Sharon Solly

I was surfing through Pinterest this morning because I needed a break from grading. I ran across Sharon Solly's incredible polymer clay jewelry here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/sharonsolly/with/4377289466/

Isn't her work remarkable? Here are a few of my favorites:

These lampwork beads are made with a mix of clear and opaque polymer clay, not glass.

Cute earrings. Polymer clay formed into bars, then wrapped in copper.

I love this ring. Polymer "stone" and hammered copper band.

Another ring, made the same way.

Her copper etching is lovely!

Bracelets made of punched copper plates. Thin sheets of polymer designs are riveted to the sheets.

This is my very favorite piece. 

Thoughts about persistence

I absolutely love Tyler Knott Gregson's poetry, so I made a graphic out of one of my favorites. (Click on the image to enlarge it.) I blew it up to poster size, and now it hangs in my office to remind me to take a breath and re-focus.

  

I'm heading out to visit Mike and Saybel and the kids, so I've done some simple pieces for the granddarlings to decorate.  I used B-Mix with grog as the clay body, and I'll bisque them on Friday or Saturday.  I'm going to give the tumblers a coat of Pinnell slip, then cover them with a clear glaze.

[pics]

The kids can use sharpie oil paint pens to color their own cup, and then we'll bake the cups in the oven to set the paint.  If we do it according to the instructions (https://somethingturquoise.com/2015/01/13/diy-sharpie-mug-engagement-gift/), the paint should be permanent.

I did a few birds so that I could have a present for Gina's birthday, as well as something fun to try my gelli print decals on.  I also saw a cute wind chime on Pinterest that I copied for the kids to paint for Mike for Father's Day.  I'm hoping to hike around with them and find a stick to use as a frame to hang the pieces on.

[pic]

So far, I've made do with simple Laguna cone 6 glazes, but I really want to start mixing my own glazes again.  I decided to start with some basic mid-range glazes from http://ceramicartsdaily.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/15Cone6-GlazeRecipesNEW1.pdf

I'm starting with this one, because I have the components on hand already:

N502 Transparent and Glossy
Cone 5

• Gillespie Borate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 %
• F-4 Feldspar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46.
• EPK Kaolin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
• Silica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
• 100%

I'm going to have to use gerstly borate and the feldspar I already have.  I'll start with direct substitutions and make corrections as I go along.  I really like the idea of being able to add colorants as desired.  Here are the test results from CAD:

Next on the shopping list: copper carbonate and strontium carbonate.

I plan to try the firing schedule from CAD: http://ceramicartsdaily.org/free-gifts/electric-kiln-firing-techniques-and-tips-inspiration-instruction-and-glaze-recipes-for-electric-ceramic-kilns/

1st segment – 50°F/hour to 220°F
2nd segment – 250°F/hour to 2167°F
3rd segment – cool down 150°F/hour to 1500°F

I'm looking forward to seeing the results.

I hate to admit, even to myself, the extent of my Pinterest habit.  Suffice it to say that I spend too much time reading about ceramics instead of playing with clay.  On the other hand, sometimes I find something I just have to do.

I've read this article at least a dozen times over the last year or so, because it keeps popping up in my Pinterest list.  http://finemessblog.blogspot.com/2014/07/that-one-image-transfer-technique.html.  It talks about the benefits of using a laser printer, because water beads up on the ink and soaks into the paper around it.

This may seem like an irrelevancy, but it's not.  You see, it is possible to make a thin wash of colorants and brush them lightly over the design in a laser print.  The colorant soaks into the paper and doesn't stick to the ink.  Voila!  Instant transfers!

Excerpts from the blog:

Here's what you need:

1. A laser print. Not a photocopy, not an inkjet print. Make it stark black & white - no gray tones
2. Slightly thin underglaze or slip. The thinner it is, the better it will roll away from the toner as, but also the fainter the design will be. This will take some monkeying around with, to get it right.
3. A soft brush. Very soft. A stiffer brush seems to press the slip to the paper too hard.
4. An early-leatherhard piece. 
5. A rubber rib, the really bendy kind
6. A throwing sponge
7. A spritz bottle of water. Very important! Release will be blotchy without it. 
   

