September 28, 2009
The Many Layers of Kiln Wash: How to Find the Best Kiln Wash for Your Firing Temperature and Methods
In this post, John Britt explains that giving a bit more consideration to kiln wash might help potters avoid some of the common kiln wash headaches - like scraping cracked kiln wash off shelves or lamenting an otherwise perfect piece that was ruined by a flake of kiln wash. Plus he shares some kiln wash recipes for various firing techniques.
June 5, 2009
Kiln Building Video: From the Ground Up - Laying the Foundation for Building a Ceramic Kiln
In today's clip, an excerpt from the full-length DVD
Building Your Own Potter's Kiln, Graham Sheehan demonstrates how to lay down the proper footprint for a gas kiln and explains how important these first steps are for ensuring a well-functioning, efficient kiln.
June 1, 2009
Building an Anagama Kiln for a High School Ceramics Class
Ceramic artist Clay Cunningham shares his process for building an anagama kiln at the high school where he teaches ceramics.
May 13, 2009
Mid-Range Reduction Firing: It’s Not Just Cooler, It’s Cool!
As John Britt points out in today's post, firing to cone 6 reduction is cheaper, faster, and the
results can be almost indistinguishable from high fire.
January 7, 2009
Converting an Electric Kiln for Wood and Gas Firing, Part 2
On Monday, Bruce Bowers explained his process for converting an old electric kiln into a gas and wood-fire kiln. Today, as promised, Bruce goes into detail about the firing schedule he uses with this kiln. Plus he explains how he gets excellent results by adding soda and salt into the mix.
January 5, 2009
Converting an Electric Kiln for Wood and Gas Firing, Part 1
After moving from a rural to an urban area, potter Bruce Bowers realized that, in order to continue to feed his passion for wood firing, he would have to get creative. And get creative, he did. With the cooperation of the studio where he was teaching at the time, Bruce converted an old electric kiln into a propane-fueled wood-burning kiln, with great results. Today, Bruce shares the process for converting the kiln and, on Wednesday, he will discuss how he fires the kiln. Good stuff!