Peg Your Own Pottery

Paint your own pottery with peg stamps

Peg Stamping on Bisque

With our component stamping process, it’s easy to create beautiful and functional items that will be cherished by generations to come. Did you know that custom dinnerware, mugs, vases, and other ceramics can be decorated with rubber stamps? There’s a vast world of possibilities just waiting for you when you peg stamp on ceramic bisque!

1. Choose Location

1. Choose Your Location

If you don’t have your own kiln, take our peg stamps to your local Paint-Your-Own-Pottery-Studio (PYOP) studio, where you can choose your bisqueware, decorate it with their underglazes and they will take care of the entire firing process for you!

2. Choose the Stamps

2. Choose the Stamps

Use our Bitty Stamps™ for small areas that are hard to reach or that have sharper curves. Larger stamps are best for flat surfaces and smoother curves.

3. Prepare the Stamps

3. Prepare the Stamps

If the outer edge of a stamp has a overhanging lip, remove it using a pair of small scissors. Removing this lip will prevent the stamp from leaving a circular pattern when stamping. To remove any oily residue that might prevent the underglaze from adhering to new stamps, clean the end of the stamp with a cleaning solution or very gently wipe the rubber across a section of clean ceramic bisque.

4. Adjust Underglaze

4. Adjust Underglaze

Place a small piece of foam in an underglaze cup, pour in 1 teaspoon (4.93 mL) of glaze, and smooth it out with a mixing paddle until absorbed. Gently press the stamp onto a piece of foam and stamp onto a piece of paper. If the image is not clear, add more underglaze. If the image is too wet, use another piece of foam to absorb the excess. While stamping, occasionally use a fine mist sprayer to gently remoisten the underglaze in the cup to make the image clearer.

5. Stamp the Bisque

5. Stamp the Bisque

Using a ruler, templates, or free-hand, draw with a pencil where you want to stamp. There is no need to erase the pencil marks before glazing because they will fire off the bisqueware in the kiln. Use the StampRight™ placement line on the end of the peg stamp to determine the position of the image. Sometimes you will need to rock and/or roll the stamp to get the best impression. This takes a little practice, but once you learn the technique, you will be amazed at how fast and easy it is.

6. Clean Between

6. Clean Between Colors

Thoroughly clean your stamps between underglaze colors with a microfiber cloth or Rub It Scrub It and Ultra Clean.

7. Fixing Mistakes

7. What About Mistakes?

Mistakes do occur and they can be fixed. If the underglaze is still wet, simply wipe the mistake away with a cotton swab or clean sponge. If the underglaze has partially dried, you may scratch if off with a stylus or cleanup tool. Use a toothpick for small mistakes.

8. Glazing and Firing

8. Apply Clear Glaze and Fire

After stamping your bisqueware with underglaze, dip or brush your masterpiece with a clear glaze and fire, or let your favorite PYOP studio do that for you!