Make a list of the things you want to do, and you may end up with several bodies to achieve the best results.

Firing RangeClays are formulated to fire at specific temperatures

within three general ranges: low (Cone 06–2), mid (Cone 3–7) and high (Cone 8–10). Within a range, the higher you fire, the greater the shrinkage and the lower the absorbency of the fired clay. Low-fire clay bodies (earth-enware) are easy to work with and fire, and there is a wide range of colorful glazes available. These clay bodies are also used for raku and pit firing. Mid-range clays are more durable and include stoneware and some porcelain bodies, but color is more limited. This situation improves each year as glaze companies improve and expand their offerings. High-fire clays are very durable and include stoneware and porcelain. Color palettes vary depending on firing atmosphere (oxidation or reduction).

ColorColor in basic studio clay bodies results mostly from

naturally occurring iron and/or iron that has been added. Porcelain contains no iron, light buff bodies have some iron and earthenware bodies may have over 10% iron.

The body color (as well as the glazes) changes based on the type of firing atmosphere you have—reduction (from fuel firing) or oxidation. Reduction firing deepens or darkens an otherwise neutral-colored clay body. Some clay companies have duplicated this effect by adding more colorants to their formulas making it possible to achieve “reduction” colors from an electric kiln. Since the iron and other colorants in a body color affect glaze color, you’ll need to test your glazes with each body.

TextureTexture can range from smooth to rough. Smooth

bodies contain very small particles of clay, which tend to shrink more. These are best suited for small, fine and/or detailed work. Adding grog (ground-up fired clay) or sand gives the body “tooth,” and the larger the particle size, the less water the piece will need (hence less shrink-age). Manufacturers offer a range of bodies that incor-porate finer particles of grog and sand to get a texture between smooth and rough.

Buy WiselyBuying prepared clay requires a little judgment. First,

try to find a supplier that is nearby because shipping costs can add up and sometimes equal or exceed the cost of the clay body itself. Next, test a sample before purchasing a large quantity. If you’re buying several types of clay bodies, suppliers will typically allow you to combine the weights for a better discount. Finally, buy only enough clay to last you a year maximum. Clay loses moisture in storage and becomes stiffer, possibly even unworkable. You can ask your supplier how long they have stored the clay. A good supplier will only stock what they can sell within a reasonable amount of time.

Buyer BewareAll commercially prepared clay bodies are made from

naturally occurring elements scooped from the earth for industrial users. Studio potters do not purchase enough materials to be a major user, so we have to make do with a small portion of what the industry uses (brick and tile manufacurers, china companies, steel indus-try, paper mills, pharmaceuticals, etc.). Mother Nature did not use any quality control when she created clay deposits, so seams of clay vary from one spot to another. And a mammoth front loader is not a delicate material-selection tool. The good news is that the industry often requires a degree of consistency in their raw materials, so that clay mines make every effort possible to provide them with the very best product out there for an intend-ed application. To make sure your clay meets your every needs and your own quality standards, always test each batch everytime.


CERAMIC MATERIAL GLAZE FUNCTION CLAYBODY FUNCTION

Potash Spars Glaze Core (ST, P) Melter (ST, P)

Custer G-200, K200 (s)

G-200 Custer, K200 (s)

K200 Custer, G-200 (s)

Redart Color Melter Color Core (E)

Rotten Stone Glaze Core Melter (ST, P) Color (ST)

Soda Spars Glaze Core (ST, P) Melter (ST, P)

Kona F-4 C–6 (s)

Spodumene Lithium Glaze Core Melter (ST, P) (FL)

Talc Melter Melter Opacifier (E, 4–6, W)

Volcanic Ash Glaze Core (ST, P) Cornwall Stone (s)

Whiting Melter (ST, P) Melter (ST) Opacifier Wollastonite (s) Dolomite (s)

Wollastonite Melter (ST, P) Melter (ST, P) Opacifier Whiting (s) Dolomite (s)

Wood Ash Glaze Core (ST, P) Melter (ST, P) Colorant

Zinc Melter (ST, P) Opacifier (ST, P)

Key: (s)=substitute option

(E)=earthenware claybody

(ST)=stoneware claybody

(P)=porcelain claybody

(FL)=flameware claybody, c/9-10

(W)=white-burning claybodies, c/4-10

This chart is excerpted from Out of the Earth, Into the Fire, 2nd Edition, by Mimi Obstler, published by The American Ceramic Society, 2000.

