Copper and Bronze Metal Clay Kiln Firing

Copper and Bronze clay require an oxygen free environment when firing in a kiln, so they need to be buried in carbon. A lot of instructors and websites sell stainless steel pans for this use. I've found that using a wine bottle glass mold and some kiln shelve pieces instead of the stainless steel works great!
I much prefer the molds to the stainless steel pan!
The Stainless Steel pan makes such a mess, I decided to try the wine bottle mold I had and kiln shelve pieces. The photo above was before covering with the carbon on top.
What a mess...this is what happens to steel at 1500 degrees! It flaked all over the kiln.
First firing was too hot and the pieces were a weird combination of burnt and were not sintering at all points. I had to fire three times lowering the temperature to get the adjustment right.
Crispy critters:

Even though it took some tests and trials, metal clay is such a great material to work with. It requires just a few tools and a kiln. Silver clay can be fired without a kiln by torch flame. So far I've worked with fast-fire bronze, copper and silver (PMC).
Here are some pieces that are dried, prepped and ready to be fired.
You can see successful :-) finished pieces in my Etsy shop by clicking here.

My Studio and Metal Clay adventures

Here is a photo of the desk and storage space in my studio (taken about a month ago). The pottery wheel is also in this same room as well as storage shelves. It may never look as neat and tidy ever again! This morning it is full of everything scattered everywhere (no photos allowed)! Also a photo of my new adventure in metal clays. In this photo above are the bronze clay pieces that I have molded and cut prior to firing in the kiln -- the final stage is sanding and drilling holes in the clay before it becomes solid brass and too hard to manipulate. I hope to blog more about the metal clay process soon...

Working the Kiln for some New Earrings

I'm working to build up some inventory for an art festival in May - "Art and Soul of Tulsa" in the Brady Arts district by the Local Art Matters people (more details on that later).

On these earrings, I measure and carve the glass in equal sizes for each pair, then place a pure silver wire in between the two layers of glass. After it is fused then the ear wires attach to that loop. In this method there is no need for special glass epoxy. This is also a special glass that does not burn off the dichroic layer with the heat of the silver wire.

Upcycled Wine Bottles and Wine Glass Charms

We've recycled our glass bottles for years, but now since I have the kiln, I can now UPcycle! I now have a couple of special molds that you melt or slump the bottles in. The kiln heats up to over 1400 degrees and then slowly cools. The mold makes a handle of the neck - they are actually a good size for a cheese tray. I thought I would make some wine charm sets to go with. Complete party set - a fun thing to make! I have put a few sets for sale online here.

New Kiln is Working Out Great!

For a while it was too cold to run but I'm working in lots of firings. So far, so good! It took some experimenting and some sad days of things not turning out. Some research and questions to local experts helped me iron those out. You can save different firing programs -- most have several steps and speeds to different temperatures that take several hours -- then the cooling periods (annealing). So far, I have three different programs now that are stored in the kiln's computer that are working great!

Fun With Glass

Putting the new kiln to work! This is what the glass looks like before it's fused. The kiln fires to about 1425 degrees and the special paper just turns to powder but it works its magic and keeps the glass from sticking.

Here's after.... looks kind of Christmasy!

First Test Firing in the new Kiln

This was my first 'real' test firing in the new kiln. The first one said just to fire it without anything to break in the heating elements. Notice the cross -- for blessings, I hope!!

A New Arrival!!

I'm so excited. A new kiln for pottery and glass. I am checking it out now, and have high hopes. Yahoooo! Fired up!

A New Line for the Gallery - Coming Soon!

Sneak Peak:
I will be adding a new line from "D.L.O. Design" for the Prairie Coast Art Gallery. I'll give you a hint... It is also fired in a kiln but NOT pottery! I have been designing fused glass jewelry. These are going to be online and also for sale in the upcoming art festival shows this fall.

More info coming soon, so please check back in to the blog.

New Pottery - These are in the Kiln Now

These are some wheel thrown and altered soap dishes, and some fluted bowls. They are in the kiln now. I hope they turn out OK. I tried some new glazes and that's sometimes a gamble. Got my fingers crossed.

New pottery just out of the kiln

I'll be adding these online this week. http://prairiecoastart.etsy.com