Flame January 2017
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Colette Russ Debbie
Scarlet
Heather
Colette
Bertie
Heather
chairman@gbuk.org
secretary@gbuk.org
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Martin
Scarlet
events@gbuk.org
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Joy membership@gbuk.org
Torchlight On‌ by Elaine Thornton Pages 4 - 7
Pink‌
Pages 9 - 12 In the Pink
Pages 14 - 16
Pretty in Pink
Pages 18 - 20
Tutorial: Multi-layered rose petals
Pages 22 - 26
Pretty as a Picture
Upcoming events
Pages 27 - 28
Page 30
Torchlight On… Elaine Thornton Well at a chance meeting at the Uxbridge Bead Fair I saw the showman, who goes by the name of Martin, from Tuffnell Glass….. drawing a crowd. He was captivating them with his demonstration of fire and melting glass…. right there….. in front of my eyes. I was mesmerized. I made a decision right then…… I really need to do this!!! My journey began on that October day back in 2007.
My birthday follows Christmas in January so…. one beadmaking kit ordered! I then twisted my husband’s arm to adapt my workshop from my stained glass/jewellery space into my beadmaking domain; after whizzing off for my beginner’s lesson from the fabulous Sally Carver, my first burnt bead was born!
Gathering my kit, glass and tools over a number of years, my style has started to develop and I am now creating the things I love …. using fire, wire and of course, molten glass.
Small round beads I found difficult to grasp so I worked on shaping larger beads from tab/slab type squashed beads to hearts and any hand formed shapes. This was quite time consuming on my old Hot Head so it was time to invest in my first 25mm trio lentil press.
After a few years of using my Hot Head I was able to upgrade to my GTT Cricket torch which I won in the Auction at Flame Off. Jiminy, as he is affectionately known, is a little explosive when fired up but I do love that about him! Initially it took a little time to adapt but once I did I wanted to move on to more challenging beadmaking, so I tried out buttons and cabochons. Each had their own challenges but I embraced it as I get bored easily so needed to be inspired with new ideas and styles and just something different to keep me motivated. With my jewellery designer hat on I started to look at what I could create ‘outside the box’ of just straightforward round or shaped beads. I do love to create using metal chains and various types of metal components so mixing these two mediums was my next challenge. Metal and Glass…. Wire & Fire!! Headpins were the answer!
As a wireworker I had an abundance of copper wire at my disposal. I worked out the thickness of the normal wire headpins were 0.8mm (20gauge), figured out how to hold the wire successfully and set about making headpins.
Long, short, fat, thin, I came up with various types but colour, shape and texture was the key factors in designing them. After a lot of thought I felt I needed something else. Something new! Something much more challenging! Something sculptural ……… FLOWERS! I wanted to create 3D sculptural flowers. I thought who do I know, who makes flowers, yes of course, my friend Laney Mead. I knew I couldn’t do this on my own, I needed help so I booked another lesson. This time I needed to learn better heat control and how to pull petals and make leaves.
I love pulling petals! I could just do that….. all day! Putting the flowers together - well that is a whole different ball game! The more petals, the harder it is to keep the flower warm enough so it doesn’t just explode into many pieces, which has happened on a number of occasions. I’m still learning, still evolving, the flowers are now part of my headpin collections too.
New things I’m working on currently are Bellcaps, they are proving to be very popular right now, I have been enjoying coming up with different designs for them. They are simply flying out the door!! I felt I needed to get reacquainted with Double Helix glass to add that special touch to the Bells and this does give them that extra bit of excitement.
Elaine Thornton ChatElaine Glass Creations
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.
Many a glassmaker will say it was merely by accident ruby gold was discovered, when a gold sovereign was tossed into the melt by accident. Copper is an alternative to gold to produce ruby glass. The invention of gold ruby glass dates back to 1685 as noted in "De Auro", by Andreas Cassius, in which he describes for the first time the method of producing a red precipitate of stannic acid with gold which later became known as 'Purple of Cassius'. The principle techniques involved in producing red ruby glass are still based upon Cassius's discovery all those years ago.
