Caution, Beads May Contain... Wanderings of a Torch Addled Mind

For the time being, I am making beads in a garage- with the door open. This, of course, means that there is wind, so things blow in.  There's also the possibility of bugs flying around (and they do!), as well as chipmunks wandering through. A couple of days ago, I pulled a mandrel out of the mandrel holder and managed to sling dirt across the table- right into some enamel. Not wanting to toss it, I scraped out most of the dirt and used the remaining enamel up on a couple of leaves (leaves are my give-away lagniappe beads for online orders).



Then, yesterday, I noticed that it is cottonwood season. I can't imagine that one or two of those babies didn't find their way into a couple of beads. I mean, they were flying all around!

So, my archaeological friends, does this mean those beads can now be traced right back to where I am now, just like in the high tech crime shows, or is it likely that it was all burned out? Do I need to put a note up in my etsy shop? Here's what it might say:

CAUTION: Beads may contain dirt, cottonwood, hair or other unknown objects

Wild Horses

It came to me the other day that I had only ever made a few horse beads and they always seemed to be in different styles. So it was time to try again. Thing is, I can't seem to decide how I'd actually like them to look.So I made a sampling.

From left to right they are:
* The Swedish style Dala horse
* 'Rocking' horse without a rocker
* A more realistic horse, with a bit of aqua blue
* 'Southwestern' style horse






I think I like the Dala horse and realistic horse the best of the bunch.Tried another in the realistic style and transparent amber glass. There is still work to be done to make these be 'just right'!

Lampwork glass heart bead necklaces

Time to show off a few lampwork glass heart bead pendant necklaces. Because it's nearly Valentine's day and I've just been having fun making them! What's your favorite heart color? Pink? Purple? Red? Blue? I like them all, but I really like making the pink ones alot!

Seahorse Tutorial Results

The sweet seahorse Doris made!

I'm always so excited to see the results when someone uses a tutorial that I wrote. Doris Stumpf makes a lot of wonderful sculptural beads- whimsical little people and such. I was pretty excited when she decided to splurge on my seahorse tutorial a few days ago- she made a wonderful seahorse and even wrote a blog about it! Thanks so much for sharing this, Doris!

And, if anyone should have a yen to try this tut themselves, you can buy it right here- I think it's actually a pretty good bargain. Lots of information, and it even tells you how to make the seahorse with the steps two different ways around. I naturally go in a certain order, even though the other way makes a bit more sense! You can pick your favorite.

'Hot Glass for Cool Kids' Tutorial Ebook for Beads of Courage

Have you heard? The Soda Lime Times has just finished publication of a new ebook filled with fun lampwork glass bead tutorials called Hot Glass for Cool Kids. The tutorials were all written with the kids from Beads of Courage in mind, and ALL money from purchases of the book go directly to Beads of Courage. By virtue of my last name, the tutorial I donated is the very first one in the book (thanks Dad!). I also had the honor of being able to name the book- a bunch of possible titles were submitted, and the one I came up with got the most votes- a fluke to be sure, but Diane Woodall generously sent me a bunch of wonderful prizes for being the winner.

The bead at the left is the one I donated a tut for- encased silver with a special technique for some cool organic designs that can be used in a lot of different ways. The bead at the right uses the same technique over an enameled background.
 
Get your copy right here, right now! There are 20, count 'em 20 wonderful new things for you to try out and make for Beads of Courage, your friends, family or yourself! Here's a photo of the cover showing all of the tutorial beads- pretty cool!

Handmade Lampwork Glass Bead Headpins and Sets

I've been working on beads sets a little at a time lately. Trying to make more supplies available in my etsy shop. I've kind of decided on the name 'stone soup' for the types of sets I'm making right now. They look like they've got bits and pieces of stone all through them- very organic.



I've also made some headpin sets. These are great fun to play around with! When I made the pins, I left the copper wire about 5 or 6 inches long, so there's plenty to work with. Before I used them, I decided to hammer them flat just because I like the way that looks; then I went to town! I've made a few necklaces out of them-added a few flattened copper baubles as well- making these little paddle dangles is a wonderful way to use up copper scraps. Being new to metal working, I always seem to have a lot of those lying about!

Hearts!

I've just been ignoring my blog-no fun lampwork posts for a while. So I'm just going to show off a few hearts. I love arranging beads into fun shapes. The heart that sits at about 2 minutes to twelve is my fave of this bunch- lots of odd color reactions!

