Andreia Rodrigues

I see the light!!!

"And at last I see the light

And it's like the fog has lifted

And at last I see the light

And it's like the sky is new

And it's warm and real and bright

And the world has somehow shifted

All at once everything looks different

Now that I see you"

Setting stones for our final year

WOW! what a fantastic year it has been and I can honestly say I have loved every minute of it, but things are getting so real by the minute that is starting to get scary.

I'm entering in the final stage of my course. 6 weeks left and still so much to do, right now we are focus in making our final pieces for the degree show and preparing our samples for the Brochure and group photo.
So yes!!! Too much stress right now and if I stop to think about it I might start having a panic attack so I decided to focus my attention in one task at the time.

Right now I'm preparing my work for the brochure. I've got a good camera as a Christmas present last year, so I'm hoping that with time my photo skills might improve.

Since I'm not a photographer and don't have money to hire a professional one, this is revealing to be quite a challenging. No idea what I'm doing here!!!!

Ohhh I love the smell of luster in the morning

So I finally enter the final stage of my process. Applying the platinum luster. I started by washing my pieces with a dish-washing soap to remove all trace of dust or grease. Then I dry them with a soft cloth .

Using a soft brush,I applied a thin layer of the luster. I also use the thinner to help diluted the luster. It´s also very useful to clean the brush or any smudge that I might add to the piece with my sloppy hands.

Am I the only one who thinks the smell of luster thinner is so addictive!?!?! it smells so good!!!

After applying the luster , the pieces were set on a smaller Kiln (glass kiln) and Fired at 850ºC (3rd fire stage).
Like I said once, ( and I learn this by own experience)- The glaze has to be a perfect shiny glaze for it to work. Any little defect that shows on the glaze will show threefold on the luster.

I´m very pleased with the final outcome so far. Now its time to think about other shapes/and forms where I may apply this surface pattern.

A normal day at Uni

Testing and Sampling

Porcelain paper bowl and porcelain paper slip samples 5% and 2 % turquoise and mustard yellow

It was suppose to be purple but came out cobalt blue

A beautiful turquoise blue, I was happy with this one

Armed & dangerous

So today I´ve been preparing my pieces for glazing and this is not my favorite part of this hole process. It’s probably because I´m sloppy glazer and I sometimes rush through it a little more quickly than I should even though I'm obsessed with making my own recipes. sometimes I spend a hole day in the glazing room mixing recipes but the results are almost to cry for.

So to start the second firing stage firstly I start by sanding all my pieces . Since bisque dust is extremely abrasive to our lungs , I always use a mask !!!
After sanding, I wipe with a damp sponge to remove all traces of sanding dust. Use a damp sponge instead of rinsing, which should be kept to a minimum.

While preparing my glaze, it must be well mixed, so after I mixed all the ingredients together I like to sieve it at least three times to make sure that its really well mixed.

I Glaze all the interiors of my pieces first by pouring the glaze in then rolling it around for complete coverage or if the piece is shallow enough I will spray it. Them I Glaze the outside with a brush or with the spray gun.

This Photo its from an Old Stoneware Pot that I made on my second Year, In example I applied Blue and Brown Slip and after the first firing staged I glazed it with a Shinny Clear Glaze. I was very happy with the final outcome