This rock has a secret use for pottery

Mica is a beautiful and useful silicate mineral that has been used for decorative and functional purposes all around the world for millenia. One use is to add it to clay to reduce thermal expansion, thereby making the pottery resistant to cracking with rapid temperature changes. This pottery can be safely used in the oven ir even of=ver direct flame.

[@darlink57]

Awesome! Be sure to let us know how it turns out!

[@sheldontraviss839]

çool stuff. you got a new subscriber

[@faraheleinbaltasarculebro5783]

Dear Master, you're amazing, thanks for all your effort to share your knowledge with us 🎉

[@abbasduman6963]

Love your work. Do you do pottery for a living or as a hobby?

[@tinkerandthink]

Thanks! It's mostly a hobby, though I do sell my work when I have enough.

[@INDONESIABUBAR2030BYSPIZYDORI]

Israel and Palestine = Brother

[@abbasduman6963]

@@INDONESIABUBAR2030BYSPIZYDORI Wolf and Sheep = Brother

[@MataH1]

So, it comes down to some kind of sand, doesn't it? Have you tried with sand?

[@tinkerandthink]

It isn't sand (silicon dioxide). It's still mica (a group of alumina-silicate minerals), a different kind of mineral. Sand can be added to pottery, too, but not for exactly the same reason

[@MataH1]

@@tinkerandthink Thanks!

[@ginasaltina]

does mica count as *GROG* ?

[@tinkerandthink]

Yes! Some folks would say that "grog" is only fired ceramic material, ground up and added to raw clay. But the average person uses the word to refer to any hard, non-plastic material added to raw clay, that doesn't melt or shrink in the kiln. That includes sand, mica, kyanite,, and whatever else you care to experiment with. This broader category is also called "aggregate" (as in concrete).

[@jeraflare4355]

I'm just getting into pottery at home and made a glaze with just clay and mica, am I missing out by not having schist?
I found a bunch of sheets on a beach and thought it'd be pretty hadn't considered fireproofing uses

[@tinkerandthink]

schist is just the parent rock that contains mica. Schist also has feldspar and quartz in it, which are typical ingredients in clay bodies and glazes. But the mica has a kind of separate use in pottery, so it's fine to use on its own.