Primary Functions of Raw MaterialsCERAMIC MATERIAL GLAZE FUNCTION CLAYBODY FUNCTION

Albany Slip Clay Glaze Core Colorant Alberta Slip (s) Jasper Slip (s)

Ball Clay Alumina Plasticity Opacity

Barnard Clay Glaze Core Color Color (ST, P)

Bone Ash Opacifier Melter (4–6)

Borax Melter (5–6, E) Melter (4–6, E Glassmaker Carbon Trap (ST, P)

Boric Acid Melter (5–6, E) Melter (4–6, E) Glassmaker

Boron Frits Glaze Core (5–6, E) Melter (4–6, E) Melter Colemanite (s) Gerstley Borate (s)

Colemanite Glaze Core (5–6, E) Melter (4–6, E) Melter Gerstley Borate (s) Boron Frits (s)

Cornwall Stone Glaze Core (ST, P) Melter (P) (Low melter, high SiO2)

Dolomite Melter (ST) Melter (ST) Opacifier Whiting (s)

EPK Kaolin Alumina Core (P, W) Opacity (ST, P)

Silica (Flint) Glassmaker Glassmaker Glaze-fit

Fluorspar Melter

Gerstley Borate Glaze Core (4–6, E) Melter (4–6, E) Melter Colemanite (s) Boron Frits (s)

Goldart Clay Core (ST)

Kentucky Ball Clay Core (ST)

Lepidolite Lithium Glaze Core Melter (FL)

Magnesium Carbonate Melter (ST, P, W) Melter Opacifier

Nepheline Syenite Glaze Core Melter (ST, P) (low SiO2) (high Na2O) (high Al2O3)

Petalite Lithium Glaze Core Melter (FL) (ST 9-10)


AlABAMA

Mecca Pottery Tools (Florence) •

South Alabama Ceramic Supply (Montgomery) • • •

ARiZOnA

Marjon Ceramics Inc. (Phoenix) • • • • • • • • • • www.marjonceramics.com

Dolan Tools (Scottsdale) • www.dolantools.net

Marjon Ceramics Inc. (Tucson) • • • • • • • • • • www.marjonceramics.com

ARKAnSAS

Flat Rock Clay Supplies (Fayetteville) • • • • • • • • • • www.flatrockclay.comCAliFORniA

Phoenix Ceramic & Fire Supply (Arcata) • • • • • • • • • • www.phoenixceramic.com

W.P. Dawson Inc. (Brea) • www.kiln-sitter.com

Creative Paperclay Co. (Camarillo) • www.paperclay.com

Ceramic Services (Chino) • • • • • • www.ceramicservices.com

Kemper Tools (Chino) • www.kempertools.com

Laguna Clay Co. (City of Industry) • • • • • • • • • • www.lagunaclay.com

Graber’s Pottery Inc. (Claremont) • www.graberspottery.com

Gordon Brush Mfg. Co. Inc. (Commerce) • www.gordonbrush.com

Snyder Imports (Comptche) • www.donsynderimports.com

The Chinese Clay Art, USA (Cupertino) • • www.chineseclayart.com

Creative Industries (El Cajon) • • • www.creativewheels.com

Mud in Mind (El Cajon) • • • • • • www.mudinmind.com

Chris Henley Tools (Encinitas) • www.hominid.net/chris.htm

Duncan Enterprises (Fresno) • • • • • www.duncanceramics.com

B & W Tile Co. Inc. (Gardena) • www.bwtile.com

Geil Kilns Co. (Huntington Beach) • • www.kilns.com

Art Decal Corp. (Long Beach) www.artdecalcorp.com (decals)

