Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Back Home & Back To The Torch!

We had a really nice 25th anniversary trip to NYC and a great quick trip to S. FL to help my daughter move back north (boy is she going to be in for a cold surprise this winter!!!) and now I'm ready to get caught up on my jewelry and bead orders.  I am also getting caught up on my first Lampworketc silvered glass challenge.  The challenge started about a month ago so I felt I was falling behind so the first beads I made when I got settled after the trips were for the challenge.  I know Sally loves silvered glass, so she will enjoy this post!  The October/November challenge requires use of silvered frit, shards, or twisties.
Bead #1CdC/Kalypso Twistie
Bead #1CdC/Kalypso Twistie - other side
This first bead is made with a black base, the twistie wrapped around and melted in, then random small stringer dots of clear are melted in, reduced, large clear dots applied and melted flat, raised dots of kalypso and all reduced a final time.

This next bead is so shiny and that makes for a bear of a bead to photograph.  So I am showing a few extra views.  This is a really pretty bead - I think!
Bead #2 CdC/Kalypso Twistie
Bead #2 CdC/Kalypso Twistie
Bead #2 CdC/Kalypso Twistie
This second bead is made with a base of sangre, the twistie wrapped and melted in, then I swirled it in a few spots with a clear stringer, small dots of clear randomly applied and melted flat and once back to the shape I wanted I reduced it to the pretty shine.

This next bead has so many pretty sides to show - but it's my blog so I can be a photo hog right?
Bead #3 Cobalt(060)/Kalypso Twistie
Bead #3 Cobalt(060)/Kalypso Twistie
Bead #3 Cobalt(060)/Kalypso Twistie
Bead #3 Cobalt(060)/Kalypso Twistie
Bead number 3 is made on a cobalt base with the twistie wrap, clear stringer dots in specific pattern and melted flat, reduced, then large clear dots melted flat and all given a final reduction. 

This next bead is one of my favorites of the day!
Bead #4 Cobalt(060)/Kalypso Twistie
Bead #4 Cobalt(060)/Kalypso Twistie
Bead 4 has a black base and instead of wrapping the twistie around the bead I applied it in dots - like I do for the raku zebra style bead, melt those in, reduce and cap them in clear.  So easy for such pretty results!!!

Next up, bead #5:
Bead #5 Cobalt(060)/Kalypso Twistie
Bead #5 Cobalt(060)/Kalypso Twistie
Bead 5 is made the same way as number 4 but has a base of silvered plum.  It's nice but the reaction between the glass here is not as nice as the prior bead.

Bead 6 is tied for my favorite bead of the day!  This bead has so many things going on that I had to show all the views I could.
Bead #6 Cobalt(060)/Kalypso Twistie & Cdc/Kalypso Twistie
Bead #6 Cobalt(060)/Kalypso Twistie & Cdc/Kalypso Twistie
Bead #6 Cobalt(060)/Kalypso Twistie & Cdc/Kalypso Twistie
Bead #6 Cobalt(060)/Kalypso Twistie & Cdc/Kalypso Twistie
Bead #6 Cobalt(060)/Kalypso Twistie & Cdc/Kalypso Twistie
Bead 6 has a black base then all remaining blobs and strands of the twisties from my torch session were randomly applied and melted in.  Then I used small clear dots melted in, then reduced the bead and finished with large clear dots in a specific pattern - all reduced one final time.

Bead 7 is interesting but very hard to get a true photo of.
Bead #7 OK455/Aurae Twistie
Bead #7 OK455/Aurae Twistie
Bead #7 OK455/Aurae Twistie
Bead 7 has a white core, encased in clear then the twistie of aurae & OK455 is wrapped around and melted in, reduced, then clear dots in specific pattern melted flat and reduced a final time.  This is just one of those odd beads that looks different in every lighting situation and you never really know what colors you are for sure seeing.  It's very iridescent at times, and other times very opal like.

