Casting Handles

                                                     Kiln Casting Handles for Platter

I've casted two tear drop shaped handles from my plaster mold for a small platter. First, I bisqued and glazed my platter so that I could measure the exact size I want the glass handles to be. I measured the amount of glass I casted by calculating the amount of volume the mold had compared to the size of the platter. I made my own turquoise and charcoal gray underglazes, (colored slip) for this platter. Once the platter was glazed to cone 6, (2232 Degrees Fahrenheit), I was then able to cast my handles. I wanted the glass handles to sit flush on top of the ceramic, however due to shrinkage and warpage the handles did not fit seamlessly with the platter. Using a charcoal gray plumbers putty (a clay-like substance used to seal water tight areas), I was able to combine the glass handles with the ceramic platter. From this experiment, I have thought of a new way to make sure the glass and ceramic pieces fit snug with one another. I am thinking of key holes, and slits to slide the glass into the ceramic. More testing to come!