Goals

I recently read a beading blog where the artist wrote out all her goals for the year. I like the idea of writing out my goals, but not for the year. I think I'd rather monthly goals. It'll be easier for me to stay focused for a month at a time. I am going to have four categories of goals, one for lampwork, the second for fusing, the third for marketing/sales and the last will be a few personal goals. I'll keep my progress posted.
Lampwork goals.
1. Master the basics of using stringers.
Each time I bead I will commit to making at least ten beads using the technic
I like the look of raised stringers and soooooo many different technics use strings and heat control. I like to make beads quickly and usually use to much heat to have good stringer control. This technic will help me learn better heat control and patience.
Here is a link to a site where the artist has amazi f stringer and heat control. She has been beading for 8 years.

I'll post pictures of my progress in a bit


2. On mandrel immplsion beads
These beads just look cool. I have the basics down, but am having a hard time getting the " petals" close to the top  and keeping the shape .

Check out these beads here

Again, I have some work do.


Fusing goals
1. I'd like to master the fusing schedule on my new kiln, if I get it in time, of full fused platters. These will be the largest fusing projects I have ever done. I'm hoping not to get many projects with air bubbles or that are over fused.

I hope my fist platters look somewhat like these. 

2. I'd like to master making round cabochons, these I can do in my little kiln. Cabochons will be good for earrings, hair clips and much more! My first set is in the kiln right now. I should be able to pull them out before bed.

Marketing/sales.

I think this will be my toughest goal
1. I'd will commit to posting 3-4 new items on the craft site I'm a part of.
2. If my fused glass platters work out I'd like to sell 1-2 of them.

Personal goals
1. Running, since the weather is nice and the snow is melting, I want to get out with my puppy. I'd like to be running 8-10 km by the end of the month. My first run will be tomorrow. The half marathon club at the school where I work will be starting this week.

2. I'm a dessert kind of person. I'd like to keep desserts to the weekend only. We'll see how that goes for the month.

Big decision

The Tiffany House in Calgary sent me  a couple of quotes for a new kiln yesterday! I am pretty excited. These kilns are much bigger than the small lampwork kiln I have been using for fusing. After looking over the kilns and all the specs. I think it was an easy decision.
I was looking at the paragon fusion 10 kiln. With is about 23" in diameter and 11 " deep. If does not come with a stand so I would have to purchase that as well.
The second kiln I am looking at is the Evenheat 23. This kiln has the same diameter  but is 13" deep. It comes with the stand included in the price. This kiln also fires to about 100F hotter than the paragon.Donna at the Tiffany House, has been very helpful.
At first I was leaning towards the paragon kiln because that is type I already have at home. Donna said she loves the Evenheat that the store bought. After looking at the quotes I think I will be going with the Evenheat. Since the kilns are pretty much the same other than price. The Even Heat kiln comes in about 800$ cheaper, and can be delievered right to me.
When I find time today during my school PD day, I will be ordering a new kiln. :) HOpefully it doesn't take long to order.

Check out the following links, they show the different kilns I've been looking at plus a few fused pieces I'd like to try and make.
Paragon
Evenheat
Platters


If you see an image you like somewhere let me know, or share it on my facebook page. Once my kiln has been ordered and arrives I'm sure I'll start fusing right away!

Little fishy

I decided to post a bit of an experiment I tried last week. It took a couple firings in the kiln, and will maybe need another one. But here is an attempt at a fish.

I'm not quite sure what to do with him yet. I learnt a few good things about fusing from this little guy. I know how I would go about this a bit different next time. I guess that's the fun thing about fusing, you never quite know what's going to come out of the kiln. Next time I will take a before and after picture to show what I mean.

Here is also a fuse piece I put together tonight. Not a great image. I'll work on my photography skill later.  All glass on this necklace is transparent. I'll have to get a picture of it hanging the right way.

etching and shopping

Even though my husband put my kiln back together and it started to work again, I decided to try something new that didn't involve heat. I recently read a few articles on how to work with beads once they are out of the kiln. So tonight I tried my hand at etching. Glass etching solution can be found at pretty much any craft store. I was surprised how little time it takes. Here's a few before pictures.

I put these sea inspired beads into the etching solution for about 7-8 minutes. Once they came out, the beads have a matte finish.

I like the way these beads look like they where tossed around in the ocean for a bit before landing on a beach.  Etching really transforms transparent glass.  I think I will make a necklace/bracelet set with these.

I'm excited about the new glass I bought yesterday, no idea when it will arrive. There are two colours I'm really excited for. One is teal, I had a lot of suggestions during my colour combo give away for teal, and the second is called Clio. It's a silver reduction glass, which means because of it's silver content, it reacts and transforms in heat  and is quite pricy. Sounds tricky to use, but the beads I've seen made with it are stunning. I'm also excited for the silver foil I bought. It reacts with many colours and can produce a few really neat effects.

