1. What is bisque?
Bisque is the term used to refer to a piece of pottery or ceramics that has been
fired once to harden it from it's clay stage. When a piece is still in it's clay
form and has been cast in a mold, it's often referred to as "greenware"
and is still very fragile. Once it's been fired to bisque, all the moisture is gone
and the piece becomes hard so that it can no longer be dissolved back into clay.
Bisque is still porous and can absorb water but it will not dissolve as it would
if it were still in it's hardened clay form. We offer bisque-fired pieces in
our studio which means they are ready to paint.
2. Are the glazes food-safe?
Most of the glazes we use in the studio are food safe. We offer a few specialty
glazes that are better used on the outside of a food-serving piece or on a
decorative piece; this particularly applies to our Crystallite glazes as they
can (but don't always) craze or crack after firing. If cracks form in the glaze,
bacteria can form in those cracks if the item has been used for food.
All of our glazes
are non-toxic.
3. How long will it take to get my piece(s) back?
One week or less. Once you've painted your piece, we let it dry overnight.
If a primer coat was not used it is then dipped in a clear glaze and
dried before it can
be loaded into the kiln. The Kiln takes 36 hours to heat ups an cool down.
Most specialty paints do not need to be glazed.
4. What are those little marks on the bottom of my piece?
Those rough marks on the bottom of each piece are called "stilt marks". We have to put the pieces on stilts
to prevent them from sticking to the shelves. The stilts usually have three metal prongs
on which the piece rests. The paint and glazes are essentially
powdered glass which melts and forms small burrs around the prongs. When
the stilts are removed often sharp points of glass are left. We use a Dremel tool to remove these
sharp points before you receive your
item so no one gets cut. These little marks aren't very pretty, but are on the bottom or
back of a piece most of the time and usually not seen.
5. What is the price range for pottery in the studio?
There are Many fun reasons to visit and no studio fees is one of them!
We offer all-inclusive pricing which means the cost of your pottery
includes: the pottery itself, paints, firing AND studio time. Our prices range from $3.50
(for a small magnet) up to $70+ (for larger items like GIANT mixing bowls, Christmas
trees etc.). We have a large selection between $10 and $15. The price of
the piece is based
upon it's size AND how detailed it is. Intricate (read: fragile/delicate) pieces are
generally a little spender even if they're small in size.
