Terminology for Glazed Pottery

The terminology used in explaining the process of glazing can be very confusing at first.  Please find below a quick summary of common used phrases.

Underglazes: A glaze that is used for consistent colours that stay in the same exact place they were added.

Overglazes: Accent products that are applied after pottery has already been glazed once and fired.

Slips: Watered down clay that normally has a specific colour added to it. Sometimes it is made into a very thick liquid that is used to draw or colour on clay.

Gloss: Smooth and shiny, with a highly reflective surface.

Matte: The exact opposite of gloss. Matte produces very little shine on pottery pieces.

Dead Matte: Produces no shine what so ever.

Opacity: This term refers to the transparency of the glaze.

Antiquing: Applying a certain colour and wiping it back to accentuate the surface of the pottery piece.

Cadmium: A heavy metal that is used to produce red glazes and underglazes as well.

Coats: Applications of colour or glaze by brush or sponge.

Crawling: Glaze that pulls together tightly and beads up until it leaves small bare spots of bisque.

Decals: Ceramic decals and ceramic transfers are effectively stickers which can be applied to the ceramic during the finish stage for branding or adding patterns.

Dryfooting: This is when glaze is removed from the very bottom of a clay project so that way it can be fired without stilting.

Finger-sand: Rubbing a glazed surface softly to remove any ridges on the pottery piece.

Flowing Coats: Using a brush soaked with glaze for application so the colours will slowly flow onto the surface of the pottery.

Pin Holes: Little holes in the surface of a finished glaze or underglaze.

Stain: Unfired colours that are used for decoration purposes.

Lead Release: The lead that is dissolved from the glazed surface that came into contact with acid solutions.

Kiln Wash: This is a coating that is applied to the very top of the kiln shelves to help protect them from the glaze drippings.