Echo Ceramics (Los Angeles) • • • • • • • www.echoceramics.com

West Coast Kiln (Lucerne Valley) • www.westcoastkiln.com

Nasco Arts & Crafts (Modesta) • • • • • • • www.enasco.com

Olsen Kiln (Mountain Center) • www.olsenkilns.com

Freeform Clay & Supply (National City) • • • • • • • • • • www.freeformclay.com

Falcon Company (Olivenhain) • •

Keith Company (Pico Rivera) • www.keithcompany.com

Aftosa (Richmond) • • • • www.aftosa.com

Jiffy Mixer Co. Inc. (Riverside) • www.jiffymixer.com

Industrial Minerals Co. (Sacramento) • • • • • • • www.clayimco.com

HyperGlaze/Richard Burkett (San Diego) www.hyperglaze.com (software for glazes)

Ceramics & Crafts Supply Co. (San Francisco) • • www.ceramicssf.com

Japan Pottery Tools (San Francisco) • www.japanpotterytools.com

A&D Weighing (San Jose) • www.andweighing.com

Lily Pond Products (Sanger) • • www.lilypond.com

Aardvark Clay & Supplies (Santa Ana) • • • • • • • • • www.aardvarkclay.com

Miles Ceramic Color (Santa Ana) •

Clay Planet (Santa Clara) • • • • • • • • • • www.clay-planet.com

California Pot Tools (Santa Paula) •

Peter Pugger Mfg., Inc. (Ukiah) • • www.peterpugger.com

Ceramic ArtSpace (Van Nuys) • • • www.ceramicartspace.com

Pure & Simple Pottery Products (Willits) • www.pureandsimplepottery.comCOlORADO

Herring Designs, LLC (Breckenridge) • • www.herringdesigns.com

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Manufacturers and SuppliersQuickly locating one of 335 ceramic businesses is easy with this locator. You’ll be able to easily find suppliers nearby and all the suppliers offering various products and services. Companies are arranged alphabetically by state, then by city.

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Ceramic Design Group Ltd. (Denver) • • www.jonathankaplanceramics.ocm

Killam Gas Burner Co. (Denver) • • www.killamburner.com

Mile Hi Ceramics, Inc. (Denver) • • • • • • • • • • www.milehiceramics.com

Thomas Stuart Wheels (Denver) • • • www.thomasstuart.com

Bluebird Mfg. Inc. (Ft. Collins) • • • • www.bluebird-mfg.com

Rocky Mountain WoodMasters, Ltd. (Highland Ranch)

ARC (Lakewood) • • • •

BNZ Materials Inc. (Littleton) • www.bnzmaterials.com

Glyptic Modeling Tools (Loveland) • www.glyptic.comCOnnECTiCUT

Rusty Kiln Ceramic Studio (North Windham) • • • • • • • • www.rustykiln.com

R.T. Vanderbilt Co. Inc. (Norwalk) • www.rtvanderbilt.com

Duralite Inc. (Riverton) • • www.duralite.comDElAWARE

J. & J. Ceramic Studio (Dover) • • • • •

Nabertherm, Inc. (New Castle) • www.nabertherm.comFlORiDA

Atlantic Pottery Supply Inc. (Atlantic Beach) • • • • • • • www.atlanticpotterysupply.com

Jepson Pottery & World Pottery Institute (Geneva) • • • • www.jepsonpottery.com

Jen-Ken Kilns (Lakeland) • www.jenkenkilns.com

Summit Kilns (Land O Lakes) • • • • www.swiftweb.com/summit

C and R Products, Inc. (Ocala) • • • • • www.candrproducts.com

Bennett Pottery Supply (Ocoee) • • • • • • • www.bennettpottery.com

Calcoworld Ceramic Decals (Orlando) www.calcoworld.com (decals)

Axner Co. Inc. (tradename of Laguna Clay Co.) (Oviedo) • • • • • • • • • • www.axner.com

Highwater Clays of Florida (St. Petersburg) • • • • • • • • • www.highwaterclays.com/hwcflorida.html

