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how do i put poetry onto pottery????

updated tue 12 aug 03

 

stacey ballard on fri 8 aug 03


I want to put some poetry onto a vase I am making for my sisters wedding.
I fire 04-06.....I have no idea on how to even begin.

Do I have to make up some expensive decal? Or do I write everything on by hand? If I write it on and use under glazes, would they run at all when I clear coat over them? I would prefer to not hand write them.....do I have any options?

Thank you in advance,

Stacey Ballard

http://www.basicelements.biz


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Rikki Gill on sat 9 aug 03


You can just write on your pot, a little less than leather hard. You can
use a sharp pencil, or what ever you are comfortable with. Clean the writing
by going over it with the edge of a rib to remove displaced clay. After
the bisque firing, inlay a little red iron oxide, then wipe off the excess,
and if you use a somewhat transparent glaze, like a Celedon, the writing
will show through nicely. If you are not in a hurry, try it first on
something you don't care too much about, because you may have to tweak it a
bit.

Best wishes, Rikki in Berkeley




www.rikkigillceramics.com
wwwberkeleypotters.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "stacey ballard"
To:
Sent: Friday, August 08, 2003 8:59 PM
Subject: How do I put poetry onto pottery????


> I want to put some poetry onto a vase I am making for my sisters wedding.
> I fire 04-06.....I have no idea on how to even begin.
>
> Do I have to make up some expensive decal? Or do I write everything on by
hand? If I write it on and use under glazes, would they run at all when I
clear coat over them? I would prefer to not hand write them.....do I have
any options?
>
> Thank you in advance,
>
> Stacey Ballard
>
> http://www.basicelements.biz
>
>
> ---------------------------------
> Do you Yahoo!?
> Yahoo! SiteBuilder - Free, easy-to-use web site design software
>
>
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L. P. Skeen on sat 9 aug 03


Stacey, it seems to me that for an occasion like a wedding, the piece will
be more meaningful/have greater sentimental value if you handwrite the
words. If you don't like your own handwriting, find someone whose
handwriting you DO like, or use rubber stamp letters, or macaroni letters,
pressed into the clay. I have never had anything written with underglaze or
oxide to run when glazed with clear. I fire to ^6.

L
> I want to put some poetry onto a vase I am making for my sisters wedding.
> I fire 04-06.....I have no idea on how to even begin.

Annette Frank on sat 9 aug 03


Stacey, - I sometimes send clay scroll dinner invitations (not too
often, too much work), I write the particulars by hand, using underglaze
pencils on bisc, and clear glaze. Works well. The letters are sometimes
uneven, but so what.
Annette

stacey ballard wrote:

>I want to put some poetry onto a vase I am making for my sisters wedding.
>I fire 04-06.....I have no idea on how to even begin.
>

=?iso-8859-1?q?Katie=20Ellis?= on sat 9 aug 03


Stacey ~

You can always try incising the words on the sides of
the vase when it's leather hard...that's fun if you
vary the thickness of the pieces you scrape out and
then use a nice breaking glaze on top....

Underglazes (in my experience) do wonderful when
applied directly onto the bisque with just a clear
glaze over...they don't run at all. If you are
thinking of applying underglaze and then a regular
glaze over top (or vice versa) try it on something
else first, cause it doesn't always work. What's nice
about using just a simple underglaze and clear glaze
is that you can write out the poem/lettering in pencil
exactly how you want it, and then paint over it, and
the pencil will burn off in the kiln. Just make a
bunch of test tiles, experiment, and have fun. Good
luck!!

~katie
enjoying the first day of rain after two months
straight of nothing but sun...started to feel like I
wasn't in the pacific northwest anymore!!! :)

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Michele Jurist on sun 10 aug 03


Stacey:

I have been experimenting with a fairly simple way of transferring print to
ceramics. It takes some finessing, but you can have good results. You need
to have a way of reversing your type on your computer or at a copy shop. I
use Photoshop. Once you get the type reversed, here's the only really
tricky part. You need to get photocopies of the text, but you have to
experiment with different copy machines, to see which ones have the toner
that works well. My local Kinko's machines work fine. Next, you need to
experiment with the text on some pieces that are not the vase for the
wedding. You lay the paper onto the bisqued ware (print side down) and
ligthly brush lacquer thinner on in sections. (Wear a mask). Burnish with
a burnishing tool (rubber) or a sort of wide paint brush. The type will
transfer to the bisque. The tricky part is not using too much lacquer
thinner, and you will learn how to use just enough. Too much lacquer
thinner and the type gets smeared. You can then fire the piece, and it will
turn a rusty color, or do this process after the vase is finished, and it
will remain black. You can seal it with any finishing sealer. As far as
being watertight for a vase, I do not know how it works with just plain
bisque on the outside and glaze inside at ^04-06, but if you have time, you
can experiment with the process.

