Variegated Lapis

⬛ Black Level

Variegated Lapis is a glossy brush-on glaze from Speedball's Mid-Fire line, fired cone 5 to cone 6.

GlossySemi-translucentTexture-friendlyCone 5/6
Available at The Clay HoleYes
Test tile
Fired pot
Mid-Fire family
Find it on the glazes shelves Shelf 4, Row 9Tile #20 on the Mid-Fire pot
Show me where

The quick version of Variegated Lapis

TypeBrush-on glaze
FinishGlossy
OpacitySemi-translucent
Shows textureYes, good on carving
Glaze fire toCone 5/6
Bisque toCone 04

What this glaze does

A deep navy with white and pale blue running down through it like weather.

Clays that suit Variegated Lapis

Clay body and thickness both move these. On our darker bodies the pale ones go noticeably deeper.

Blocks of clay in the studio at The Clay Hole The complete guide to clay bodies What each body is made of and how it behaves under a glaze. The clay bodies we stock at The Clay Hole The clays we carry Every body on our shelf, with bag sizes and prices.

Applying this glaze to your work

Three coats on cone 04 bisque unless a glaze's own page says otherwise. These are built to break and mottle, so an even coat still gives you variation.

Across the Mid-Fire line

Three coats on cone 04 bisque unless a glaze's own page says otherwise. These are built to break and mottle, so an even coat still gives you variation.

Layering

Speedball publish a layering library for this line, and layering two of them is where it gets genuinely unpredictable. Test on a tile before you commit a pot.

Before you commit a pot

Speedball publish a layering library for this line, and layering two of them is where it gets genuinely unpredictable. Test on a tile before you commit a pot.

From The Clay Hole University

More info about Variegated Lapis below, but first... Everything we teach about glazing, written down and taught properly. These are the glaze lessons, and they are a small corner of a library that runs from centering your first pot to selling your work.

Glaze Brushing Techniques, Coat by Coat GuideGlaze Brushing Techniques, Coat by Coat Glazing Big and Intricate Pottery Faster GuideGlazing Big and Intricate Pottery Faster Getting the Most Out of the Mega Glaze Tool GuideGetting the Most Out of the Mega Glaze Tool Making, Logging and Dialing in Test Tiles GuideMaking, Logging and Dialing in Test Tiles Glaze Problems, Causes and Fixes GuideGlaze Problems, Causes and Fixes Glazing on the Wheel for Even Coats and Clean Bands GuideGlazing on the Wheel for Even Coats and Clean Bands Bubble Glaze with Dish Soap GuideBubble Glaze with Dish Soap Mixing Your Own Glazes: What It Actually Involves GuideMixing Your Own Glazes: What It Actually Involves Making a Glaze Catcher GuideMaking a Glaze Catcher Oxide and Carbonate Washes GuideOxide and Carbonate Washes When to Use Celadon Glazes GuideWhen to Use Celadon Glazes How to Use Dipping Glazes GuideHow to Use Dipping Glazes How to Use Underglaze: Techniques, Rules and Firing UnderglazeHow to Use Underglaze: Techniques, Rules and Firing Mishima: How to Inlay Slip and Underglaze into Carved Lines UnderglazeMishima: How to Inlay Slip and Underglaze into Carved Lines Wipe-Away Texture: Underglaze and Oxide Washes on Bisque UnderglazeWipe-Away Texture: Underglaze and Oxide Washes on Bisque
Browse all 170+ lessons and guides

Firing Variegated Lapis

Speedball make this line for cone 5 and 6. Our glaze kilns run cone 5½, so the tile here is the color at our cone.

If you are a member here

None of this is yours to manage. We handle everything on the kiln side, and every glaze on our shelves can be fired safely in our studio.

Common problems with Variegated Lapis

Why is mine flat where the photo is mottled?

Thickness. These break and mottle where the coat varies, so a perfectly thin even coat gives you the least of it.

Why did it run?

The three fluxes are built to. The colors are not, but a heavy coat on any reactive glaze moves.

Food and function

Speedball carry the AP seal across the line. Anyone selling functional ware should test their own finished work.

Across the Mid-Fire line

Speedball carry the AP seal across the line. Anyone selling functional ware should test their own finished work.

Test tile pots lined up on the glaze shelves at The Clay Hole

Our test tile pots

Every glaze family on our shelves has its own test tile pot, and it is the fastest way to decide what to put on a piece. It is a fired pot wearing the whole family, one numbered tile per glaze, on a surface built to show you what that glaze actually does rather than just what color it is.

  1. 1Find the pot The brand and family name are written on the rim. This glaze lives on the Speedball Mid-Fire pot.
  2. 2Find the tile This one is tile #20. The numbers match the ones in the Glaze Bible.
  3. 3Read it properly Look at what the glaze does across all four textures, not just what color it is.

What to look at on the tile

Broad vertical textureA broad open surface. Shows the color at full strength, and whether the glaze travels down it.
Shallow textureA shallow swirl stamp. Shows whether light carving still reads once the glaze is on, or fills in and vanishes.
Deep textureCut lines. A deeply rough texture stripe. Shows where the glaze pools, how it breaks, and how dark it goes in the recesses.
Wipe-away textureGlaze wiped back to bare clay. Shows what the edge does where the coat runs thin. Find this wiped away on the tile's number.
One trick worth knowing

Some glazes tell you loudly that they run. Others hide it. Look at how the brushed lines fired: crisp edges mean a stable glaze, and edges that went soft and fluid mean it moved, and it will move on your pot too.

More ways to pick a glaze

The Mega Glaze Tool Every glaze we carry, filtered by level, color, sheen and more. The Glaze Finder Type a name and see exactly where it sits on our wall. Clay Hole University Glazing lessons, from brushing to dipping to layering. Download the Glaze Bible PDF The whole printed Bible, in one file.

Membership levels that may use this glaze: Black

Not sure whether this glaze suits what you are making, or how it works with our system here? Ask an instructor. That is what we are here for, and a two minute conversation at the shelf beats a fired pot you did not want.

How membership levels work Back to the Glaze Bible
About these images and what your pot will actually look like

We have done our best to represent every glaze here accurately, and you should still expect your pot to look different from what is on this screen.

Our glaze tile images are digitally created. They are built to show the character of a glaze, not to be a color match.

A screen is not a printout, a printout is not a test tile, and a test tile is not a finished pot. Each step in that chain shifts what a glaze looks like, sometimes a lot.

On top of that, the pottery itself changes the result: the clay body, how thick the glaze went on, whether it was brushed, dipped or sprayed, what was layered under or over it, where the piece sat in the kiln, how hot that spot ran, how fast it cooled, what was fired next to it, and how much texture the surface had. Two pots glazed from the same jar on the same day can come out different.

Treat every image here as a starting point, and treat a test tile fired on your own clay as the real answer.

Download the Glaze Bible PDF