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glaze database proposal

updated mon 29 oct 07

 

John Sankey on sun 28 oct 07


The first thing to do when establishing any form of database is
to determine what information will be wanted by users. Next, the
data needs to be put in a sufficiently standardised form that it
can be evaluated reliably by a search engine.

The first use of such a dataset once complete will be to look for
duplicates - in a recent post Alisa voiced her suspicion that
there were only 300 really different glazes amongst the 1000 or
so she has tested.

Of course, the ingredient list will eventually have to include
equivalent names e.g. whiting (a pottery term) = lime (a
construction term) = calcite (the mineral name) = calcium
carbonate (the chemical name), and many others.

Here is what I propose for a start to catalogue Alisa's posted
work over the years. Suggestions?

A: unique name including colour(s)
B: source
C: cone (numeric range)
D: special firing rates (in C, F conversions by search program)
E: ingredient (more than one), from defined list with compositions,
or base glaze name
F: tester's name
G: clay body used for test
H: gloss, semigloss (waxy, midgloss), semimatte, matte, pitted, cratered
I: significant flaw (no entry means none)
J: evaluation result, multiline, ends with blank line

Using this format, here is one of her glazes plus one variant:

A: Cushing Base 1
B: Val Cushing Smooth Satin/Mat Base via Ababi
C: 6
D: cool down max. to 800C hold 1 hour
E: 45 nepheline syenite
E: 18 whiting
E: 20 EPK
E: 12 zinc oxide
E: 5 silica
F: Alisa Clausen
G: white midrange stoneware
H: gloss
I: crazing
J: Glossy, transparent base, crazed badly. Oxides did not move under glaze.

A: Cushing Base 1 White
C: 6
D: cool down max. to 800C hold 1 hour
E: Cushing Base 1
E: 10 Zircopax
F: Alisa Clausen
G: white midrange stoneware
H: gloss
I: crazing
J: Glossy, white glaze, crazed. Oxides did not move under base.

...

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