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How to fire
and glaze your paddle doll.
Firing your
clay
If you have
access to a kiln, we advise you fire your paddle
doll. To do so you will first need to let your doll
air dry for at least one week. Once your doll is
dry you can put it in the kiln, and begin the
firing. Firing is a way to bake your clay in a
special oven called a kiln. The way we remember
that it is called firing is because the kiln gets
to be 2000 degrees, and when it is that hot inside
it is like catching your clay
on
fire.
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Here's
how the kiln works, first you insert a
little cone in it's holder. This cone
keeps the shut off flap closed. Then you
set the kiln on the #3 dial, and push the
on button to start the firing. Ms. Swift
always makes sure to set a back up timer
for 8 hours, just in case the kiln does
not shut off on it's own.
Here is a picture
of the kiln.
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Now every hour
and a half you will need to adjust the # setting
and check on the kiln. This time when you check the
kiln you will need to turn the number setting up to
# 4 1/2 or #5, and next time you will need to turn
it up to #6. As you turn up the kiln check the
temperature gauge to make sure that it is heating
up.
Once your
clay has been fired all the way, that little cone
we placed in earlier will melt and open the shut
off flat to turn the kiln off.
Glazing
your clay
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Now you
can paint your paddle doll with this
special paint called glaze. Glaze makes
your clay have a bright shiny coating.
Make sure to take your time as you paint
on the glaze. MAKE SURE YOU DON'T GLAZE
THE BOTTOM OF YOUR DOLL , because if you
get glaze on the bottom it can cause your
project to stick to the
kiln.
Once
you have covered all of the clay, except
the bottom, put your doll back into the
kiln and refire it.
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Here is a
picture of our glazed dolls. They are in
the kiln and ready to be
fired!
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The next day you
will have a masterpiece. Add some yarn and beads
for hair, and your doll will be complete! Give
yourself a pat on the back!
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