How-To Tips

Welcome to our ceramic "how-to's" page! We have over 100 tips, tricks and tutorials on ceramics and glass. Whether you're a beginner just getting started with ceramics or an expert with warm glass looking to expand your skill set, this is the place for tutorials, instruction and ideas to help you along. We're always adding more so be sure to check back often. And be sure to bookmark our blog as well, where we post customer creations, DIY projects and more!

GETTING STARTED

  1. Getting Started in Ceramics
  2. Free Online Pottery Classes
  3. Different Types of Ceramics
  4. Five Things I Wish I Had Done From the Start
  5. Premium Pottery Classes
  6. Earth Day and Ceramics
  7. Ceramics Projects for Elementary School
  8. Fall Project Ideas
  9. Make Your Own Ceramic Bakeware

BUYING A KILN

  1. Selecting a Kiln
  2. More Tips on Selecting a Kiln
  3. Kiln Power
  4. Buying and Selling Used Kilns
  5. Kiln Rental

FIRING

  1. What is Cone?
  2. Loading a Kiln
  3. Firing in an Electric Kiln
  4. Choosing a Bisque Temperature
  5. Kiln Wash: What, Why, When, How, Where?
  6. Calculating the Cost of Firing an Electric Kiln
  7. Raku Firing
  8. What Temperature Should I Fire my Clay?
  9. Kiln Venting
  10. Kiln Elements #1
  11. Kiln Elements #2
  12. Upgrading to an Electronic Controller
  13. Thermocouples
  14. Preventing Warping
  15. The Art of Multiple Firings
  16. Q&A on Pyrometric Cones
  17. What is True Cone 10?
  18. Single Firing
  19. Links to Kiln Manufacturers Websites
  20. Using ITC Coating
  21. Learning to Live with Loss
  22. Monitoring Your Kiln from a Distance
  23. Types of Firing
  24. Info on the APT-ii Enhancer

DECORATING

  1. Personalize Your Pottery
  2. Terra Sigillata Primer
  3. Tips on Resists (Wax, Latex, Melted Wax)
  4. Making Slips for Decorating
  5. Ceramic Decals
  6. Cuerda Seca, or Decorating with Black Lines
  7. Decorating Store Bought Ceramics
  8. Texture Texture Texture!
  9. One-fire Technique for Fired-on Image Transfers
  10. Using Resists
  11. Miscellaneous Decorating Tips
  12. Decorating with Lace
  13. Artist Acrylic Paints
  14. Decorating with Fish Sauce
  15. Tips for Painting Designs
  16. Impressing Words with Custom Rubber Stamps
  17. Slips, Wax Resist and Leather Hard Clay
  18. Displaying your Ceramic Pieces
  19. Custom Mosaics
  20. Are your Feet Falling Off?
  21. Commemorative Plates and Other Items
  22. What To Do With a Wax Resist Mistake
  23. FAQs on Cane Handles
 

WARM GLASS

  1. Bottle Slumping Tutorial
  2. Bottle Slumping Tips: Preparation
  3. Bottle Slumping Tips: Firing
  4. Ways to use Plaster Molds
  5. Firing Glass (in your ceramic kiln)
  6. Glass Firing Tips
  7. Glass Fusing Projects for Beginners

CLAY & PLASTER

  1. Ways to Use Plaster Molds
  2. Clay: the Drying and Firing Process
  3. What to Do When Your Clay is Too Dry
  4. Mixing and Pouring Plaster
  5. Attaching Clay Parts
  6. The Magic of Paper Clay
  7. Making Your Own Holiday Platter
  8. More Ways to Use Plaster
  9. Choosing the Right Clay Body
  10. Pugged Clay
  11. Bentonite FAQs
  12. How Much Clay and Glaze?

GLAZES

  1. Waterproofing and Sealing Ceramics
  2. Glaze Toxicity and Dinnerware Safety
  3. All about Underglazes
  4. Understanding Glazes
  5. Cracking, Crazing, Shivering and Dunting
  6. Cool Glazes
  7. How to Re-Glaze a Piece
  8. What's the Deal with Mason Stains?
  9. How to Solve Glaze Settling
  10. Glaze Tests and Test Tiles
  11. Layering Glazes
  12. Design Technique Using Amaco Velvets with Slip and Slabs
  13. Buying Liquid vs. Dry Glazes
  14. Commercial vs. Homemade Glazes
  15. Specialty Glazes, Using Surforms, and Glazing Tips
  16. Varying Glaze Thickness
  17. Glaze Problems
  18. Glaze Manufacturers
  19. How to Use Stains
  20. Notes on Mason Stains
  21. How Much Clay and Glaze?

HANDBUILDING

  1. Making Ceramic Tiles
  2. Plates and Platters
  3. Make Your Own Coffee Mug
  4. Make Your Own Handles
  5. Help with Cracked Handles
  6. Make a Planter from “Solid” Clay
  7. Pyramid Project from Kids 'n Clay

THROWING & POTTERY WHEELS

  1. How Do I Decide What Kind of Bats to Buy?
  2. Introduction to Wheel Throwing, Part 1
  3. Introduction to Wheel Throwing, Part 2
  4. Using a Throwing Stick
  5. Choosing the Right Pottery Wheel
  6. Notes on Using Wood Throwing Bats