Transparents!

transparents over white with trees created using rubber stamp

transparents used with a stencil

transparent and opaques used together

 Transparent enamels add a new dimension to your enameling. If you're enameling on copper, you'll want to use an opaque white or other light color first and then enamel the transparent over that. But you can get other nice effects with transparents by experimenting.  For transparent enamels to look their  best, you need to wash them first. If you skip this step (which I do when I'm feeling lazy) you may get enamels that look cloudy or dirty. This is how I do it. In a small jar add some enamel and cover with water. Swirl it around, let it settle for about 20 seconds and then pour off the water. Repeat this until the water looks clear and then do it one more time with distilled water. Using a plastic spoon scrape the wet enamel into a cupcake paper and put the paper in a cupcake tin. I write the color on the side of the cupcake paper with a pencil so I don't get the colors mixed up. When you have washed as many enamels as you want, dry them in the oven for about 10-15 minutes at 325 degrees F. Now your enamels are ready to use without a long drying time. Transparents can require several coats to get the color intensity you want or used over different colors to create new colors. You can use the rubber stamp technique with opaques over transparents to create beautiful depth. Have fun with it!

transparents used over ivory

transparent blue over white and white over transparent flux