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seaweed

updated fri 23 sep 05

 

Lisa on sat 28 dec 96

Would the person living in San Diego who is wrapping his pots in seaweed
and aluminum foil please email me at LPSKEEN@NR.INFI.NET

Thanks.

Mark Issenberg on fri 3 jan 97

Howdy ClayArters: It's 8:00AM Miami Time and I just got back from Matheson
Hammock Park where I got four thirty-gallon garbage cans full of seaweed.
The seaweed is eelgrass and sargasso seaweed. Now I need to dry it and try
it in raku. If anybody out there has done some of this, please let me know.
The sunrise was absolutely beautiful over the ocean. On another note, has
anyone ever used Clinchfield feldspar? I did a test and I'm going to
definitely use it. I was just curious if anyone had any history about it?
Well, I'm going out to the back yard to spread out seaweed for drying...

Mark, Miami

Don Sanami on sat 4 jan 97

Mark, we have used seaweed of many sorts,in the past. Never bothered
drying it but only let it drain and then wrapped pieces in the
material,leaving openings here-and-there. In Nova Scotia we placed
several tons of seaweed on a 5000sqft. garden,during the fall. This
formed a permeable membrane over the land which effectively cut erosion
by the high winds of the Baie St. Marie. Well-rotted, the following year
produced bumper crops. Don & IsaoOn Fri, 3 Jan 1997, Mark Issenberg wrote:

> ----------------------------Original message----------------------------
> Howdy ClayArters: It's 8:00AM Miami Time and I just got back from Matheson
> Hammock Park where I got four thirty-gallon garbage cans full of seaweed.
> The seaweed is eelgrass and sargasso seaweed. Now I need to dry it and try
> it in raku. If anybody out there has done some of this, please let me know.
> The sunrise was absolutely beautiful over the ocean. On another note, has
> anyone ever used Clinchfield feldspar? I did a test and I'm going to
> definitely use it. I was just curious if anyone had any history about it?
> Well, I'm going out to the back yard to spread out seaweed for drying...
>
> Mark, Miami
>

Margaret Arial on sat 4 jan 97

used clinchfield feldspar .worked wonderfully and would love to have more. by
the way i got boneash from highwater clay a couple years back and instead of
the granular or poudered form it looked like 4''dried extrusions of
porcelain what gives?

WHampton@aol.com on tue 7 jan 97

hi Mark,
Yes, I have used seaweed in pit firing but it should work in raku also. It
adds some interesting results. Kind of spotty, brownish.
The worst part is smelling it as it drys as I'm sure you are finding out
about now!
Wendy from Bainbridge Island WA

LYN PEELLE on fri 25 apr 97



Hello

Has anyone out there tried using seaweed in
a pit fireing? Do you use it wet? Do you then
pack it like a regular sawdust firing? Or do
yo leave lots of fuming room? Or do yu saggar it?
Any input would be healp helpfu --fast I just
got back from San Frea err San Fran and have a
bag of it keeping in my fridge :-)
Thanks
Lyn

"Rafael Molina-Rodriguez (Rafael Molina-Rodriguez)" on mon 28 apr 97

Lyn :

When I first started saggar firing in '93 I tried seaweed that friend had
gathered at the Texas coast. I never had any success. It left the same
kind of mark as any other organic material usually gray or black.

If you are looking for pink and orange, in my experience, sagger firing is
the way to go. Instead of seaweed use hay soaked in salt water.

I stuff a 3 gallon bucket full of hay (coastal). I fill the bucket with hot
water, agitate, and pour out. I do this a few times to rinse dirt off hay. I
then fill with water and pour in about six containers of Morton salt. I
want the water so saturated with salt that it will not dissolve all of the
salt. This sits for about a week. As the water evaporates salt crystals
form on the stalks of hay. After soaking, I take the hay out and dry it on
sections of newspaper.

The dry salt saturated hay is then used in saggers with other organic
materials. The vapor from salt is what creates the pinks and oranges.

Good luck!

Rafael
rmr3431@dcccd.edu

>>> LYN PEELLE 04/25/97 08:37am >>>
----------------------------Original message----------------------------


Hello

Has anyone out there tried using seaweed in
a pit fireing? Do you use it wet? Do you then
pack it like a regular sawdust firing? Or do
yo leave lots of fuming room? Or do yu saggar it?
Any input would be healp helpfu --fast I just
got back from San Frea err San Fran and have a
bag of it keeping in my fridge :-)
Thanks
Lyn

Peggy Bjerkan on wed 21 sep 05


Hi Mel,

Back in my fabric printing days, I used a seaweed thickener for my dyes. It
is easily found at many textile suppliers - called sodium alginate. I just
did a quick web search and found a description at my old supplier - Dharma
Trading co.. Sounds like it might be useful in slip also!

Best regards,
Peggy Bjerkan in Sunny St. Helena, Ca. - where the grapes are being
sqeeeeezed!
peggy@maskwoman.com
www.maskwoman.com

Bonnie Staffel on thu 22 sep 05


This material is also used in paper making and marbling. Seems like any
of these would work with clay. However, CMC is a similar non-vegetable
product easily available through ceramic suppliers.

Regards,

Bonnie Staffel
http://webpages.charter.net/bstaffel/