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mocha tea

updated mon 31 mar 97

 

Susan stern on wed 11 dec 96

Does anyone have a recipe for mocha tea? No, it's not a drink, it's a liquid
containing tobacco and oxides and when applied to wet slip, creates mossing
or ferning patterns. I saw it briefly referenced in a book and thought it
was beautiful but they didn't include the way to make it. (This is not to be
confused with Mochica jars nor the Moche people.) The only example I've seen
of it showed it to be a medium to dark rust color (on a cream colored slip)
and the pieces decorated in this way were called mocha ware.

Thanks in advance for the help!
Susan

Andrew S Lubow on thu 12 dec 96

Here is a formula for for a Mocha Tea Stain. Mochaware is classicly
earthenware and stoneware mugs or jugs but I've applied it to tile as
well. To do this you have to freshly apply slip to leatherhard clay by
either dipping or brushing. (Dipping will give a more even surface).
While the slip is still wet touch a loaded brush to the slip. A bullseye
will form from which mosslike or treebranch patterns eminate from. The
patterns stay defined when fired.

Mocha Tea Stain

25 grams of finely chopped tobacco
one pint of water

Boil the mixture for 40 minutes and seive with a 200 mesh
seive. Add either 30 grams iron or manganese oxide then reseive.
The tea can be made in advance and refridgerated but has to be
reseived before each use. This mixture is poisonous keep it safely
away from children and consumables.

Mocha Tea Slip

3 parts Ball Clay
1 part China Clay

If you use your own slip add a defloculant. It may help the reaction.

On Wed, 11 Dec 1996 08:49:34 EST Susan stern writes:
>----------------------------Original
>message----------------------------
>Does anyone have a recipe for mocha tea? No, it's not a drink, it's a
>liquid
>containing tobacco and oxides and when applied to wet slip, creates
>mossing
>or ferning patterns. I saw it briefly referenced in a book and
>thought it
>was beautiful but they didn't include the way to make it. (This is
>not to be
>confused with Mochica jars nor the Moche people.) The only example
>I've seen
>of it showed it to be a medium to dark rust color (on a cream colored
>slip)
>and the pieces decorated in this way were called mocha ware.
>
>Thanks in advance for the help!
>Susan
>

Robert Schapansky on thu 12 dec 96

Susan;
Here is a mocha tea recipe I found in a book or magazine (can't
remember where).
apple cider vinegar
manganese

or

25 gr. tobacco
1 pint water
30 grm iron or manganese

bring tobacco and water to boil; simmer 40 min. Sieve at 200 mesh. Add iron
or manganese.
refrigerate tea - resieve each time
best to save tobacco juice and add iron or manganese when ready to use.
For added effect you might add: coffee, tansy, hops or citric juices

Slip Recipe for Mocha Tea Diffusion

Ball clay 75
koalin 10
flint 10
Feldspar 5

For red slip add 7 % red iron oxide

For Black up to 5% manganese dioxide

Should be thickness of pea soup or thick gravy.

Apply mocha tea to wet slip. If the tea is too thick it won't form patterns
but if too thin the patterns will be weak and runny. The teas consistancy
should be like india ink.


Hope this helps. Let me know if it works for you.
Elizabeth

anne chambers on fri 13 dec 96

Susan,

I just wanted to add a few more tips to the information already posted
about Mocha tea.

I have used the same recipe
25grms finely cut tobacco (use cheap stuff, pot doesn't care)
1 pint(2 cups) water
bring to a boil, simmer 40 min. then sieve.
store in a glass jar in the fridge.

take out small amounts as needed (100cc will do about 100 mugs)
and add oxides
works best if stored 24 hours, even better after 2-3 days.
You can add a few drops of formaldehyde(sp?) to help it keep.
after a few weeks I use to just make a new batch.
After dipping the pot in slip you only have about ten seconds to add
mocha tea, the diffusions stop once the sheen leaves the slip.

You can also use an acid soil tester to have consistent mocha tea.
Found at any plant store, should be #6 on the acid scale.

Slip I used:
50% EPK
50% Ball clay
2%bentonite

Add
3% cobalt carb- blue
8% rutile- brown
for black
5% mangenese dioxide
2.5% cobalt carb
2.5% nickel
to make trees hold pot upside down...band hold longer in one spot to
make trees. After sheen is gone you can band around the bottom of pot
with tea will not run.

Have fun!
Anne Chambers
Ottawa

Sam Cuttell on mon 16 dec 96

At 08:42 AM 12/12/96 EST, you wrote:
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>Here is a formula for for a Mocha Tea Stain. Mochaware is classicly
>earthenware and stoneware mugs or jugs but I've applied it to tile as
>well. To do this you have to freshly apply slip to leatherhard clay by
>either dipping or brushing. (Dipping will give a more even surface).
>While the slip is still wet touch a loaded brush to the slip. A bullseye
>will form from which mosslike or treebranch patterns eminate from. The
>patterns stay defined when fired.
>
>Mocha Tea Stain
>
>25 grams of finely chopped tobacco
>one pint of water
>
>Boil the mixture for 40 minutes and seive with a 200 mesh
>seive. Add either 30 grams iron or manganese oxide then reseive.
>The tea can be made in advance and refridgerated but has to be
>reseived before each use. This mixture is poisonous keep it safely
>away from children and consumables.
>
>Mocha Tea Slip
>
>3 parts Ball Clay
>1 part China Clay
>
>If you use your own slip add a defloculant. It may help the reaction.
>

Sorry to jump in here so late, but I'm a few hundred messages behind (never
go away and leave Clayart on receive!).

