Shop talk - Brief Article

DEBCOR, INC. introduces its new Adjustable Height Multi-Student Art and Activity Table with large 60" x 42" smooth, scratch and liquid-resistant high pressure laminate or maple work surface. Easy to assemble, the table's sturdy steel base has adjustable legs with height range of 26 1/2" to 30 1/2". The table is complete with a durable powder coat finish. Putty Custom colors and tops are available. For more information, circle No. 395 on the Arts & Activities Reader Service Card.

AMERICAN ART CLAY CO., INC. (AMACO[R]) has added 10 new colors to the lead free Old World Crackle glaze series. Crackle glazes are formulated to produce a network of cracks on fired ware similar to crazing, giving pieces an old or antique look. Old World Crackle glazes can be used for allover coverage, or they can be applied over an underglaze design. Because of the transparency of the color glazes, the underglaze design shows through, creating design and color effects. The recommended firing temperature for AMACO Old World Crackle Glazes is Cone 06. In addition to the Clear Glass and Satin White Crackle glazes, the 10 new colors in this series are fog gray, amber, beige, leaf green, celadon, peach, pink, light red and yellow. For more details, circle No. 400 on the Arts & Activities Reader Service Card.

Create Anything with Clay, written by Sherri Haab and Laura Torres, and published by KLUTZ[R], offers new techniques and new projects with polymer clay. Detailed instructions are included for creating and baking clay pieces to permanence in a conventional oven. Projects include making Itty-Bitty Hardback Books, Clay Pictures and many more. This full-color book is packaged with eight 1-ounce blocks of colorful Sculpey polymer clay. For more information, visit online at www.klutz.com or circle No. 394 on the Arts & Activities Reader Service Card.

PARAGON INDUSTRIES, INC. introduces a front-loading ceramic kiln called the Dragon. The new Dragon is an industrial type furnace made for the ceramist. The Dragon's inside dimensions of 24" wide x 24" deep x 27" tall allow easy loading and firing of larger pieces. The walls, door and top are 4 inches thick, and the bottom is 4 1/2 inches thick. There are 3 inches of insulating firebrick and 1 inch of block insulation in the walls, top and door. The Dragon will fire to 2350 [degrees] F and includes the Sentry 12-key microprocessor controller, made by Orton Ceramic Foundation exclusively for Paragon. A bank of built-in UL and NEC compliant high amperage fuses protects the kiln and circuit wiring. Extra options for the Dragon include: heating elements in the door, ITC coating on brick walls and door, stainless steel case, Orton KilnVent, S-type thermocouple, three-zone control, stand with casters, and shelf drying rack. For more information, visit online at www.paragonweb.com or circle No. 391 on the Reader Service Card.

KrystalCard Keepsake Chest Kit from SUNDAY INTERNATIONAL offers an unfinished keepsake chest that can be decorated in various ways. The kit includes one unfinished KrystalCard Keepsake Chest (6 1/2" x 5" x 2"), one interchangeable KrystalCard Mail Art Piece (3 3/4" x 5 1/8"), one KrystalCard Mailable Backer and one set of templates to use in embellishing the box. The Mail Art Piece produces a "glasslike" postcard that is mailable. Easy to decorate using rubber stamps, colored pencils, markers, paints, glitter, color copies of photographs or other media, the Mail Art Piece can also be inserted onto the lid of the chest. For information, visit online at www.sundayint.com or circle No. 388 on the Arts & Activities Reader Service Card.

Bell-Lift Elevator Kiln from L&L KILN MFG. INC. lifts the whole kiln up as a unit, exposing the bottom of the kiln for easy loading from all four sides. The 34 1/2-cubic-foot Bell-Lift Elevator Kiln with an automatic three-zone control can be assembled in under two hours by two people with no special equipment. This large capacity electric kiln maizes loading of larger pieces less difficult and avoids strenuous, heavy lifting. For more information, visit online at www.hotkilns.com or circle No. 393 on the Arts & Activities Reader Service Card.

TRIARCO[R] ARTS & CRAFTS offers a variety of art materials designed for grades K-12. Different types of clay, sculpture supplies and clay tools are available. Triarco Value-Priced Clay is a self-hardening quality clay for hand-modeling or on the wheel. The gray-colored clay air dries to hard durability, but is not waterproof after hardening. There is no need for a kiln or oven. For younger artists, Klean Klay is a nonstaining modeling clay that is nonhardening and nontoxic. Klean Klay is available in 11 colors, and in a four-color assortment. To manipulate clay, use Klan) Gun, a four-inch tool that forces soft clay, bread dough or gum paste through various-shaped openings in an assortment of interchangeable discs. The Klay Gun is furnished with a set of 19 discs that are formed to allow flush cutoff of the extruded clay. The Klay Gun is constructed of sturdy, die-cast zinc alloy. For more information, circle No. 387 on the Arts & Activities Reader Service Card.