Out of My Box and Into Yours

I've been thinking about entering the newest juried pendant show from the ISGB- Awakening the Vision- Creative Discoveries and wondering about getting out of my box.  I had an interesting idea for a bead right after I heard about the show, which I tried out; it still needs some practice before it is where I think I want it to be. But, even though it is something new, it is not really 'out of the box' for me.
That got me thinking about boxes- mine, yours and what lies between. Where, exactly, are the edges of my box? On at least one side those edges seem to bump up firmly against precision work- things like dots in a row and drawing with stringer. It's a place I go now and then- teeth gritting and brain kicking like a child. I'll make a bead or two, label them ugly and imperfect, and then go on to some crazy style I'm perfectly comfortable with~ something like a portal, a fish or a 'comb jellie' bead. Something that is WAY out of a lot of boxes!
I'm not sure whether I will manage to make a bead to enter in this show. I often start out on these journeys and end up with nothing that I think is worthy of entry. But it's gotten me really thinking about things I need to work on, and I think that is really the point, after all. Working towards a show entry is always a challenge. This promises to be a bigger one than usual! Time for a bit of a brain stretch...

My Lampwork Glass Facebook Page

Neapolitan Man

Hey y'all! I just started up a page on facebook to show all of my lampwork and keep in touch about what I'm up to. Hopefully I'll have some fun things going on. And if I ever have a sale on glass beads (and I need to do that very soon) I will announce it there first.

It's called Isinglass Design Lampwork Glass Beads and Artisan Jewelry by Laurie Ament- that's quite a mouthful! Thinking about searchability, seo and such, I wanted to be sure I could be found- I think I maxed out the characters one can have in a name on fb!

Some new favorite glass colors from CIM

Leaky Pen Background

I have to admit- I've been resistant to using Chinese CIM glass for many years. When the first few colors came out, I was interested, but had a few apparent compatibility issues and decided it just wasn't worth it. After all these years, I decided it was time to give some new colors a try- a lot of them just looked too interesting to keep ignoring. I found that Howaco Glass in Michigan sells single rods of glass (as well as all the usual), so picked out a few rods to try. And I have some winners!

Very Berry on top

Everyone already knows about leaky pen- a wonderful shade of dark teal like nothing Moretti makes. It seems a bit stiffer than most of the Italian glass, but also seems to melt and apply very smoothly. And the color is truly lovely and very saturated- a clear background will thin it out just enough to see it well.

Very Berry was another nice choice. It's a lovely saturated dark reddish purple. Similar to amethyst, but it seems to keep more of its purple color and it also seems a bit on the stiff side.

Crocus Purple

The big winner? Drum roll please.... Crocus. What a beautiful color of light purple. It reminds me of the old yellow vaseline glass- beautifully translucent. It is a little bit shocky, but not overly so as long as the rod is not too big around. It doesn't seem to scorch like the alabastro and opalino glasses, so is very easy to use. I worked it pretty long to make this little dragon and had no problems at all.

Inspiration, Big Hole Beads

Isn't it nice when something inspiring just pops into your inbox! The November issue of the Soda Lime Times just came out yesterday and it was all about big hole beads. How to make 'em, how to core 'em and all the eye candy a girl could wish for! The big hole bead category covers anything from a bead with 5 or 6mm hole that will fit on a European style charm bracelet to sliders and dread beads with 1/4 or 1/2 inch holes- or more! I've been making mandala or kaleidoscope beads for years- but never very many at a time, because they take me so darn long and I end up feeling just a wee bit incompetent. But with a few words of encouragement from the folks at Soda Lime (and did I mention a lot of eye candy???), I thought it was time to give it all a bit of a go. Fun stuff, even though these babies took me about 40 minutes each- and these are actually a bit on the small side.

One of the interesting thing about BHBs is that they are often used so that the flatter side faces out. When I make these, I am constantly looking down the mandrel to see if they are fairly round, and how the design is coming together. But round is not the only shape a BHB can be- far from it! One of my own Icarus Wing Beads was featured in the gallery. This is a fairly new style for me with a bit of a wing shape on one side and lots of twirls and curls on the other.

Big Hole Beads do present the small problem of getting that large hole to look good on the inside. Sludging the mandrel the night before and letting it air dry will help ensure a good bond between glass and mandrel. Use the sludged mandrel within a day or two to prevent rust from forming on the mandrel- rust stains are quite hard to remove from inside the bead. At The Gathering, I was instructed to sand the inside of these beads with wet/dry sandpaper in ever increasing grits to make them nice and smooth. For more tips and a fun tut, I'd advise you to get your own copy of the November 2012 Soda Lime Times-it's great fun, and a tremendous value too!

