How to Make a Clay Pot Shiny

Clay pots are burnished before firing.

Shiny clay pots are usually assumed to be glazed. But this isn't always the case. Clay pots may also be burnished before they're fired to create a deep luster on the surface of the pot that allows the natural beauty of the pot to shine through. Glazing creates a hard, glassy shine on the surface of the pot, while burnishing makes the pot glow with a warm, soft sheen.

Things You'll Need

• Water
• Tablespoon
• Rag
• Vegetable oil
• Chamois leather

Instructions

1. Mold your clay into the pot shape that you like. Allow the clay to air dry until it is leather hard, which will take at least one hour. The clay will be ready when it is almost, but not quite, dry and has not yet changed color.

2. Stand the clay pot on a firm surface and then dampen a section of the outside of the pot with water, using your fingertips.

3. Burnish the dampened area with the back of the spoon, making small, circular movements and pressing firmly on the surface of the clay, but not so firmly that you make marks on it. Wipe the back of the spoon with the rag at regular intervals to remove any bits of clay that gather there.

4. Work gradually down and around the surface of the pot in a spiral movement, turning the pot as you finish each small section.

5. Rub a light coating of vegetable oil over the entire surface of the pot with your fingertips. Allow the oil to soak in for 15 minutes.

6. Re-burnish the pot with the back of the spoon when the oil has soaked in and dried. Rub the surface of the pot with the spoon without adding the water.

7. Rub the pot gently with a chamois leather after the second burnish. This improves the sheen and removes any excess oil. Set the pot aside and allow it to dry completely before firing it in the kiln.

Tips & Warnings

• Repeat the burnishing steps if the pot is not shiny enough after the first treatment.

• An alternative burnishing tool is a smooth rock or stone. Any tumbled stone that has at least one surface that is perfectly flat and smooth is suitable.

• The burnishing process may be repeated several times until the desired level of sheen is reached.