Ceramitation

Jewelry Discussion
1

Hi: I am new to this list and apologize if this topic has
already been addressed. I am a hobby silversmith and am taking
an enamel course at present. Our teacher’s supplies do not
include a metallic gold and the piece that I am working on is
screaming out for gold highlights. I live in Calgary and we do
not have a supplier of enamel here in town and as of yesterday we
also have a postal strike. So this rules out obtaining from out
of town. Is anyone familiar with this “Ceramitation” product.
It fires at low temps. --250F degrees so you can produce items
without having a kiln. Do you think that I can combine the “real
enamel” with this “imitation” product? Has anyone used this
product before and what did you think about it generally
speaking? Thank you for all your help! Val

2

Hi Val, I have tried the Ceramit stuff and have mixed feelings
about it. In my opinion, it’s pretty cheesy stuff - I use it
primarily to re “enamel” class rings and other jewelry that’s
really not worth spending a lot of time on. Good luck, Mike

3

Dear Val: I would stay away from this stuff, as it is extremely
caustic not to mention the odor is atrocious! Plus chemically it
is not sane to use this Ceramitation in conjunction with regular
enamels! Ceramitation will never give you the results you would
be looking for if trying to achieve an impressive enamelled
finish!

4

I have seen this Ceramitation stuff in jewelry catalogs and to
me it seems to be similar to what is used on costume jewelry:
acrylic, nail polish like paint that cures in an oven. It is
nothing like the glassy surface of enamel - more like plastic.
If you need metalic gold highlights, how about gold leaf or gold
plating?

Jill
@jandr
http://members.tripod.com/~jilk

5

hi val,

ceramit is certainly more trouble than it is worth for the
results. it is also easily soluable in common solvents like
acetone. i hated it so much i learned how to enamel when needed.
you might find that enamelling is actually easier to apply than
ceramit.

best regards,

geo fox

6

Val, Thomson Enamel CO (for orders: 1-800-545-2776) has Johnson
Matthey’s Liquid Metals. M-12 Bright liquid gold is $9.75 for a
2 gram bottle. I have never used this product, but it is made
for using with hard enamels. The people at Thompson are pretty
helpful and nice, so maybe they could give you more info. Hope
this was helpful. Cheers, Elizabeth

7

I have never used it but I have enameled a bit. If it matures at
250 F it would have to be used (fired) after the enamel (a type
of glass) is fused at a much higher temperature. I strongly
suspect that there would be a difference in appearance that would
detract from the finished product. If you already have both
Ceramitation materials as well as enamels make some test tiles.
This is something that serious enemelists and ceramists do
because of the difference in color between unfired glazes/enamels
and the fired. This will give you valuable and permanent
about the various hues, values and tints and
shades. There are books about enameling that describe this
process that would be helpful. Have you checked the library?

Marilyn Smith