VIVID BLUE UNDERGLAZE

[AlexDaCat 7]

I am a university student in my final year and am doing Independent Studies for Ceramics. I need to make a vivid blue and turquoise blue (like a peacocks colour) but have not been able to make it by mixing Deep Blue with other colours. Please see image of bird below for the colour required particularly the body and tail colours.

Can anyone suggest the right colour combination for this? The colour of deep Blue is perfect before I add glaze, as the glaze changes the colour to a very dark blue. 

Or... Is there a vivid blue available already made? I am using Cesco brush on Underglaze.

Thank you for any assistance...

Alexandra

 

[Hulk 583]

Hi Alexandra!

Please specify temperature you'll be firing to, your glazes (over the underglaze, if any), and the clay(s) you'll be using?

That said, Amaco's "Electric Blue" might be close, depending on the temp; "Vivid Blue" Mason stain might be close as well.

[Hulk 583]

...check Fireshades "Vivid Blue" 

[AlexDaCat 7]

Temp is 1000 degrees and the glaze is Duncan’s Envision Glaze Clear Gloss. Clay is Psper clay white Earthenware. 

I will be buying Cisco Arctic Blue and Cobalt Blue tomorrow as they are lighter than the Dark Blue.

 

[Magnolia Mud Research 686]

You should try adding a white underglaze to the blue underglazes to dilute the blue.,  keeping in mind, that a little bit of blue in the white might be the way to go, or exactly the opposite, a little bit of white in the blue.  

LT

 

[AlexDaCat 7]

I will be making more test tiles to try that out as well as getting the two new blue colours... 

It’s harder will Ceramics because of the change of colour after glaze firing. 

Especually as I want a vivid blue and turquoise 

 

[Callie Beller Diesel 2,200]

The third stripe from the right is 10% mason stain 6305 Teal blue in a white stoneware clay base. This test is at cone 6, but the colour was the same on bisque. The second stripe from the right is 2% cobalt oxide in that same white stoneware clay base, but notice where it’s glazed, there are speckles. If you don’t want the specks, you could try using cobalt carbonate (use a percentage more), or you could grind your oxide. I didn’t.  

I don’t think the base matters a whole lot, as long as it’s a pretty white canvas to hold colourants. 

[AlexDaCat 7]

Thank you all for your replies...

i will let you know how I go  

[neilestrick 4,074]

Speedball Medium Blue or Turquoise should get you close. Could try a blend of them, too.

[LeeU 1,211]

This is Coyote's mid-range Turquoise Matt.  Appearance (my results, anyway) was the same at 05 as at 5, on stoneware-Bella's Blend multi-range). 

[oldlady 2,610]

i have nothing to contribute except a thank you for the fabulous bird photo.   what is it?    if it is common in the UK, why did you guys bring sparrows over here to overpopulate  and spread but not this one?      oh.   i know.   you like the blue one and don't want to share.

[Magnolia Mud Research 686]

Sometimes, one has to look outside the standard ceramic "cookie jar" for a decorative finishing materials and techniques.  

Some time back, I ran a test panel of acrylic and watercolor pigmented paints as colorants for ceramics.  The true cobalt pigments produced a strong cobalt blue color porcelain and stoneware fired to cone 10.  I would expect similar results at Raku and cone 6 ranges.  

Other painting / drawing media such as oil paints, oil, pastel crayons, and wax crayons that have metal elements in there pigment makeup will also produce colors when used directly on bisque ware and fired.  
Nearly all commercial oil, water color, and pastel media have labels that lists the pigments used in each medium to produce color, usually using a standard pigment code number. 
With some research in the your college library and its online databases, you can find or create a table of the standardized pigment ID codes that will convert the code to the chemical species  contained in the pigments.  The non-metallic elements will "burn out" on firing.  The metallic elements will react with the clay body and may produce an visible color on a ceramic surface after being fired.  Make a list of the codes having significant metal content;  look for watercolor or other artist pigments having these "metallic" codes as part of the medium composition;   try them on ceramics to see if the result meets your aesthetic requirements.   

LT

P. S.      Oil based paints can be applied over a glaze surface to get the pigment fired into glaze surface, or applied to bone dry green ware and/ or bisque ware, applied over the standard glaze after the glaze slurry has dried.  Same with acrylic media.  Water color pigments can be mixed into ordinary glaze slurry.  

