ttERAMIC STUDIO 
BORDER— HENRIETTA BARCLAY PAIST 
(Treatment page 8) 
your divisions are not even. Much time and annoyance will 
be saved in the end if when starting a design you go over 
your divisions carefully, and see that they are absolutely 
correct. 
There are several ways of applying a design. It may 
be drawn by means of the china pencil, but where a design 
is an exact repetition, it is better to make a tracing with 
lead pencil and tracing paper. This method is to be used 
in this lesson. 
Place a piece of the tracing paper over the pattern and 
with a sharp pencil go over every part of the design. Use a 
piece of paper large enough to enable you to hold it easily, 
but not so large as to be clumsy and in the way. When you 
have made your tracing place the design exactly on the space 
you have marked for it, and then slip a small piece of the 
graphite impression paper underneath it. Always work with 
as small a piece of graphite paper as convenient, putting- 
aside the rest for future use. 
One small piece may be used 
many times. ^^ ^ ^jg| 
Hold the tracing firmly in 
place or fasten it with bits of 
gummed paper. The edges 
of envelope flaps will do. 
When you have placed the 
design, go over it again with 
the pencil. A rather hard one 
is best. Upon lifting the 
paper, a clear grey tracing will 
be found. As this rubs off 
very easily, go over the design 
with india ink. Dip your 
stick of ink in water, and grind 
it on an old saucer or tile. 
Use the camel's hair outlining 
brush, which is the best sort 
for working with india ink. If 
the brush is new, moisten it 
first with water and then dip 
the point into the ink and 
proceed with the outlining. Do 
not use too much ink on the 
brush or you will have a 
heavy, splotchy line. The 
right sort of line is an even, 
fine, black one. If, after you 
have finished the outlining, it 
looks broad and heavy in 
places, it can be scraped down 
with a sharp penknife. An- 
other convenient way is to 
sharpen the end of your brush 
handle, and with this clean the 
lines as you go along. 
The india ink outlines will 
< J 
all disappear in the firing, so when you wish an outline 
around your design it is necessary to go over these lines 
with color. A very simple way to do this is with a small 
drawing pen, called a crow-quill pen. Mix two parts of 
powdered color and one part of powdered sugar, with water 
enough to make it flow freely from the pen. 
This has the advantage of drying, and you can paint 
over it without disturbing the outline, as the oils and tur- 
pentine do not affect the sugar and water. It must be 
thinned with more water as you work, for it dries out and 
will not flow well unless rather wet. It is often possible, 
where an outline of color is to be used, to avoid using the 
india ink in tracing the design. This makes the work 
somewhat easier. 
After you have made the tracing with the impression 
paper, proceed to outline with the pen and the color prepared 
with the sugar water. This dries so quickly that it will 
not smudge or rub while you 
make your next tracing. It is 
best to outline as you go along, 
instead of waiting until the 
entire plate is traced, as the 
graphite impression rubs off so 
easily that there is danger of 
losing your tracing. For a 
beginner, unused to the hand- 
ling of the materials, the out- 
lining with the india ink is best. 
These other ways are ex- 
plained now, so that you may 
use this lesson for reference, 
later on. You will need to use 
various methods in applying 
different kinds of designs. 
It is not always necessary 
to make a tracing, and it is a 
joy to find some simple little 
border or motif which may be 
executed without this pre- 
liminary step. In this case, 
divide your plate carefully, 
marking the spaces with pencil 
or india ink. Use the "Keramic 
Gauge," and with it gauge 
the width of the bands, and al- 
so any lines which might assist 
you in placing your drawing 
correctly. The pencil points 
which come with the gauge 
are not altogether satisfactory. 
It is an excellent plan to use a 
bit of your china pencil. Cut 
off about an inch of the un- 
sharpened end. Unwind the 
paper until only two or three 
