Flame November 2017
Find us at
www.gbuk.org
Your committee
Russ
Colette
Debbie
Heather
chairman@gbuk.org
secretary@gbuk.org
treasurer@gbuk.org
Martin
Susan
events@gbuk.org
webmaster@gbuk.org
Joy membership@gbuk.org
In this issue … Torchlight On… by Sally-Jo Drinkel…..Pages 5-7
International Festival of Glass … by Melissa Keskinkilinc Pages 9-11
Win a Flame Off class Pages 14-15
Nature beads……..Page 16-18
Make an encased floral bead tutorial by Kathryn Greer ……..Page 20-21
Upcoming events……Page 24
Changes to the committee Bertie Beattie has resigned as secretary due to family commitments and we are lucky to have Debbie Gothard to step in, but with a slight change-around. Debbie has become webmaster while Susan Gothard has taken up the post of secretary.
GBUKjournal This is a call to all GBUK members, we want your images!
In recent years the image submissions for the Journal have slowly declined; last year we had only 28 images to feature. We currently have 138 members. As Journal Editor, Joy need your images. Together we can turn Journal 10 into a spectacular showcase for our members’ beautiful beads. You can submit your entry directly to Joy by 30th November 2017 We need: • • •
A sharp, jpeg image of your work. Up to 50 words introducing yourself Any website links you would like to add
Let’s turn issue 10 of the Journal into your showcase.
Torchlight On‌ Sally-Jo Drinkel As long as I can remember I have been creative, dabbling in all kinds of arts and crafts. One of my first memories being when I laid down on some fabric and drew round my lower half to make a pair of shorts. They were of course, a disaster, but I was only six. It was around 2008 when I decided the time had come to take jewellery making seriously. I was doing a lot of bead weaving with seed beads and started to write patterns for the people I was teaching. With so many folk interested in jewellery making I took the step of supplying all things beady from focal and seed beads to findings and tools. I did this via a stall and had three or four outings a week to our pretty local market towns. Things went really well but I felt that the quality wasn’t there with the mass produced lampwork beads that I was buying in to sell on. Seeing my frustration, my husband Ian bought me a starter lampwork kit from Tuffnells for Christmas. He set the hothead torch and Mapp gas up on the kitchen table for me and after a week of walking past it scared to death, looking at it and muttering, I finally took a deep breath, pulled my big girl pants up and went for it.
As I am sure like many first timer’s experience, my beads were wonky and stuck firmly to the mandrel where the bead release had pulled away. With practice I finally managed to tame the glass to a certain extent and started to make some beads that I wasn’t too ashamed of.
I then moved on from Mapp gas to a large tank set up so I could spend many more hours at the flame without interruption and really got into making larger beads.
I am pretty much self-taught with the help of YouTube and books. I did, however, have the privilege of spending a day with the very talented Johan de Lange from Glass and Fire on a trip to South Africa, which was brilliant. To watch a seasoned lampwork artist at work in the flesh was awesome.
My knight in shining armour then stepped in again and invested a big chunk of change into setting up a studio for me. I now work with a Bethlehem Alpha torch, which I love and have everything I need to create beautiful beads to sell, right at my fingertips. Life is good!
I named my business, ‘Fanello Design’ and had it registered. The word Fanello is Italian for Linnet, a small song bird. I chose this name because I am part of the worship team with my family at the church we have attended for over 30 years.
I hope you enjoyed reading about my lampwork journey to date. I enjoyed sharing it with you. Looking forward to many more years learning this wonderful art.
GBUKmarket www.gbukmarket.org As a member you are entitled to a shop front where you may list your lampworked goods. You will need to register for a shop and wait for an administrator to check your membership is up to date before your shop is activated.
Do make use of it, share it, advertise it, drive customers to look at the only selling site devoted to lampwork from lots of sellers (members).
Promote your shop and sell your beads – it’s there for you as long as you are a member. Have a read through the terms and conditions to see what you can sell. We want to promote lampwork in its many forms and uses and don’t want it to be used for other types of sales so we will be keeping an eye to make sure that’s all that’s being sold. There may still be bugs and issues so please let us know if you come across any.
International Festival of Glass by Melissa Keskinkilinc Photos by Chris Steele and Melissa Keskinkilinc At the end of August I visited the international festival of glass, and if you have not been before then it is certainly a fabulous glass experience! It brings glass makers and crafts people to Stourbridge every 2 years, giving the glass quarter a new lease of life. This has been the first year I have visited and felt that it was definitely worth it. Across a variety of venues there was lots to see and learn from, from the different exhibits to some friendly faces selling their beads and glass!
There was lots of different things to be amazed at... Martin Janecky creating fabulous blown glass faces, Stephen Foster demonstrating his glass ammonites, the biennial exhibition: showcasing the best pieces from artists from around the world, the opening of the White House Cone gallery and lots of other amazing artists and glassy people demonstrating their skills.
My favourite part of the weekend was watching a scientific glass blower creating different items on the torch. He showed us a glass car that he had made and demonstrated how to create different seals and joins using boro.
Annual Competition 2018 Thought of your Steampunk idea yet? Each year Glass Beadmakers UK (GBUK) holds a lampwork competition. One category, jewellery, is also open to non-members with the criteria that the jewellery must contain lampwork beads. Tell your customers all about it! The theme for 2018 is ‘Steampunk’. The closing date is 30th April 2018. The other categories are: * Newcomers …….. Any form of entry is valid. Newcomers may enter this category OR enter any/all of the main categories. * Bead set ………… multiple beads, on mandrel * Focal bead …… on mandrel, single bead * Sculptural bead …on mandrel * Other …………….. incorporates anything else not included above e.g. cold working, dioramas, off-mandrel
The competition is judged at Flame Off, the annual extravaganza for all things lampwork. Entries must be sent to the competition organiser, and are held as part of the GBUK Collection for one year, after which the pieces are returned to the creator or sold in aid of GBUK, whichever the creator chooses.
