Stain Percentage To Make Colored Slip

[sosan_fong]

Hi all,

 

I am new in ceramic and taking class.  I would like to make some colored slip using Mason stain.  I have saved my Plainsman porcelain scrape from trimming and keep it in wet form.  I read the other post that I need to put it thru mesh.

 

I read some posts that I should leave the clay to dry and add 5-10% stain to make colored slip.  Is this the preferred method?  Since I have soaked the scrape, the weight is heavier with water.  How much % of stain should I add to start?

 

Thanks for the help.

 

Sosan

[Marcia Selsor]

you can get lots of various shades depending on the amount of stain. Best to test to get what you want. You should also test for stain compatibility with your porcelain base. There shouldn't be a problem , but read the reference codes for the stains to get an idea of what each individual stain works with. Some may not work well with a glaze with certain fluxes. etc. 

Marcia

[Chris Campbell]

If you just want a small amount of slip for decorating or whatever you can mix it easily in a blender. Add water then add wet clay until the mixture is as thick as you want it. It is much easier to use leftover scraps if you let them dry out then soak in water.

Percentages of Mason stain depend on how intense your want your colors to be. Yellow, pink, violet etc. might need anywhere from 8 - 20% stain whereas dark greens, dark Blues, Browns and blacks only need 5-8%.

Testing with your own clay body is the only way to find out.

[sosan_fong]

Thanks all for the help.  Yes, I just want to mix small amount for decoration using stick blender to mix.  You had mentioned the %, is it the percentage of the mixture (after water add)?

 

 

 

Sosan

[neilestrick]

With most things in ceramics, percentages are by dry weight.

[rayaldridge]

To amplify what Neil said, I make slips using dry porcelain, so I can weigh it out accurately.  A good test slip is 100 grams of dry porcelain body, to which I add stains and other materials.

[Callie Beller Diesel]

If you are just wanting a little bit of coloured slip for one project, you could get away with just weighing your wet slip and adding 5% stain to it to start.. Blue, green and black stains you can use smaller amounts,lighter colours you will want to add larger percentages, up to ten. If you want to try and repeat your results for later, I suggest you find out what the specific gravity of your wet slip is, and write it down in your sketchbook, along with the % of stain you used.