What You Will Need

I buy most of my supplies from Rynne China Co., 222 West Eight Mile Road, Hazel Park, Michigan.48030 (phone: 1-800-468-1987). They are a reliable source if you don't mind mail-order. Have them send you a catalog if you like. I live several hours away from a large city so the shipping makes sense. Call Ceramic outlets in your area, they may carry powdered china paints. If they do, you can see the colors you are buying instead of going by their names.

Assuming you don't own your own kiln, make sure you locate someone who will fire your work before purchasing supplies. Most Ceramic stores do low fires occasionally, but phoning several places may be necessary. Decide upon the subject of your painting. It's important that you have in mind what you are going to paint instead of just sitting down to "learn how to use the paints". Keep it simple but don't limit yourself to a "one-tile" painting. Sorry, I didn't mean to use the "d" word, but small is harder to paint when you are first starting. Make lots of sketches, refine the sketch you want to paint on graph paper. Mark your graph paper with the exact size of the tile/tiles you will be working on.

Buy only the color paints needed for your first project. The paints I use are called German Dresden Overglaze China Paints In Powder Form. They come in dram glass vials or by the ounce in paper envelopes. Even though it is more expensive, buy in the glass vials until you find out what colors you like using. A little goes a long way. I find that in painting animals I use a lot of Best Black, Hair Brown and Rembrandt Brown but there are many colors to choose from. Reds and purples are difficult to use so try to avoid the need for now. Don't plan on using White. Any white highlights will be the tile not paint. You can't be sure of the results when trying to mix colors, so save that experimentation for later. If your painting needs yellow, it would be safest to use Yellow for Mixing.

Same for the tiles buy only what you need (plus three extra: two for mixing paints and one in case of accidents). Most places like "Tile Mart" will sell individual tiles so you aren't stuck with a mess of them. Buy plain shiny white tiles. Sometimes the thin cheaper tiles are the best! but if you want to be sure you are getting a quality tile that most likely won't surprise you in the fire, but from Rynne. Don't be tempted by the colored or textured ones, you can't tell what your results will be. Clean your tiles with soapy water, rinse and allow to dry thoroughly. You will mix your paints with oil (I recommend using Rynne's Painting Mixing Medium) and turpentine (I use odorless turpenoid which is available at most drug, art or craft stores). For now you will only need to purchase 1 small and 2 medium oil painting brushes and a small palette knife. ( If you are going to start with a subject that is large and hairy, also buy a large brush.) Buy good but not expensive brushes. You don't want hairs to fall out into your work, but you also shouldn't have to worry about ruining and expensive brush. Only use new brushes, any residue from other types of paint will ruin your finished piece. A wipe-out tool is handy but I have often used a wooden skewer or the wooden tip of a paintbrush instead.

Now lets think about where you are going to paint. You'll need a table in an area that is as dust free as possible, away from dogs' noses, kids fingers and cats paws. To protect the surface spread plastic and then a layer of lintless paper (I like newspaper end rolls but you could use typing paper).Your tiles will need to be protected against dust while waiting to be fired, so plan on putting them in a clean box with a lid for transport (a large Tupperware might be good).You'll also need two small wide mouth glass jars with lids (baby food jars or yeast bottles, be sure you wash and dry them thoroughly) a lintless cloth rag to wipe your brush, knife and hands on. And that's about it as far as prep goes.

Mixing the paint

Start only when you have some time without interuptions. I know, that in itself sounds difficult. You'll find that this simple task of mixing your paints, in preparation, is quite relaxing and helps you focus on what you want to create and helps you forget your daily problems. I usually stand when I paint (because most of my paintings are so large) but I always sit to prepare the paints.

Have your sketch, photos, etc where you can see them (taped to the wall, pinned to the curtain, stuck to the fridge) but not in your way.

Pour a little turp into one of the small jars.

Pour a little oil into the other jar. It is important to keep the lids on these jars when not in use.

Being careful not to breath the powder, think in small amounts, gently pour out a little onto your mixing tile, forming a little mound. (If you decide to continue painting tiles, you will want to buy a grinding glass for mixing paints, but for now a tile is fine.) If the paint resists being poured, use your palette knife or a toothpick to gently loosen it up.

Using the palette knife add a tiny...tiny bit of oil and a tiny drop of turp onto the mound. Mix thoroughly, grinding the paint into the tile with your knife, (take your time, get to know your paint, talk to it) scrape it into a mound and then mix some more. Scrape into a mound. The paint should be really thick, but not lumpy or grainy. If it is grainy or seems dry, add another tiny drop of oil and tiny drop of turp and mix again. When ready, it should look similar to a glob of thick oil paint. Scrape it up with your knife and mound it onto your second spare tile (this will be your palette). Clean the mixing tile and knife off carefully using a little turp before you start on the next color. Give each color lots of room on the palette.

Once you have all the colors mixed that you will be using,

You're ready to paint!

Those white tiles are sure lovely just as they are, aren't they? Don't worry, it's easy to wipe off mistakes should any happen. If there are rough edges on your tile, try to avoid getting paint on them because it is difficult to clean off. You may find it easier to paint if you are holding the tile, but this up to you. Regardless, the cleaner you keep your hands the better.

Dip your small brush into the turp. Let most of it drain off against the edge of the jar. Pull a little paint away from it's mound and gently stir with your brush. Notice how it thins and spreads? Don't let it spred into one of your other colors. Have a clean palette knife handy to help control run-aways. Wipe off your brush and then get just a little of the thinned paint on it.

Rough in an outline and eye placement, getting more paint on the brush only as needed. You will find that it is difficult to control the paint on the slick surface of the tile. If you have your own kiln, fire the tiles once blank. I find the paint doesn't run around so much and also that first fire will bring up any imperfections in the tile. If a tile has an imperfection you should return it. You won't be happy if you waste your time painting on it.

I am not going to try to tell you how to paint, this is your creation not mine. However a few things that I have learned, painting animals on tiles, might help you:

• If you are putting any background in, keep it in mind as you paint but wait until after the first fire to paint it. This is not a hard fast rule, but remember, you can't cover up mistakes once the tile has been fired.
• When working with an animal with fur as a subject, remember to apply the paint the same direction that the hair grows.
• Work from the back to the front so the hairs appear layered.
• As you work, use a tool to "wipe out" hairs so they appear as white hairs (you can always add color to them after the first fire, but you can't remove color or add white after the first fire.
• Details should come last, however this is up to you. I often paint the eyes first so I can see the life in the animal as I paint.
• The paint should go on thinly. You will be happiest if you paint and fire the tiles several times to aquire a rich full color.
• As a rule, what you see is what you get, but there are exceptions. If you mix colors, they may come out of the kiln muddy or very different than what you expect. So unless you like surprises, try not to mix. I have had no trouble blending animal fur using Best Black, Rembrandt Brown and Hair Brown, but you must be careful with colors that are on the red side. If you should mix red with most yellows you will not get orange, you will lose the red in the fire. There are combinations you will learn to avoid.
• If a hair should fall out of a brush into your painting, remove it as soon as you see it. ( usually a pin works well ) If it stays in there, when fired, it will burn out ruining the painting. The same is true for dust.
• I can not stress enough that any white areas must be exposed before you fire, particularly the "life light" in the eye. While the painting is still moist, you can use a wipe out tool or clean brush to remove paint to expose the white of the tile. When the paint has dried, you can use a tool or brush moistened with a little water (spit works better, but don't get any paint in your mouth...many contain lead) to remove unwanted paint. I've often said that it seems I spend more time removing paint than applying it.

I hope you enjoy tile painting as much as I do. Please share your experiences with me.