Making Ceramic Test Tiles

For any work on the wheel centering clay is the first step.

Making ceramic test tiles.

To make simple melt test tiles i use this easy technique. How to test tweak and perfect your glazes john britt shows several different ways to make test tiles. The easiest way to make up your test glazes is to make a series of different ceramic tiles in the different types of clay you ll be working with. The clay will brought to the edge of this in the form of a bottomless cylinder.

Using a piece of high density foam and a 4x4cm piece of wood quickly press each square into the foam creating a shallow dish. It is generally a good idea to add texture to part of your test piece so you can see how the glaze will respond. Put some type of word. Once bisqued these dishes can hold any type of crushed material for your next firing.

For this test tile we are using a 15 diameter bat. Once they ve been through their first firing then you can test out your glazes on them. Chances are you ll find one that makes sense with what you are making. In this video an excerpt from his dvd understanding glazes.

After centering spread the clay out flat similar to a plate. Roll out a slab of high fire clay and cut into 6x6cm squares. And to improve your results it helps to have test tiles that mimic the kind of work you make.