I get beautiful glossy absolute black by burnishing and firing by putting the pieces on a bed of wood chips and covering with a can. I push ashes up around the bottom of the can to keep all oxygen out. I build a charcoal fire over that. No preheating outside first. It works every time. I also use a blower as in a forge. Michael
I love your video. If the aluminum hasn't completely melted, it means that the temperature reached didn't exceed 660º. It's a low firing temperature for clay. I recommend that you use the same clay to make a small bowl with a lid, then put all the pieces inside, placing layers of sawdust or chopped charcoal. This way, the pieces will be protected and instead of using a BBQ, you could make an oven, perhaps by digging into the ground and with a chimney to increase the airflow by convection. This way, when the bowl is covered with charcoal, it will heat up and prevent a sudden temperature change inside the pieces, and similarly when cooling down.
man they turned out so pretty, it was soso nice to watch the process! Even the ''b-grade'' non blackened pendants had a nice color with the black spots and gradients
They're super pretty, and it's super inspiring to see the process like that ! I didn't know it was doable to cook clay in a random tiny grill like that ! I want to try it too now !
Thank you! Yees, small things like pendants are quite easy to fire like that (large forms quite often have a tendency to crack) in a grill or any type of fire that will get hot enough for at least a couple of hours or so. Glhf!
When I was a teen , I learned from a local Native American man, how they made clay and pots, so I tried it. I made my own clay from gathering it in nature. I made a small coiled bowl, and let it bake dry in the desert sun for a month in summer. Then I tried pit firing it by starting a fire in a hole I dug out until it was down to coals, made a brick layer on the coals to protect it, covered it with more coals then wood and then dirt. I think it would have worked, but I got impatient and dug it out after three days,.... it was still really hot inside, so I temperature shocked it and it broke. Still it was a great experiment.
Loving the way you are experimenting. I have tried doing same in my garden burn up pile of rose prunings , used banana skins in my sagar. the burn up pile was super hot with white ash so my expeimental pot fired in no time at all in black and grey colours. Didnt know what to expect but seeing your beautiful work has inspired me to try it again. thank you for sharing.
Might try putting the work into the charcoal stack before lighting it. If it worked, heat-up would be slower and you wouldn't have to maneuver hot coals on top afterward.
If I remember correctly, when I did that the aluminium foil got burnt up in the fire, hmm.. If I do this again I will use something other than foil, like a terracotta pot with the tray as a lid or something, then it should work to put it in there before lighting it :)
Ah, bummer, @@nymla. I thought of recommending a terra cotta sagar, but your pieces are so small that heating up all that extra mass might be kind of inefficient. Could try to go thin-walled, and shaped to take advantage of the barbeque situation. Maybe shaped like a bit like a bunt cake, with a hole in the middle for additional heat transfer? That would make it tricky to get a good fit with the lid. Maybe a paper-towel-sized tube just wide enough to slide your pieces into? I'm in the process myself of designing the third in a sequence of tiny kilns, trying to get a teacup-size volume up to reasonable temperatures. If I have any success I'll probably post a video about the design and build.
Thanks! Actually the paper will/should not burn, the foil is to prevent oxygen and combustion, so the paper inside turn to coal:D And that colors them black 👍
I have seen people fire pots that way. And there's lots of ways to fire with wood, you should look into "pitfiring", you can fire big things but it will be much more likely they will crack due to the change in temperature compared to firing in a kiln where the temp rises slowly and evenly but it can be done, its also possible to first bisque fire in a kiln before pitfiring :)
What a fantastic experiment! All of your pendants are beautiful, black or otherwise. I recently got into softsoldering stones for jewelry, but I want to try making my own handmade pendants from clay. I was considering getting a microwave kiln, but I quite like this method. I have a few questions, if you have the time to answer. What brand of clay did you use, and could I get something similar on Amazon? How thick did you roll it? And how long did you fire them? Was it just until cool? I would love to try this so much! Thank you for sharing your process.😊💖
Thank you so much! I used clay I got locally, and they mostly have clays from a german brand called Witgert and also Georg & Schneider. I assume that any pottery/ceramic clay will work for this, for small things like these pendants. I'm not sure but the thinnest ones were 2 or 3 mm thick. I just fired them until the coal had cooled so I could take them out yes. Probably takes a few hours. Hope that helps:)
@@nymla Oh, wonderful! Yes, it definitely helps, thank you so much! I can't wait to give this a try. So excited to see what I can do with it. Thank you for sharing with me, and for such wonderful inspiration.🥰
Hej Vildt god video Du har lige fået mig som følger Det er rart at du udførlig forklarer processen hilsner fra mig, der havde og levede hele mit barndomsliv i Sverige og nu lever mit voksenliv i Danmark . Jeg savner Sverige, og overvejer derfor at flytte tilbage susanne
I get beautiful glossy absolute black by burnishing and firing by putting the pieces on a bed of wood chips and covering with a can. I push ashes up around the bottom of the can to keep all oxygen out. I build a charcoal fire over that. No preheating outside first. It works every time. I also use a blower as in a forge. Michael
Awesome! I will remember that next time, because I should try this again ☺
I love your video. If the aluminum hasn't completely melted, it means that the temperature reached didn't exceed 660º. It's a low firing temperature for clay. I recommend that you use the same clay to make a small bowl with a lid, then put all the pieces inside, placing layers of sawdust or chopped charcoal. This way, the pieces will be protected and instead of using a BBQ, you could make an oven, perhaps by digging into the ground and with a chimney to increase the airflow by convection. This way, when the bowl is covered with charcoal, it will heat up and prevent a sudden temperature change inside the pieces, and similarly when cooling down.
