I think I mentioned a few posts back that I had a passing interest in metal clay, but silver was too expensive to work with much, and the base metals required a kiln, which was out of my price range.
I had not, however, entirely given up on the idea, and had been watching Craigslist for the last month or two, looking for a small, cheap 120V kiln. And I found one yesterday!
It was advertised as part of a garage sale, and was only $100, so I snapped it right up. There are some modifications we’ll have to do to make it suitable for firing metal clay – which basically amount to making a programmable thermostat – but with Mike’s expertise and my enthusiasm, I think it’s totally feasible.
But that project will have to wait for a couple weeks, at least. At the moment I am ridiculously overscheduled – between work, the Handwoven article, the jacket/coat projects, and some volunteer commitments, I’m stressed out and overbooked through mid to late September. So the kiln will have to wait its turn.