Here's what you do:

1. Brush your slip or underglaze onto the printed side of teh paper. One coat only; once the paper is wet, the resist doesn't work as well. Watch the slip roll away from the black areas. If a few spots are recalcitrant, you can blow on them really hard to encourage the slip to move. If the resist doesn't happen, your slip may be too thick.
2. Let the slip get bone-dry.
3. Cut into the shape of the print you want to make.
4. Spritz the surface of the piece so there's a thin sheen of water. Place the paper facedown on the wet surface
5. Spritz the back of the paper. Press repeatedly with a wet sponge. You'll begin to see the image showing through the paper. If there are areas where the image doesn't show, press the we sponge in those spots until it does.
6. Using the rubber rib, smooth the paper to the clay to encourage the transfer. 
7. Peel up the paper. Voilet! or whatever. Image transferred. Mine is still a little blotchy - I'll clean it up with a sgraffito tool later. I think with some practice I can get a cleaner image. 

I tried it with a beautiful design I printed on the library's printer.  The black wasn't truly black, more of a darkish grey.  And maybe my slip was too thick, too.  Whatever the reason, it didn't work very well.  I found myself blowing on the black parts until I was lightheaded, and still too much was unusable.

I read somewhere that mixing equal amounts of Mason stain and a frit can yield good results with beautiful colors.  So here's what I decided to try tonight:

1.  A design with the exposure set fairly dark

2.  1 Tbsp. stain, 1Tbsp. frit, 1 cup water

3.  Flat shapes cut from B-mix without grog, so the surface is almost buttery

As Dr. Seuss said in The Butter Battle Book, "We shall see.  We shall see..."

I wanted to make some colored slip to use on my gelli plates, and here is the recipe that I used:

1/2 cup Pinnell White Slip
1 heaping Tablespoon Mason stain
1 1/2 Tablespoon Karo syrup  (helps the stain stick to the paper)
1/2 to 3/4 cup water

I was having problems getting the slip to stick to the newsprint, so I added Karo.  Now it sticks very well, but I can't do multiple layers because it also sticks to the next layer's stencil.  So I've been doing only single-layer prints, and I'll combine them on the clay.

I'm using encapsulated stains on cone 10 clay.  We'll see what happens when this stuff gets fired.


Here's the slip recipe:

Source: http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/claytimes/2011spring/index.php?startid=21


I've also seen it called "Pete Pinnell's Forgiving White Slip," which seems pretty accurate for something that fires in such a wide range.  But if you read the article, Kona F-4 "begins to actively melt at mid-range temperatures (cone 5-7)."  Maybe that's why it has worked for me the few times I've used it.  Until now, I've been throwing work into studio cone 10 firings, and the Kona is completely melted at that point.

Note:  Mix to a thick glaze consistency.  It defloccuates overnight, so wait until the next day to add additional water.  I didn't add any extra water to it before using it for my gelli slip recipe.

Just so I have it later, here is his low-fire version:

Pete Pinnell's White Slip (low-fire)
40 OM4
40 Talc
10 Silica
10 Nepheline Syenite
-------------------------
100

+10 Frit 3124
+7 Zircopax

(You can also add a few drops of sodium silicate - a deflocculant that helps reduce viscosity and makes the slip easier to apply with a slip bottle.)

Source:  http://www.meaganchaneygumpert.com/BlogRetrieve.aspx?PostID=325621&A=SearchResult&SearchID=3714699&ObjectID=325621&ObjectType=55#.ViE3-flVhBc

Gelli prints are making a comeback, and I've hopped on the bandwagon.  They were a popular way of printing in the fifties and sixties, before mimeograph machines made small-batch printing possible.

They're very easy to do:

*Her "stronger recipe" calls for glycerin.  I had a bottle in the laundry closet, but it was only half as much as she called for.  It worked just fine.