An easier "tea" is apple cider vinegar. It works the same as the tobacco
and I've added oxides, carbonates and stains with wonderful results.

As for the slip, I use my usual white slip, and have never had any problems.

One very important note - most of the oxides will diffuse into your glaze,
so TEST on a tile before glazing over "saleable" ware. I lost 1/2 a
kilnload (other 1/2 was not mocha ware) because the iron totally diffused
into my clear, leaving is looking a very muddy mess.

Best of luck!!

sam - alias the cat lady
Home of Manx cats, Cavalier King Charles Spaniels and the odd horse
Melbourne, Ontario, CANADA
(SW Ontario)
http://www.geocities.com/paris/3110

"Madness takes its toll. Please have exact change."

Charles Williams on mon 16 dec 96

You can use vinegar and most oxides. I have used Manganese & Cobalt with
good results. I have not fine-tuned the mixtures, rather added about one
teaspoon of oxide to a cup of vinegar. You must apply these mixtures while
the clay, slip is still fairly liquid to obtain predictible results.

Hope this helps!


Pot Safely!

C WILYUMS@AOL.COM AKA Mississippi Mudcat Pottery

CP Dunbar on mon 16 dec 96

Looked in the books ----

great pic though little else seen in "encyclopedia of pottery
techniques" pg 59
by peter cosentio (neat little book)

plagerism from above ---
before the mocha tea can be applied, the leather hard pot is coated w.
slip. where sufficient quantities are available, dipping is recommended,
as this
will produce a thick even covering.
while the slipped surface is still quite wet, the pot is inverted and
the
edge of the slipped band touched with a laden brush of the mixture. As
if by
magic, atree-like design emerges, which will continue to grow while the
slip remains wet if further tea is applied.


ok pic in Hamer pg 216

direct plagerism from hamer for those w.o the book -

Mocha ware a 19th century english ware with dark tree-like motifs as
decoration often on a pale blue background. The ware is white
earthenware
thrown and turned. The decoration is in coloured slips under a
transparent
glaze. The motif is produced by mixing manganese dioxide
(ohmygod-notthat!!!!)
powder wih tobacco juice. this stain is applied to the edge of the wet,
freshly dipped or banded slip. the juice breaks away through the slip
in
ever-dividing channels which are quickly filled and thus stained by the
manganese dioxide. the effect is similar to moss agate which is
manganese dioxide
staining of cryptocrystalline quartz.


(so what kind of slip is someone using ? )

cp
--
"And she shall have music wherever my Lady goes."

cpdunbar@concentric.net

Joyce Lee, Jim Lee on tue 17 dec 96

Isn't this the same principal as the "mocha diffusion" decoration which
uses vinegar and manganese on slip to create a tree landscape? If so,
this recipe is in Robin Hopper's "The Ceramic Spectrum" textbook with
some descripton and maybe a picture, as I recall, on its use. If you'd
like me to look it up for further info, I will. There's also a brief
mention and look at diffusion on one of his videotapes. (disclaimer)

Joyce
Below freezing this morning in the Mojave

Naida Harris-Morgan on tue 17 dec 96

I just learned this technique in a decorating class last week (called it
"Mocha Diffusion")

The recipe was water, oxide, and a couple of heaping teaspoons of
instant coffee. Results were excellent.
First we coated the leather hard clay with slip and then applied the
mocha mixture. Found that it worked best on very wet slip/clay, once it
had 'set' for a few seconds the mocha didn't 'crawl' as well.

The results were quite beautiful - very conducive to landscapes
painting - and a whole lotta' fun.




--
{{{|}}}
( o o )
-------------------------.oooO----(_)---Oooo.--------------------------
Naida Harris-Morgan Office of the Registrar
nhmorgan@yorku.ca York University
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-------------------------------( )-----Oooo.-------------------------
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(_/

Corinne P. Null on sat 22 mar 97

You got me going!

Made up Vince Patelka's "all temperature white slip". Some nice and thick
to try for slip beading and trailing, and some thinner as a base for the
mocha tea of RIO and Apple cider vinegar. Rolled out a slab, brushed on
the slip, and touched with brush loaded with tea. Lovely fireworks
patterns! Well, try another. This time no lacing into the slip, the tea
just sat there like gobs. Tried more vinegar in the mixture. Nothing.
Tried more wet slip. Nothing. What happened?????? TIA.
Corinne Null
Bedford, NH

cnull@mv.mv.com

Andrew S Lubow on fri 28 mar 97

I might be some simple things like remixing the slip to put clay back in
suspension or reseiving the tea if it had been stored between
applications. (Did you refridgerate the tea if it was stored?) Try adding
a defloculant. It may help the reaction.

Live every day like it was your last. Some day you'll be right!!
Benny Hill


On Sat, 22 Mar 1997 07:24:21 EST "Corinne P. Null"
writes:
>----------------------------Original
>message----------------------------
>You got me going!
>
>Made up Vince Patelka's "all temperature white slip". Some nice and
>thick
>to try for slip beading and trailing, and some thinner as a base for
>the
>mocha tea of RIO and Apple cider vinegar. Rolled out a slab, brushed
>on
>the slip, and touched with brush loaded with tea. Lovely fireworks
>patterns! Well, try another. This time no lacing into the slip, the
>tea
>just sat there like gobs. Tried more vinegar in the mixture.
>Nothing.
>Tried more wet slip. Nothing. What happened?????? TIA.
>Corinne Null
>Bedford, NH
>
>cnull@mv.mv.com
>