Well I seem to have another favorite bead.  Bead 8 is in my top 3 for sure.
Bead #8 OK455/Aurae Twistie
Bead #8 OK455/Aurae Twistie
Bead #8 OK455/Aurae Twistie
I used the same twistie as I did in #7 but this time I applied the twistie using the raku zebra application.  This method sure seems to produce the beads I like the most - at least for today.  I reduced the dots of twistie, added my clear and reduced a final time.

This next bead is not part of the monthly challenge using twisties, shards, or frit but I was testing out the OK455 a bit more since it's a new glass for me.
Bead #9 OK455 & Aurae
Bead #9 OK455 & Aurae
Bead #9 OK455 & Aurae
Bead 9 has a base of cobalt, center dots of OK455 and side dots of aurae - all melted flat, reduced and capped with clear.  I like this bead quite a bit!

Now last but not least, I experimented with some beads that were inspired from my "sting ray beads" that I posted a while back after my trip to the zoo to see the new baby elephant.  The sting ray beads have been quite popular with my customers so I came up with a couple more bead styles with a similar feel, yet different.  So, let me know if you like them or not.
That's all for this post - it was longer than I expected.
As always, thanks for reading my blog!!!
Chris
Contact me: chrissandersonbeads@gmail.com
Follow my life of Lampworking: http://beadsbychrissanderson.blogspot.com
Purchase my beads and Jewelry: http://www.artfire.com/users/BeadsByChris
Finished Jewelry sold on site at: SALVATORE CAPELLI SALON 114 W. South Boundary Perrysburg, Ohio 43551 - In the Country Charm Shoppes.
Just for fun: Facebook: Glass Lampwork beads and Jewelry by Chris Sanderson

Monday, October 17, 2011

All Caught Up!!! Finally!

After this post I'll be all caught up - I think, I hope!!!! It may be another long one but here goes....

This is a focal bead I made to fit my Burgard Pendants.  I think it's pretty.  It has a black base, rolled in silver foil, dots of white that have been covered with aqua and teal and finished with raised black dots.

I am still working on making "CIM only beads."  I am really excited about the cosmic swirl beads I made with all CIM glass.  I sold one or two of them at my recent open house!!!!
The first two are CIM Only beads.  The 3rd one has a base of effetre.
The first and second cosmic storm beads are made with CIM glass only.  The one on the far left has a base of CIM Tuxedo http://www.creationismessy.com/color.aspx?id=57 rolled in silver foil - burnished and burned off, dots of CIM Stone Ground http://www.creationismessy.com/color.aspx?id=38 left partially raised, dotted that with CIM Zachary http://www.creationismessy.com/color.aspx?id=77 - melted in a bit but all is still left raised so I could apply CIM Simply Berry http://www.creationismessy.com/color.aspx?id=14 to one side of the stack and CIM Great Bluedini http://www.creationismessy.com/color.aspx?id=78 to the other side of the stack of dots.  Then I melted all flat, swirled randomly wherever it looked appropriate, then melted back to a round shape and encased with CIM Clear http://www.creationismessy.com/color.aspx?id=24.  This was my first time to use CIM clear and I really liked it!  It went on smooth with great coverage and no problems with boiling or scumming. 
The second bead in this photo I like even better.  The formula of colors is a bit different but the application is the same.  I'm calling this recipe, "CIM Cosmic Swirl Formula 2:" Tuxedo base rolled in silver foil - burnished and burned off, dots of CIM Canyon De Chelly http://www.creationismessy.com/color.aspx?id=6 left partially raised, dotted that with CIM Glacier http://www.creationismessy.com/color.aspx?id=16 - melted in a bit but still left raised so I could apply CIMSimply Berry to one side of the stack and CIM Pulsar http://www.creationismessy.com/color.aspx?id=51 to the other side then finished the same as in the first formula.
The last bead in this group is the exact same as number 2 but has a base of Effetre Black.  It is interesting to me that the Tuxedo seems to swallow more of the transparent glass and push the silver to the surface than the Effetre Regular Black does.  The Tuxedo creates more sparkle milky way swirls and I like it a lot!!!