I want to try this method:

This woman's recipe:

7 packets of plain gelatin
1/2 cup glycerine
1 cup rubbing alcohol
1 1/2 cup boiling water

It's basically Linda Germain's recipe with a cup of rubbing alcohol added.  My plates are getting a little dry, so I think I'll remelt them in the microwave and add some alcohol and see what happens.  :)

Island Crackle

Island  Crackle   T5                          Island Crackle T5
Code Number:                                  Code Number:
=========================================     =========================================
                                              
  G-200 Feldspar..............    37.00         G-200 Feldspar..............   184.98
  Whiting.....................    16.40         Whiting.....................    81.99
  Grolleg Kaolin..............    14.74         Grolleg Kaolin..............    73.72
  Silica......................    31.86         Silica......................   159.30
 =Add: FeO....................     0.50        =FeO.........................     2.50
                              =========                                     =========
                                 100.50                                        502.50
                                              
          CaO       0.72*   10.40   11.95               CaO       0.72*   10.40   11.95
          MgO       0.01*    0.07    0.11               MgO       0.01*    0.07    0.11
          K2O       0.19*    4.67    3.19               K2O       0.19*    4.67    3.19
          Na2O      0.08*    1.25    1.30               Na2O      0.08*    1.25    1.30
          TiO2      0.00     0.00    0.00               TiO2      0.00     0.00    0.00
          Al2O3     0.51    13.46    8.50               Al2O3     0.51    13.46    8.50
          SiO2      4.50    69.46   74.46               SiO2      4.50    69.46   74.46
          Fe2O3     0.00     0.15    0.06               Fe2O3     0.00     0.15    0.06
          FeO       0.03     0.55    0.43               FeO       0.03     0.55    0.43
                                              
                        Cost:    0.04                                 Cost:    0.04
              Calculated LOI:    8.98                       Calculated LOI:    8.98
                 Imposed LOI:                                  Imposed LOI:
                       Si:Al:    8.76                                Si:Al:    8.76
                      SiB:Al:    8.76                               SiB:Al:    8.76
           Thermal Expansion:    6.87                    Thermal Expansion:    6.87
              Formula Weight:  389.38                       Formula Weight:  389.38
                                              
                                              
                 Recipe Date: 2012-04-26                       Recipe Date: 2012-04-26
                Today's Date: 4/26/2012                       Today's Date: 4/26/2012 

Note: Based on M12 G-200 + 10g SiO 

Penzance Blue

Penzance Blue T5                              Penzance Blue   T5
Code Number:                                  Code Number:
=========================================     =========================================
                                              
  Cornwall Stone..............    62.28         Cornwall Stone..............   311.42
  Whiting.....................    17.85         Whiting.....................    89.24
  Grolleg Kaolin..............    14.83         Grolleg Kaolin..............    74.14
  Silica......................     5.04         Silica......................    25.19
 =Add: FeO....................     0.50        =FeO.........................     2.50
                              =========                                     =========
                                 100.50                                        502.50
                                              
          CaO       0.75*   12.52   14.56               CaO       0.75*   12.52   14.56
          MgO       0.00*    0.05    0.08               MgO       0.00*    0.05    0.08
          K2O       0.11*    3.05    2.11               K2O       0.11*    3.05    2.11
          Na2O      0.13*    2.41    2.54               Na2O      0.13*    2.41    2.54
          P2O5      0.01*    0.34    0.16               P2O5      0.01*    0.34    0.16
          TiO2      0.00     0.07    0.06               TiO2      0.00     0.07    0.06
          Al2O3     0.57    17.37   11.11               Al2O3     0.57    17.37   11.11
          SiO2      3.54    63.42   68.85               SiO2      3.54    63.42   68.85
          Fe2O3     0.00     0.22    0.09               Fe2O3     0.00     0.22    0.09
          FeO       0.02     0.56    0.44               FeO       0.02     0.56    0.44
                                              
                        Cost:    0.04                                 Cost:    0.04
              Calculated LOI:   10.50                       Calculated LOI:   10.50
                 Imposed LOI:                                  Imposed LOI:
                       Si:Al:    6.20                                Si:Al:    6.20
                      SiB:Al:    6.20                               SiB:Al:    6.20
           Thermal Expansion:    7.15                    Thermal Expansion:    7.15
              Formula Weight:  335.63                       Formula Weight:  335.63
                                              
                                              
                 Recipe Date: 2012-04-26                       Recipe Date: 2012-04-26
                Today's Date: 4/26/2012                       Today's Date: 4/26/2012

Note: Based on G18 Cornwall