More glaze tips for RAL potters

Glaze tips-
The recent glaze results give rise to several tips, which might be useful.

First, the glaze buckets will accumulate a residue of materials on the sides of the bucket. This residue will contain various components of the glaze, which are critical to its desired application.
So the first tip is to always scrape the sides of the bucket before glazing. Some of our glazes will tend to settle out prior to, and even after, mixing/blending. Stir the glaze well before glazing and even in between applications.

Second - Runny glazes-
We have several glazes, which have a tendency to run, especially when combined with other glazes that also run (Milky Blue, BTBT and New Blue). When using these glazes either alone or in combination, use the following procedures:

1. The Amie/Carmela procedure – dip your piece into a water bucket about 1/4 to 1/3 up from the bottom prior to glazing
2. The Kate procedure –after dipping your piece 2/3 from the top, paint the rest of the piece with the glaze to the to the bottom 1/4” point.

Third, be aware that glazes can vary over time depending on evaporation and the possibility of contamination due to introduction of other materials into the gaze mix. If you get an unusual result from your glazed pieces or notice a variation in the appearance of a given glaze, please make note of it in the glaze notebook and notify Wes Stack (wesnerstack@comcast.net).

Fourth, thickness of the glaze is an important determinant of the outcome. Most of our glazes require a hold of 3 seconds in the glaze to get the desired results. This is only for the first dip. If you are using a double dip, a one second hold is sufficient. A longer hold will probably result in running.