openglaze

OpenGlaze User Guide

Complete guide to using OpenGlaze for glaze management, experimentation, and studio collaboration.

Table of Contents

  1. Getting Started
  2. Managing Glazes
  3. The Chemistry Engine
  4. Layering and Combinations
  5. The Experiment Pipeline
  6. Working with Kama (AI)
  7. Studio Collaboration
  8. Firing Logs
  9. Photo Documentation
  10. Gamification
  11. Tips and Best Practices

Getting Started

First Login

When you first access OpenGlaze:

  1. Create an account or log in
  2. Your studio profile is automatically created with default settings
  3. The database is seeded with the community glaze collection
  4. You’re ready to start managing glazes!

The interface consists of:

Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut Action
⌘K / Ctrl+K Open command palette
⌘/ / Ctrl+/ Toggle sidebar
Esc Close modals/panels
G then G Go to Glazes
G then C Go to Combinations
G then E Go to Experiments

Managing Glazes

Adding a Glaze

  1. Navigate to All Glazes
  2. Click Add Glaze
  3. Fill in the required fields:
    • Name — e.g., “Ash Glaze #3”
    • Recipe — Batch percentages or gram amounts
    • Cone — Firing temperature (e.g., 10)
    • Atmosphere — Oxidation, reduction, or neutral
  4. Optional fields add richness:
    • Family — celadon, tenmoku, shino, etc.
    • Base Type — porcelain, stoneware, earthenware
    • Surface — glossy, matte, satin, textured
    • Food Safe — Mark if tested food-safe
    • Behavior — Running, breaking, pooling notes

Recipe Formats

OpenGlaze accepts recipes in multiple formats:

Percentage format:

Feldspar: 45%
Silica: 30%
Whiting: 15%
Kaolin: 10%

Gram format:

Feldspar: 450g
Silica: 300g
Whiting: 150g
Kaolin: 100g

UMF format:

SiO2: 3.2
Al2O3: 0.45
CaO: 0.55

Editing and Organizing

Importing Recipes

Import from common formats:

The Chemistry Engine

UMF Calculation

The Unity Molecular Formula (UMF) normalizes glaze recipes to compare them on equal footing.

How to calculate:

  1. Open a glaze detail view
  2. Click Calculate UMF
  3. The system analyzes your recipe and displays:
    • Silica:Alumina ratio
    • Predicted surface (glossy/matte/satin)
    • Thermal expansion coefficient

Interpreting UMF:

SiO₂:Al₂O₃ Ratio Typical Surface
< 5 Matte to satin
5–8 Satin to glossy
> 8 Very glossy, may run
RO Group Typical Behavior
High CaO (0.5+) Hard, durable, may crawl
High KNaO (0.3+) Glossy, softer, more fluid
High MgO (0.3+) Matte, opaque, lower expansion
High BaO Toxic in raw form, unique surfaces

Compatibility Analysis

Before layering two glazes:

  1. Go to Combinations view
  2. Select a Base glaze and Top glaze
  3. Click Analyze Compatibility
  4. Review the report:
    • Thermal expansion match
    • Maturity overlap at target cone
    • Predicted interaction effects
    • Risk level (low/medium/high)

Warning signs:

Batch Calculator

Scale recipes for any batch size:

  1. Open a glaze
  2. Click Batch Calculator
  3. Enter desired batch size (grams or pounds)
  4. View scaled amounts and optional cost estimate

Recipe Optimizer

The optimizer computationally suggests exact material adjustments to hit target glaze properties — reducing the number of physical test firings needed.

When to use it:

How to use it:

  1. Open a glaze detail view
  2. Click Optimize Recipe
  3. Select your target:
    • Target CTE — Enter the exact CTE of your clay body (e.g., 6.5)
    • Reduce CTE — Lower thermal expansion to reduce crazing risk
    • Increase CTE — Raise thermal expansion to reduce shivering risk
    • More Matte — Increase alumina relative to silica
    • More Glossy — Increase silica relative to alumina
    • Reduce Alkali — Lower KNaO for better durability
    • Reduce Running — Reduce fluidity to prevent pooling
  4. Review ranked suggestions with predicted outcomes
  5. Choose a suggestion and fire a test tile to confirm

Understanding the results:

Column Meaning
Recipe The reformulated recipe with adjusted percentages
Change What was modified (e.g., “Replace silica with kaolin (50% swap)”)
Predicted CTE Thermal expansion of the reformulated glaze
Predicted Surface Expected surface finish (matte/satin/glossy)
Score Higher = closer to target (threshold-crossing bonuses applied)

Important: The optimizer predicts chemistry, not firing behavior. Always fire a test tile before committing to a reformulated recipe. Surface prediction depends on firing schedule, cooling rate, and application thickness.

