Decorating

Hand-finished lithographing, banding and gilding — the craft behind our decorated ware.

Lithographing

Lithographing waterslide transfers refers to the process of creating ceramic decal designs using lithographic printing, which are then applied to ceramics using waterslide transfer paper.

Our lithographing team have 20+ years of experience with this craft.

The beauty of lithographing is that each transfer is hand placed, relying on human precision rather than machine placement — which is what makes each piece we produce extra special.

Process:

  1. Soak the transfer in water (typically 10–30 seconds).
  2. The backing paper absorbs water, loosening the adhesive.
  3. Slide the decal onto the ceramic surface.
  4. Smooth out wrinkles and air bubbles.
  5. Let the transfer dry completely (12–24 hours).
  6. Fire in a kiln (typically 750–850°C for onglaze) to fuse the pigment into the glaze.

Banding

Banding on fine bone china refers to the decorative process of applying one or more concentric lines (bands) — often metallic (gold, platinum) or coloured — around the rim or body of plates, cups, and mugs. It's a classic embellishment that adds elegance and refinement to the finished ware.

Hand banding:

  1. A brush (usually squirrel or sable hair) is dipped in metallic or enamel paint.
  2. The item spins on a banding wheel.
  3. The decorator steadily holds the brush against the surface to create smooth, even lines.

This process requires a lot of skill and precision — our bander has over 30 years of experience. Each item is hand painted, so will have slight variance, which adds to the bespoke, hand-crafted artistry of every piece.

Gilding

Gilding fine bone china is the process of applying real gold decoration — often as fine lines, bands, patterns, or full designs — onto the surface of glazed and fired china. It's a hallmark of luxury ceramics, especially in tableware, ornamentals, and commemorative pieces.

This is essentially the same process as banding, but with metallic colours. It's a more expensive process, as we use real gold and platinum.

Care & durability:

  • Gilding is delicate — not dishwasher- or microwave-safe.
  • For longevity, hand-washing with a non-abrasive cloth is recommended.
  • Gold can wear off over time if subjected to regular friction.

What to Expect

Once printed, waterslide transfers are soaked in water to release them from their backing paper, then applied to the ware entirely by hand. Each transfer is positioned, then rubbed down by hand to remove any air or water trapped underneath and to flatten it fully against the surface, ready for firing. Because this is a genuinely manual, skilled process — not a mechanised one — a small degree of natural variation between individual pieces is normal and should be expected, particularly on curved or handled ware.

Faults that can occur:

  • Slight misalignment or positioning variance between individual pieces within the same order.
  • A transfer not lying perfectly flat, occasionally leaving a sliver of bare ware visible at an edge, or causing text/fine linework to appear very slightly stretched or wavy where it has had to be manipulated around a curve or handle.
  • On designs that wrap fully around a curved piece, the natural curve of the item itself can make straight text appear to slant even when it has been applied correctly.

We hold our decorators to a consistent standard, but minor variation of this kind falls within normal, acceptable tolerance for hand-decorated ceramics and is not considered a fault. Where an order is colour- or position-critical, we strongly recommend approving a physical proof/sample before the full run is put into production.