AMACO Moon River is the Potter's Choice glaze PC-19, a cone 5 to 6 brushing glaze AMACO added in 2025. People search four other AMACO glazes by name too: Oatmeal, Obsidian, Iron Lustre and Tuscan Blue. This review gives each one a section with its code, line, cone, coats, finish, food-safety label as AMACO states it, and the layering notes AMACO publishes.
It is research-based. We worked from AMACO's product pages, line pages, 2026 Complete Guide, Potter's Choice product sheet and blog. We have not fired these glazes, and every combination named here is one AMACO published.
Verdict
All five are current AMACO glazes in October 2026, and none is discontinued or renamed. Moon River and Tuscan Blue are new and carry a "NEW" flag on AMACO's Potter's Choice page. For a first layering set, Obsidian and Iron Lustre are the bases, Oatmeal and Moon River the lighter tops, and Tuscan Blue the one AMACO describes as a satin blue that stands on its own. A pint typically costs about $20 to $30 at US sellers in October 2026; check the live price.
The five glazes at a glance
| Glaze | Line | Cone | Coats (AMACO) | Finish | Food label as AMACO states it | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PC-19 Moon River | Potter's Choice | 5 to 6 | 3 | Flowing; opaque icon | PC sheet: food safety status | Current, new |
| PC-31 Oatmeal | Potter's Choice | 5 to 6 | Not on page | Translucent beige | PC sheet: food safety status | Current |
| C-1 Obsidian | Celadon | 5 to 6 | 3 (line page) | Black, pools | Line page: "Food-safe" | Current |
| PC-33 Iron Lustre | Potter's Choice | 5 to 6 | Not on page | Brown, blue-gray floats | PC sheet: food safety status | Current |
| PC-18 Tuscan Blue | Potter's Choice | 5 to 6 | 3 | Semi-matte | PC sheet: food safety status | Current, new |
AMACO's figures for both lines: cone 5 is 2,167°F (1,186°C) and cone 6 is 2,232°F (1,222°C) at a medium-speed firing, over bisque fired to cone 04, 1,945°F (1,063°C). The pottery cone chart explains why heating rate shifts those numbers.
Current status: discontinued or renamed?
- Moon River and Tuscan Blue: current, from AMACO's 2025 Potter's Choice release, pint only. Some dealers showed them out of stock or back-ordered; AMACO lists both as in stock.
- Oatmeal and Iron Lustre: current, in pints and gallons, with a dry dipping version mentioned.
- Obsidian: current. AMACO's shop writes C-01; its Complete Guide and layering database write C-1. Same glaze, not a rename. Pint, gallon and 10 lb dry.
- Spelling: AMACO writes Iron Lustre, not Iron Luster.
Food-safety labels: what AMACO says
AMACO's current Potter's Choice product sheet says all Potter's Choice glazes "hold a food safety status" except PC-4 Palladium, PC-9 Vintage Gold and PC-64 Aventurine, which covers Moon River, Oatmeal, Iron Lustre and Tuscan Blue. The Celadon line page lists "Food-safe" as a feature, which covers Obsidian.
The product pages are less clear. In our October 2026 check none of the five showed AMACO's Food Safe icon, though other AMACO pages, such as PCF-74 River Birch, do. AMACO also says food safe status "is not determined by whether it is certified 'AP' or 'CL'."
Any label applies to one glaze fired alone to cone 5 to 6. A layered combination is a new, untested surface, and some partners AMACO pairs with Oatmeal, such as PC-64 Aventurine, sit outside the food safety status. We cannot promise any glaze is food safe on your pots; see our food safe glaze guide.
AMACO Moon River (PC-19)
AMACO's product page calls Moon River "a dreamy, flowy glaze shifting in color from a soft periwinkle to a milky blue." Its 2025 launch post words it differently: "a glossy cream glaze with tan flecks floating where it pools thicker" that "takes on a blueish 'milk glass' look when applied thinner." Both are AMACO's, so expect thickness to decide the color.
- Code and line: PC-19, Potter's Choice
- Cone: 5 to 6 over cone 04 bisque
- Coats: 3 brush coats, not thinned, each dry before the next
- Finish: Glossy and flowing; opaque icon
- Size: Pint only
- Food label: PC product sheet food safety status; no Food Safe icon on the product page
AMACO says it "layers well over AMACO Celadons, other Potter's Choice and Satin Matte glazes" and may run "if paired with a runny glaze." The launch post calls it good "as a base coat or layered over other glazes." AMACO shows these combinations, without coat counts:
- PC-19 Moon River over a band of PC-53 Ancient Jasper, fired to cone 6.
- PC-13 Serpentine Green over PC-19 Moon River.
- PC-19 Moon River over PC-18 Tuscan Blue.
- PC-65 Black Aventurine over PC-19 Moon River.
