samples

I forgot to show you the float samples in the last blog

                 and here are the detailed notes so I can identify the samples when they come out of the kiln

This one was devitrified

but this one was better

 Another unsuccessful firing and all the kiln wash stuck to the back of the glass, I am trying to remove it with white vinegar but it is stuck fast.  I think that they were fired at too high or for too long

 I am beginning to hate kiln wash.  Here I am scraping it off my kiln shelf before applying fresh but I have decided to use Thinfire Paper in future, it can only be used once but all you have to do is cut it to size, of course it is a more expensive option!

I managed to make some jewellery and a few plates and dishes when I was doing the evening class at Helston but it was a pain having to carry all my supplies with me every time and as it was only a two hour class it seemed by the time I set up it was time to come home.  It was a beginners class and I was hungry to learn more.  Here are some of the things I made during that time. 

 these two look really good but I will let you into a secret - the pattern is already in the glass and all I had to do was cut it and put a layer of clear below and voila!  The patterned glass is called Decofloat and is compatible with float glass

 This one is made from clear float glass with cathedral glass, which is mainly used in stained glass work, the colours are not as good as Bullseye but it is much cheaper

 This is Bullseye, wonderful to work with, always comes out with nicely rounded edges and comes in an amazing range of colours - four times more expensive than float though

 Float again with Cathedral

There were a few things that didn`t come back from the firing as I wanted.

a very expensive Bullseye dish that got dropped and I tried to re-fire but it didn`t work

 If you look closely you can see the blue band of glass at the top should be on the edge more

 These were supposed to be cufflinks like the Cornish Flag!

 you may not see anything wrong with these but some I have cut the top glass too big and some have shifted in transporting to the kiln

 this would have been a fantastic plate in Spectrum 96 glass - Frank wasn`t sure what went wrong 

So it is not so easy firing the glass as I am finding out.  I have been making samples with float glass, which is just window glass and only come in clear.  It is very cheap to buy and you can also pick up some from skips to recycle.  I have been sandwiching all the coloured frits I bought between layers of glass.  Frits are ground and powdered glass and don`t always look the same once fired as they do in the jars, so I need to create a set of samples so that I will know and my students will know exactly what it will turn out like when they use these supplies.  It takes a long time as I have to keep careful records of what I have used so that I can label them.  Apart from different colours, they come in different sizes from 0 to 5.    But I am having a lot of problems with the firing of the float glass!  It is very frustrating as it isn`t designed to be fired like Bullseye or Spectrum which are tested before you buy but are about four times more expensive that float.  Therefore I have to keep a record of firing schedules and alter them and try again if I am not happy with the result and I am not a happy bunny!

For those of you who know I am getting devit.  For those that don`t it is devitrification which is a scummy looking result which is very common with float glass and can be eliminated by getting the firing schedule right with lots of experimentation and I am not the most patient person! It also can happen if you do not clean your glass properly before firing, which is not the reason with mine.

I need to get this right on my samples before I start making stuff to sell or mess up my students work.  Watch this space.

How to spend a small fortune

I have been reading a few blogs lately just to get an idea of what everyone else does and no matter what subject the blog covers there is a universal theme - apologies!  It is nice to know that we are all the same, life takes over and the weeks fly by and I am no exception, so sorry that I haven`t blogged for weeks.
My life took over a bit as I also run a guest house, so as the sun has come out at last people are emailing and phoning to book a break by the sea.
So anyway back to the glass.  I was telling you how I started at evening class with Frank.  Trouble is that I was like a kid in a sweetshop when I went to buy my supplies at Newquay Glass and I got lots of glass which was not designed to be fired together.  When I came to make the piece some of the glass was Bullseye and some Decofloat and some Spectrum 96. 

This is double dutch to those of you who have never fused glass but basically it is a bit like cooking one type of cake that needs to be cooked at gas mark 2 and another that needs to be cooked on gas mark 6 – you would not cook them in the same oven at the same time.

I also had lots of problems actually cutting the glass and if I couldn`t do that I was in real trouble.

I asked Frank how I should be cutting glass and he said “very carefully!”.  It turned out that I was sitting down when I should be standing up, so therefore the angle of my glass cutter was wrong.  I was also pushing way too hard, you only need to score it not cut right through it!

I do find it quite a challenge as I have arthritis in my hands so I use a pistol grip glass cutter which I find much easier to handle.

But I am glad that I had problems because it will make me a better teacher.  I have also tried lots of different ways of cutting glass to discover what worked for me and hopefully I can help my students to discover the right way for them.

It is like Christmas here but without the wrapping paper!  Lots of bubble wrap and those polystyrene bits in the boxes though.  I have spent a fortune the last few weeks but have had really good service from all my suppliers and now have the basics for my glass studio.  I could spend another few fortunes though before I am finished!  Now just got to find the time to play with all the goodies!

I didn`t buy any glass though!  That sounds a bit stupid but there is a lot of other stuff that I needed first.

