Not all underglaze pencils are the same. I've had poor results from unbranded pencils sold on Amazon, they're soft, gritty, and nearly impossible to sharpen to a real point. My favorite is Pasler (not sponsored, just what works). Start there.
Once you have a good pencil, it's all about prep: the surface, the point, and keeping dust away from your piece. Here is the full process, from surface to kiln.
Prep the surface
Before you draw, sand your piece with an extra thin grit sandpaper, something around p1000. This smooths out any tooth or texture in the clay so the pencil can lay down a clean, consistent line instead of catching and skipping.
Sharpen and smooth the pencil
Use a good quality sharpener to get a real point, then refine that point further with sandpaper. A sharpener alone tends to leave the tip slightly uneven. A pass on sandpaper after sharpening is what actually gets you to a thin, consistent line.
One important detail: sharpen and sand away from your piece. The dust sheds easily and will transfer onto the surface if you do it nearby. Clean your hands and the pencil itself after sharpening, before you go back to drawing.
Draw
Once your surface is prepped and your pencil is sharp, draw directly onto the piece. If your hands tend to sweat, wear gloves. Sweat is one of the most common causes of smudging on underglaze pencil work, and it is easy to avoid.
Apply the underglaze
Once the drawing is done, the piece is ready for the glaze. I use clear glaze for this technique. My favorite (again, not sponsored) is Amaco Sahara HF Glaze Clear Zinc Free for cone 6, and Amaco LG-10 Clear Low Fire for cone 06.
Apply the first coat with a sponge. For the second and third coats, you can either brush them on or dip the piece. Both techniques work, it comes down to what gives you better control for the piece in front of you.
Fire
After the coats are on, the piece is ready for the kiln. Fire at the recommended temperature for your specific clay and glaze combination. I have had strong results at both cone 06 and cone 6, so there is some flexibility depending on your setup.
A good pencil and a sharp, smooth point are what separate a clean line from a smudged one. Everything else is in the application and firing.
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Thanks for reading. Fran
