Online Store School Home Articles Discussion Technique Tips Video
 

   Our online classroom is filled with articles, tips, and techniques for your personal use.

  Choose from hundreds of available topics!

 

Painting of Outside Ceramic Bisque

Week of April 21, 2002

You found a beautiful item and now your ready to glaze it and put it outside for everyone to see.  Before you do this, better read this tip below:

 

You have just gotten back or received your beautiful bisque item from your favorite ceramic shop ( Dolly & Ernie Ceramics we hope!!!) . You are all excited and can't wait to glaze your
 ( we will use fountain as an example) new fountain. Well you might be going through a lot of work, time and expense glazing the item when painting and sealing the item would actually be the better choice.

 

We have found through a lot of personal trial and error that for some reason when a glazed item is placed outdoors, especially in a colder environment it tends to crack and become unattractive looking. By the same token the items we have painted and sealed have stayed much more attractive looking for a longer period of time.

 

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2002  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.



Back to Top

Dry Brushing your Ceramic Bisque. May 2, 2002

 

Dry brushing is a wonderful way to finish your ceramic pieces, it brings out details, blends colors and when done correctly makes your pieces look almost lifelike. This week we will give you a few tips to help with your dry brushing.

    When you are dry brushing your results will be more natural when you work from the darkest to the lightest colors.

     Most mistakes happen by allowing too much paint to remain on your brush while dry brushing. You must work your paint and brush on a clean paper until almost no color shows on the paper. Your brush is then ready to dry brush.

     Another very common mistake is trying to cover  a large area quickly. It is best to work on a 2" x 2" area at a time. Once that is perfect move to an adjacent 2" x 2" area. It sounds like slow going, but it actually is more efficient than trying to cover a large area all at once.

Click here for examples of dry brushed pieces.

 

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2002  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Antiquing of Ceramic Bisque ( when antiquing is to dark)

Welcome to Dolly & Ernie Ceramics Tip of the Week. Every week we provide a new tip to help with your ceramic art projects. All of the tips that you will see are the results of 25 years of trial and error on tens of thousands of pieces. Remember if you are having a particular problem or question that hasn't been addressed in our tips you can get advice or answers quickly using our Ceramic Discussion Board.

 

Antiquing is another great way to show the details of a piece or to make a piece look aged. But allot of people are hesitant to antique an item because when they have tried antiquing, the item has become to dark.

There is a easy solution to this, before you antique your item coat it with sealer first, then let dry. This will prevent your colors from becoming to dark and it will be much easier to control the level of antiquing.

 

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2002  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Banding when a banding wheel is not available

Lets face it most or us who paint ceramic art do not own a banding wheel. We just don't want the expense of purchasing one because we really don't do enough banding to make the purchase worth our wild.

But when the situation arises where you need to make a band around an item you can try several different techniques. You might try using rubber bands around your piece. You can position these around the item and space them any width you desire. You then apply the paint in between the bands, then wait until your paint is fully dry before removing the bands to prevent accidents of smeared color. This technique works but it does have one drawback, allot of times while painting the rubber bands will move causing an imperfect band.

What we have found to work best is something almost everyone has right in their tool box, electrical tape. Duct tape's  little cousin with every bit as much usefulness. This will not move around like the rubber bands sometimes do and will give a much cleaner band. Because the tape is flexible you can also use this to outline sections of design work on your pieces. (both of these tips are recommended for bisque-ware only, green-ware is much to fragile )

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2002  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Dolly's Easy Eyes

Click Here to view the complete article.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2002  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Common Problems with Bisque-ware

   This month we are going to try to cover some of the most common problems that occur with ceramic bisque pieces.

     The most common problem we are asked about is bisque that will not take paint in spots. If you are painting with stains you could spray the item with a few coats of porcelain spray sealer, let dry thoroughly and then finish painting your piece. If you are painting with under-glazes you can sand the area lightly with a fine grade sandpaper, this will allow the under-glaze to adhere to the item.

