The Practical Process

Mixing your own glaze batch from a recipe is straightforward once you understand the steps. Accuracy in weighing and thorough mixing are what determine whether your result matches the recipe.

What You Need

• A gram scale accurate to 0.1 g for small batches (under 500 g total) or a kitchen scale for larger batches.
• A large bucket: bigger than you think you need.
• A rubber glove, dust mask, and eye protection: always wear PPE when handling dry glaze materials. Many contain silica and metal oxides that are harmful to inhale.
• A sieve: 80 mesh is standard for most studio glazes.

Step-by-Step Mixing

• Decide your batch size. If the recipe calls for 100 g total, scale it up: 500 g, 1000 g, or 2000 g are common batch sizes.
• Weigh each dry ingredient into the bucket.
• Add water gradually and stir. Start with about 50% of the dry weight in water.
• Mix thoroughly until no lumps remain.
• Pass the wet glaze through an 80-mesh sieve to break up any remaining particles and ensure smooth, even consistency.
• Check specific gravity with a hydrometer or by feel: the glaze should coat the back of a spoon and drip slowly.

Keeping Records

Every time you mix a glaze, record:

• The recipe name and source.
• The batch size and date.
• Any adjustments you made.
• The cone it was fired to and the result.

This record (your glaze notebook) becomes one of the most valuable tools in your studio over time.

The Bigger Picture

Keeping detailed records of glaze recipes and results is a practice shared by potters across every tradition, from the celadon masters of Song dynasty China to contemporary studio pottery artists working in electric kilns. The discipline of systematic testing and record-keeping is what transforms glaze mixing from guesswork into a reliable, repeatable craft.

Common Mixing Errors

• Rounding weights too aggressively on small batches.
• Adding all water at once, which creates hidden dry clumps.
• Skipping labels and forgetting what was actually mixed.

A glaze can be perfectly designed on paper but fail in practice if batching discipline is weak.

Pro Tip

Keep a standard test cup for viscosity checks. Comparing every batch against the same cup improves consistency across months of production.