3: Setup for Enamel and Counter Enamel

Switching gears away from setting up the canvas while I check over the reference material, so here's a look into the setup for another new thing I'll be doing: torch firing enamel onto metal. Already poked around at it a bit, and so far preliminary tests are going well, just need to work out kinks in a few pieces of the puzzle.

Here's a picture tutorial showing a process similar to what I'll be doing (it's a Flickr image dump and the pictures are in reverse order, so scroll down to the bottom to start). My needs are actually simpler — I'm mostly just looking for a coating of clear enamel done on both sides. And from that, my trivia for the day (yours if you want it!): putting enamel on the reverse is called a 'counter enamel', and even when you wouldn't see the back of an enameled piece helps to prevent warping as the enamel on the front side hardens and pulls in on the metal. People often do the reverse with a bunch of their scrap enameling powder all blended together, as the color doesn't matter when the piece is e.g. set into a broach or something.