Metallic gold, in very small concentrations (around 0.001%, or 10 ppm), produces a rich ruby-coloured glass (Ruby Gold or Rubino Oro), while lower concentrations produces a less intense red, often marketed as "cranberry". The colour is caused by the size and dispersion of gold particles. Ruby gold glass is usually made of lead glass with added tin.
Producing coloured glass is dependent on
1
The temperature of the melt/batch
2
Temperature of reheat during the working of the glass
3
The temperature of the 'Lehr' (Annealing Oven)
4
Duration of the melt/batch
5
Time and temperature relationship at different stages in production
6
The type of colourant being used
7
Concentration of the colourant
8
Atmosphere of the furnace
9
The composition of the colourant within the glass composition, as is the case when iron is added to glass. The type of iron oxide formed decides if the glass will be blue or yellow The number of times the same glass is melted. Repeated melting of the cullet will usually give a darker tone to the finished piece.
10
Ever wondered what made your glass that colour?
Yellow
Cadmium Sulphide
Red
Gold Chloride
Blue-Violet
Cobalt Oxide
Purple
Manganese Dioxide
Violet
Nickel Oxide
Yellow-Amber
Sulphur
Emerald Green
Chromic Oxide
Fluorescent Yellow, Green Uranium Oxide Greens and Browns
Iron Oxide
Reds
Selenium Oxide
Amber-Brown
Carbon Oxides
White
Antimony Oxides
Blue, Green, Red
Copper Compounds
White
Tin Compounds
Yellow
Lead Compounds
Ruby glass The first written instructions for making gold ruby glass date back to 1685. Andreas Cassius described the method of producing a red precipitate of stannic acid with gold, which later became known as the "Purple of Cassius." The high price of this glass and the efforts needed to produce it could hardly be justified by its beauty, but the mysticism connected with gold caused the demand. However, the Romans made gold ruby glass long before Cassius. The secret of making red glass, lost for many centuries, wasn’t rediscovered until the 17th Century. Johann Kunckel, a chemist from a glass-making family, re-discovered how to make gold ruby glass around 1670. The preparation of red ruby glass is still based on Cassius's instructions. Tin is sometimes added in tiny amounts, making the process difficult and expensive. The tin has to be present to act as a reducing agent to bring about the formation of the metallic gold. Depending on the composition of the base glass, the ruby colour can develop during cooling, or the glass may have to be reheated to ‘strike’ the colour.
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.
In the pink Heather Kelly has done us proud again‌ Effetre 260 light pink with Reichenbach coral pink frit
Tumble etched
Tumble etched
Effetre 260 light pink, frit painting with Effetre 067 rose quartz and coral pink frit
Lauscha opaque pink encased in Lauscha transparent pink with dots of Quetzal
Lauscha opaque pink doughnuts with CiM Quetzal dots
Tumble etched Reichenbach mystic pink and Reichenbach gold ruby bright, half and half, twisted
Lauscha transparent pink with coral pink frit, gravity swirl
Tumble etched
Lauscha opaque pink with Days of Wine and Roses frit by Cheeky Cherub
Lauscha transparent pink with intense black frit, superheated
Reichenbach 96 isar blue with Rock Me Gently frit by Cheeky Cherub Snail: Effetre periwinkle and Reichenbach mystic pink
Highland sheep: Effetre black and Lauscha opaque pink
Dotty bead with Reichenbach 96 coe pinks on a base of R175 pastel green Guinea pig: Effetre black & white, Lauscha opaque pink
Small hearts: Lauscha opaque pink and Effetre black
Spiral heart: Effetre black decorated with a cane of rubino over Lauscha opaque pink
Large heart: Effetre white, big rubino dots, cane of rubino over Lauscha opaque pink, deep black stringer
Clio dark encased with 006
GBUKmembership Keep an eye out for reminder emails when your membership is due to expire - or sign up for automatic renewals through Paypal.
