INFORMATION ON LUSTERS
Vee Escobar Feb. '76
Edited from "The classroom No. 1 Keramic Studio 1909
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| USES OF LUSTERS: COLORS |
To those who are beginning the use of lusters,
the following practical hints concerning common colors
may be helpful. It is a good idea to try these applications
on tiles or broken pieces of china before attempting to
use lusters on good pieces. Irridescent, mother of pearl
and opal luster are all attractive if succesfully used;
not always reliable as to conformity of color, but possessing fine wearing
qualities. Opals vary according make from a delicate
pearly shell like appearance, to a grayish yellow satiny
tone admirably suited for combinations with greens.
Opal luster used very heavily develops yellow
spots that are too strong to be charming. Unless it is
to be padded with a dabber made of double piece of silk
wrapped over a medium-sized wad of cotton, paint the
opal luster thin, even if it must have two applications
and two firings. Opal is one of the best wearing colors
a permanent one. Even the glass burnisher used on it
ever so hard has no effect on it. One coat is usually
sufficient. Mother-of-pearl luster and opal luster may
be applied with a brush or with the finger, and laid on
plain or swirled around.
Irridescent rose padded is pink and blue,
changeable; with several coats, it is greenish blue with
rose lights. It spots very easily. It looks well with
a coat of orange luster or a coat of green luster over
it fired between applications.
Light green is one of the most satisfactory
lusters to use. It seldom spots and makes many fine
combinations. Used thin it makes a celadon tint, used
thicker or in two coats fired between, it makes a
beautiful yellow green and with repeated coats it has
spots almost like apple green with pearl effects. Light
green applied over fired lustres of rose, or ruby, or
purple makes beautiful tones. Light green, when fired
too hard will have a yellowish tone.
Dark green can be used with every combination
which is made with light green. It is a bluer green,
consequently, all combinations will be bluer. A
particularly fine combination is dark green over purple.
Dark green luster gives a rich effect washed over
burnished gold.
Steel blue, used alone, is a most striking color.
Painted over with a large square shader full of luster
and allowed to run thick and thin as it will, it gives
a beutiful irridescent effect, being peacock blue and
green where it is thick and ruby where thin. Padded
it is a steel blue grey with pinkish lights, and makes
a good background for decorative flowers. This is still
more effective when it has light or dark green luster
painted over it for the second fire. With yellow
luster painted over it for a last fire, it has the
effect of oxydized silver.
Ruby luster will crackle and rub off if applied
too thick; a light coat of yellow painted over it and
fired again should fix it. Apply ruby luster very thin
to get the most reliable pink. A thin coat of liquid
bright gold applied over ruby is lovely.
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MIXING YOUR LUSTERS
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Two or more lusters may be mixed together before
applying, and new combinations are readily secured in
this way. For instance, one drop of irridescent rose
applied to six drops of mother-of-pearl will make a
pleasing change, fine for a combination with pink roses,
and similar mixtures may be made at will. A gorgeous
flame color metallic effect may be produced by firing
a good coat of liquid bright gold, and ruby luster,
fired between applications.
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USING TURPENTINE OR OTHER MEDIUMS WITH LUSTERS
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Turpentine must never be used with luster. When
cleaning is necessary, use alcohol. When diluting fluid
is necessary, use oil of lavender flowers. Always dry
pieces thoroughly before firing. Luster should be fired
hard when applied on white china; a soft fire when
applied over color or gold.
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| LUSTER TREATMENTS
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Some pretty luster treatments are:
Mother of pearl used alone is lovely (using a
cross stroke or a straight diagonal stroke)
Shade from yellow at the top of a vase to yellow
brown, using the diagonal stroke and continue down,
using orange luster at the bottom of the vase. Beginning
with the lightest luster and ending at the bottom of the
vase saves you cleaning the brush between each color
when you are using lusters in the same color range.
Paint a piece of china as smoothly as possible
with ruby luster, and if it is a vase or bowl, line with
Mother of Pearl luster; fire hard. Go over the ruby
luster with yellow luster. Pad and fire light.
Coat with silver luster and fire light. Go over
this with Opal or Mother of Pearl and fire light.
Coat with copper bronze and fire hard. Go over
with dark green luster and fire light.
Pearl grey luster is good when a neutral tint
is desired. Two or three coats improve the color.
Greens, ruby, violet are good over copper luster.
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USE OVER GOLD
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Coat with Roman gold, fire and burnish. Coat
with Peacock luster twice, forming a daisy pattern at
top of vase or bowl. When dry, outling daisies (or
any flower desired) with black and fire light. Coat
entire dish with light green luster and fire light.
Brush dipped from Peacock luster into light
green luster is pretty used over gold.
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ROSES IN RELIEF
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Tint background with desired color and when dry, draw
designs of roses and leaves on tint, being careful
not to make roses more than a quarter of an inch in
diameter. Clean out tint and paint a thin coat of cement
for mending china on cleaned out places. Take
Aufsetzweis (use no flux) and make very thin with
turpentine. To this add a drop of water, and when
quite stiff, model roses and leaves. Do not fire until
VERY dry. Paint roses and leaves in color, or cover
with gold, and give light fire the second time.
Corrections may be made in application of lusters
by using alcohol on a cloth over the finger. Be
sure to get it all. Lavender or essence also may be used.
Wash the china in warm water, dry with cloth then pass
the palm of the hand quickly and carefully over the
surface to collect any lint from the towel.
If luster does not fire correctly, the fired
luster can be removed with a good scouring of any
abrasive used in the kitchen for cleaning pans.
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| NOTE
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I am sure there is more information than
is included in this article, in fact Betty Turner and
Betty Gerstner both work with lusters extensively and
have very good information about lusters. Since most
of this information is dated 1909, there are also
most probably more updated information available. Some
of the combinations given sound really beautiful. Try
them, they sound like lots of fun. Also, I changed the
spelling of luster in the article. It was spelled in
every reference "lustre", the old fashioned way to spell
it. I do not know what Aufsetzweis is unless it
refers to enamel or some type of a relief material.
nebraskalasssie
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