Here is a link to some silver foil beads : click

Here is a link to some clio beads: click

Hopefully with some practice I'll be making beads like those soon!

Kiln troubles - what to do?

It just happens to be a cold snowy day. Perfect for beading! I planned out a few projects while sipping on a coffee, I was getting excited to start working on a project for a silent auction I've been ask to do. I sat down to my torch, pull a few stringers while my kiln heated up, as it was getting close to the right temp I started my first bead. All the sudden, beeeeeeeeeeeeeeep.  The kiln was showing me a HTDe signal. I haven't seen that before, but since my Ipad was right beside me, I looked it up and found out that I needed to test the relays in the controller. Ummmm, ok? I'm lucky enough to have a husband that know about these things. He pulled apart the panel and hooked up the replays to a battery. They seem ok. But we're not convinced they are working fully. So a new relay has been ordered and will hopefully be here in a few days. I am really hoping that's the issue. If not I might have to replace the whole controller which will be a pricy thing.

So, no kiln for a few days. I figure I have a few options to keep my self busy. First off I decided to see what I beads I have sitting around. Maybe I can make something with them! I came across some of the first beads I ever made. What a difference 18 months make. Take a look at the lopsided, pointy holed scummy beads.

I also took a look at my first few pieces of fused glass. Not much better.

I found it motivating and interesting to see how far I've come.  The next few images are some recent beads and fused glass items I've made.

 

This will be a wall hanging after I frame it.

 I'm pretty happy with my progress. Since I've only taken 2 one day classes, I've pretty much self taught.  

I do have quite a few orphan beads ( beads that do not belong with a set) I'm going to see if I can make anything out of some of them today. 

My second idea is to plan and sketch some projects and bead ideas. This may include the need for new glass colours, so I my third plan to keep myself busy this afternoon is to do a bit of online glass shopping. Shhhhhhhh, don't tell my husband!

From art class to glass

Since this is my first blog post I thought I'd tell everyone about how I got started with hot glass. I didn't realize how much I enjoyed art and being creative until high school. During my grade 10 year I was invited to be apart of the first IB ( advanced) art class that my high school would offer. That program introduced me to many different mediums, I tried everything from painting, charcoal, to mono-printing and chalk pastels.  I was very succesful in the art program.
After high school I headed to university where the course load in my first year did not allow for an art course. I still a bit on the side in my room at rez. plus I decorated my room with some of my favourite pieces from high school. In my third year at university  I was happy to realize that I needed a few more fine arts credits and enrolled in a first year art class. This class proved disappointing to me. It focused on realism, which is not my style. If I had not been accepted into the education program my secret back up plan was to try and major in printmaking.
I was lucky enough to land a teaching job right out of school.  The demands of first year teaching made it tough to find time for a hobby other than sleep.  As things settled down I volunteered to do some coaching in my community as sports have also been a big part of who I am.
Introduction to making jewelry happened about two years ago when I received a bigger tax rebate than predicted. I happened to be shopping in Michael's when I was inspired to grab some beads to try and make my own jewelry.
I wanted to expand my skills and found a place in Calgary that offered glass bead making classes. With a bit of encouragement from my husband, I signed up for a class. Let's just way, after that glass, I left with my first torch and lampwork making supplies. I spend as much time at my torch as I could. Learning how to make a round, symmetrical bead is way harder than I thought. Most of my first beads turned out lopsided or in globs.  My first torch was a propane torch, I had to take the tank from the BBQ every time I wanted to bead. I took my first class in September and by December I had ordered a kiln, oxygen concetrator and a better torch. I can now anneal my beads!
A year later I was still loving my new hobby! I was improving and getter more adventurous with my glass work. Now it was time to move on to something a bit newer. Glass fusing. I find fusing a bit easier than lampwork. After you put your pieces together and place them in the kiln, the heat does the rest.  I have now made my first pendants and even a few small dishes that can be used as candle holders or soap dishes.
This new hobby was taking over my basement. My husband decided that my mess needed to be contained. So he started to plan and design our basement to include a beading room. He even started to build it right away. I now have my own little beading space and didn't have to worry about my kitties jumping on my table while my torch was running. My husband has been very helpful with all my glass work, he helps me problem solve and make me feel less guilty when I want to buy new glass or other supplies.
It's only been a few months since I started fusing but again, I am dreaming of bigger and newer projects. I am hoping to get into slumping larger items like platters and bowls. For this I need a bigger kiln. Let's just say I'm waiting impatiently for an email with a quote for delivery....