How to Use Engobe in Pottery Clay and Slip

How do you use engobes in pottery? How do you use colored slips? Is colored slip the same as underglaze? How do you use engobes with clay

Engobe is very similar to slip, but the distinguishing factor is that engobes are formulated using fried material that reduces shrinkage. Due to this change in components, engobes are used on ceramics that have already been biscuited. The use of engobes can actually be traced back to 3000 BC through excavations that revealed colored pottery.

Engobe vs. Slip 

Fixes are most commonly known to be simply a mixture of clay and water and usually a colorant, such as an oxide or stain. Angoba has a similar glide composition, but is produced with less clay than slip; the other components of the engobe are composed of flux or silica. The flux supports the process of preparing the clay liquid and also lowers the melting point of silica.

Silica is a glass former; in other words, it is "an oxide that can be easily formed from the glass" and is usually made from quartz ground to a fine powder. The properties of engobe are found between fiche and glaze, as the ceramic glaze is defined as a mixture of powdered materials, which often includes pre-melted glass made of fiche and applied to a ceramic body by spraying or dipping and capable of merging into a glass coating. when drying and baking. You can usually notice the difference in the finished piece, as the glaze tends to have a much glossier finish than the slip.

Uses

Engobes are incredibly flexible and can be used in your work for a variety of reasons. The main reason is to give your work depth of color and variety that can be created with this type of glaze. Engobes and flyers don't usually move around the pot so much when baking, so they are the most effective way to color your pot if you use intricate detailed designs and patterns, especially if you use several different colors. Engobes can be used to give more depth and visual range to its decorated surface.

The engobes and leaflets stick together well because they are both made of clay. However, you need to make sure that your work has dried to rough hard skin before covering it with a slip or engobe and placing it in the oven.vIf you want to make only one baking, then you should use loaves or engobes, and the icing should be placed on a product that is already baked with the biscuit. You can bake them again with a transparent glaze afterward, which will be sealed in your design and will give a wonderful shine to the dish.

Application ideas

You can be extremely creative in decorating your pot when you use an engobe and use as many colors as you want. A few decorating ideas are to use engobes to marble your work. All you have to do is cover your piece in one full color with a wide brush, not forgetting to pour the excess and then draw lines directly on it in another color. It is best to fill the squeeze bottle with a small nozzle for this type of application. Then carefully swirl the two colors together in the bowl. For a cleaner alternative to marbling, make your vertical lines the same way and then turn the dish over. Using the tip of the brush, slide the vertical lines through the bowl horizontally.

You can paint spots and stripes and intricate designs with engobes. If you need to be precise, you can use a pencil to make the markings on your pot first. You can even make your own template first and apply it carefully to your work before carefully brushing the leaf or engobe. Applying a sponge on your colored engobes is another really effective way to decorate, to make the traces of a sponge as light or dense as you want and with as many different colors as you want. Ideas for decorating with engobes and slips can be endless.