My first pictures of glass on Warm Glass... eek!

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froggee501
Posts: 43
Joined: Thu Feb 26, 2004 6:45 pm
Location: Portamazoo, MI

My first pictures of glass on Warm Glass... eek!

Post by froggee501 »

I almost feel embarressed to post this piece up, having seen complex and multi-faceted work coming from everyone on here, but hey, I've just started...

I have quilting in my background... when we lived in the U.P., my mom would constantly enter quilt shows and win first place, and we used to have a quilt that some great-great-relative made, absolutely gorgeous. However, I've absolutely no patience for that sort of stuff, despite my love for the quilted patterns. I have, however, always been meticulous in my artwork, expecting perfection and detail. I'm definately seeing this come to the forefront of my fused work, as I'm playing with different quilting designs.

We have a wedding next weekend to attend, as a "relative" (or something) is getting married. Eager to contribute myself, and to prove my work as more than a hobby to my parents (didn't work :( ) I decided to make a candle holder. I'd never slumped before, but considered that a minor detail. As we were in Meijers, I got some candles, then set to work once back at home.

I used white for a base, aventurine green and two shades of blue for the "quilt", and clear for a cap. If I were to do this again, I would eliminate either the base or the cap, as slump was not very defined on the top, probably due to the thickness of the piece. It is 3" by 3", and the individual squares used within are 3/4" squared. This piece went through the kiln 3 times.

Geocities doesn't host for other sites, so I'm afraid you'll have to follow a link, but I'm sure it should work:
http://www.geocities.com/red_tomato501/ondisplay

Any comments and critique are welcome... particularly any words of wisdom about how to not get bubbles in the middle beyond grinding even further.

Emma
Lynn g
Posts: 91
Joined: Sun Nov 02, 2003 1:36 am
Location: Clovis, CA

Post by Lynn g »

Emma,

I like your idea: I also do not have the patience for sewing of any kind (I throw scissors!) but love quilt patterns. I agree, the 3 layer thickness would be difficult to slump much in that small a piece. Go for bigger next time, and review the tutorial on this site about reducing the bubbles. You might also try for a sleeker, solid-color, more elegant candle...one with embedded flowers would be really nice for a wedding gift (that comment was inspired by your photo, by the way!) A larger holder might give you more options as far as candle choice goes.

Keep up the good work!
Lynn g
"Patriotism is not enough, I must have no hatred or bitterness towards anyone." - Dame Edith Cavell
Debinsandiego
Posts: 41
Joined: Mon May 19, 2003 6:47 pm

Post by Debinsandiego »

froggee501,

Very nice piece. I like your color choice!

I'm not sure, but I would try to skip the bottom layer of white. Did I read that correctly, you have a layer of white under there? Try skipping that and have your pattern on the bottom, then cap with clear. Heat slowly to squeeze the bubbles out.

Very nice work. I predict more coming!! Yeah !! :D
Deborah
froggee501
Posts: 43
Joined: Thu Feb 26, 2004 6:45 pm
Location: Portamazoo, MI

Post by froggee501 »

Thank you both of you for replying! I must admit that I've been holding my breath...

Lynn- Trust me, I would LOVE to go bigger, but about as large as I can safely go in my kiln is 4" by 4", as it's just a little bead annealer. No chance of getting a bigger kiln at the moment, either. I haven't found any 4" by 4" molds around here, 3" is the largest I've found. :( I'll have to look for the tutorial, I don't remember seeing it before. I was looking for a more elegant candle, but LOVED how these smell... they smell like the ocean (well, as much as candles can...). And aren't those flowers just gorgeous? They are cherry blossoms from our cherry tree... I'm hoping that it will bear fruit before I leave for the summer, but I don't think it will be that fast. Gorgeous, though.

Deb - I love the colors too! Blue and other cool colors are practically the only colors I have right now in fusible glass... I'll definately try it without the white next time, see how that turns out. I'm not sure if I can heat much slower though... I have an infinate switch, can't get a digital controller, and it wants to shoot straight from 0 to 500 in 20 minutes... If I need to ramp up slowly, I end up heating it with the lid off! Anyway, thanks for the compliment, and I'll try to make your prediction come true! :)
Dave Pascoe
Posts: 46
Joined: Sun Mar 23, 2003 8:48 pm
Location: Cornwall,UK
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Post by Dave Pascoe »

Hi froggee,

You can find small candle holder/dish molds at http://www.bohle.de

They do a good selection. I`m sure you can find the same molds where you live.

I liked the design and colours in your piece, keep going!!!!!!!!!

Dave..
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