St. Petersburg Clay Company Inc. (St. Petersburg) • www.stpeteclay.com

The Arts Center (St. Petersburg) • www.theartscenter.org

OTT-LITE Technology (Tampa) • • www.ott-lite.comgEORgiA

Davens Ceramic Center (Atlanta) • • • • • • • • • www.davensceramiccenter.com

Fort Pottery Co. (Augusta) • • • • • • • www.fortpottery.com

Creative Glazes (Duluth) • • www.creativeglazes.com

Olympic Kilns (Flowery Branch) • • • www.greatkilns.com

Larkin Refractory Solutions (Lithonia) • • www.larkinrefractory.com

Kickwheel Pottery Supply Inc. (Tucker) • • • • • • • • • • www.kickwheel.comiDAhO

The Potter’s Center (Boise) • • • • • • • • www.potterscenter.com

Wendt Pottery (Lewiston) • • • • • • • • www.wendtpottery.comillinOiS

U.S. Pigment Corp. (Bloomingdale) • •

Great Lakes Clay & Supply (Carpentersville) • • • • • • • • • • www.greatclay.com

Metomic Corporation (Chicago) www.metomic.com (lamp parts)

Paasche Airbrush Co. (Chicago) • www.paascheairbrush.com

Boothe Mold Company (Dupo) www.boothemold.com (molds)

Ceramic Supply Chicago (Evanston) • • • • • • • www.ceramicsupplychicago.com

Badger Air Brush Co. (Franklin Park) • • www.badgerairbrush.com

Dick Blick Art Materials (Galesburg) • • • • • • • • www.dickblick.com

Crystal Productions (Glenview) • www.crystalproductions.com

Shimpo Ceramics (Nidec-Shimpo America Corp.) (Itasca) • • • • www.shimpoceramics.com

Midwest Ceramics (Joliet) • • • • • • • • • www.midwestcas.net

International Decal Corp. (Northbrook) • • www.timrg.com

Art Clay World, USA (Oak Lawn) • • • • • • www.artclayworld.com

Debcor Inc. (South Holland) • www.debcor-inc.sbcontract.cominDiAnA

United Art & Education (Ft. Wayne) • • • • • • • www.unitednow.com

American Art Clay Co., Inc. (Amaco/Brent) (Indianapolis) • • • • • • • • www.amaco.com

Brickyard Ceramics & Crafts (Indianapolis) • • • • • • • • • • www.brickyardceramics.com

Sugar Creek Industry, Inc. (Linden) • • • www.sugarcreekind.com

Royal and Langnickel Brush Mfg. (Merrillville) • www.royalbrush.com

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eManufacturers and Suppliers


iOWA

Johnson Gas Appliance Co. (Cedar Rapids) • • www.johnsongas.com

Bartlett Instrument Co. (Ft. Madison) • www.bartinst.com

Scotlin Ceramics (McGregor) • • • • • • • • KAnSAS

Creative Paradise (Goddard) • www.handbuilding.com

Easy Ceramic Decals, LLC (Kansas City) www.easyceramicdecals.com (decals)

Bracker’s Good Earth Clays (Lawrence) • • • • • • • • • • www.brackers.com

Soldner Clay Mixers by Muddy Elbow Mfg. (Newton) • www.soldnerequipment.com

ClayStamps.com (Olathe) • www.claystamps.com

Evans Ceramic Supply (Wichita) • • • • • • • • • • www.evansceramics.com

KEnTUCKY

Old Hickory Clay Co. (Hickory) • • www.oldhickoryclay.com

Kentucky Mudworks LLC (Lexington) • • • • • • www.kentuckymudworks.com

Louisville Fire Brick Works (Louisville) • www.louisvillefirebrick.com

lOUiSAnA

Alligator Clay Company (Baton Rouge) • • • • • • • • www.alligatorclay.com

Southern Pottery Equipment & Supplies (Baton Rouge) • • • • • • • • • www.alligatorclay.com

Blue Diamond Kilns (Metarie) • www.bluediamondkiln.com

New Orleans Clay (New Orleans) • • • • www.noclay.com

MAinE

Portland Pottery Supply South (Braintree) • • • • • • • • • www.portlandpottery.com

