Repurposed Molds!

Inspired by a thread in a glass forum, I went searching in my kitchen for alternative molds for fusing glass. Can you guess what the prior use of this cactus mold was? A wrought iron cornbread pan! It took many, many small pieces of glass to create this cactus paperweight and the detail of the mold is terrific! Go on - check out your house and garage and I’ll bet you find a funky object you can repurpose for a mold for fusing glass too!

(sorry about the cornbread mold, guys, you'll have to get your cornbread in a loaf now!)

Nichrome Wire and Glass Fusing

Nichrome wire is a high-temperature wire which is perfect for using with fused glass as it will remain intact at temperatures up to approxim...ately 1700 degrees Fahrenheit. By using your hands and/or jeweler’s pliers, high-temperature wire can easily be formed into any shape and secured in place with suitable glue  (a little bit of Elmer’s white glue works just fine) in between the layers of glass and fired in the kiln in order to create cabochons suitable for jewelry designs. You can also assemble your creation directly on your kiln shelf if you have steady hands and position the wire in between the layers of glass thereby avoiding the gluing process.

As the glass begins to slump in the kiln, the wire will become permanently encased between the layers of glass. After the firing is complete, the nichrome wire will appear somewhat discolored
and dull, and you can give it a gentle buffing with some steel wool to quickly restore the luster. The projecting outer end of the wire can then be used to attach the fused glass piece to a jewelry finding or whatever else you're creating. (my photographed piece is a small chime piece)

I'd suggest using the wire with glass other than transparent because with transparent glass the wire will show through, which is not attractive! I've used this wire for jewelry pieces, ornaments, suncatchers and chimes of light to medium weight, but wouldn't suggest it for heavier weight pieces.

Get some nichrome wire and check it out!

Sprucing up your Online Shop - Part 1

From Handmade News http://handmadenews.org/article/index.php?id=1934

During my almost 3-1/2 years of selling on Etsy and also as a founding member of one of the original street teams, there have been many questions on the forums (or is it fora?) on how to make shops better and increase sales. In this series of columns, we'll take a look at some of these concerns and some possible solutions!

Your shop banner and avatar are the entryway into your shop and you have a few mere seconds to either catch someone's interest or have them click away, so make them professional looking and unique. Your avatar and banner are your personal calling card so make them pop and draw those buyers in! Think of some successful boutiques and shops and their entryways and facades to get an idea. In this highly competitive online marketplace, you need to toot your own horn. There are many talented graphic designers on both Etsy and Artfire who can help you design an avatar and banner if you need help.

Make sure you have your geographic location filled in. If you're worried about disclosing too much information, at least put a state and possibly a city close to you (if you're International, put your country). Many, many buyers will click away from your shop if your location is blank. People have different reasons for wanting to see a seller's location, such as to either support local artists or to judge how long an item might take to reach them after it's been shipped.

Are your sections options being used and are they clear? Personally, I usually have about 350 items in my shop and if I didn't use my sections, it would be a lot to wade through! Make it easy for your customers to zone in and target items they would have a high level of interest in. Maybe they'll click on your other categories if they're well worded.

Is your profile filled in to give potential buyers an idea of who you are as an artist and person? I'm usually disappointed when I click on profile and find it blank. While you don't have to write a novel, some info on who you are and also showing some humor can help. I love knowing who I'm buying from and their passion for their art! Keep it upbeat and proofread and proofread again so there are no spelling or grammatical errors.

Next time we'll look at some more tips for sprucing up your shop. Until then, keep creating and I'll keep a warm kiln!

Drilling Beach and Fused Glass

The following was published on Handmade News http://handmadenews.org/article/index.php?id=1617



Now that Summer is quickly approaching, visions of beautiful sea glass are on many people's minds, both jewelry designers and their buyers too!
On the Etsy and Artfire forums, there have been a number of questions on the best way to drill sea glass. Teams and Guilds are wonderful in the value they have as a brainstorming tool. Whether you're looking for advice on a new technique or just a better way to do something, they're a great resource for bouncing ideas around. Here's one of the questions I was asked as a glass team member:

Question: I have a collection of sea glass and I wanted to make a bracelet using the glass. My first question would be, what do I use to drill the tiny hole in the glass? And my second question is, would fishing line be fine to string these sea glass beads onto or would metal wire be better? Please keep in mind that I have no experience with glass or beads or any type of jewelry making.
Answer: I love beach glass, all shapes and colors and textures! I use a cordless Dremel drill with a diamond bit to get the hole you're looking for. You would need to drill underwater (hence the cordless drill, because combining water and electricity = yikes!). You'd be drilling underwater both to reduce stress on the glass and to keep the drill bit cool. Use either a piece of styrofoam or a piece of modeling clay on the bottom of a water-filled container to keep your glass steady. The water should cover your glass and the styrofoam will give you some grip and stability while you're drilling. You should be able to feel when you have hit the styrofoam or clay when your hole is completely drilled through.

