After you’ve completed the newsprint image, wait for the slip to become leather hard and then apply a slip coat over the drawing. Lightly dab the first coat of slip on (figure 2), wait for this coat to become leather hard and then brush on a second coat. A hair dryer assists in getting the slipped newsprint to leather-hard. If the slip has a glossy shine then it’s too wet to continue.
The slip application works best on leather-hard clay. Using a hake brush, apply a moderate coat of slip to the surface of your piece. This layer of slip shouldn’t be too thin or too thick and the slip should be the consistency of heavy whipping cream. This slip coat creates a tactile surface perfect for pressing newsprint into and absorbs transferred slip and imagery well.
When the slip-coated clay piece and the slip decoration on the newsprint are both at leather hard, you are ready to print. There is a narrow window of time here where the surface of your object and the newspaper are perfect for application. If one or the other is too wet when applied, the result could be sloppy and undesirable. If the image and/or object are too dry then this affects the quality of adhesion during the transfer process. When the slip on the object softens and all the slip on the paper has lost its sheen, you’re ready to transfer the image.