Amherst Potters Supply (Hadley) • • • • • • • www.amherstpotters.com

MARYlAnD

Baltimore Clayworks (Baltimore) • www.baltimoreclayworks.org

Buyers Market of American Craft (Baltimore) • • www.americancraft.com

Chesapeake Ceramics Supply (Baltimore) • • • • • • • • www.ceramicsupply.com

Clayworks Supplies, Inc. (Baltimore) • • • • • • • • • www.clayworkssupplies.com

Bear Creek Pottery (Bowie) • • • • www.bcpottery.com

PotteryTools.com (Sinkburg) • www.potterytools.com

MASSAChUSETTS

Gare Inc. (Harverhill) • • • • www.gare.com

The Potters Shop and School (Needham) •

Sheffield Pottery Inc. (Sheffield) • • • • • • • • • • www.sheffield-pottery.com

Ceramics Consulting Services (Southampton) • www.fixpots.com

Boston Kiln Sales & Service (Watertown) • • • • www.bostonkiln.com

Saint-Gobain Ceramics (Worcester) • www.refractories.saint-gobain.com

MiChigAn

Pebble Press, Inc. (Ann Arbor) • •

Evenheat Kiln Inc. (Caseville) • www.evenheat-kiln.com

Runyan Pottery Supply Inc. (Clio) • • • • • • • • • • www.runyanpotterysupply.com

Gilmour Campbell Co. (Detroit) •

West Michigan Clay (Hamilton) • • • • • • • • • www.westmichiganclay.com

Crossroads Pottery & Clay Company (Jackson) • • • • • • • • • www.crossroadspottery.net

Manitou Arts (Leland) • www.manitouarts.net

Du-All Drafting & Art (Madison Hts.) • • • www.duall.com

Har-Bon Ceramics & Decals (Presque Isle) www.harbon.com (decals)

Rovin Ceramics (Taylor) • • • • • • • • • • www.rovinceramics.com

MinnESOTA

Minnesota Clay Co. USA (Edina) • • • • • • • • • • www.minnesotaclayusa.com

Master Kiln Builders (Farmington) • • www.kilnbuilders.com

Dunghanrach Clay Co. (Melrose) • • • • •

Brown Tool Co. (Minneapolis) • www.browntool.com

Continental Clay Co. (Minneapolis) • • • • • • • • • • www.continentalclay.com

Smith-Sharpe Fire Brick Supply (Minneapolis) • • www.kilnshelf.com

Triarco Arts & Crafts LLC (Plymouth) • • • • • • • • • • www.triarcoarts.com

MiSSiSSiPPi

Dogwood Ceramic Supply (Gulfport) • • • • • • • • • www.dogwoodceramics.com

Whistle Press (Petal) • www.whistlepress.com

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MiSSOURi

Christy Minerals Co. (High Hill) • www.christyco.com

KC Metro Ceramic & Pottery Supplies (Kansas City) • • • • • • • • www.kcmetroceramic.com

L&R Specialties Inc (Nixa) • • • • • • • • • www.claydogs.com

Krueger Pottery, Inc. (St. Louis) • • • • • • • • • • www.kruegerpottery.com

MOnTAnA

Archie Bray Foundation (Helena) • • • • • • • • • • www.archiebray.org

nEvADA

Cress Mfg. Co. (Carson City) • www.cressmfg.com

Aardvark Clay & Supplies (Las Vegas) • • • • • • • • • www.aardvarkclay.com

Bison Studios (Las Vegas) • www.bisonstudios.com

BigCeramicStore.com (Sparks) • • • • • • • • www.bigceramicstore.com

Nevada Dan’s (Sparks) • • • www.potterywheel.com

nEW hAMPShiRE

W.K. Hillquist, Inc. (Hudson) • www.retaildisplays.com

Midlantic Clay (Bellmawr) • • • • • • • • • www.midlanticclay.com

nEW JERSEY

Instar Beautiful Decals (E. Brunswick) www.instardecals.com (decals)