Let's Twistie Again!

Well another blind idea came to me the other day. What if I made twisties and offered them for sale? I fired up the torch and made a small pile, put a picture on facebook and waited to see who said what. Lots of 'likes', which I always like, and one lovely pal who asked if they were for sale. And I'm off! Twisties for sale- a few at a time in random color assortments for the moment. A lot of the combinations contain colors that may react with each other depending on the background used and the amount of heat applied- edp, copper green, intense black- things like that. I used some scraps in this turtle and let them cook a bit for a cool organic reaction.
I love making beads, have been doing it for about 12 years, and am fairly confident that I'm doing some things right in that category. But making supplies to sell? All those scary monsters I thought were locked away in some closet started sitting over my shoulder and saying- no, no, no, you shouldn't be doing this! They're still talking to me, but I'm giving it a bit of a try anyway.

Everything I sell is always guaranteed, but these are doubly so. They have to arrive intact, and the buyer has to like them! If not, keep 'em and I eat the cost. Oh and I want feedback too- real feedback, not the kind you get on etsy. Any and all ideas will be happily considered.

Confessions of a Lampwork Bead Maker

This one has a wonky hole, but I couldn't bear to trash it!

At the torch today, while I had a mandrel with a hot bead on one end in my mouth, I got to wondering- what kind of bad things do we lampworkers do in the privacy of our studios? I know I do things that I would never want anyone to see me do (so I'm gonna tell you about them, right?). And just fyi- NONE of these things are recommended- I am NOT telling you to try any of this at home- or anywhere else for that matter.

Here's the first- and possibly the most dangerous- thing I do: As mentioned in the first paragraph, I will put a mandrel between my lips with a hot bead on the the other end when needed. And when is that? Well, when I forgot to cut a piece of silver in advance, or cut it to the wrong size. I make sure the bead is good and hot, though not drippy, so it will be okay out of the flame while I find and cut a piece of silver. That's usually the reason for that faux pas. And I try to remember to suck in a little bit so that I won't just drop it on the floor by mistake.

This Bead had a bit of 'Mouth Time' While I cut the silver

What else, you ask? If a bead is 3/4 of the way done and it detaches from the mandrel, moving about freely, do I trash it? Nope, not if I can help it (unless it is just plain ugly..). Making sure the mandrel is not pointing in such a way that the bead can fall down it and burn my hand, I continue to finish it off if possible. This may mean that something I intended to do has to be forgotten about, it may make for a weird bead hole that my poor reaming buddy has to fix for me, but sometimes it is so worth it!

Some of my other poor ideas? Straightening and finding the end of the silver wire I am adding to the bead with my lips ( I use my mouth like a third hand, it seems!). I always have to remind myself not to do this while the wire is still hot. After I twirl designs together- as in the bead at the right- I often blow on the point where the twirler attaches to the bead to cool it. My lips are about an inch from the bead at that point- one false move and --- Ouch!

Then there is the balancing act, where I have picked up a rod to add a new color and decide that the bead needs a little more help before that happens. Back goes the mandrel into my right hand while I continue to hold the new color in the same hand. I'm not even really sure how I manage to do this- it just kind of happens. Still not a particularly good idea!

Wearing flip-flops is another one of my poor ideas. Invariably a piece of glass flies off the end of a rod and gets trapped between my foot and the flop, which is rather alarming. At this point I shake my foot around, trying to dislodge the shoe so that the glass will fall away. Bad news, yet I keep doing it. Pavlov would be alarmed!

And while I'm on the subject of clothing, I laugh at the idea of  wearing long sleeves to protect my arms. Those little scars running up the insides of both my arms are a point of pride! But yes, I do wear protective glasses, though they seem to slide down my nose when I 'glisten' (hence a piece of hot glass managed to find its way into the corner of my eye).

For more bad ideas, check this out!
http://isinglassdesign.blogspot.com/2008/04/ten-or-so-things-you-shouldnt-do-with.html

Deliberate Mistakes, imperfections and artistry

Today I've been out searching for some hard, fast information about mistakes made purposely. I have heard, for many years, and from many sources (who shall remain nameless as I can't remember who they are!) about the tradition of making a deliberate mistake, especially in the weaving of Kilim rugs. When I went on my search, I found that the tradition carries over into other cultures and is used by folks in other mediums as well. Quiltmakers, Navajo Indians, even carpenters are aware of and use this idea. It's pretty hard to pin down how this all works, but here's some interesting info.