Layering and Combinations

Documenting a Combination

  1. In Combinations view, click New Combination
  2. Select base and top glazes
  3. Document your prediction:
    • What effect do you expect?
    • Risk level assessment
  4. After firing, update with actual results

Combination Types

Type Description
Research-backed Confirmed by published sources or extensive testing
User-prediction Your hypothesis before firing
Confirmed You’ve fired it and documented results
Surprise Unexpected result worth noting

Layering Tips

The Experiment Pipeline

The 6 Stages

OpenGlaze structures glaze development into a repeatable pipeline:

Ideation → Prediction → Application → Firing → Analysis → Documentation

Stage 1: Ideation

What to document:

Example:

“I want to create a deep copper red by starting with a celadon base and adding 1.5% copper carbonate. Hypothesis: Reduction at cone 10 will produce a rich red with minimal pinholing.”

Stage 2: Prediction

What to document:

Use Kama: Ask the AI for predictions based on your recipe.

Stage 3: Application

What to document:

Stage 4: Firing

What to document:

Stage 5: Analysis

What to document:

Stage 6: Documentation

What to document:

Experiment Best Practices

Working with Kama (AI)

What Kama Knows

Kama has access to:

Effective Questions

Good questions:

Less effective questions:

Understanding Kama’s Limitations

Privacy Note

Studio Collaboration

Creating a Studio

  1. Go to Studio view
  2. Click Create Studio
  3. Enter studio name and description
  4. Configure profile (cone, atmosphere, kiln type)

Inviting Members

  1. In Studio settings, click Invite Member
  2. Enter their email address
  3. Assign a role:
    • Owner — Full control, member management
    • Admin — Manage members, experiments, glazes
    • Member — Create and edit glazes and experiments
    • Viewer — Read-only access

Shared Resources

Studio members share:

Lab Assignments

Assign experiments to specific members:

  1. Create an experiment
  2. Click Assign to Member
  3. Select member and set deadline
  4. Member receives notification

Firing Logs

Creating a Firing Log

  1. Go to Firing Logs (from Studio view)
  2. Click New Firing
  3. Enter details:
    • Date and kiln
    • Cone and atmosphere
    • Loading notes
    • Schedule (or select from presets)

Firing Schedules

Ceramics Foundation includes preset schedules:

Schedule Use Case
Fast Bisque Earthenware, single fire
Slow Bisque Large pieces, prone to cracking
Cone 6 Oxidation Standard electric firing
Cone 10 Reduction Gas kiln reduction
Crystalline Slow Cool Zinc-silicate crystal growth

Attaching Results

Link firing logs to experiments and glazes:

Photo Documentation

Uploading Photos

  1. Open a glaze or experiment
  2. Click Add Photo
  3. Upload image (JPG, PNG, WebP supported)
  4. Add caption and metadata:
    • Firing it relates to
    • Clay body
    • Application notes

Photo Organization

Best Practices for Glaze Photos

Gamification

Earning Points

Activity Points
Add a glaze 10
Create an experiment 25
Complete an experiment (all 6 stages) 100
Document a firing 15
Upload a photo 5
Correctly predict a combination 50
Daily login 5

Streaks

Badges

Unlock badges for achievements:

Badge Requirement
First Glaze Add your first glaze
Experimenter Complete 10 experiments
Chemist Calculate UMF for 50 glazes
Photographer Upload 100 photos
Streak Master 30-day activity streak
Prediction Pro 10 correct combination predictions
Studio Founder Create a studio with 3+ members

Leaderboards

Tips and Best Practices

For Beginners

  1. Start with known recipes — Use community templates as baselines
  2. Document everything — The most valuable data is the data you have
  3. Test on tiles — Never experiment on finished work
  4. Learn UMF basics — Understanding chemistry helps predict results
  5. Join a studio — Collaboration accelerates learning

For Advanced Users

  1. Build a test matrix — Systematically vary one oxide at a time
  2. Use the prediction market — Challenge yourself and others
  3. Contribute to Ceramics Foundation — Submit verified data
  4. Automate with API — Build tools on top of OpenGlaze
  5. Host for your community — Set up instances for local guilds

For Studio Managers

  1. Standardize naming — Consistent glaze names prevent confusion
  2. Archive old recipes — Keep history without cluttering active library
  3. Set up firing schedules — Preset schedules ensure consistency
  4. Review analytics — Track which glazes are used most
  5. Backup regularly — Export data periodically

Troubleshooting

Problem Solution
Glaze not showing in list Check filter settings, verify permissions
UMF calculation seems wrong Verify recipe format and material names
Kama not responding Check AI provider settings in config
Photos not uploading Check file size (max 5MB) and format (JPG/PNG/WebP)
Can’t invite studio member Verify they have an OpenGlaze account
Database errors on startup Delete glaze.db and re-run seed_data.py

Need more help? Visit GitHub Discussions or check the API Reference for developers.

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