Start the drill at a low speed which you can increase once you get started. Just go slow and easy and do some practice pieces first, with glass you don't absolutely love, just to get the hang of it. Try to drill on a slight angle at first to get the hole started; it will then be easier to continue from that point and your drill won't "skitch" as much. Take your time and with practice it will become easier to drill both fused glass or sea glass.

As far as stringing material, I'd keep away from fishing line because it is too brittle. You could use Tiger Tail, Acculon, or a similar type of beading cord instead, so your beautiful jewelry will hold up to wear. Most important, have fun with your new beading hobby and when you're ready to take your hobby to the next level, I'd encourage you to join one of the teams or guilds on Artfire or Etsy!!

Handmade News

I'm excited to announce that I've joined the Guilds & Teams Dept. of http://handmadenews.org/


My first column published today ~ on Drilling Sea Glass & Fused Glass and you can read it here
http://handmadenews.org/article/index.php?id=1617

Handmade News is all you'll need for news about the handmade world and the crafts in it. Check it out each day. My columns will publish on Sunday and Wednesday in the Guilds and Teams section!

It's a New Day

Good Morning. Isn't this a glorious sunrise? The picture was taken from my front porch.

I've had a rough few weeks. I made a tough decision to leave a group after a few years that I had nurtured and grown from its infancy. It was the right decision, but it's been a painful journey and quite enlightening. Right now I'm feeling very alone which is odd because by nature, I'm a hermit-like person and enjoy being with myself. I enjoy my creative time in my studio and don't view it as "being alone", but rather enjoy the solitude and freedom that I'm grateful to have. The past few weeks I've taken a beating though .

So this morning I pulled up this picture from my files and I'm ready to let go. I deserve it.

Have a peaceful and blessed day today.

Fresh from the Garden

Yum. Fresh picked snap peas from our garden. A quick rinse under the garden hose and the overflowing basket was minus more than a few before we went into the house! The ones that made it inside were quick blanched and then frozen for future use.

What's growing in your garden this summer? Ours has snap peas, broccoli, tomatoes, corn, squash, cucumbers, pumpkins, 3 varieties of lettuce and garlic.

The birds also have their own snacks from our giant sunflowers! I love early summer mornings when the bunnies and deer are all over the front lawn grazing. Yes, another day to be grateful for simple pleasures.

Still lots of white stuff in the Northeast

There's still quite a bit of snow here in the Northeast, so I thought I'd use it to my advantage and see if I could get some good pictures with it as a backdrop.

The weather is supposed to be warming up a lot today, so I'll have to snap quickly! Luckily these can be taken right outside my studio door, so I'm not tramping a lot of wet snow and mud through the house (nah, I'm not a huge fan of washing floors!)

Sunrise over the Vermont mountains

January 4, 2008. View from my front door facing the mountains of Vermont. Sometimes there's no words to fully describe a moment, so I'll just let you enjoy it with me.

What's on in the Studio today?

Today's pick is Michael McDonald's Ultimate Collection. Who can keep still while listening to Yah Mo B There or Takin' It To The Streets?

This morning while I was driving there was some outstanding music on. I love women who can really belt out a song, and Melissa Manchester's "Don't Cry Out Loud" and Cass Elliott's "Dream a Little Dream" were on the radio on my way home. Beautiful songs. Beautiful women.

Welcome to the Northeast

Fun times this morning up here in North Country. The actual temperature is minus 6 degrees with a windchill of minus 20. Can you say BRRRRR?

The first picture is part of our side lawn. Lawn? Who am I kidding? The second picture is the steps coming up to our front door so I guess no one will be coming in that way any time soon. The third pic is part of our front lawn. Oh where, oh where, have my little dogs gone, oh where, oh where, can they be?

This is actually such a beautiful part of New York for most of the year when I really love it. The winters are hard, though, on both the humans and old furry ones in our house. Some years ago I had some nerve damage to my right hand due to some dog bites (never ever ever ever EVER try to mediate a dog fight), so my fingers are always like popsicles (orange,pineapple,orange,cherry,orange please) in the cold weather.

I had to drive my son to work this morning (he has some developmental disabilities so doesn't drive ....... yet) and at 6:30 a.m. the ice crystals sparkled like diamonds across the driveway. It was still dark out but I attempted to take a picture. My camera's button froze so I couldn't click it - smart camera! Those ice crystals were really incredibly beautiful though. We were plowed out (AGAIN) last evening, so the trek down our long driveway wasn't too bad. Like I said before, fun times!

There's something to be said about forced hibernation. I have 3 kilns on right now with new glass goodies for my Etsy shop. All's well in Willowglass world!

How is it in your part of the world this morning?