Early Christmas Gifts: New Kilns

When I started fusing, I didn't know whether it would be a viable business for me, so rather than spend $1000 to install 220 voltage for a larger kiln, I went with the largest kiln I could get at 120 voltage.

This has been a great little work horse for me. But now it' time for me upgrade as I'm doing a little more complex work and could use the extra space.  I just happened to be at San Francisco Open Studios at Public Glass and mentioned this to a fellow artist when another artist overheard me.  Long story short, I ended up purchasing two of his kilns!

This first one, almost doubles the amount of glass I can fire in a load.  While I was hoping to get an even larger kiln, I couldn't beat the price.  Here's a sample of what it looks like with coasters:

The second kiln is much smaller and will be used as a vitrograph for making and pulling my own cane glass that I'll cut up and use in future work.  Of course, this means that I'll be taking a class from Bullseye in the near future to learn the technique.  My favorite part of the glasswork is experimenting and planning. So, I have a habit of getting items or taking classes well in advance of when I actually make it.  Most likely, I won't be pulling any cane until 2014 but the kiln was such a good deal that I couldn't pass it up.  Anyway, look for new items from me using this new kiln in 2013.

For other glass enthusiasts, fusers or artists, what are you hoping to get from Santa this year?

What's New: Fused Glass Marquis & Millefiori Earrings

I posted about my new marquis shaped wire wrapped pendants and millefiori pendants.

Well, I decided that it would be nice to have some similar earrings that would coordinate nicely with them. I'm not really a matchy-matchy type person, so the earrings are similar but not exact.  At the same time, I was looking to expand the earring styles I have to include new shaped.  Below are the latest additions to my earring collection:

I like the difference in the two styles and both are post earrings which I find some people look for.  Of course, both are somewhat dangly as that's my preference in earrings.  I would be interested in hearing what you think.

New! Fused Glass Charm Bracelets

Normally, I do most of my creating at the beginning of the year but somehow most of the work has been in the past couple of months.  In my prior post, I showed a picture of a fused glass stretch bracelet.  Here's another type of bracelet: a charm bracelet with fused glass dangles.

The inspiration for this is my charm bracelet watch.  I receive some many compliments on it that I thought about how I could make a charm bracelet using fused glass.  To make this, I first found the relevant components that would work on the bracelet.  Then I measured the size so I could make the right sized glass pieces to fit.  The bracelet that I had pictured in my mind didn't work as well as the gaps between charms were too wide, so I next found beads that would work.  I'm still toying around with the design a little (considering adding a toggle clasp) but overall I'm happy with how it turned out.

Let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions for improvement.

What's New: Fused Glass Stretch Bracelets

I love creating new designs for fused glass and for my jewelry.  I often have a vision for what I want to create although it can take a while before it comes to fruition, especially if I have to create multiple versions.

Below is one of the first of my stretch glass bracelets:

I'm quite happy with how this turned out.  I wanted to create something using transparent glass without any existing jewelry findings.  To make this, I first fused 1" glass bars which contained fiber paper for the holes.  Next, I cut up the bars and tack fused the dichroic design layer to create large glass "beads." Then, I strung the beads together with Swarovski crystal in between so that it bends easier.  The beads also add a nice design element.  I like the chunkiness of how the bracelet turned out.

I've made 4 of these so far and have about 10 more that I'll be stringing in the next day or so.  I'll post again once I've finished.  Let me know what you think.  I don't keep many of my jewelry items for myself but one of these may find its way into my possession :)

What's New: Wire Wrapped Fused Glass Marquis Pendants

Some of you may have seen my wire wrapped dichroic glass hearts, which I've been making for a number of years.

To expand on that idea, I now have wire wrapped marquis shaped pendants.  The process of making them are similar, although I've changed the decorative wire wrapping a little.  The first step is to cut out the marquis shape.  Next, I coldwork the shape to smooth out the edges and grind a channel or grove in the side, which helps the wire stay in place.  The pendant goes back into the kiln to be fire polished.

Once it comes out, I select Swarovski crystal beads that match the colors in the glass and cut square sterling silver wire to use as the wrap.  Here's the first of several that I've made:

I know not everyone is a heart person, so I'm hoping this shape will appeal to those who aren't.  Another new item: sterling silver marquis shaped earrings with fused glass dangles (to come in a later post).  These should go nicely with the pendant.

Another new thing is that I purchased a DSLR camera and macro lens so I can take better pictures of my jewelry.  I've been challenged with getting the colors of the dichroic glass and I'm happy with how these pictures turned out...so look forward to more jewelry posts to come in the future.  Taking photos has been one of the things I least enjoy but with my new camera, I'm beginning to have a little fun.  I'd be interested in your thoughts on the photos and pendant, of course!