My search began with this blog. I love the Navajo idea that evil spirits can only escape through an error in art. Not to mention the Amish belief that adding an error is the ultimate in arrogance as it implies that you could make something that was perfect to begin with!

According to this website it's all about humility. Lots of interesting stuff here about deliberate mistakes, devotion, 'atomism' and symbolism in Kilim rugs.In a Kilim rug, the errors can range from nearly invisible to easily spotted. One source even says that the errors included are the same for a particular weaver- sort of like a maker's mark.

If you want to read about 'hoo doo blocks' or 'humility blocks' in American quilts check out this blog. The purposeful errors that are included in these wonderful works are pretty hard to spot unless you are really looking for them.

Much of this seems to be traced back to the character of Arachne in Greek mythology, who made a perfect weaving on a topic which didn't please Athena, eventually leading to her being turned into a spider (and who really wants to be turned into a spider?)

So that is your lesson on imperfection from me. I suppose I'd have to say I am most like the Amish, believing that it would be an arrogance to think I could ever make anything that is perfect. So here's my guarantee- no bead that I make will ever be perfect. I couldn't make it perfect if I had to. It might contain a little bubble, a color that didn't really work out right, or some other bit of oddness that I couldn't fix. And that is the real beauty of handmade....

A Match Made- Well, at the Torch!

This is the finished pair.

Last week I put some pictures up on facebook of pairs of fish I was working on for earrings. I get a little particular when I'm looking for earring pairs. I can take a bit of variance in design, but the size and shape have to be fairly close. So I thought I'd fill y'all in on what I do to attempt to achieve that.

The first part is easy- make a wee fish! First- I count the number of wraps of glass I start the bead with, then take a good look at my starter bead and try to remember the size. I do give it a little bit of a measure against my graphite paddle (for all the good that does me...)
While I'm doing that I attempt to put all the rods down on the table in the order that I used them- so when I go to make the match it should be much easier (except that in the flurry of making the fish, I often make a few mistakes- so I still have to think!).

Here's a picture of some lined up rods. But they were kind of wrong. At least all the colors were there. The next thing is to find a way to measure so I know what I'm aiming for. Need to know both length and height, so I lay it across the graphite paddle again and mark it in my mind.
The first fish goes into the kiln and then I have to put on my thinking cap and cross my fingers.

Hmmm... I made three fish, but I have a bad feeling there is no match there. On to the next trick. Instead of blindly making more, I take the precaution of writing down everything I did just in case I need to try again the next day- which I did. Good luck trying to understand my goofy notes. But it did help. Gave it a read through, brought both of the beads to the torch for comparison, and got to work.

Whew! I think I got it- well close enough for lamp-work!

Lucky Elephants

When I first started making elephant beads, I was told by a number of folks that the trunks needed to be upraised to make them lucky. As a matter of fact, many people did not want them unless their trunks were in this position. Now I have never tried to attach meaning to any of my beads. Though I know some folks use them as amulets or talismans, I feel that attributing value to them is a personal thing. But- my elephants do all have their wee trunks pointing up into the air now- just in case!
But where did all of this begin? Why upturned trunks? What's the big dealie bobber (as we used to say)? Well, as it turns out, it looks like it's another American-ism. Though the lucky elephant charm idea most likely originated in India, it was a combination of the Indian elephant charm and interest in the white elephants of Thailand that somehow led to the US decree that only elephants with upraised trunks were lucky. It's all a part of popular culture folk-magic. And who knew there was such a thing?
Want to read a bit more about all of this? Here's an interesting little article with links to more info about elephants and other lucky charms.

Trial ( & Error) !

When a customer asks for something special- like a pendant to match a pair of earrings- I always try to give‘em what they want. But sometimes it ends up being a LOT harder than I thought it would.

Recently I had a customer who wanted just that- pendant and earring set. I looked at the earrings and thought ‘can do!’ I knew exactly which colors I would need, and even had the earrings in my hand to refer to. But none of that seemed to make a lot of difference.
The first two were nice enough, but the rubino oro just took over. I didn’t even want to show those to the customer, so I tried again. Still a nice bead, but where did all the periwinkle I added go? And the pink was nearly non-existent. 

One more chance was all I had- the gas was running out, and I was getting ready to move (yes, again….). Finally I got a couple of choices made that actually matched the earrings nicely- my customer made her choice, the gas ran out, and I hit the road! Now what to do with all those other pendants…..?

