Glass Bottle Slumping Tutorial

GLASS BOTTLE SLUMPING

Glass bottle slumping is becoming quite popular, possibly because you don't even need to buy expensive glass, you can re-use the wine and beer bottles!

BASIC REQUIREMENTS:

You will need a kiln that is able to fire to about 1500 degrees or higher. Any ceramic or glass kiln can be utilized for this, as long as the bottles fit. Unfortunately, the long shape of glass bottles make them hard to fit in many kilns. So we designed the Trio Kiln specifically to fit all our bottle slumping molds.

You need some type of separator between the glass bottle and what it sits on. (The shelf or mold,) Options are glass separator, Mold-EZ or Primo Primer, which are brushed on, or thin-fire or fiber paper.

You will need glass bottles, such as soda bottles, wine bottles, beer bottles, etc. Wine bottles make nice dishes and trays, beer and soda bottles make great spoon rests.

Molds are an option that can be used to shape slumped bottles into spoon rests and dishes, or you can simply slump glass bottles flat, directly on the shelf to make trays. We have a large variety of glass bottle slumping molds including small and large wine bottles, beer bottles, and double wine bottles. Here are some examples of the shapes you can make with our molds.

WITH ALL GLASS BOTTLE SLUMPING, THERE ARE GENERAL PRINCIPLES THAT NEED TO BE FOLLOWED:

Glass bottles must be clean and dry. All label residue must be removed. Some people will use isopropyl alcohol to clean any fingerprints from the glass as well. The best label removal process we have used to date is filling the bottles with very hot water, and placing them in a bucket filled with very hot water and powdered oxy-clean. Let that soak a couple hours to overnight. Most labels drop off or can be scraped off with a plastic scraper. I often use those handy fake credit-cards that come in the mail. Ah, yet more recycling!

Glass bottles need to be placed on a surface that has been kiln washed or shelf paper such as thin-fire paper can be used. This is to prevent the glass from fusing to the shelf. When using kiln wash, be sure the surface is very smooth. Any brush strokes, bumps, etc. will show up in the glass. Even seams between sheets of thin-fire paper will show.

If slumping bottles with "painted" labels such as Corona bottles or Belvedere bottles, those labels remain on the bottle even after slumping. The trick is to have the glass bottle remain in place during the firing. Otherwise, the label looks off-center. I have used small pieces of thin-fire paper to prop a bottle that wants to roll. Granted these can be seen on the back of the glass, but in my mind that is better than tossing a bottle because the label looks funny.

If using a mold, it should be covered with a thick coat of kiln wash or glass separator. We offer a variety of mold shapes for slumping glass bottles. You can also make your own shapes using your own bisque. I often use smaller triangle shelf posts wrapped in thin-fire paper to create an elevated neck on beer bottles for spoon rests. They are small enough to allow the top of the glass bottle to touch the shelf after slumping.

Sometimes glass will de-vitrify, or get cloudy. This seems very dependent on the glass the specific bottle was made from. But we have found that cleaning the bottle really well helps avoid it. We also have Super Spray, a de-vitrification spray which can be used.

One other thing to consider before firing is whether you plan to hang the spoon or tray rest. I have found high temp. wire works well and does not break down. Copper and brass wires will break down a bit, sometimes leaving unattractive flecks in the neck of the bottle. Simply cut a piece of wire, shape, and place in the opening of the glass bottle. As the neck slumps, it will permanently fuse the wire into place. If I want the wire to be gold, I just paint it later.

Decorating your slumped bottles can be a lot of fun too. You are the artist! Anything is possible. You can paint on them with Hues2Fuse non-toxic glass paints prior to firing. You can fire the bottles on texture molds. Some people incorporate other pieces of glass, such as marbles, although this can be tricky. And many people use wire (such as copper) to decorate them after firing.

FIRING PROFILES

As you research slumping glass bottles, you will learn there are many unique firing profiles out there. Some profiles are provided specifically from the kiln manufacturers, others are a blend of several firing profiles from other artists. My own profile is a combination of both. I use a 7 cu. electronic controlled kiln and primarily flatten bottles for cheese trays and spoon rests. The bottle slumping profile that came from the manufacturer did not seem to adequately slump all of the bottles. Whether the uneven bottle slumping was due the location in the kiln, the type of glass, the size of bottle, the variety of bottles in a single load, or the number of shelves I loaded, I cannot be certain. Aside from still trying to eradicate a few small bubbles trapped in the body of the bottle, I have had pretty good success. Generally the firing takes approximately 9 hrs.

Segment	Rate	degrees F	Hold
1	500	500	12 min
2	500	750	12 min
3	600	1100	10 min
4	200	1300	20 min
5	250	1475	10 min	takes roughly 4.5 hrs to this point
6	9999	1100	1 hr
7	500	970	30 min	annealing occurs between 800-1000 deg.
8	120	750	20

Let kiln cool naturally.

To give you an idea about different firing profiles, we have also been using this profile for wine bottles, with success, in the Trio Kiln.

Segment	Rate	degrees F	Hold
1	500	1100	10 min
2	250	1300	0 min
3	300	1425	10 min	at first we had this at 1475 but the edges of the bottle were sharp

Let kiln cool naturally.

This profile does not even have an annealing phase, but we have found it seems to work fine. If you choose to use this profile, you may consider adding an annealing phase at the end.

Keep in mind these are guidelines, as every kiln will fire a little differently. It will take a few firings in your own kiln to obtain the results you desire. Be sure to keep a log so that once you have a successful load, you can duplicate it. And most importantly have fun with it.

Wishing you the best of luck!

Check out our wide variety of kilns.

See our other Bottle Slumping Tips:

Customer Photos: (Send them to us; we will add them here and on Facebook)

Gabby D'Erico's first wine bottle! (with glass etchings)
Click to see larger. Gab's wine bottles