Good luck.
Michele in Seattle


Subject: How do I put poetry onto pottery????

I want to put some poetry onto a vase I am making for my sisters wedding.
I fire 04-06.....I have no idea on how to even begin.

Linda Arbuckle on sun 10 aug 03


Stacey,

See techniques - laser decal links for info.
http://www.printandclay.net/

Students at Univ. of FL brought artist Denise Pelletier in for a
workshop and she walked them through doing laser printer decals. Iron in
the toner works for fired-on images. Images will be iron-colored. Denise
will be teaching at Rhode Island School of Design this school year. If
you're interested in contacting her for a workshop:
Denise Pelletier (deepelletier@hotmail.com)

Bel Decal in FL has laser-printer decal paper. They assume you will be
doing room-temperature decals, but the paper works well for applying the
laser-printed images (or text) for fired use and does not need the
acrylic cover-coat that regular water-slide decal paper calls for. Just
print and use as instructed below.
Homepage:
http://www.beldecal.com/
Laser decal paper page:
http://www.beldecal.com/laser_paper.html

Linda Arbuckle, Professor
University of Florida
School of Art and Art History
P.O. Box 115801
Gainesville, FL 32611
http://www.arts.ufl.edu/artex02/html/ceramics/arbuckle.html
(352) 392-0201 x 219

Short version of info from Denise's handout:

Computer Decals for Ceramics info from Denise Pelletier
Almost any glazed object works, also fired burnished terra sigillata and
most vitreous slips. (Porous surfaces do not work. Terra-sigged pieces
should be fired to at least c/04). Every glaze is different, so students
should come with an attitude of testing and experimentation. Computer
decals work over varying firing ranges, so the first try is always an
experiment to find what temperature will work best with my given glaze.
It's a good idea to have some small glazed test pieces or tiles if you
want to experiment. You might also try decals on found glazed objects.

How and why do laser printer decals work

Black and white laser-printer toner is composed of tiny iron filings,
other pigments, and tiny beads of plastic. When a laser printer prints
an image, it establishes a static field on the piece of paper, the toner
sticks to the field, then the whole thing goes through a heat element
which melts the plastic bits, fixing the toner to the paper (in this
case, decal paper). When a decal from a printer containing enough iron
oxide is applied to a ceramic surface and fired, the iron oxide survives
the firing. The resulting image on the ceramic surface is permanent and
sepia-colored, ranging from tones of brown to reddish-purple or ochre.
The exact color depends on the composition of the glaze underneath the
decal, and the firing temperature of the decal.

Not all laser printer cartridges contain iron or enough iron to work as
a ceramic decal. All Apple black laser printers work, and so do Hewlett
Packard black laser printers. Other brands of laser printers may work,
but there is no guarantee unless you test them first. Bubble jet,
inkjet, and all color printers do NOT work because they don't contain
any or enough iron or other metallic oxides.

The printing goes on the SHINY side of the paper. Make sure you cut the
paper to a size that the printer is capable of. Many printers prefer an
8 1/2" x 11" piece of decal paper to be trimmed slightly B say, an
1/8"less on length and width. Test first and trim if needed. Same goes
for 11" x 14" printers.

Print your image on the decal paper! Print extras if a particular image
is important, because sometimes a decal might tear or nun when you apply
it, so it's best to have extras.

Transferring the decal to the ceramic surface

Apply the decals in the same way that you would apply a commercial or
silkscreen decal. However, you should keep in mind that computer decals
sometimes give you problems if the cover coat isn't right. If the cover
coat is too thin, the image will tear or break apart-if it's too thick
you may have trouble adhering it to your piece or incomplete adhesion
(resulting in burning off part of your image) -

1. Clean the surface of your piece (where the decal will go) with
alcohol and a clean cloth.

2. Cut out your image as close to the edges as possible. Try to make
curved rather than angled comers and edges. Sharp edges can cause the
decal to lift up.