Thank you to everyone who submitted a photo of their wonderful beads for this issue. It will be available for collection at Flame Off in June 2017 or posted to you after this event.
NEW closing date: 30th April 2017 Themes: Song beads Japanese
A new challenge will be set in each issue of . There are no prizes, but we’d love to see beads made using this picture for inspiration. You can post them up on our Facebook page or send them to secretary@gbuk.org and they will appear in the next issue of Flame. The closing date is 20th March 2017.
Pretty in pink‌ Bullseye Pink Opalescent 000301
Bullseye Petal Pink Opalescent 0421
TAG Pink Cadillac
TAG Pink Slyme
Opaque pastel pink. Should be worked in a neutral or oxidizing atmosphere. Pink Cadillac is a smooth, bright opaque pink.
A purple/pink color, Pink Slyme turns milky when higher temperatures are applied.
Momka scarlet pink TAG Mai Tai Pink is virtually transparent in the rod, but it strikes to amber in the flame, and to pink in the kiln.
Northstar Lucy is clear with very few air inclusions, and when worked it remains quite clear in normal lighting. Under uv lighting it is a very intense hot pink. It works well on the surface and can also be worked under clear.
Hot tip with the kind permission of Sarah Hornik:
Effetre dark transparent lavender over Reichenbach opal raspberry produces a lovely hot pink.
Reichenbach Opal raspberry
Effetre striped pink
Effetre pastel rose quartz
Effetre American beauty
Vetrofond pink (discontinued)
Effetre rubino oro
Effetre rose quartz
Vetrofond seashell swirl (discontinued)
Effetre tongue pink
Effetre opalino carnelian
Effetre opal rose
Effetre dark rosatto CIM pink lady
CIM Gelly Sty
Gold Ruby extra frit
Thompson enamel Light orchid
Kugler bubblegum
CIM Whisper
CIM Primrose
Opaque Opal Pink frit
Light Dusty Rose enamel
Petal pink Thompson enamel
CIM Blush
Candy Girl murrini
Pink Violet enamel
www.dragonfireglass.co.uk Adding additional elements to your beads with: Copper foil shapes, mesh and frit Shards
Mica glitter Mica powder
Glass sculpting tools
Petal tools
Multi-layered Rose Petals Most layered rose or flower beads are created by putting a complete layer of encasing around the bead between each layer of petals, but it produces a very thick bead. This tutorial will show you how to make a layered-petal flower bead using dots of clear instead of spreading layers of encasing between each layer of petals. It’s an easier method and the number of clear dots (and therefore the depth of each petal) is up to you. Be sure to use a contrasting colour for your core. For example, if you use dark petal colours use a lighter core, and vice versa. You want your petal work to stand out, so using distinct colours will help your petals and shading stand out. Petal layering options – staggered or on top of each other.
The bead on the left has the first two bottom layers of petals placed on top of each other. The bead on the right has each layer of petals staggered over the previous layer.
The bead below has bubble centres. The deep yellow flower had 3 single-layer petals and a transparent burgundy dot in the centre before the bubble was created. You can see that the pink flower had two layers of staggered petals. The soft pink rose bead above has 3 layers of petals.
You will need: Rod of your choice of clear Stringer or rod of bead core colour Encased goldstone stringer Stringer of flower petal base colour Stringer of transparent petal accent colour Stringer of centre stamen (or instead create a poked bubble or set in a CZ) Making a stamen stringer A stamen stringer can be made with a rod of clear and an opaque dark yellow stringer. Gently preheat the rod of clear and draw thin stripes down the sides of the clear rod 1 to 2 inches long; make 3 to 5 stripes. Heat it gently to melt the stripes onto the clear rod. Pull the rod into a stringer. For best results you should pull the end of the stamen stringer to a tip before pressing it into the centre of the flower. This will draw the petals down into the centre with the tip, instead of just punching a round hold through the petals. You can see this effect in the flower petals on the left in the picture below. The flower has only one layer of white and then a layer of transparent rose.