     Another problem we find people come across when buying bisque from auctions is that some businesses may not have standards as high as what most of us would consider acceptable. When this happens you receive your item that you wanted to glaze except it is discolored in spots or it is yellowish brown in color.

      There are two possible causes for this, the first is that your item had been stored in a damp location and mold spores have begun to grow in spots on your piece.
Re-firing this piece will restore your item and will enable you to glaze the piece. The second cause of this would be that the item had been fired at too high of a temperature. Under this scenario re-firing the item will do absolutely no good, you really have no choice except to stain the item.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2002  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

 

Painting with Red Glazes.

Because of problems often encountered when using red glazes, many of us shy away from their use. But with a little practice, common sense, and knowledge you can over come the obstacles, and have a beautiful red glazed surface. There are some things to watch out for when using red glazes, but there is certainly no reason to eliminate them.

Many times after your piece is fired you will notice somewhere on the piece is a dark speck. This is caused by metals in the glaze that could not be separated out during the manufacturing process. These metals are impossible to completely eliminated but can usually be controlled.

Often an imperfection in the bisque-ware will cause a dark spot to appear. When a piece contains a blemish the glaze acts as a magnifier to make the spot easier to see. It is always a good idea to start with the best possible piece of bisque that you can, you must be extremely picky if you want your piece to turn out perfect. Pieces fired to a cone 04-05 work best. ( All bisque-ware at Dolly & Ernie Ceramics.com is fired to cone 04 )

Always apply three to four coats when working with red glazes. Always use a clean brush and one large enough to provide adequate coverage. Make sure to paint each coat in a different direction, being very careful not to leave streaks. Try to make each coat as smooth as possible, applying the glaze generously to your piece. The biggest mistake you can make is spreading the glaze to thin. Fire your piece to cone 06.

To avoid other problems and imperfections there are colors you should not fire with red glazes. These colors are in the red, yellow, and green spectrum. Some of these colors can discolor or splatter onto your piece. You have to remember red glaze will not cover other glazes, it becomes colored itself. The best way to check if the glazes you have chosen are compatible is to paint and then fire some sample chips together. Then check the results before committing the colors to your piece.

When firing red glazes common sense will eliminate a lot of problems. You should always ventilate your kiln properly, and avoid loading too heavily. The piece needs room to breath and give of gasses, and you are only asking for trouble when firing glazes when the pieces are too close together. Try to allow at least two rings of elements in between shelves when firing red glazes.

NEVER FIRE GREEN-WARE WITH RED GLAZES!!!!

 

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2002  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Painting with Opaque Stains

 

Misting your piece with a spray bottle of water will make application of your opaque stains much easier. Since your opaque stains are water based the slight dampening of the bisque will allow the color to flow on much easier. This can help you to eliminate blots and overlap lines that can really show on
your finished piece.

 

Back to Top
Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2002  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.
Revised: 05/14/06.

Unusual Patterns for Your Ceramic Pieces

If you want an unusual pattern on a ceramic piece try using a
paper or plastic doily. You can paint or sponge your color (s)
right through them. And because the patterns on different doilies vary so much the patterns are virtually endless.

 

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2002  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

How to make realistic flesh colors

A good way to make realistic Indian flesh is to mix equal parts of Duncan's Native Flesh and Terra Cotta.
Pigs look real when you mix equal parts of Duncan's Native Flesh and Peach.
When painting snow flakes, you can make them look icy by applying some light blue chalk after you paint them white. Then paint with Crystal Sparklers.

Back to Top

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2003  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Cleanliness when glazing.

When working with under glazes and over glazes make sure your hands are clean and free from oil. Dirt and oil can keep both from adhering to the surface of the ware. Even touching your face and then touching the ceramic can deposit oil that can give unsatisfactory results.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2003  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Newspaper as a mat??