Remember that bead that cracked?  Well I had to test that formula again to make sure it wasn't the combination of glass.  The first bead here is that exact same formula: CIM Hades base rolled in silver foil - burnished and burned off, CIM Peace dots - melted flat and CIM Caribbean on top of that and melted in.  I forgot to top it off with a raised black dot but I doubt that is going to make it crack.  So good news --- it didn't crack this time!!! 
Second bead here is the same application but I used CIM Tuxedo for a base - notice the reaction isn't as great and the white dots get a little dirty.  I like the Hades better for this effect.
Last bead in this set is the same as the first bead but I used CIM Twilight instead of Caribbean and I don't really care for that combination here.

Hades rolled in Raku Jitterbug Frit

This bead has a base of CIM Hades and I applied a Raku Zebra Twisty and capped those with CIM Clear.  The twisty was made with Raku frit and Effetre Intense Black.  I think I prefer the base to be made of Effetre Regular Black when I make this style of bead.
CIM Peace base with CIM Tuxedo for large black dots and Effetre Black for small center dots.
I love CIM glass but I really don't like to use the CIM black and white glass for my masked pattern beads.  The bead above and the following bead (two photos) show that I can't get that nice crisp line I like with this style of bead. 
Tuxedo, Peace and Pulsar
Tuxedo, Peace and Pulsar
These 3 beads all have DH Aurae silvered glass over the following bases; Vetrofond Topaz light, Effetre Rose Quatz and CIM Mojito.  Pretty little beads - I like the shine!
Base of Mojito with poked Aurae dots covered with Aether clear - way cool bead!!!!!
Lt. Ivory, a bit of Commando, twist of CDC/Raku/Intense Black - struck a bit.

Effetre Black base, CDC stringer applied in Raku Zebra Recipe, reg. clear.
To clarify a few things about the last two beads - I made a twisty using a blob of CDC, smashed in some Raku frit, applied some black intense stringer and pulled it all out into a twisty.  The last bead has this twisty applied in place of the regular Raku Zebra twisty but the rest of the bead uses the same recipe.  The second to the last bead just has this CDC Twisty applied randomly.  I like the CDC twisty for a nice change.

Okay well I did it, I'm all caught up until I get back at the torch.
Thanks so much for sticking with me and wading through all the boring stats just to see the pretty beads. 
Chris
Contact me: chrissandersonbeads@gmail.com
Follow my life of Lampworking: http://beadsbychrissanderson.blogspot.com
Purchase my beads and Jewelry: http://www.artfire.com/users/BeadsByChris
Finished Jewelry sold on site at: SALVATORE CAPELLI SALON 114 W. South Boundary Perrysburg, Ohio 43551 - In the Country Charm Shoppes.
Just for fun: Facebook: Glass Lampwork beads and Jewelry by Chris Sanderson




A Bunch of Beads From October 10, 2011

I made over 20 beads on this day at the torch and I have some good notes, some good beads and some not so good beads but I keep track of those too so I remember not to use those combinations again.

I am a huge fan of CIM (Creation is Messy) brand glass and I usually mix it in with other glass but I wanted to try a few beads with CIM only  - to see how their blacks and whites work in applications that I'm used to using Effetre brand.  This first bead I was not sure I was going to like - while I was making it, I noticed an odd reaction and you can see it around the holes of blue.  Well, when I took it out of the kiln I was flipping out - what an awesomely cool reaction!!!!!  The bummer of it all was, the bead cracked right down the middle when I took it off the mandrel.  I hope this doesn't happen each and every time I use this combo and I did try it again (you will see in  a future post) and the beads did not split - thank goodness!!!
Bead 1 - I LOVE the burst around the edges of the circles!!!!
Technical data of bead 1: Base of CIM hades http://www.creationismessy.com/color.aspx?id=17, rolled in silver foil, CIM peace dots covered with CIM caribbean and raised dots of CIM hades.


