However, underglaze pencils are made with materials, including clay and color that don’t erase in the kiln. The marks made on pottery with a normal graphite pencil burn off during firing. Drawing Underglaze Techniques – Underglaze Pencils, Crayons, and Pens Underglaze Pencils If you dip a very wet brush into your underglaze you will be diluting the mixture as you go along. And dry your brush between different coats too. If you are working with multiple colors, make sure that your brush is clean when switching between colors.

However, be careful not to load your brush so much that it drips once it has been applied. This will ensure that you cover the areas that you want to cover, and the color is even. When painting on underglaze it’s a good idea to be generous with the amount you apply. And bristles that get stuck in the underglaze will burn off when the clay is fired. This will likely happen when you are painting on underglaze. Let the layers dry between painting.Īny painter will tell you that bristles coming off brushes and sticking to their work happens frequently. However, it is worth it to make sure the details pop. Doubling up on the finer details may feel fiddly. Layering applies to block base colors and finer painted details too. But if you want your colors to be more solid, you need to apply at least 2 layers. This is fine if you are trying to achieve a watercolor effect. This is a good way to get quite a precise result. If you are screen printing onto flat clay, you can use a silkscreen stretched tightly across a frame. There are quite a few potters and artists who sell interesting designs on Etsy.

They are manufactured commercially and you can buy nice designs that you can transfer onto your pottery. You can either make or buy your own silkscreen. There is a number of different ways you can use a silkscreen to apply underglaze. As a result, the image is printed onto the pottery. By contrast, the unburned areas block the underglaze. When underglaze is put onto the fabric, it passes through the burned areas and transfers onto the clay. It is burned on by exposing light-sensitive emulsion to UV rays. The principle behind screen printing is that an image or text is ‘burned’ onto a piece of fabric. Silk screening is just an older name for the same thing. Silk screening and screen printing refer to the same process. Screen printing as an Underglaze Technique The spray that it creates is less fine than an electric airbrush and has a splatter effect too. However, it is a simple way of adding details to small areas. You then blow through the pipe and it sprays the underglaze onto your pottery.īecause this involves quite a bit of huffing and puffing, it is not ideal for large pieces. The underglaze is put in a little bowl on top of the pipe. This is a simple piece of equipment that looks a little like a tobacco pipe. The alternative to an electric airbrush is an atomizer that you use by blowing through. Let the underglaze sit for a moment so that any bubbles can rise to the surface. You can do this by tapping the side of the container and giving it a gentle shimmy. And check that any air bubbles dragged into the underglaze when mixing have been released. Make sure you have stirred or shaken the underglaze up so it is of an even consistency. It needs to be a little more fluid than underglaze that is being used for painting. When dipping into underglaze, it’s a good idea to water it down a little. Bear in mind that you will need your fingers or dipping tongs to fit in there too. Put your underglaze into a container that is large enough for you to dip your pottery into. The advantage of dipping is that it is a quick way to get an even coat all over your pottery. Using the tips of your fingers or dipping tongs you can submerge your ware into the underglaze. One of the simplest ways to use underglaze is to dip your pottery into it. Dipping – One of the More Traditional Underglaze Techniques Here are 16 of the best and most versatile ways of using underglaze on your pottery and ceramics. Don’t have time to read the whole article? Simply click on the link below and it will jump to the technique you are interested in….ġ6 Underglaze Techniques – Why Not Experiment?

Pottery bubble crackle glaze effect