 

[AlexDaCat 7]

This photo is of an Adult male Superb Fairy-wren which are among the most brightly coloured of the species, especially during the breeding season. They are commonly known as The Blue Wren.

The males are often accompanied by a band of brown ‘jenny wrens’, often assumed to be a harem of females but a proportion of them are males which have not yet attained their breeding plumage. 

I am from Australia

 

[AlexDaCat 7]

2 hours ago, oldlady said:

i have nothing to contribute except a thank you for the fabulous bird photo.   what is it?    if it is common in the UK, why did you guys bring sparrows over here to overpopulate  and spread but not this one?      oh.   i know.   you like the blue one and don't want to share.

I have included more info on this bird known as the Blue Wren here in Australua  

[AlexDaCat 7]

Apologies... The latest picture is of a painting and not photo of the Blue Wren and Jenny Wren

[Chilly 822]

18 hours ago, oldlady said:

i have nothing to contribute except a thank you for the fabulous bird photo.   what is it?    if it is common in the UK, why did you guys bring sparrows over here to overpopulate  and spread but not this one?      oh.   i know.   you like the blue one and don't want to share.

@oldladyhow I wish that was a bird from the UK, sadly, as said above it is about as far from me as you could get   I'd love to have him visit my bird feeders.

[oldlady 2,610]

it is gorgeous!   have often read novels that mention in passing a "blue tit".      a BIRD you guys.   thought it might be this one.   it really is lovely.   i am going to trace it from the monitor and use it on pots.   thank you, Australia for having yet another lovely animal, and alex for sending it.

[Chilly 822]

On 3/14/2019 at 4:06 PM, oldlady said:

 "blue tit".   

UK version

[oldlady 2,610]

very pretty!  

[AlexDaCat 7]

On 3/14/2019 at 5:25 AM, Magnolia Mud Research said:

Sometimes, one has to look outside the standard ceramic "cookie jar" for a decorative finishing materials and techniques.  

Some time back, I ran a test panel of acrylic and watercolor pigmented paints as colorants for ceramics.  The true cobalt pigments produced a strong cobalt blue color porcelain and stoneware fired to cone 10.  I would expect similar results at Raku and cone 6 ranges.  

Other painting / drawing media such as oil paints, oil, pastel crayons, and wax crayons that have metal elements in there pigment makeup will also produce colors when used directly on bisque ware and fired.  
Nearly all commercial oil, water color, and pastel media have labels that lists the pigments used in each medium to produce color, usually using a standard pigment code number. 
With some research in the your college library and its online databases, you can find or create a table of the standardized pigment ID codes that will convert the code to the chemical species  contained in the pigments.  The non-metallic elements will "burn out" on firing.  The metallic elements will react with the clay body and may produce an visible color on a ceramic surface after being fired.  Make a list of the codes having significant metal content;  look for watercolor or other artist pigments having these "metallic" codes as part of the medium composition;   try them on ceramics to see if the result meets your aesthetic requirements.   

LT

P. S.      Oil based paints can be applied over a glaze surface to get the pigment fired into glaze surface, or applied to bone dry green ware and/ or bisque ware, applied over the standard glaze after the glaze slurry has dried.  Same with acrylic media.  Water color pigments can be mixed into ordinary glaze slurry.  

 

Well the technician in my ceramics class added some pigment powder to the glaze and the result after firing was zero  I’ll be sticking to using underglaze paint as I’ve bought two colours Arctic Blue and cobalt blue that have given me good results in testing. I also have tried the deep blue adding white and white adding blue. Will find out tomorrow the results. 

[AlexDaCat 7]

The Blue Wren is a member of the Fairy Wren's so completely different than that of the Blue Tit...

 

[Cline Campbell Pottery 7]

I hope you can get Amaco products down under.

Here is a chart from Amaco's website.  They have several different lines of underglaze, but I like the velvets. I've had good results mixing them like watercolors and gouache, though you need three coats or they'll wash out in the glaze fire. 

If the picture doesn't transmit, follow the link.

Cynthia

https://www.amaco.com/products/chart-selector-velvet-cone-05?ref=3