Below, you'll
find extensive information on leading brooch articles and
products to help you on your way to success.
Porcelain Jewellery For Beginners
By Winnie Tam, Fri Dec 9th
Making large objects from clay takes a lot of patience, sweatand dexterity, but making tiny pieces of jewellery can beanother challenge altogether. For those of you who have decidedto venture off into this delicate art form, here’s a few tips toget you started and keep you on the path to making some fine,wearable pieces you can be proud of. List of Supplies: Small sponge Wooden rolling pin Hole cutter Cutting wire Potteryknife Fine sable watercolour brushes Metal findings (forearrings and brooches) Face mask (for firing) Be Prepared You want to make sure you have everything at your finger tips sothat you don’t have to run to the store midway and come back toa hardened un-useable lump of clay. You can find supplies atmost pottery stores. Greenbarn Pottery Supplies in Surrey, BC isone of my favourites. The Right Clay for the Right Job Porcelain is the best type of clay to use for jewellery becauseof its refined quality. It is smooth, pure and becomes very hardafter being fired at 2200 degrees. Shaping Techniques It can be a fun exercise to pound away at your clay and throwgreat lumps to vent your frustrations, but for jewellery, a moredelicate touch is required. After rolling the clay to about 1/8 inches thick, use yourpre-shaped cutter to press down and create uniform shapes, justlike making cookies. Or for the more adventurous types, makeyour own shapes using dry hands, and a small sponge to smoothout the edges. Using a picture for reference always helps butremember to make the pieces slightly larger to allow forshrinkage. A word of warning: thin shapes can be broken veryeasily. For example, the thin legs of animals should be avoided.For a look at some effective shapes, take a look at the animalpins on my website at www.winnietam.ca. Making Holes Now that you have your shapes ready, it’s time to put in holesfor earrings, necklace chains or brooches. This can be done byusing hole cutters of varying sizes, found at any pottery store.Don’t make the holes too close to the edges, as they can easilybreak. Painting This requires good eyesight for the fine details
and a steadyhand. Under glazes are the only type of colour to use as theycan withstand the high temperature of firing. The only drawbackis that you cannot see the exact colour until the final firing,so this will take some trial and error. Use a fine, sable watercolour brush and add one colour at a timeto build up to the final picture. For those who have taken anywatercolour or oil painting classes, the same techniques applygoing from light to dark. Firing and Glazes Now it’s time to put it in the oven and wait for the gloriousresults. Be aware that the fumes from firing are deadly, soextreme caution must be used to avoid gas poisoning. Afterfiring it with the colors painted on (4 times), apply glaze ontop and use a wet sponge to wipe off any drips at the bottom ofthe piece. A clear glaze can be used or a mother of pearl lusteradds depth and brilliance. I usually paint on 22K gold luster tothe edges, using a fine brush, however this can be veryexpensive – a 10 gram bottle is $270. Attachments It goes without saying that hypo-allergenic metal is the onlykind to use for attachments, especially earrings, for healthreasons. Always apply your attachments after the final firing.The best glue to use for brooches is Goop Houseware Glue. Ittakes 24 hours to cure. Support and Reading Making pottery alone in my studio is very therapeutic andrelaxing for me, I can get very absorbed in the process.However, for those who prefer to learn and exchange ideas in agroup situation check out the Potters Guild of BC atwww.bcpotters.com . You will find workshops, networkingopportunities and discussion board, all very helpful for thosestarting out. A great magazine filled with pictures, articles, contests andsuggested reading is Ceramics Monthly. Many potters send in tipsthey’ve learned along the way and it’s a good magazine to seesome incredible pieces. This is meant to inspire, by the way. Bepatient, keep practicing and before long you will be presentingfriends and family with your beautiful treasured creations formany special occasions to come. About the author:Winnie Tam is a Vancouver based award winning designer whocreates and sells porcelain jewellery as well as postcards andpaintings. Visit her website at www.winnietam.ca
|
