These are two cone 6 transparent glazed porcelain mugs with a light bulb inside. On the left is the porcelainous Plainsman M370 (Laguna B-Mix 6 would have similar opacity). Right is a zero-porosity New Zealand kaolin based porcelain called Polar Ice (from Plainsmanclays.com also)! The secret to making a plastic porcelain this white and translucent is not just the NZ kaolin, but the use of a very expensive plasticizer, VeeGum T, to enable maximizing the feldspar to get the fired maturity.
Glossary |
Translucency
A highly sought after property in porcelain, they are fired close enough to melting to pass considerable light. It can be very difficult to fire translucent ware without it warping. |
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Glossary |
Bone China
A ceramic whose priorities are translucency, whiteness, fired strength and resistance to thermal shock failure. |
Materials | New Zealand Halloysite |
Materials | Bone Ash |
Articles |
Formulating a Porcelain
The principles behind formulating a porcelain are quite simple. You just need to know the purpose of each material, a starting recipe and a testing regimen. |
Media |
A 3-minute Mug with Plainsman Polar Ice
Tony Hansen takes you through the steps from opening the box and wedging the clay to taking the fired mug from the kiln. |
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