Today I unwrapped a lovely slumping mould which I bought from Creative Glass. http://www.creativeglassshop.co.uk/  They were really helpful as it was out of stock when I ordered it, so they sent the rest of my order then a lovely man phoned me when it was back in stock and they sent it out without any extra postage costs.  

Mind you, that was the first of many as Warm Glass had a sale with 30% off moulds, so I bought a few more and here they are all kiln washed ready to go!

 You have to remember to unblock the air holes with a pin after putting the kiln wash on.

nails are courtesy of Claire at Beautopia Nails & Beauty at Hayle, they have a Facebook page.  I am really into dots at the moment and I have several ideas for dotty designs once I get started properly.

Bottles, bottles everywhere.......

As well as telling you all what is happening now, I suppose I should tell you how I eventually got started.  As I said before, the first time I saw fused glass was at college, after that I noticed quite a bit of jewellery around at craft fairs.  We have a lovely glass gallery in St. Ives – Jo Downs Glass – http://www.jodownsglass.co.uk which was really inspiring and when I asked in there if they knew anyone teaching fused glass techniques, they put me on to Frank at Helston.  This was an evening glass for beginners and ran once a week for two hours.  We had projects for the first few weeks and then made whatever we wanted.

One of the things I have seen around are items made with bottles that have been flattened in the kiln.  I have been collecting bottles for a while.  Not any old bottles though, I want unusual shapes or coloured glass other than the norm.  

However, my first experiment, indeed the first ever firing in my kiln was with Grolsch beer bottles

and I was delighted with the results

the next experiment with wine bottles was not completely successful!

the problem was that the bottles were rolling together in the kiln, so I thought I would put a little stopper there so it wouldn`t roll.  I had the sense to use proper kiln furniture that is designed to be used in the kiln

but didn`t have the sense to realise that the glass would just flow around it!

This is why we experiment though, isn`t it?  I tend to learn by my mistakes so will not make this one again.  The rest of the wine bottles were fine though

I had a problem with my next load though, as I was preparing to fire some baileys bottles that my daughter Jeni had kindly emptied for me.  I didn`t take photos because I was a bit upset when my kiln lid would not close on them.  As you will notice from the photos at the beginning the kiln is quite shallow and even more so when the lid is closed as the elements protrude from the lid.  Never mind, I can do lots of other things and when I start making a fortune selling all these items I can buy a bigger kiln!

It is so nice having a workshop in the house now, at least if the weather is lousy I feel more inclined to go and do some work.  However, as the kiln is in the old workshop outside it is going to be a pain taking stuff outside to fire it.  Here are some pictures of my new workshop, I am very lucky to have a son who is a carpenter so everything is custom built for me.  Thanks Mike you are a master craftsman and a great son!

 The workbench is the correct height to stand and cut glass and the stools fit under perfectly when you want to sit.  There is also a storage shelf for each student under the workbench

 The storage on this side of the room is for all my card making supplies and rubber stamps in the drawers and inkpads in the revolving carousel on top.  I also teach card making and rubber stamping

 These shelves were designed to store small pieces of glass with all the liners, frit etc on the small shelves underneath.  Larger pieces of glass are under the worktop and cupboard.

I have lots of space to work and move around doing different things, which is the way I like to work.

My new baby - awaiting a name

Yesterday I promised photos. So here we are:

 Any thoughts on a name now you have seen him or is it her?

The all singing, all dancing new controller.  Just wish I knew how to work it properly!

The only problem now is learning all the functions, I am sure that it is simple but it is a bit like buying a new camera and then just using it on Auto cos that is the only one you are sure of.  I just have to get the confidence to experiment!

I bought the kiln second hand in September last year but had nowhere to put it then, so I paid for it and they kept it until my new workshop was ready.  Then my husband Bill and son Mike went to collect it finally in December.  It was really heavy and they had to take the back gate off to get it through because it was too heavy to lift over.  It is installed in my old workshop which is outside the house.  Being a guest house I don`t think the fire officer and insurance company would be very impressed if I put it in the new workshop which is next to my lounge in the house.  That has been completely kitted out for me by Mike who is a Carpenter and he has done a brilliant job.  I will have a tidy up and take some photos tomorrow.  If you want anything similar done he is the man for the job - have a look at his website at http://www.stivescarpentry.co.uk 

I decided that although the kiln had a perfectly good programmer on it, I need the super duper singing and dancing version, so have bought a new one.  I got it from Kilncare and got great advice from them and they also spoke at length to Bill on the phone to tell him how to install it for me.  My Kiln is a Kilncare one too and Lee and all the people there are exceptionally helpful and their products are superb.

I must find time to put the old one up for sale, to help with the cost of all the new stuff I am buying!

The kiln was finally ready but I had no time to play because it was Christmas and then we went away to Tenerife for two months and did not return until March!   Hence this blog starting in April, it is all very exciting!