Full details can be found on the GBUK website www.gbuk.org
GBUKinsurance We are delighted to announce that GBUKinsurance has been arranged for members. GBUK will administer the insurance cover under a group policy. The insurance will cover all flamework – teaching, demoing and working. The insurance covers GBUKmembers who are UK residents. Unfortunately, we cannot cover overseas GBUKmembers. It provides public and product liability for up to £50,000 turnover and export of your products to UK, EU and worldwide. Please note that coverage cannot be provided for members whose exports to the USA and/or Canada exceed 40% of their total annual turnover. There are two insurance options: If you partially export to the US/Canada you need the US insurance (note above condition) If you only export to the UK/EU/rest of the world *excluding US/Canada* you need the UK insurance. Your payment comprises your insurance premium and an administration fee. The total cost of GBUKinsurance is £50 per annum for both insurance options. We have a pro-rata arrangement with the insurance company to fit in with our members. All premiums are inclusive of Insurance Premium Tax, chargeable at 12%. GBUK will provide an up to date list of all participating members to the insurance company. A summary and full policy are available from membership@gbuk.org or downloadable here: Insurance summary The GBUK insurance policy runs from 1st June to 31st May.
Please contact membership@gbuk.org (Joy Porteous) if you wish to purchase GBUKinsurance or have any questions.
Win a place on Elizabeth Welch’s full day class at Flame Off Thursday 31st May 2018
worth ÂŁ175 Elizabeth specialises in borosilicate (pyrex) sculpture, creating enchanting and whimsical creatures, most of which are created over a 2 or three day period. The day will be spent learning how she prepares the boro colour to work with and how she creates her Narwhale, Octopus and Seahorses. Full details are here: Elizabeth Welch class
To enter, see the entry details here Please send entries to chairman@gbuk.org by 30th April 2018. If you have already purchased a place on the class, and win this competition, your class fee will be refunded to you.
Free entry
Win a place on a Taster Class at Flame Off Choose from: Ceramic Raku Class with Caroline on Friday 1st or Saturday 2nd June
Floriane Lataille taster class on Friday 1st June 2018
worth
Free to
worth
ÂŁ45
enter
ÂŁ75
Caroline is a ceramic artist from the North West of England. She discovered her love for art and desire to create at an early age, working in mediums from paper crafts, to jewellery making, lamp working and traditional art.
This class is designed to show you how to make fine glass beads , wrapping and using fine silver wire , copper wire and copper leaf and then work them into a larger glass bead, including them into your design.
All you need to do is agree to tell us all about your day afterwards in the form of a small article with pictures.
Full details can be found here.
Nature
Shirley Giles
Bertie Beattie
Ilsa Fatt
Colette Ladley
Judith Hannington
GBUKwebsite Did you know: You have your own page in the Gallery? Haven’t got one? Email webmaster@gbuk.org with a short bio and up to 5 photos. Send a link to your own website so visitors to GBUK.org can find you. Photos of winning beads from past winners of our annual competitions can be found here too. There is a members only area with tutorials and techniques - please feel free to send us any tips, tutorials or techniques to share with our members. Do you teach? Let us know so you can be included on our ‘Classes’ page so prospective students can find you. Are you on Facebook? Come and ‘like’ our page. We have lots of non-members that show great interest in the content we post - your beads will be seen by them.
www.gbuk.org GBUKmembership Keep an eye out for reminder emails when your membership is due to expire - or sign up for automatic renewals through Paypal.
Making a floral bead Reproduced with the kind permission of Kathryn Greer
www.dragonfireglass.co.uk Adding additional elements to your beads with: Mica powder and flakes
Shards
Brass foil and mesh Copper foil, leaf and mesh
Petal tools
Glass sculpting tools
Mica glitter
Upcoming events: If you have an event you would like included, please email events@gbuk.org with the details. 11-12th November 2017
Kempton Park Rock Gem 'n' Bead Show
12th November 2017
Kempton Park Racecourse, Sunbury on Thames Beadwork Fair - Newmarket Racecourse
16-18th November 2017
Hobbycrafts, EXCEL, London
18-19th November 2017
Brighton Rock Gem 'n' Bead Show
21st April 2018
Brighton Racecourse Knitting & Stitching Show, Harrogate International Centre The Cheshire Autumn Bead Fair Nantwich Civic Hall Harrogate Beadwork Fair Harrogate The Big Bead Show, Sandown Park, Esher
17th June 2018
East Surrey Bead Fair
23-26th November 2017 26th November 2017 18th March 2018
Merstham Village Hall
Do you know of a fair/bead gathering/get-together? Let our members know by emailing chairman@gbuk.org with details.
GBUK Membership Form
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Membership is valid for one calendar year from the month of joining. Overseas members: please use Paypal. PayPal
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www.paypal.co.uk to email address: treasurer@gbuk.org
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£15.00
payable to GBUK
Bank Transfer
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Email membership@gbuk.org for details
How did you hear about GBUK? (Please tick any that are applicable) Word of mouth
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Next issue: March 2018 Theme: Dot beads
Do you have a tutorial or article to share with members? Contact chairman@gbuk.org
www.gbuk.org Cover photo by Colette Ladley