Intro to Mixing Dry Glazes

Mixing a glaze powder with water allows you to apply the glaze to bisque ware quickly and easily.  It is a relatively simple process.  The main steps, in more detail below, include: measuring water, mixing the glaze powder with the water, sieving, adjusting viscosity or density and letting the glaze sit for a while before it is applied.  There are many variations and some people execute these steps in a different order.

First of all, follow the instructions that came with the glaze if you are using a premixed powder.  Many commercially prepared glazes can now be purchased as dry powder in 10, 25, or 50lb increments.  Generally, dry glaze powder is formulated for dipping and pouring, while premixed liquid glazes are formulated for brushing (3,20).  The following instructions assume that you have a glaze in dry powder form which is mixed well and ready to be mixed with water.  If you are not using a whole batch of premixed powder make sure it is mixed well before taking part of the powder to mix with water.  Some of the glaze ingredients might settle to the bottom of the container during transport (20).  There are also many suggestions for keeping the glaze suspended in water or improving brushability.  These suggestions include Flocs (7), bentonite (3,11), epsom salt (13), brushing medium (10), CMC (11) and Macaloid (13).

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