Here are several questions frequently asked:
How do you grout highly textured tiles?
I use a Weldbond mask. I paint on Weldbond very thick the day before I am going to grout. Using a straight edged paint brush, I paint the mask only on the face of the tile and I remove any that might slip over into the interstice. You must wait until the glue is transparent which takes about 15-20 hours. I grout as usual. As I wipe away the excess grout some of the Weldbond mask will come up. Toward the end of the process I use my dental pick or tweezers to remove most of the mask which comes up in whole pieces. It actually helps with the grouting process as it reveals crystal clean tiles beneath.
For very large complex ceramic pieces I use putty that you can buy at office supply stores. It is used to tack things on the wall without leaving marks but works great as a mask for larger pieces.
What thickness are your tiles?
I make tiles in every possible thickness. In this way I have a wide range of sizes to work with other materials. I frequently use smalti, rock or stainglass. I love to use paperclay to make my thin tiles as it prevents a lot of warping problems.
How do you cut your tiles?
I cut my tiles with all styles of nippers (Kobalt, Starrett, Leponitt wheeled etc). Sometimes the texture dictates the cut but if I am really having problems nipping a shape I will use my Gryphon ring saw. It cuts through low fire tiles like butter but high fire tiles are very hard on the blade.
Why does the glaze chip off some ceramic pieces when I nip them?
Sometimes it is because the glaze and clay were not a good fit. You can usually grind these imperfect edges with a simple grinder (I use a low end Glastar grinder). Make sure you are using a super fine grinding blade.
