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What is Ceramic or Clay Slip?:
What is ceramic casting slip?
Primarily, ceramic slip is clay that has been thinned down with water and sometimes additional chemicals to be used for various purposes in the field of clay arts. It is clay mixed with water to a smooth gravy-like, liquid consistency. In pottery, it is used for decorating or coating the crafted items as well as acting like a glue or paste to adhere parts together. In ceramics, it is used to cast plaster molds creating images and shapes as well as various finishing techniques. It is called slip because of its smooth, slippery consistency… a texture without roughness, smooth to the touch. The term comes from Middle English: slime, from Old English: ‘slypa’ or ‘slyppe’ and also has Indo-European roots: sleubh. Just step in the middle of a puddle of it on your floor and you will understand completely. It is well named. Most any clay or any formulation of clay can be made into slip and has. Porcelain Clay, Stoneware Clay, Earthenware Clay and so on. In sculpting, kick-wheel, slab-work or anytime working with clay, there is a need for slip to help make repairs, join pieces together and even to build layers of clay. Slip is then used as a paste or glue to effectively join the patches so that they will stay together while fired, ultimately resulting in one complete piece. In the case of ceramics mold casting, the entire mold or casing is filled with liquid clay. After a shell is formed, the excess is cast off. When the shell inside the mold reaches proper firmness, the mold is opened and the casting is lifted out. From that point on, the slip in its firm state is referred to as greenware. It can once again be reduced to slip state by breaking it down and mixing it with water, as can any clay until it has been fired.
Slips are developed with specific purposes in mind. Chemicals and minerals are added to enhance the purpose of the slip. These chemicals and minerals could be something to enhance consistency , texture, or even final fired color. The type of slip also determines the firing (baking) temperature needed to reach maturity.