Customer Reviews

The Complete Guide to High-Fire Glazes: Glazing & Firing at Cone 10 (A Lark Ceramics Book)

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Potters are largely known as a generous group. However, there are a few clay artists whose working methods are kept like a closely guarded secret. If there were any secrets with regard to high fire ceramics, John Britt has shed light on a range of materials and processes that will help aspiring ceramists working in this challenging area. Some of the topics covered by Mr. Britt include raw materials, mixing, application, firing, and glaze recipes. The chart for limits and firing cycles are especially informative. In addition to the illustrations, I also a appreciate the photographic images of the pottery and sculpture. They are well lit and in full color and provide an example of the glaze color and texture. I highly recommend "The Complete Guide to High-Fire Glazes." It is a must read for potters.

The Complete Guide to High-Fire Glazes: Glazing & Firing a Cone 10 by John Britt is the most beautiful and comprehensive book written to date on the subject of high-fire glazes. John Britt has literally filled the high fire information vacuum. This book covers everything that you might want to know about glazes and glazing from a very practical and operational standpoint ... the materials, the cones, the type of glaze application, the recipe, the type of firing, and reproducibility. Just as important, there are so many pictures of glazes on real pots as well as test tiles, all well labeled, for the visual learners (and aren't we all?!!!). This book is a major contribution toward demystifying high-fire glazing and glazes, and will become the foundation for high fire ceramics, much as Mastering Cone 6 Glazes and Glazes Cone 6 have become the guides for intermediate-temperature firing. This is the book for which I have been waiting ... I can't put it down! The only thing better would be John Britt in person.

Ah, the rich and wonderful world of glaze recipes!

John Britt's enthusiasm is contagious and heartening to anyone who has ever pulled pots out of kiln thinking or saying: "I thought that was going to be green!" Mr. Britt, first as a student, then a teacher and, ultimately, as coordinator at the Penland School of Crafts has seen hundreds of firings and thousands of students unload kilns with that same quizzical look. This book, studied and understood, will help everyone who works with clay get closer to a rewarding final product. Or, at least, you'll understand why your pot turned red when you thought it would be green and what you need to do next time!

Mr. Britt has written and compiled a comprehensive guide to just about every type and color of high fire glaze that you might ever have an inclination to fire. The book, perhaps like no other of its type, delves deeply and thoroughly into the many sub-divisions within glaze families. Most students and pottery appreciators know that iron will give you celadons and temmokus, but rarely has anyone walked us into the murky waters of oil spot glazes and the science behind them. With dashes of wit and sardonic humor, Mr. Britt takes the student as well as the professional through the processes and systems necessary to understand and demystify high-fire glaze chemistry.

Writing a book about glazes is tricky business: there's a fairly large gray area where aesthetics and science overlap. There are also eons of information that, over the years, has been interpreted and re-interpreted by countless teachers and students. Mr. Britt deftly avoids these pitfalls by showing us the results as he's recorded them.

Everything you need is here: A "how-to" on cone packs (one of the most important parts of glaze testing) and keys to good test tiles. He gives the reader systems for understanding the mixing of glazes and the application of glaze. We see test tiles fired in different kiln atmospheres and he discusses plainly how these atmospheres can dramatically affect our glazes so that we can clearly begin to see the relationship between recipe and firing. Wonderfully, each section is bursting with glaze recipes so that the reader can immediately begin to round out their own palate of five-gallon buckets.

Like a great dance teacher, he shows us that within a system of steps, there is unlimited opportunity for fun and satisfaction. Those quizzical looks at the kiln will be replaced by smiles. Plus, we won't look like such goofballs on the dance floor at NCECA. Well, one out of two isn't bad.

this book is the ceramic's bible for high fire glazes. Well organized with beautiful photos, this book answers every question a person might have. The book contains hundreds of glazes with ample photos for reference, a must have for any potter

The Complete Guide To High-Fire Glazes is a highly practical reference especially for ceramic artists - potters and sculptors who glaze their work, put it in a kiln, and then wait and see what comes out. Written by a practicing ceramicist of 20 years' experience, The Complete Guide To High-Fire Glazes uses full-color photographs, charts, and extensive detail to instruct artists in exactly what to expect when placing their work under fire. From technical information about the oxides that make up glazes, to a walkthrough of all aspects of cone 10 glaze-making including mixing the glaze and firing procedures for fuel and electronic kilns, to means of controlling a kiln's firing temperature and atmosphere for each type of glaze, hundreds of glaze recipes, and much more, The Complete Guide To High-Fire Glazes is a "must-have" for any dedicated ceramicist and a treasure simply to browse for its wealth of beautiful ceramic works for everyone else.

I own many ceramics books and I think that this is my favorite! Unlike most books, it has photos of every glaze recipe. It has photos of melt tests for many different chemicals. Overall amazing book!!!

This is a brilliant book with great technical information and fabulous pictures. Most importantly for me though is getting good glaze recipes that have materials that are easily found or can be adapted to what I have. I have trialled many recipes in this book and have found good success. John Britt writes well and gives good firing information. Also most helpful is where he shows the same glaze used on different types of clay, this is a critical factor in the success of any glaze so a most important point that needs to be shown.
If you are wanting to learn about glazing, then this book is a must for you. If you follow through each section and test as many of the glazes as possible, and follow the different firing methods, you will at the end have a comprehensive understanding of glazes and firing.

I discovered this book, AFTER painstakingly researching, gathering and testing glaze recipes to arrive at my glaze pallet. My condensed list of gathered glazes that work well and that I enjoy are all in this book. I could have saved so much time had I just got this book to start with. For anybody interested in glaze mixing, I recommend it. It contains recipes from potters who you see often which is nice. Ever want to how they got that color or effect? You can see their recipes and see for yourself.

My only wish, and it's minimal considering, is that there was a picture of a test tile for every glaze recipe given. As it is, there are still quite a few examples, but you still have to do some testing on your own to see what they others do. It covers mixing, testing, and firing very well too.

Very happy with this purchase. The recipes are all laid out and organized very well. Easy to find what you're looking for and lots of good pictures.

This is an excellent book. I keep it at my bedside and refer to it frequently. I highly recommend this book for anyone looking for high fire recipes and information about glaze formulation.