To create a bubble, instead of adding a stamen, heat the centre of the flower and use a pointed tool to press in the centre. Then apply a tiny dot of clear to cover the hole.
This bead has a CZ (cubic zirconium) for a centre. Slightly indent the centre of your flower using a tool and then apply a CZ (use a drop of glue on a mandrel to hold the CZ ready for use). You can cover the CZ with a small dot of clear, or if it is seated in well you can leave the top bare. They take practice; use uncoated, cone-back shaped CZ’s.
Wrap the core colour one stringer-wrap around. Smooth it out and let it cool a bit . If you don't let it cool before wrapping with the clear stringer it may merge into the clear. Wrap your slightly cooled core with a clear stringer. Slightly over-wrap with the clear so that the clear goes around the mandrel on both sides. You are encapsulating your core colour. You don't want your core colour to come up through the clear at the sides or in the middle. Melt the clear smooth and let it cool a bit.
Draw a wavy line with your goldstone stringer. Melt it in, cool slightly and then wrap with a clear stringer. Marver into a barrel shape. Melt the clear into a round shape and let it cool a bit. I A wide bead at this point helps, because as you add petals and dots it will get taller or thicker.
Using the base petal colour stringer make 3 or 4 or 5 small dots, depending on the flower shape you want. Dots can spread and keep on spreading with each layer you add. If you place them too close they will merge. Take time to make all the dots on the flower the same size. Melt in your dots completely. Allow the bead to cool slightly.
Place dots of the transparent colour a touch smaller in the middle or to the centre of the flat white dots. Take the time to adjust your dots to be the same size so they spread the same.
Melt in your transparent dots completely. Shape the bead as round as possible. Let it cool a bit and then apply clear dots like you did the transparent dots. Melt in completely. Make the clear dots at least as large as your initial dots.
Repeat the steps for a third layer of petals, including the clear dots. Round the bead with more heating.
Rounding the bead and let it cool a bit. Applying a stamen stringer Heat the tip of your stamen stringer and pull to a point. This makes it easier to push it into the flower centre. Heat a flower to a glow. Move it out of the flame a bit and take the pointed stamen stringer - carefully centre it and gently press it in toward the mandrel. Take the bead out of the flame and blow on it gently until the stringer easily snaps off. Return the bead to the flame and rotate the bead to reheat it a bit. Repeat this cycle for each flower. Apply a tiny dot of clear on top of the stamen if the break is below the surface of the bead. After all of the flowers have stamen added and a tiny dot of clear on top of the stamen, gently smooth/melt in the dots.
Ursula Mann
If you have an event you would like included, please email events@gbuk.org with the details.
2 - 3rd February
Hobbycrafts, Event City, Manchester
14 - 15th January
Chepstow Racecourse Rock Gem 'n' Bead Show
4 - 5th February
Newton Abbot Rock Gem 'n' Bead Show
11th February
Winchester Bead Fair
16 - 18th February
Craft 4 Crafters, Westpoint, Exeter
18 -19th February
Cheltenham Racecourse Rock Gem 'n' Bead Show
25 - 26th February
Harrogate Rock Gem 'n' Bead Show
26th February
Essex Bead Fair
2 - 5th March
Hobbycrafts, SECC, Glasgow
4 - 5th March
Kempton Park Rock Gem 'n' Bead Show
18 - 19th March
Brighton Rock Gem 'n' Bead Show
19th March
Harrogate Beadwork Fair
1st April
Big Bead Show, Sandown
6 - 8th April
Craft 4 Crafters, Bath
20 - 22nd April
Hobbycrafts, EXCEL, London
11 - 13th May
Hobbycraft Show - International Halls, Harrogate
14th May
Devon Bead Fair, Exeter Castle, Exeter
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Next issue: April 2017 Theme: Organic beads
Do you have a tutorial or article to share with members? Contact secretary@gbuk.org.
www.gbuk.org Cover photo by Heather Kelly