Glaze Firing
Once the pots have been glazed they are loaded into the glaze kiln. Its the final stage and it requires exact timing, otherwise, all the work that has gone before will be for naught.
Pottery is stacked in on kiln shelves according to the height of the pot.
A white powder, called alumina, is sprinkled on the shelves so the pots don't fuse to the shelves.
The goal is to get the kiln as full as possible to create an even heat.
The kiln needs to reach peak temperature of 2200 degrees Farenheit, and cool at a precise rate to ensure the glaze develops properly. During the firing the pots will expand then shrink a little, so they need to be kept apart. Each kiln produces subtle variations in the glaze depending on how the kiln is packed, the density of the packing, the temperature, the age of the elements, and the like. Fortunately it is the variations that make it so intriguing.