Beads 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8
These next 7 beads I made so I could compare CIM and Effetre glasses using the application from from the bead above (the one that cracked) and also without the foil. Different whites and blacks react differently so let's see what I found out... 
Data:  Bead 2 - Base of hades (no foil), peace dots covered with caribbean http://www.creationismessy.com/color.aspx?id=101 and raised dots of hades.
Bead 3 - Base of hades (no foil), effetre white covered with caribbean and raised dots of hades.
Bead 4 - Effetre black base, peace dots covered with caribbean and raised dots of hades.
Bead 5 - Effetre black base, effetre white dots covered with caribbean, raised dots of effetre black.
Bead 6 - Effetre black base, peace dots covered with caribbean and raised dots of effetre black.
Bead 7 - Effetre black base rolled in foil, effetre white dots covered with caribbean and raised dots of effetre black.
Bead 8 - Effetre black, effetre white dots covered with CIM journey http://www.creationismessy.com/color.aspx?id=98 and raised dots of effetre black.
So what I have found is that effetre white leaves a cleaner/sharper edge with both of the blacks I used but that awesome reaction is not as pronounced with the effetre glass as it was with all CIM.  I'm very glad that I found out through further testing that the crack in the first bead must have been a fluke.

The rest of what I experimented with today but I will only talk about the ones of interest to my future use.
I don't have a close up of the first bead in this series but it's a base of effetre black with dots of CIM heffalump covered with CIM journey.  The heffalump helps coax out the purple side of the journey.
The second bead in this series is a base of CIM heffalump  encased with CIM journey http://www.creationismessy.com/color.aspx?id=98 with dots of effetre black and effetre white.

Now we'll skip down to the 5th bead in this set.
Base of black with dots of DH 455 melted flat, sm dots of reg. clear randomly applied and melted in, reduced and corner capped with aeither clear - melted flat and reduced one last time.  Pretty cool bead but is a little on the dark side.

I made this bead the same was as the one above only this one has a base of aqua.  This is a pretty cool bead!!!


Another dark one but worth keeping my notes on it!  Same application as the last two beads but on a base of CIM sangre.  I like the way silvered glass reacts on sangre!!!!

This one was tough to photograph as it seems many of the silvered glass beads are.  Same application as the previous beads but used a base of light silvered plum and raised dots of DH 455 that are reduced to a pretty shine.  I don't really think I will use the silvered plum under 455 but I do like the 455 as a finishing accent!



These two beads I'm testing DH OK455 using the Fire Opal Recipe.  The top one has a black base and the clear used is regular on the inside and aether on the final encasement.  The second bead has a base of silvered plum and the reverse use of clear brands.  The silvered plum is not doing it for me with this application either.


These were so cool but neither of the photos really show them well.  I included both backgrounds hoping to show as much of their iridescence as possible.  All 3 are bases of OK455, rolled in triton and gaia frit, reduced with random dots of aether clear and aether encasing.  The last one has a base of aqua that was encased with the OK455 and it is my favorite of the bunch.



And last but not least are these pretty bright pink beads.  I really like these!  I tried the OK455 glass using the bright pink clio recipe and added some frit too and it worked great!  These have white bases, striking orange, clear, OK455, triton and gaia frit all melted in at each level then dotted with regular clear, reduced, encased with regular clear (first bead has regular clear, second bead has aether clear encasing) or clear capped on the triangle sides.


Well that was a long post and I'm not even done catching up.  But I am done for now.  I have at least one more blog post before I'm caught up.  So hang in here with me.  Thanks for reading my blog!
Chris
Contact me: chrissandersonbeads@gmail.com
Follow my life of Lampworking: http://beadsbychrissanderson.blogspot.com
Purchase my beads and Jewelry: http://www.artfire.com/users/BeadsByChris
Finished Jewelry sold on site at: SALVATORE CAPELLI SALON 114 W. South Boundary Perrysburg, Ohio 43551 - In the Country Charm Shoppes.
Just for fun: Facebook: Glass Lampwork beads and Jewelry by Chris Sanderson