Curran Pfeiff Corp. (Edison) • • www.curranpfeiff.com

Hobby Colorobbia (Elmowwod Park) • • • • www.hobbycolorobbia.com

Hammill & Gillespie Inc. (Livingston) • www.hamgil.com

Ceramic Supply Inc. (Lodi) • • • • • • • • • • www.eceramicsupply.com

New Brunswick Lamp Shade Co. (North Brunswick) www.nbls.com (lamp shades)

L&L Kiln Mfg. Inc. (Swedesboro) • • • www.hotkilns.com

nEW MExiCO

Coyote Clay & Color (Albuquerque) • • www.coyoteclay.com

New Mexico Clay, Inc. (Albuquerque) • • • • • • • • • • www.nmclay.com

Taos Clay (El Prado) • www.taosclay.com

Santa Fe Clay (Santa Fe) • • • • • • • • • • www.santafeclay.com

nEW YORK

Charles A. Hones Inc. (Amityville) • www.charlesahones.com

East Valley Supply (Andover) www.evsupply.com (ceramics repair epoxy)

Studio Sales Pottery Supply (Avon) • • • • • • • • • • www.studiosalespottery.com

Teka Fine Line Brushes Inc. (Brooklyn) • www.tekabrush.com

The Mudpit (Brooklyn) • • • • • • • www.mudpitnyc.com

Vent-A-Kiln Corp. (Buffalo) • www.ventakiln.com

Ceramic Arts Library (Corning) • www.ceramicartslibrary.com

PCF Studios (Honeoye) • www.pcfstudios.com

Bailey Pottery Equipment (Kingston) • • • • • • • • • • www.baileypottery.com

American Craft Council (New York) • www.craftcouncil.org

Artfixtures (New York) www.artfixtures.com (display stands)

Artsystems, Ltd. (New York) • www.artsystems.com

Eagle Zinc Company (New York) •

Rockland Colloid Corp. (Piermont) • www.rockaloid.com

Clayscapes Pottery Inc. (Syracuse) • • • • • • • www.clayscapespottery.com

Oneida Air Systems, Inc. (Syracuse) • • www.oneida-air.com

Northeast Ceramic Supply (Troy) • • • • • • • •

Alpine Kilns and Equipment LLC (Warwick) • • www.alpinekilns.com

Doo-Woo Tools LLC (Warwick) • www.doowoo.com

Kiln-Ray Services (Warwick) • • • • • www.kilnray.com

Rochester Ceramics, Inc. (Webster) • • • • • • • • • www.rochesterceramics.com

nORTh CAROlinA

Highwater Clays, Inc. (Asheville) • • • • • • • • • www.highwaterclays.com

Lark Books (Asheville) • www.larkbooks.com

Carolina Clay Connection (Charlotte) • • • • • • • • • www.carolinaclay.com

Potterystamp.com (Charlotte) • www.potterystamp.com

Claymakers (Durham) • • • • • • • • www.claymakers.com

Resco Products Inc. (Greensboro) • www.rescoproducts.com

Mudtools (Hendersonville) • www.mudtools.com

Williams Supply (Star) • • • • • • www.williamssupplync.com

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Speedball Art Products Co. (Statesville) • www.speedballart.com

Fat Cat Pottery Inc. (Wilmington) • • • • • • • • www.fatcatpottery.com

OhiO

National Artcraft Co. (Aurora) • • • • • • www.nationalartcraft.com

A & K Clay Company LLC (Bethel)

Laguna Clay Co. (Byesville)) • • • • • • • • • • www.lagunaclay.com

Olympic Enterprises Inc. (Campbell) • • • www.olympicdecals.com

Vulcan Kilns (Centerville) • • • www.vulcankiln.com

Funke Fired Arts (Cincinnati) • • • • • • • • • www.funkefiredarts.com

Maxfield Ceramics Supply Inc (Cincinnati) • • • • • • • • • • www.maxfieldceramics.com

Aegean Sponge Co. (Cleveland) • www.aegeansponge.com

Bareclay (Columbus) • www.bareclay.com

Columbus Clay (Columbus) • • • • • • • • • www.columbusclay.com

Mudmats (Columbus) • • • www.mostlymud.com

RAM Products Inc. (Columbus) • www.ramprocess.com

Cornell Studio Supply (Dayton) • • • • • • • • • •

Wise Screenprint (Dayton) www.wisescreenprint.com (decals)

