Emma Law 0 Posted March 25 Report Share Posted March 25 I'm keen to try burnishing paper clay for Raku firing at around 1852 f I have some pieces that I have made using paper clay that I have made from local clay collected from a nearby beach that has quite a bit of salt in it - I have two batches, one that I have rinsed , dried and re-constituted and the other from raw clay that has not been rinsed I've noticed that when I scrape the surface of the pieces, there is a shine that is begging to come forth! - I might just continue-on with burnishing with a pebble I collected from the same beach to see if the surface comes up to shine but I've been looking at making Terra Sigillata and wondering whether it would be best to use the same paper clay in the mix or if it might work to use an earthenware clay in the recipe better? Has anyone tried working an earthenware clay slip / glaze effect into a paper clay body? Many thanks Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Callie Beller Diesel 2,708 Posted March 26 Report Share Posted March 26 With terra sig, you wind up using the finest particles while the heavier ones settle out. You can give your wild clay a try as a sig, but it would go better if you started with the clay minus the paper pulp. blackthorn 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
blackthorn 69 Posted March 26 Report Share Posted March 26 37 minutes ago, Callie Beller Diesel said: it would go better if you started with the clay minus the paper pulp. Agreed. When the paper burns away it will undoubtedly lessen the surface smoothness. Paper clay has some wonderful attributes but I don't think use with terra sig or burnishing come to the fore. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Abstract 1 Posted March 31 Report Share Posted March 31 Briefly waving a torch over the outside of the pot before burnishing might remove most of the fibers right at the surface. Something to try, atleast! Babs 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JohnnyK 722 Posted March 31 Report Share Posted March 31 You might just forgo using the stone you picked up at the beach and get one that has been polished smooth. I've tried the smooth beach stones before and found that although they look smooth, they are still somewhat porous and don't give you the real shine you get with a polished stone. Something I have thought about experimenting with are glazed pieces of different shapes to fit various contours on pots that I just can't get with stones... Emma Law 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LeeU 1,411 Posted April 3 Report Share Posted April 3 On 3/25/2021 at 4:03 PM, Emma Law said: burnishing paper clay for Raku firing Hope to see some pics of these burnished Raku paper clay objects! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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