Lampwork Glass Seahorse Bead Tutorial is Finally Here!

Whew- it's been a hectic few weeks. Lots of things happening, mostly in my mind, I think!
 I was interviewed for the Soda Lime Times this month. The article just came out a couple of days ago- they did a wonderful job! It's chock full of fun information about lampwork beads, beadmakers and tools with several nice tutorials. The April issue is all about beads and the ocean, and there's a lot of eye candy, including some of my fish, mermaids, a turtle and some seahorses.

So what better time to start work on a Seahorse Tutorial? I admit I had really big plans when I started this- why not seahorses and mermaids? I started out with seahorses and realized that I'd better just take it one step at a time. Good thing too, as I barely got it done in time. OK, so I finished it a couple of days after the article, but it was close!

So what, exactly is in this tut? You are taken- with a ton of pictures- through the making of two different seahorses with two different designs in two different orders. Why? Well, I find myself naturally gravitating towards doing it in a particular order, but I don't necessarily think it's the most logical way to do things. So I do it 'my' way the first time, and the 'right' way the second time. Oh, I almost forgot- I made a wee video that shows me doing all the 'hard' parts. And only folks who get the tut have access to the video. It's not a great movie, but I do think it helps.

What's the big deal? To me, there are three things about this tutorial that make it worthwhile.
One- the tail- the way I make the tails was a revelation to me in a lot of ways- how to make the stock as well as how to curl them up.
Two- shaping the mouth- just a little tricky for such a wee part of the creature, but little details can make a big difference.
Three- basic sculptural information- for those who aren't very familiar with sculptural beads, I really tried to explain how and why I do things the way I do them.

One other thing- I had a wonderful tester for this tutorial. Lynne of Islandgirl's Insights did an excellent job of reading, testing, and making suggestions to make this tutorial better. This is the second time she has done this for me- I can't imagine anyone doing a better job. Lynne Rocks!!!!!

Scrap fishies

 A couple of months ago, I decided to try making a fish by using up some of the twistie scraps I have lying around. I was pretty please with it, so I've made a couple more recently. They have a kind of different feel to them than the fish I normally make. First I make a clear core, then cover it with a color that accentuates the scraps I'll be using. Next they are rolled in silver foil, which I burn off to give a natural, organic look, and then the twistie scraps are randomly applied.

The other day, when my gas was running out, I took a clear rod of glass, heated it and applied the twistie scraps to it, melted it into a blob, and then twisted it. Kind of re-twisted twistie. The first fish pictured is the one I used that on. I ended up twirling it a bit on each side of the fish body to give it a nicer look. You can see a bit of silver haze on the bottom fish- I really like this look.

One thing about using scraps- I tend to use colors I wouldn't normally use together. It's always nice to try out some different things and see the results!

Taking Photos- New Backgrounds, New Ideas

Ever since my scanner broke a couple of years ago and I had to start learning to take  my online photos using a camera, I have struggled with what looks good. Generally I take a photo on a white background, and then photoshop it until it looks better. That takes a lot of finagling- I have to sharpen it (my photos always look a little blurry to me), cut it to the right size and shape for my online shop- I use 300 dpi, and cut it to 3x3 inches, though that doesn't work with everything, and then I have to lighten, brighten and adjust the color to make it look right- especially the stupid white background. It's really more energy than I want to put into each picture I take. The white background is a real bear, and black just doesn't seem to work at all for me. Maybe because I don't have any kind of official setup to use, like a light tent or proper lighting.

Oh, that's another thing- taking the photo itself- I use a rather high powered halogen lamp, lighten the exposure by a couple of clicks and shoot a closeup without a flash. My old garage-sale camera actually worked better as the flash wasn't so harsh, so I could actually use it. The flash on my present camera is covered with a little piece of paper as it washes everything out, no matter how far away it is. The scanner was really easier, and I might even go back to that if I could!

So get to the point already!!! Well, I have, by necessity, taken to using different backrounds with my photos, and I am kind of liking them. The autumn leaf background is cool- no messing with trying to get it just right- I can just concentrate on the item I am trying to feature- I like that a lot! And the newest map background, though I still often correct the 'level' to make it whiter, is kind of fun, and it is not very noticeable if it's not all bright white. And it has the advantage that I might just see a word I like and use it to name the piece. Woohoo- a twofer!

I'll be keeping my eyes peeled for more fun backgrounds in the future.