Innovative Ceramic Corp. (East Liverpool) www.innovativeceramic.com (inks/decals)

Mason Color Works Inc. (East Liverpool) • www.masoncolor.com

Mayco Colors (Hilliard) • • • www.maycocolors.com

Maryland Refractories Co. (Irondale) • www.mrcgrog.com

Ohio Ceramic Supply Inc. (Kent) • • • • • • • • • • www.ohioceramic.com

Handmade Lampshades (Maumee) (lampshades)

Cedar Heights Clay Operation (Oak Hill) • www.rescoproducts.com

Krumor Inc. (Valley View) (thermocouples and RTDs)

Orton Ceramic Foundation (Westerville) • • • www.ortonceramic.com

Olympia Enterprises, Inc. (Youngstown) • • www.olympiadecals.com

OREgOn

The Kiln Elements Co. (Birkenfeld) • • www.kilnelements.com

Aim Kiln Mfg. (Corvallis) • • • • • www.aimkilns.com

Georgies Ceramic & Clay Co. Inc. (Eugene) • • • • • • • • • • www.georgies.com

Georgies Ceramic & Clay Co. Inc. (Portland) • • • • • • • • • • www.georgies.com

Mudshark (Portland) • www.mudsharkstudios.org

PotteryVideos.com (Portland) • www.potteryvideos.com

Skutt Ceramic Products (Portland) • www.skutt.com

Southern Oregon Pottery Supply (Talent) • • • • • • • • • www.southernoregonpottery.com

PEnnSYlvAniA

Ceramic Services Inc. (Bensalem) • • www.kilnman.com

Insulating Firebrick, Inc. (Butler) www.insulatingfirebrick.com

The Clay Place (Carnegie) • • • • • • • • • • www.clayplace.com

M&M Pottery Supply (Corry) • • • • • • • • •

Del Val Potter’s Supply Co. (Glenside) • • • • • • • www.delvalpotters.com

Penn-Mo Fire Brick Co. (Harrisburg) • • • • • • • www.penn-mo.com

Nilfisk-Advance America Inc. (Malvern) www.pa.nilfisk-advance.com (vacuums)

Shenango Advanced Ceramics (New Castle) • www.shenangoceramics.com

Camp’s Clay Accessories (Philadelphia) • www.campsclayaccessories.com

The Ceramic Shop (Philadelphia) • • • • • • • • • www.theceramicshop.com

Standard Ceramic Supply Co. (Pittsburgh) • www.standardceramic.com

Frog Pond Pottery (Pocopson) • www.masteringglazes.com

Placid Ceramics (Washington) • • • • • • • www.placidceramics.com

Petro Mold Co (Waterford) • www.petromolds.com

RhODE iSlAnD

Dew Claw Studios (Pawtucket) • • • • • www.dewclawstudios.com

SOUTh CAROlinA

Clay-King.com (Spartanburg) • • • • • • • • www.clay-king.com

eArtWorld.com (Spartanburg) • • • • • • • • www.eartworld.com

Coastal Ceramics (Summerville) • • • • • • www.coastalceramic.com

SOUTh DAKOTA

Pacer Corp. (Custer) • www.pacerminerals.com

Dakota Potters Supply (Sioux Falls) • • • • • • • • • www.dakotapotters.com

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TEnnESSEE

Ward Burner Systems (Dandridge) • • • • • www.wardburner.com

Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts (Gatlinburg) • • • www.arrowmont.org

The Clay Lady (Herdersonville) • • • • • • • • • www.theclaylady.com

Kentucky-Tennessee Clay Co. (Nashville) • www.ballclay.com

Mid-South Ceramic Supply Co. (Nashville) • • • • • • • • • • www.midsouthceramics.com

H.C. Spinks Clay Co. Inc. (Paris) • www.spinksclay.com

TExAS

Armadillo Clay & Supplies (Austin) • • • • • • • • • • www.armadilloclay.com

Trinity Ceramic Supply Inc. (Dallas) • • • • • • • • www.trinityceramic.com

American Ceramic Supply Co. (Ft. Worth) • • • • • • • • • www.AmericanCeramics.com

