Spent a few days carving the interiors and cleaning up the pressed forms from last week.
Most of these will be glaze fired rim down on the kiln shelf. Each needs a cookie, or thin slab of porcelain, to stop the rim from warping. The cookie is like a shock absorber, absorbing the stress of shrinkage.
It was a rare treat to use the slab roller. It’s been at least a couple years. It has been covered with moulds and tools since the first days of the project. Using up all the scrap clay. Making enough cookies for all the work to come from this batch of moulds.
The runny fur glazes I have been developing will not work here. The glazes I choose must be stable and food safe. Going to use some clear and coloured versions of E_Base as well as underglaze. Possibly some lustre as well.
Nine of the wine cups were bisque fired in the test kiln while the larger forms were drying. Used underglaze and grease pencils to make small lines. The red lines act as a resist for the black background. They burn away in the 016 firing that fuses the underglaze to the surface. Will be glaze firing two or three at time until I am certain about the finish.
The rest of the forms will be out of the bisque today. Need to work quickly to finish by the middle of next week. Never did replace that element in the second kiln. Have to get on that too.
