Testing The Tests
Today is all about Bone China, making and testing. Slip making was never taught in school, we don't even know anybody who makes it. There are those out there who do, we're sure of it. Making slip is tricky business and we've learned to really appreciate our regular slip so much more. One needs a light tough and a good mixing arm too. It's all about the perfect ratio of water, dry materials and deflocculants.
It's hard to believe that this small amount of water is enough to liquefy 2,000 g of dry clay materials. Deflocculants are wonderful for that, they charge the particles of the clay and in return they repel each other. Rather than attracting to form a solid, they all separate, and poof, you have a liquid slip. It would take five times as much water alone to make the same consistency, and they clay would be so weak that it wouldn't cast. This handy digital scale is a great way to save time. We miss our triple beam scale, but digital is so much faster.
Testing means good records, always making notes of how you did it, what you did and if it worked out. Notes are all over the studio and rcboisjoli is fuelled by coffee.
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