I might even start to enjoy glazing...

... or at least not hate it quite so much! Yes, I have spent the evening glazing Swanee and Polo, and the experience was better than those I have had previously.

Now, I know people say that a bad workman always blames his tools, but there is something to be said for having good quality materials to work with. I'm not entirely sure of the make of the glazes we use at class but I often find that applying a second layer results in brushing off the first layer in the process! Not so with the glazes I used tonight, which were from the Mayco matte range. They seem to have gone on nice and evenly - I just hope the coverage still looks even in the daylight tomorrow!

Another thing that is particularly noticeable is that I can handle the glazed pieces without the glaze rubbing off at all, which is something that the class glazes are terrible for. My tutor suggested bringing my glazes in with me in case I need to touch up the pieces before they go in the kiln, but I don't think I will need to (although I will anyway - just in case).


Here you can see Polo with Swanee in the background. I used wax resist for the outline of the black areas, but I added black stain to the wax so that when the wax burns away the black stain will remain and then hopefully there won't be a bare line visible between the colours. I had no idea how much stain to use so I just kept mixing it in until the wax looked dark! Obviously that grey colour will be black after firing. And that's part of my mug collection in the background - not dirty dishes as my sister thought!!

So, Swanee and Polo will go in the kiln tomorrow night and then I will have to wait 2 weeks before I see how they turned out because of the bank holiday. I wish my class was on a Tuesday sometimes...

I should have some photo's for you all tomorrow as I have a few finished pieces to collect from class. Depending on what they look like I might change my mind and decide I still hate glazing after all!