Texas Pottery Supply & Clay Co. (Ft. Worth) • • • • • • • • • www.texaspottery.com

PMC Connection (Garland) • • • • www.pmcconnection.com

Ceramic Store Inc. (Houston) • • • • • • • • • www.ceramicstoreinc.com

Bella Bisque, Inc. (Kyle) • • www.bellabisque.com

Display Your Art by Glassica (Liberty Hill) • www.displayyourart.com

Paragon Industries, L.P. (Mesquite) • www.paragonweb.com

Old Farmhouse Pottery (Rusk) • www.farmpots.com

Clayworld Inc. (San Antonio) • • • • • • • • • www.clayworld.com

GSM Enterprises (San Antonio) • • • • • www.gsmkilns-sales-service.com

Etc., Etc., Etc. (Wichita Falls) • • • • • • • • • •

UTAh

Capital Ceramics Inc. (Salt Lake City) • • • • • • • • www.capitalceramics.com

viRginiA

Spun Earth Pottery (Forest) • • • • www.spunearth.com

The Kiln Doctor Inc. (Front Royal) • • • • www.thekilndoctor.com

Tin Barn Pottery Supply at Manassas Clay (Manassas) • • • • • • • • • • www.manassasclay.com

Campbell’s Ceramic Supply Inc. (Richmond) • • • • • • • www.claysupply.com

ClayPeople (Richmond) • • • • • • • • • www.claypeople.net

WAShingTOn

North Star Equipment Inc. (Cheney) • • www.northstarequipment.com

Giffin Tec Inc. (Lummi Island) • • www.giffingrip.com

Crucible Kilns (Seattle) • www.seattlepotterysupply.com

New Century Ceramic Arts Inc. (Seattle) • • • www.paperclayart.com

Seattle Pottery Supply (Seattle) • • • • • • • • • • www.seattlepotterysupply.com

Precision Terrefirma (Spokane) • www.precision-terrafirma.com

Rings & Things Wholesale (Spokane) • www.rings-things.com

Clay Art Center (Tacoma) • • • • • • • • • • www.clayartcenter.net

Scott Creek Pottery Inc. (Tacoma) • • www.scottcreekpottery.com

Clay In Motion (Walla Walla) • • www.clayinmotion.com

WiSCOnSin

MKM Pottery Tools LLC (Appleton) • www.mkmpotterytools.com

Nasco Arts & Crafts (Ft. Atkinson) • • • • • • • www.enasco.com

Sax Arts & Crafts (New Berlin) • • • • • • • • www.saxarts.com

A.R.T. Studio Clay Co. Inc. (Sturtevant) • • • • • • • • • www.artclay.com

AUSTRAliA

Venco Products (Kelmscott WA ) • • www.venco.com

CAnADA

Plainsman Clay Ltd. (Medicine Hat) • • • • • • • • • • www.plainsmanclays.com

Greenbarn Potters Supply Ltd. (Surrey) • • • • • • • • • www.greenbarn.com

Bamboo Tools (Hi Tech Marketing) (Surrey) • www.bambootools.com

Ceramic Arts & Crafts Supply (Burlington) • • • • • • www.ceramicarts.com

Euclids Kilns & Elements (Oakville) • • • • www.euclids.com

Euclid’s/The Pottery Supply House Ltd. (Oakville) • • • • • • • • • • www.pshcanada.com

Tucker’s Pottery Supplies Inc. (Richmond Hill) • • • • • • • • • • www.tuckerspottery.com

Spectrum Glazes (Toronto) • www.spectrumglazes.com

Mercedes Ceramic Supplies (Woodbridge) • • • • • • • •

Digitalfire Corp. (Cornwall) • • www.digitalfire.com

Edouard Bastarache Inc. (Sorel-Tracy) • www.sorel-tracy.qc.ca/~edouardb

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ceramic workshop handbookmold, or you’re making a complex slip mold, you’ll need to mix plaster....

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