They are lovely! And you didn't give up! Great job! Very attractive pendents
man they turned out so pretty, it was soso nice to watch the process! Even the ''b-grade'' non blackened pendants had a nice color with the black spots and gradients
Thank you so much, im glad you liked the video! 😊 Yea I love the organic smokey gradients!
They're super pretty, and it's super inspiring to see the process like that ! I didn't know it was doable to cook clay in a random tiny grill like that ! I want to try it too now !
Thank you! Yees, small things like pendants are quite easy to fire like that (large forms quite often have a tendency to crack) in a grill or any type of fire that will get hot enough for at least a couple of hours or so. Glhf!
When I was a teen , I learned from a local Native American man, how they made clay and pots, so I tried it. I made my own clay from gathering it in nature. I made a small coiled bowl, and let it bake dry in the desert sun for a month in summer. Then I tried pit firing it by starting a fire in a hole I dug out until it was down to coals, made a brick layer on the coals to protect it, covered it with more coals then wood and then dirt. I think it would have worked, but I got impatient and dug it out after three days,.... it was still really hot inside, so I temperature shocked it and it broke. Still it was a great experiment.
For some very rich blacks, try corn husks 😉
I recommend Heat resistent gloves for ceramic and raku
Loving the way you are experimenting. I have tried doing same in my garden burn up pile of rose prunings , used banana skins in my sagar. the burn up pile was super hot with white ash so my expeimental pot fired in no time at all in black and grey colours. Didnt know what to expect but seeing your beautiful work has inspired me to try it again. thank you for sharing.
18:27 Best assistant
Yees he is best moral support:D Its so cool one of them is now with you! ♡
Very pretty.
The pewter looking ones were gorgeous
THANK YOU! I've been asking left and right if its possible to fire accessories in a grill and everyone discouraged me saying i HAVE to buy a kiln 🙄🙄🙄
Haters gonna hate! ;P
Ancient pottery are fired without kiln too,but the outcome is a surprise
Is that PeterDraws in the back ground? His doodles are superb.
It is very likely. Peter is awesome!:D
Might try putting the work into the charcoal stack before lighting it. If it worked, heat-up would be slower and you wouldn't have to maneuver hot coals on top afterward.
If I remember correctly, when I did that the aluminium foil got burnt up in the fire, hmm.. If I do this again I will use something other than foil, like a terracotta pot with the tray as a lid or something, then it should work to put it in there before lighting it :)
Ah, bummer, @@nymla. I thought of recommending a terra cotta sagar, but your pieces are so small that heating up all that extra mass might be kind of inefficient. Could try to go thin-walled, and shaped to take advantage of the barbeque situation. Maybe shaped like a bit like a bunt cake, with a hole in the middle for additional heat transfer? That would make it tricky to get a good fit with the lid. Maybe a paper-towel-sized tube just wide enough to slide your pieces into?
I'm in the process myself of designing the third in a sequence of tiny kilns, trying to get a teacup-size volume up to reasonable temperatures. If I have any success I'll probably post a video about the design and build.
Beautiful work. Going to try it soon.thank you.
Enjoyed watching. Nice work!
I'm glad, thank you! ^-^
Loved your video so much I had to subscribe 👍
You can buy heat treating foil
Nice video....like the pendants......the paper in the foil will burn and smoke making the pendents black...thanks
Thanks! Actually the paper will/should not burn, the foil is to prevent oxygen and combustion, so the paper inside turn to coal:D And that colors them black 👍
Super!
If you glazed them how would you do that ? Would it work ?
I don't know. I think it will not work, but why not try it and see what happens:) Im sure it will not be food safe though.
I wonder what is the largest item you could fire that way...any idea?
I have seen people fire pots that way. And there's lots of ways to fire with wood, you should look into "pitfiring", you can fire big things but it will be much more likely they will crack due to the change in temperature compared to firing in a kiln where the temp rises slowly and evenly but it can be done, its also possible to first bisque fire in a kiln before pitfiring :)
What a fantastic experiment! All of your pendants are beautiful, black or otherwise. I recently got into softsoldering stones for jewelry, but I want to try making my own handmade pendants from clay. I was considering getting a microwave kiln, but I quite like this method. I have a few questions, if you have the time to answer.
What brand of clay did you use, and could I get something similar on Amazon?
How thick did you roll it?
And how long did you fire them? Was it just until cool?
I would love to try this so much! Thank you for sharing your process.😊💖
Thank you so much! I used clay I got locally, and they mostly have clays from a german brand called Witgert and also Georg & Schneider. I assume that any pottery/ceramic clay will work for this, for small things like these pendants.
I'm not sure but the thinnest ones were 2 or 3 mm thick.
I just fired them until the coal had cooled so I could take them out yes. Probably takes a few hours.
Hope that helps:)
@@nymla Oh, wonderful! Yes, it definitely helps, thank you so much! I can't wait to give this a try. So excited to see what I can do with it. Thank you for sharing with me, and for such wonderful inspiration.🥰
Throw some sawdust in before closing, for extra blacknes
Helps by producing more smoke and eating up oxigen
try packing with sacrificial carbon. finely ground charcoal should do. inside the foil envelope.
and more air to the fire.
Hej
Vildt god video
Du har lige fået mig som følger
Det er rart at du udførlig forklarer processen
hilsner fra mig, der havde og levede hele mit barndomsliv i Sverige og nu lever mit voksenliv i Danmark .
Jeg savner Sverige, og overvejer derfor at flytte tilbage
susanne
Tack Susanne! 💚