AMACO does not publish how Moon River looks on dark versus light clay.
Pros
- Soft blue few Potter's Choice colors offer
- Base or top coat
- Clear 3-coat instruction
Cons
- Pint only
- Color depends on thickness
- No clay comparison published
Who should skip it: Potters who want a strong, saturated blue; look at Tuscan Blue or Blue Rutile.
AMACO Oatmeal (PC-31)
AMACO calls Oatmeal "a toasty, light beige glaze that is relatively translucent and breaks clear over textured surfaces" and "great for layering with other Potters Choice glazes." Being fairly translucent, it lets more clay color through than an opaque glaze, though AMACO publishes no light versus dark clay comparison for it.
- Code and line: PC-31, Potter's Choice
- Cone: 5 to 6
- Coats: Not on the product page; AMACO's general advice is 3 to 4, and its product sheet shows 1, 2 and 3 coat tiles
- Finish: Translucent beige in AMACO's text (the page shows an opaque icon)
- Sizes: Pint, gallon; dry dipping mix mentioned
- Food label: PC product sheet food safety status; no Food Safe icon on the product page
Oatmeal glaze combinations from AMACO
The best documented is AMACO's customer favorite: two to three coats of PC-33 Iron Lustre over the whole piece, then one coat of Oatmeal on the top half, fired to cone 6. AMACO says it "works best on lighter clays", to "leave space for the Oatmeal to run", and that "too much Oatmeal will result in brown."
- Oatmeal on top (layering database): over C-1 Obsidian, C-36 Iron, C-54 Snapdragon, PC-17 Honey Flux, PC-44 Sage, PC-47 Emerald Falls, PC-64 Aventurine, PC-67 River Rock and PCF-74 River Birch.
- Oatmeal as the base: PC-12 Blue Midnight, PC-33 Iron Lustre, PC-34 Light Sepia and PC-42 Seaweed over Oatmeal.
Two partners have their own pages: Honey Flux combinations and Seaweed combinations. One trap: AMACO's product sheet prints the Iron Lustre pairing as "PC-21 Oatmeal", but PC-21 is Arctic Blue. Oatmeal is PC-31.
Pros
- Neutral, light top coat
- Many AMACO pairings
- Pint and gallon
Cons
- No coat count on the product page
- Turns brown if too thick over Iron Lustre
Who should skip it: Anyone who wants a bold color on its own.
AMACO Obsidian (C-1)
Obsidian is not a Potter's Choice glaze. It is the black in AMACO's Celadon line: "100% mixable" and "a deep, opaque black that pools and accents textured ware." The product page icon says semitransparent while the text says opaque; AMACO's customer favorites post says it "is opaque and looks great on most clay bodies."
- Code and line: C-1 (C-01 on AMACO's shop), Celadon
- Cone: 5 to 6 over cone 04 bisque
- Coats: 3 per AMACO's Celadon line; 2 to 3 as a base in AMACO's Seaweed example
- Finish: Black, pools in texture; mixable
- Sizes: Pint, gallon, 10 lb dry mix
- Food label: "Food-safe" on the Celadon line page; no Food Safe icon on the product page; silica Prop 65 warning for the dry mix
Mixing ratios and the rest of the line are in our AMACO Celadon review.
Obsidian glaze combinations from AMACO
AMACO uses Obsidian mostly as the base. Its most detailed example is two coats of PC-42 Seaweed over two to three coats of Obsidian, cone 5 or 6: blue-green running over black, with Seaweed getting runnier when fired hotter. Its 2026 blog says PC-57 Smokey Merlot "gives a dramatic pop" over Obsidian.
- Over Obsidian (database): PC-30 Temmoku, PC-31 Oatmeal, PC-33 Iron Lustre, PC-36 Ironstone, PC-61 Textured Amber and PC-62 Textured Amber Brown.
- Obsidian on top: C-1 Obsidian over PC-24 Sapphire Float.
- Product page stack: PC-23 Indigo Float over PC-21 Arctic Blue over PC-12 Blue Midnight over C-1.
Pros
- Dark, stable base for fluid tops
- Mixable
- Three sizes
Cons
- Text and icon disagree on opacity
- Dry mix means handling silica powder
Who should skip it: Potters who want a satin or matte black; Obsidian is a glossy, pooling Celadon.
AMACO Iron Lustre (PC-33)
AMACO says "Iron Lustre is brown where thin with blue-gray floats where thick", a more subdued take on a standard blue that works well over texture. It is one of the most common bases in AMACO's published combinations.
