It’s almost impossible to determine what color any particular enamel will be based on a chip you see in a printed catalog or website. Even when you’ve ordered enamel, powdered glass and fired glass look very different, and the metal you fire it on will affect the final result. It’s a good idea to create a test strip for every enamel you buy, so you can determine what the results might be for your kiln, your flux, your enamel, or your metal. Here’s what to do:
Cut a ½ inch by 1½ inch strip of 24-gauge copper. Pickle and rinse well. Punch a hanging hole in the center of the top edge. Use numeral stamps to punch the enamel color number on the strip. With a scribe, rule 4 lines (starting at the bottom edge) at ¼ inch increments. Scrub both sides of the copper with cleanser and steel wool until water sheets off the surface. rinse well and dry without touching the metal surface.
a | sif t enamel dire c tly on the met al . Fire and clean well .
B | sif t enamel over enamel f lu x . Fire and clean well .
C | sif t enamel over a strip of silver foil . Fire and clean well .
D | sif t enamel over a strip of gold foil . Fire and clean well .
Counter enamel the back of the strip.
If you intend to enamel on silver instead of copp er, follow the same process to make a silver test f ire s ample, but eliminate section C , because you probably wouldn’t us e silver foil on a silver piece.
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