The imagery stages of the process….or something like that?

My most recent posts at WMC have been about my enamel decal discoveries. It is a process I have been studying for a long time.  And, I am pretty excited to finally have the techniques down. I feel a really big sense of freedom. Like I can do anything I want. Well, almost.  At the same time, everything I do still takes a long time.

I have been receiving many e-mails asking questions about the process.  So, I thought I would share some more of the process here.

In my last post here, I showed you some photographs I would like to make into decals. This cat picture is derived from one of those pictures. First, I take the picture. Then I download the picture. Then I crop the image, and erase the background. Then I used some fun editing techniques to create a relief.  Now, I just have to decide, what size? and, how many? and then make the decal.

This rose (above) is another image that is now in its “to be enamel soon” format. Since these are decals I place them in such a way, that I can cut them out and use them individually, or I can use them in a strip. I can’t wait to see how these turn out.  In order to translate these to enamel, I have to have all of my work a specific size, format, and resolution. Then the majic happens.   I will share some pictures some day, of the stages this rose will go through. (after I get that work done)

Last year, I made up a rose decal with a pink rose. (above)   The pink is a very difficult color to get at 1250 F degrees. This is one of my (many) challenges.  All of the different colors have different firing requirements.

This yellow decal is what this pink rose looks like in enamel format.

The enamel imagery is held together by a binding agent (that’s the yellow part;as shown above).  After I install the decal onto my glass, I have to fire it onto the surface. (You can see pictures of the decal install at my blog).  A big challenge at this stage of my testing, was reduction. These binding agents like to create a reducing environment in the kiln. I have overcome this issue today.  (Interesting how this decal on the bead (below)  looks like the decal with the yellow binding agent. That is not always the case. All colors are different.)

This finished rose is an example of how difficult making pink can be. I am pretty happy with the detail; the color just likes to come out mauve.  If you know how to use the kiln, and flame just right, I believe anything is possible.  In time, I will get that pink. (I think

It just goes to show, how much time it takes to figure out the techniques before we can really use them.  Art takes time. I think I have wrote that here many times. I just can not say it enough. Patience is required if you want to be an Artist.

Sheila Morley has a blog at wordpress.  She is an Autocad Engineer, and an Artist who works in her home studio in Michigan.