- Code and line: PC-33, Potter's Choice
- Cone: 5 to 6
- Coats: Not on the product page; 2 to 3 as a base in AMACO's Oatmeal example; 1, 2 and 3 coat tiles at cone 5 on the product sheet
- Finish: Floats where thick, brown where thin; opaque icon
- Sizes: Pint, gallon; dry dipping mix mentioned
- Food label: PC product sheet food safety status; no Food Safe icon on the product page
Iron Lustre combinations from AMACO
- As the base: PC-31 Oatmeal (above), PC-20 Blue Rutile, PC-42 Seaweed and PC-43 Toasted Sage over Iron Lustre.
- On top: over C-1 Obsidian, C-25 Downpour, C-47 Jade, PC-21 Arctic Blue, PC-31 Oatmeal, PC-47 Emerald Falls, PCF-18 Honeydew, PCF-19 Cirrus Flow, PCF-74 River Birch and PCF-75 Moss Mist.
- AMACO's Complete Guide also pairs it with PC-15 Satin Oribe, without coat counts.
The Blue Rutile pairing is covered in our AMACO Blue Rutile review.
Pros
- Works under or over many glazes
- Shows texture
- Pint and gallon
Cons
- No coat count on the product page
- Very different thin versus thick
Who should skip it: Anyone after a clean, bright blue; Iron Lustre reads mostly brown.
AMACO Tuscan Blue (PC-18)
AMACO's product page says Tuscan Blue "is a deep blue, semi-matte glaze that breaks light blue to moss green over texture." The launch post calls it "a rich, satiny indigo glaze that pools dark blue and breaks green."
- Code and line: PC-18, Potter's Choice
- Cone: 5 to 6 over cone 04 bisque
- Coats: 3 brush coats, not thinned, each dry before the next
- Finish: Semi-matte; opaque icon (one dealer calls it semi-transparent)
- Size: Pint only
- Food label: PC product sheet food safety status; no Food Safe icon on the product page
AMACO gives it the same layering note as Moon River and shows two combinations: PC-71 Flambe over PC-18 Tuscan Blue, and PC-19 Moon River over PC-18 Tuscan Blue. It publishes no light versus dark clay comparison.
Pros
- Satin blue in a mostly glossy line
- Breaks over texture
- Clear 3-coat instruction
Cons
- Pint only
- Only two AMACO combinations so far
Who should skip it: Potters who want a glossy, fluid blue; that is Blue Rutile's job.
How AMACO says to apply these glazes
Shake the jar, do not thin, brush 3 coats on cone 04 bisque, let each coat dry, and fire to cone 5 to 6. AMACO recommends a test tile "before using each new batch number of glaze." Wax the foot, stop fluid glazes short of the bottom and protect the shelf with kiln wash. AMACO warns that "all dry dipping glazes can be difficult to layer." For technique, see how to glaze pottery and our AMACO glaze layering guide.
What this group does well, and weak points
- Each glaze has AMACO-published combinations, so you start from a known pairing.
- Together they cover a layering set: a black base, a brown base, two light tops and a matte blue, all at cone 5 to 6.
- Weak point: product page food icons do not match AMACO's line pages and product sheet.
- Weak point: three of five product pages give no coat count, and AMACO's descriptions conflict on Moon River's color and on opacity.
- Weak point: the two new colors are pint only.
Who should buy, and who should skip
Buy these if you fire an electric kiln to cone 5 or 6, like to layer and will fire test tiles. Iron Lustre and Obsidian are the safest first jars because so many AMACO combinations build on them. Skip them if your kiln only reaches cone 05, if you need identical results on every pot, or if you cannot protect your shelves. For the whole line, see our Potter's Choice review.
Alternatives
- PC-20 Blue Rutile: AMACO's glossy, flowing blue if Tuscan Blue is too matte.
- PC-21 Arctic Blue: a light Potter's Choice blue often paired with Iron Lustre.
- Other AMACO Celadons: transparent bases for the same role as Obsidian.
- Mayco Stoneware glazes: Mayco's mid-fire line.
Safety notes
Glaze dust contains silica. Wipe spills with a damp sponge and never dry sweep. Wear a NIOSH-approved respirator when mixing any dry dipping version, and read AMACO's SDS for each product. Fire only in a kiln with the clearance and ventilation its maker specifies.
Sources: AMACO product pages for PC-19 Moon River, PC-18 Tuscan Blue, PC-31 Oatmeal, PC-33 Iron Lustre and C-01 Obsidian (shop.amaco.com); AMACO Potter's Choice line pages 1 to 3 and Celadon line page; AMACO Potter's Choice product sheet (amaco.com asset); The Complete Guide to AMACO Clay, Glazes, Underglazes (published 2026); AMACO blog posts "NEW Potter's Choice Glazes For 2025", "Kick Off 2026 with AMACO Glazes" and "Customer Favorite AMACO Glaze Combinations to Try"; AMACO layering database entry titles; dealer listings from Krueger Pottery and Seattle Pottery Supply. Research-based, not hands-on. Specs checked October 2026.