gift cards — Potteryforthepoles

Everything you need to know about Paint Your Own.

Paint Your Own Kits are perfect to relax, get creative and make something special. So here is a quick guide with all of our tips and expertise to get the most out of your mug.

What the kit includes.

The kit includes a paint brush, 4 paints of your choice, a sponge, 2 trays, a scrape tool, a bisque mug.

Getting Started..

To get the most out of your mug, its best to get prepared. Head to Pinterest, take a nice walk and get some ideas flowing. What colours do you want? Who is the mug for? What do you want it to look like?

Identify your skills

Our kit is beginner and intermediate friendly. If you are a beginner and unsure, grab your favourite colours and don't mix them, just paint away with bold easy patterns. If you are filled with confidence and have experience in painting then feel free to really show your skills and layer on the paint. Please see our Painting section to understand more about how underglaze works.

When your kit arrives.

Follow the QR code on the card to land here. Take your time, this is a fun experience, it is easy to get overwhelmed with all the new ideas. Figure out when and where you want to start painting and have a plan with how you're going to do it. Keep the box and packaging safe so you can reuse this to return it back to me.

Painting

Underglaze is the paint that you're using. It's not the same as normal paint, it is made from clay, silica and colourants so it can withstand the temperature of the kiln and stain the mug. You can mix your colours to create new ones, you can lighten and darken them, although this is only recommended if you are experienced with painting.

Start with really light even strokes and repeat the layer after the first has dried. It is easy to takeaway mistakes when it's a light layer, it will be harder to get rid of your mistake if it is a big thick blob as this will be wet and may smudge when you try.

We advise painting up to 3/4 layers of lighter colours and 2/3 of darker colours.

Fixing Mishaps

It's easy to make a mishap, I still do! Just wait for it to dry and take your scraping tool and scrape it off, you can use any tool in your kitchen like a spoon or a blunt metal edge to easily scrape off the mishap. We have included a sponge as you can scrub the paint off, however scrubbing large amounts of paint will smudge into the mug and may leave stains that you wont see until its been fired.

Using your scrape tool

Your scrape tool is there to fix your mishaps, but its also there to scrape in any extra detail that you want in your design. You can scrape lines and patterns to achieve the artistic look that you want.

When you're finished.

Double check your master piece, look for any paint that might have gotten somewhere you don't want it. You can use your scrape tool take this off. There shouldn't be paint on the bottom of the mug as we need this clean for the kiln.

Returning your mug to us

When you're happy to return your mug to us, pop it back in the box it came in and wrap it carefully and evenly. The mug should be tight and snug and shouldn't be able to move within the box. I will aim to fire and return the mug to you within 14 working days.