CHARGING
ENAMEL is “charged,” or put on the metal, in the form of a watery mud,
by means of a small spatula. The most convenient spatula is one made
from a piece of steel wire about the size of a crochet needle and
flattened at one end. In fact a crochet needle itself, flattened at one
end, or even the small blade of a penknife, will be found quite
serviceable. If this spatula is mounted in a wooden handle made from a
penholder it will be found very easy to handle.
[Illustration:
FIG. 4. CHARGING.
]
A small daub of very watery enamel should be taken on the end of the
spatula and laid upon the metal where it is to be enameled. If the
surface to be enameled is very large, a larger spatula can be used to
advantage. If the enamel is too watery it will not stick to the spatula
while being taken from the palette, and if it is too dry it cannot be
readily transferred from the spatula to the metal.
When the piece has been entirely covered with enamel, it should be held
in the hand and tapped gently with the spatula. If the enamel is wet
enough this procedure will spread it evenly over the metal. The water
should now be drawn off from the enamel by means of a clean piece of
cloth or blotting paper. The remaining moisture will soon evaporate,
leaving the enamel perfectly dry. Only when perfectly dry is it in a
condition to be fired.
Care must be taken not to get the enamel on too thick, as in that case
it will chip off when fired. On the other hand, enamel shrinks
considerably on being fired, so if it is put on too thin it is apt to
shrink, leaving bare spaces of metal. The proper thickness with which to
charge a piece of work can only be learned by experiment, and in most
cases it is desirable to charge a piece with several thin coats rather
than with one thick one.
In cloisonné and champlevé work it is generally necessary to use at
least two coats in order to bring the enamel up to the level of the
metal parts. Originally in these kinds of enameling the idea was to have
each color or shade of enamel separated by a metal wall from every other
shade, which made the charging comparatively simple. Now the vulgar
modern taste permits several different shades side by side without
partitions, or even blended. If the enamel is not too wet two distinct
colors can be charged side by side without having them run into each
other to any appreciable extent. They may then be fired, and they will
be no more mixed in that process than they were before it.
A blend between two colors may be obtained by mixing two enamels
together and then charging the piece with the mixture. Such a mixture
when fired is often found to be speckled instead of a clear shade. If,
after mixing, the enamel is ground finer, this speckled effect can
sometimes be eliminated. This process is by no means always
satisfactory.
Another way that two colors can be blended is as follows: Divide a piece
to be enameled into three parts by two imaginary lines and call the
parts _A_, _B_, and _C_. Now charge _A_ and _B_ with a thin coat of, for
instance, blue, and _C_ with a thin coat of red, and fire the piece.
Then on the second charging charge _A_ with blue and _B_ and _C_ with
red. When fired, part _B_ will be found intermediate between _A_ and
_C_, in this case a sort of purple. This purple may be made bluish or
reddish, as desired, by using a preponderance of blue or of red enamel.
This preponderance can be largely regulated by the thickness of the
layers or coats of each color, although the last coat, other things
being equal, will, on account of its position, exert by far the stronger
influence.
With most transparent colors it is desirable, though not necessary
except in the case of so-called “opals,” to use an under layer of
fondant, that is, on the first charging, to cover the entire surface
with a thin layer of transparent white or colorless enamel, commonly
called flux or fondant. This under layer of fondant is used more on gold
than on silver or copper, but in any case it will greatly enhance the
brilliancy of the enamels. It is of great assistance in bringing out
delicate colors and especially “opals,” for if opals are charged
directly upon the stock they have a strong tendency to become opaque
when fired. Some delicate roses and pinks if put directly upon the metal
will “fire” black, while over a layer of fondant they became beautiful
and delicate shades.
Where several colors are used on the same piece it is generally
advantageous to use fondant for the last layer. The advantage of this is
that the harmony and qualities of the different colors are then not
affected by the stoning and polishing, which no matter how carefully
done are bound to cut down the enamel, and in the case of transparent
colors the thinner a layer becomes the lighter it becomes.
Any transparent color can be made lighter either by being stoned down or
by being put on over a layer of fondant. Transparent white can easily be
obtained on silver by the use of bluish and white fondants, but it is
impossible to obtain transparent white on gold or copper unless these
metals are first plated with silver.
Most enamels appear to best advantage on silver over fondant, and when
the same enamel is put on another metal it changes its hue. This change
of hue varies with each individual enamel and can only be learned by
experiment. In general, white (fondant) on silver becomes pink on gold
or copper, orange becomes red, yellow becomes orange or brown, blue has
a tendency to green and green to yellow. Opaque colors of course do not
actually change color, but owing to the different color of their setting
they often give different effects.
Some shades that cannot be obtained by mechanically mixing opaque colors
or by layers of different transparent colors, can be obtained by putting
a layer of transparent enamel over a layer of opaque. Opaque white as an
under layer will often give a desirable shade to a transparent enamel
which is not just the color required.
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