Ceramics vs. Plaster - What is the difference?

I've had people ask me why I prefer plaster crafts over ceramics. Well, there is a couple of reasons. First I wanted to explain the differences between the two. Ceramics and plaster crafts are initially created the same way. The liquid material is poured into a mold and left to harden. After this is where they become different.

After the mold is removed for ceramics, you have an item that is still rather fragile. For ceramics to become more durable, they must first be fired in a kiln before they are ready to be painted. Plaster crafts is different where after the mold is dry, it hardens to a consistency where it can be painted right away. This makes plaster crafts less expensive than ceramics.

There is one major difference when painting plaster crafts verses ceramics, and that is the type of paints that you can use. When painting ceramics, you can opt to use either acrylic paints or glaze paints. Glaze paints are more expensive and can be difficult to work with because their true colors only show after they are fired again in a kiln, however glaze paints are a more ideal choice when painting items that would be used for food consumption like plates and mugs.

I prefer plaster crafts over ceramics because they are less expensive, they do not require to be fired in a kiln multiple times, you do not have to use glaze paints, and you can find a much bigger variety of items in plaster crafts over ceramics.