Understanding Glazes with Linda Bloomfield

Date: 28-29th June 2025

10am – 4pm each day.

Linda Bloomfield, potter and author of several leading books on glaze development, will be returning to run a two day weekend workshop at Devon Applied Arts Workshop in 2025. After very popular and successful workshops in June 2023 & March 2024, Linda will be back in June 2025 to teach this fantastic workshop.

Aimed at both the professional and aspiring potter, this will be a chance chance for you to learn how to make and modify glazes and gain an understanding of the chemistry and theory of glaze formulation.

This is a fantastic opportunity to acquire an insight into the materials that constitute a stoneware glaze, learning about how glazes are formulated to create different surfaces and colours. You will be able to put the theory into practice by making your own base glaze, with which you can develop a pallette of colours using colouring oxides. These will be fired and you will be able to and discuss the results as a group on the second day.

Course Structure:

Day 1.

  • Understand & practice how to put together different ingredients to create a base glaze. Accurately weigh, mix & sieve the materials to achieve a consistent glaze blend & consistency.
  • Create blends of different colouring oxides from a base glaze & prepare tests for the kiln.
  • Gain and practice knowledge of Health and Safety in a workshop setting with due regard to self and others in relation to glaze preparation.

Day 2.

  • Theory: An introduction into the chemistry of glazes. What materials are used in glazes, how are they classified & how they work together to create different surface effects in the fired results.
  • Reflect on fired glaze tests from day 1 and analyse results with the group.

In the workshop, you will be listening and note taking about the chemistry of materials and recording your own experiments so please bring a notebook & pen/pencil.

You can bring in your own prepared stoneware bisque test tiles (if you want to use a certain type of clay) or contact us to provide you with them for the class (for which there will be a small charge for making time). Please give us plenty of notice so we have time to make them for you.

To find out more about costs, availability and to book a place on the course please visit the course page on our shop here