3. Fill a shallow bottomed pan or tray with warm water. Soak the decal
for 30-60 seconds, or until the cover coat and image begin to separate
from the paper. (Sometimes the paper will curl and flatten out again)

4. With a wet sponge moisten the ceramic surface where the decal will
go. This helps you position your decal without wrinkling or tearing it.

5. GENTLY slide the decal into position on your piece, carefully
smoothing it from the center outward, with a small sponge, soft rubber
rib, or rubber brayer. This forces all the water and air bubbles out
from beneath the decal. Check to make sure there are no air bubbles or
edges that won't stick. If the decal is not in complete contact with the
surface, it will disappear in the firing. If you need to reposition the
decal, flood it with a little water first.

6. Let the decal dry overnight.

Firing the decal

The firing temperature for computer decals is quite variable, and
depends on the glaze that the decal is on. Since every glaze is
different, you must experiment to know what the optimum firing
temperature will be for any given glaze. Success can be had from c/018
(maybe lower) all the way to c/9. Basically you should try to fire at
the temperature where the glaze is just beginning to flux. This melts
the iron into the glaze, preserving the image. If you fire too hot, the
glaze will suck up all of the iron or distort your image. If you fire
too low, the image will smudge or wipe off. These are some general
firing ranges:

On china paint: 4020 - c/018
On low-fire glaze: c/06 - c/010
On cone 6 glaze: c/04 - c/1
On cone 10 glaze: c/04 -c/6
On terra sigillata: fire at least to c/04, preferably a bit higher on
burnished sigillata only

***Make sure your decals are stacked in the kiln with at least 2" of
clearance between shelves. Fire slowly especially in the beginning to
allow cover coat to bum off without lifting the decal or causing
incomplete bumoff of cover coat. The lid or door of your kiln should be
cracked until the cover coat is completely burned off. I like to leave
the kiln cracked right through red heat

EXPERIMENT! You will need to find the temperature that is right for your
glaze. If your image burns out at a low temperature, your toner may not
have any or enough iron. Even if you've found a temperature that works
for a particular glaze, try firing hotter or cooler-sometimes a long
firing range will work and give you different colors or shades of iron.

ALSO: use what you know about glazes to help you... Clear glazes with
lots of gerstley borate or nepheline syenite tend to "eat" or distort
the image. Try firing the decal lower or bag that glaze! And remember,
if what you need is a consistent undistorted image, it is easier to
succeed with glazes c/6 or above.

BIBLIOGRAPHY for Computer Decals
Johnson, Garth, MFA Thesis, Technical Statement, NYSCC, Alfred
University, 2000
Ross, Katherine, "Ceramic Decals from the Computer" (handout) School of
the Art Institute of Chicago
Scott, Paul Ceramics and Print

Cat Jarosz on sun 10 aug 03


I write big S and P on my salt and pepper shakers with thick porcelain
slip using a dye bottle... I also write Soap or Lotion on my pump bottles
using the same process... when it dries enough to smoosh ( its pretty high and
uneven at this point) I smoosh and then use needle and hook and also a little
scrapper tool to bring out the words clearly. This involves thinking about
which line would be ontop of the others if you were using a pen and following
thru the whole process.. Pretty easy actually and kind of fun to do when
your tired and not wanting much of a challenge, and I must say it looks pretty
nice and personal. If you want to see a picture of one I will send it ...
email pvt and I'll send one..

cat81257@aol.com warmest regards, cat

Cheryl Weickert on mon 11 aug 03


I have done this on mugs for graduations. I found a nice font on the
computer, typed up the words and printed out. Then scribbled on the back
with a pencil and traced the words onto the mugs and painted on the bone
dry piece with underglazes. Bisque fired and then glazed. The nice thing
about doing it before the bisque firing is that if you make a mistake you
can scratch it off and you don't have to worry about the glaze smearing the
words. The draw back is that you have to be more careful with the piece
when underglazing.

Good luck,
Pinky

On Fri, 8 Aug 2003 21:59:45 -0700, stacey ballard
wrote:

>I want to put some poetry onto a vase I am making for my sisters wedding.
>I fire 04-06.....I have no idea on how to even begin.