ftERAMIC STUDIO 
stacked with various small objects. If there be an un- 
painted surface or one that has no fresh tint, an asbestos 
sheet may be placed on this as a receptacle for buttons, 
pins and various small objects hard to stack on stilts. 
In stacking plates on top of each other, make sure 
that the stilts are of uniform size and are evenly arranged, 
either around the rim or inside, to prevent the plates 
from tilting. Make sure that all the pieces which re- 
quire a hard firing are on the bottom, utilizing every nook 
and corner. 
All pieces decorated with hard enamel require a hard 
firing to bring out the glaze, so save a space for china so 
decorated, Eustres should be placed at the bottom, 
since a hard firing is always the most satisfactory for them. 
Now put on the shelf, making sure that no china touches 
its underside. 
What is left for this middle part of the kiln? Mat 
colors do not require a hard firing, so place all first paint- 
ing mat colors in the middle of the kiln. English and 
Belleek china do not require as hard a firing as French 
makes, so quite often (especially if painted with iron colors) 
they may be fired here the first time. 
Is there paste to be fired? Here is the place for it 
with one exception: if water paste is used, the bottom of 
the kiln is where it belongs. 
Gold work will stand a hard firing unless over color or 
on Belleek or English china when the glaze absorbs it, so 
it is always safer and more satisfactory to fire gold here. 
All carmines, roses or pinks should be in the middle 
of the kiln. Hence they should not be used in the first 
painting if the other colors require a hard firing. All soft 
enamels should be fired here, also hard enamel which has 
been mixed with £ flux to give it glaze. 
The top of the kiln may be used for pieces upon which 
are the finishing touches, or pieces decorated the second 
time with highly fluxed colors such as apple green, pearl 
grey and mixing yellow; or English and Belleek for either 
second or final firing. 
Are all your pieces stacked with none touching another? 
Then close the kiln, and, if the kiln has the addition of a 
hood, be sure that the little hole in the hood is directly 
over the funnel shaped opening in the lid, for through 
this hole the changing process of the kiln is seen. 
Eight the burner and turn on very low for ten or 
fifteen minutes, that the china may not become heated 
too fast. After this first stage of low flame, turn on full 
head and hope for no failures. 
Since different kilns require different lengths of time 
for firing and the same kiln will one day be ready to turn 
off sooner than on another day, firing cannot be done by 
the clock. When the inside of the kiln shows a rosy, 
misty glow, keep it on for about five minutes, and then 
turn off. If this misty glow is not explicit enough, another 
good test is when the china seems blacker than the iron 
shelf. 
Pyrometric cones may be secured and experimented 
with until one is found which melts at the heat needed 
for some desired effects. 
Do not attempt to open the kiln for several hours 
after it is turned off, for the larger pieces are liable to 
crack, if exposed to the air when hot, and the kiln is apt 
to warp. Never under any circumstances open the kiln 
while the china is being fired. 
It is a good plan to have a damper in the kiln pipe. 
This may be shut after the kiln is turned off and it will 
prevent the china from cooling too rapidly. 
The inside of the kiln should be whitewashed fre- 
quently since this helps the firing process. 
If the kiln be full, a better firing is insured. 
It is an excellent idea to keep a note book for the 
record of all your successes and failures. These notes 
may prove invaluable in time. 
SOME TESTS IN FIRING. 
Deep Blue Green, blues and violets should have a 
good glaze if fired at the right temperature in the bottom 
of the kiln. 
Red with a blue tone has had too hard a firing or has 
been mixed with too much oil or flux. 
Rose that fires a purplish tone is overtired. If it is 
brownish it is underfired. This can be retouched with 
Rose and fired lightly. 
If Mixing Yellow comes from the kiln a grey green, 
it is overtired. 
GLASS FIRING. 
I would like to enter here a plea for glass painting 
and firing. This fascinating work seems so little appre- 
ciated. Difficulties are no greater than those of china, 
and the firing does not require as much time. 
Glass may be fired in the bottom of the kiln upon 
powdered lime or asbestos, or on a shelf on asbestos, or 
its equivalent, platten. All kinds of glass may be used, 
but of course Bohemian glass is the best. The other glass 
may melt down, especially if a stem cup or bowl, and leave 
an undistinguishable mass. 
The kiln should be turned off as soon as a cherry red 
heat develops, more is ruinous. No piece should be stacked 
on another, for glass is too frail for such treatment. 
Glass for window or screen decoration should always 
be laid flat since otherwise it may bend. 
SOME don'ts. 
Don't paint Moss Green or Brown Green on Belleek, 
they fire brown. 
Don't use Ivory Glaze over iron reds or browns, 
it eats both of these. 
Don't use Yellow with reds or other iron colors, for 
Yellow is also a cannibal. Use Silver Yellow with reds 
and Mixing Yellow with greens. 
Don't give the pinks too hard or too frequent a firing. 
Don't fire outlining black too often, it may chip off. 
Don't fire enamel too often, it too may chip off. 
Don't wash your china with water just before paint- 
ing. It is too liable to be held on the china by the paint, 
and when fired the steam throws off the paint, leaving un- 
sightly and often irreparable spots. Use turpentine or 
alcohol for cleansing. 
Don't put on too much paint or oil, they will cause 
blisters on the china. 
Don't paint china that has been used on the table. 
It is too apt to have absorbed soap or grease, thus injur- 
ing the china and often spoiling other pieces in the kiln. 
Don't put stilts on Belleek or English china, they 
are liable to stick to it and spoil the piece. 
Don't attribute failures to a defective kiln. The 
fault may lie in yourself, the china or the colors. A strong 
yellow when fired near iron colors may with its fumes 
destroy their effects, a yellow next to a bright green may 
turn it into an olive. 
Don't feel satisfied unless a good glaze is secured, 
otherwise the china will in time grow dingy. 
Don't be discouraged at the first failure, nothing 
worth doing is really easy. 