Most people cover their work area with newspaper before they begin to paint. But you should also place a paper towel on top of the newspaper to rest your piece on as you work. This will prevent the newsprint from rubbing off onto your piece and causing dirty spots.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2003  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Absorbent paper for drybrushing.

While drybrushing you need an absorbent surface to rub your drybrush on if you use newspaper your lighter colors will become muddied by the newsprint. Try using  a brown paper bag, or a separate paper towel to rub the excess paint off your drybrush.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2003  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Paint Pallet

If you don't have a glazed tile to lay out your paint on you can use a margarine lid covered with aluminum foil. When finished clean up is easy just throw the foil away.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2003  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Tip on cleaning your brushes

Keep a container of water handy to clean your brushes in between shades. Be sure not to let your brushes rest in the water, or rub them on the bottom of the container. Nothing can damage a brush faster than rubbing it vigorously on the bottom of the water container. This makes the bristles fan out from the ferrule and renders the brush useless.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2003  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Firing green and red glazes together - don't try it!!!

You absolutely can not fire green and red glazes together in the same kiln under any circumstances. The fumes and gases released from the green glaze will eat away the red pigment and leave you with grey, white, and black spots.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2003  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Firing Green-ware

When firing green-ware it is permissible to allow pieces to touch each other without harm.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2003  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Hard spots on bisque

Sometimes you will encounter a hard spot on your piece that will not cover no matter how many coats of paint you apply. To remedy this you can try lightly sanding the spot. When working with acrylics you can spray the spot with porcelain sealer which normally takes care of the problem.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2003  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Do you have a vase that's leaking?

If you have a vase that is leaking water, you can sometimes remedy this by filling the vase with milk and letting it sit for a while . The milk solids will settle into the porous cracks and seal the leaks.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2003  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Natural looking lips and blush.

A Natural look for blush and lips can be achieved by applying chalk. Use the coral red chalk and apply one light coat after another until the desired color is achieved.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2003  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Applying Over glazes.

When applying over glazes such as fired gold or mother of pearl be sure not to eat, drink, or smoke. All of these things can easily contaminate the over glaze and produce unsatisfactory results. Over glazes should not be applied in a room where other people are smoking.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2003  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Waxing

Waxes are an interesting way of decorating a ceramic piece. Paint your piece with a base coat of black and then spray with a super gloss sealer. When dry begin applying the waxes with your fingers. When finished seal again with super gloss sealer. Waxes are a great way to get reluctant people to begin painting ceramics. Even people who say they can't paint a straight line can follow the directions for using waxes and obtain pleasing results Mystical pieces like wizards and dragons lend themselves to wax decorating.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2003  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

Dull Finish for White Gold or Gold Over-glazes

If you want to achieve a dull silver finish like in Indian jewelry, or if you are glazing steins and you want the accent strip to look duller or a little more like pewter. You can try the following technique, using the fired on white gold, over a MATT finish (clear) glaze. First paint your piece as usual using under glazes, then use gloss (clear) glaze for your item and brush it up to borders of the part that you want matt finished, then brush the (clear) matt down, touching the borders of the gloss. Once it's fired, paint on the white gold over the matt as directed being very careful not to contaminate it, and then fire it accordingly. You may also do this with yellow gold over-glaze and it will come out a burnished antique gold rather than the regular fourteen carrot gold over-glaze.

This tip submitted by Kim Peterson, Foxboro Massachusetts.
Kim is the winner of a $10.00 gift certificate for best tip submitted this month.

Dolly Swaldi
Copyright © 2003  [Dolly&ErnieCeramics.com]. All rights reserved.

Back to Top

 

 

 Contact us    |     Policies     |     Ceramic Retailers     |     Affiliate Account      |     Site Index

Copyright © 1999-2006 Dolly & Ernie Ceramics.com Inc.
All Rights Reserved
1160 Chestnut Street - Kulpmont - PA 17834