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bisque wash?

updated mon 5 jun 06

 

Allyson May on sun 4 jun 06


Gene,

I have seen this discussed on clayart before and you will get a variety =
of answers as to why you should or shouldn't rinse your bisque and how =
to do it. I always rinse my bisque prior to glazing but my reasons have =
to do with my lifestyle more than method. I am a full time mother not a =
full time potter so it takes me quite a while to produce enough work to =
fill my kiln. This means my bisque may sit around a while in the studio =
waiting to be glazed. The pots get dusty so I rinse them. My method: =
I quickly rinse the pots in hot running water inside and out. No =
sponges or such that can leave bits behind. I set them out on a clean =
work area in the order they were rinsed. Usually by the time I finish =
rinsing the last pot, the first ones rinsed are ready to glaze. =
Sometimes I will rinse just before lunch, go eat, and then return to the =
studio to glaze. Before rinsing my work I used to get a lot of =
pinholing and other glaze faults. This same method has worked for =
fellow potter friends and solved their glaze faults as well. You should =
experiment and see what works for you.
Peace,
Allyson May
Stoney Creek Pottery
Bloomington, IN