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About Fireborn Studios
Porcelain Clay: There are many kinds of clay, like earthenware, terra cotta and stoneware, but we
prefer to use porcelain clay because it is the strongest of all, and the most beautiful. Porcelain is
glassy and non-absorbent when fired to maturity. We fire to cone 11, which is about 2400 degrees
Fahrenheit. Our pottery is as durable as restaurant ware!
Porcelain is white in color. It is the most expensive clay. It is also the most difficult to work with.
When glazed with a translucent or clear glaze, the whiteness of the clay makes the glaze appear
brighter than it would on stoneware. Stoneware has iron in it that produces speckles and causes
the glaze to darken. Porcelain gives glazes a smooth clean brilliant glaze surface.
Firing: We fire to cone 11 (2400 degrees F.) in a 100 cu. ft. gas kiln. The kiln is made of steel, and
lined with firebrick and ceramic fiber. We fire in a reducing atmosphere. Peter Lane describes a
reduction firing: "Reducing atmospheres are essential for the development of certain colors such
as the Celadons and copper reds. When reduction is induced during the firing, carbon is deprived
of oxygen, and combustion is incomplete. This releases free carbon (visible as smoke), hungry for
oxygen, and the chemical reaction is continued with oxygen extracted from the coloring oxides
present in the glaze. These elements are thus reduced to their metallic state. The intensity of the
colors produced vary according to the percentages of oxides present, the character of the base
glaze and the amount of reduction obtained." (Lane, Peter, Studio Porcelain, Pitman House
Limited, London, 1980)
Safety: Fireborn pottery may be used in a dishwasher, microwave and oven. Avoid sudden, extreme
changes of temperature. You can place porcelain in a 325 degree oven and then increase the
temperature. When you remove an item from the oven place it on a pad of wood, cloth or cork, not
on a cold tile counter top. All our glazes and our clay are lead and cadmium free.
Glazes: At Fireborn Studios we formulate our own glazes. Usually we begin with with recipes from
books of traditional glazes and then rework them to use contemporary materials. We fine tune
them until we get the desired color and correct glaze fit. We do thousands of glaze tests and
experiments.
Raw Materials: The materials we use are mined. Many of the materials are sedimentary. As a
deposit is excavated, the composition of the material shifts. Change is a constant and it affects our
glazes and clay. Often one or two of our glazes is giving us problems. We constantly have to
change our firing methods and glaze formulas to keep our glazes consistent, and even then there
is some shift over time.
Glaze Color: Our glazes are finicky! Each glaze works best in a specific area of the kiln where there
is a particular atmosphere and temperature. Visualize the flames in the kiln swirling around the
pots. Just like in a campfire, the flames are constantly changing as they lick the pots. This firing
process produces beautiful variations which add character and make each piece unique.
prefer to use porcelain clay because it is the strongest of all, and the most beautiful. Porcelain is
glassy and non-absorbent when fired to maturity. We fire to cone 11, which is about 2400 degrees
Fahrenheit. Our pottery is as durable as restaurant ware!
Porcelain is white in color. It is the most expensive clay. It is also the most difficult to work with.
When glazed with a translucent or clear glaze, the whiteness of the clay makes the glaze appear
brighter than it would on stoneware. Stoneware has iron in it that produces speckles and causes
the glaze to darken. Porcelain gives glazes a smooth clean brilliant glaze surface.
Firing: We fire to cone 11 (2400 degrees F.) in a 100 cu. ft. gas kiln. The kiln is made of steel, and
lined with firebrick and ceramic fiber. We fire in a reducing atmosphere. Peter Lane describes a
reduction firing: "Reducing atmospheres are essential for the development of certain colors such
as the Celadons and copper reds. When reduction is induced during the firing, carbon is deprived
of oxygen, and combustion is incomplete. This releases free carbon (visible as smoke), hungry for
oxygen, and the chemical reaction is continued with oxygen extracted from the coloring oxides
present in the glaze. These elements are thus reduced to their metallic state. The intensity of the
colors produced vary according to the percentages of oxides present, the character of the base
glaze and the amount of reduction obtained." (Lane, Peter, Studio Porcelain, Pitman House
Limited, London, 1980)
Safety: Fireborn pottery may be used in a dishwasher, microwave and oven. Avoid sudden, extreme
changes of temperature. You can place porcelain in a 325 degree oven and then increase the
temperature. When you remove an item from the oven place it on a pad of wood, cloth or cork, not
on a cold tile counter top. All our glazes and our clay are lead and cadmium free.
Glazes: At Fireborn Studios we formulate our own glazes. Usually we begin with with recipes from
books of traditional glazes and then rework them to use contemporary materials. We fine tune
them until we get the desired color and correct glaze fit. We do thousands of glaze tests and
experiments.
Raw Materials: The materials we use are mined. Many of the materials are sedimentary. As a
deposit is excavated, the composition of the material shifts. Change is a constant and it affects our
glazes and clay. Often one or two of our glazes is giving us problems. We constantly have to
change our firing methods and glaze formulas to keep our glazes consistent, and even then there
is some shift over time.
Glaze Color: Our glazes are finicky! Each glaze works best in a specific area of the kiln where there
is a particular atmosphere and temperature. Visualize the flames in the kiln swirling around the
pots. Just like in a campfire, the flames are constantly changing as they lick the pots. This firing
process produces beautiful variations which add character and make each piece unique.
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