swirly pendants

I had forgotten to add these photos when I wrote the tutorial earlier! Here I just used one layer of swirls ...

A Whirly Gravity Bead Tutorial

Hey all!

It has been quite some time since I have posted anything, let alone a tutorial. but I have been enjoying making these beads so much, I had to share it with you all!

The time it took me to make one of these beads is roughly about 20 - 30 minutes. They are HUGE! But then I use them in my candle sticks, so that is good, hehehehe. I have used plain old Moretti clear glass (my oxycon seems to be doing the trick, as I could not, for the life of me, use this glass on my Hot Head or while I used tanked oxygen), some white and intense black commercial stringer. I used a 2,5 mm stainless steel mandrel, and tools ... What tools??? OK, I did use the base of a brass press to measure the size of the initial cylinder and I used my trusty old scalpel blade to flatten the added colour a bit.

OK, lets start ... Here is some images of beads that I made for this tutorial. Lots of whirls of colour embedded in the clear glass, the colour seem to float and drift in the glass. I have allowed air bubbles to be trapped in the glass, as I felt that it added a something to the plain design. But that is just me ...

I started off by making a biggish doughnut. I used about 4 thick wraps of glass to create it. I want to press the glass to a width of about 25 mm.

Here I have pressed the doughnut and measured it on my trusty brass press. As mentioned earlier, I aim to get my footpath about 25 mm.

Using the commercial stringer, I add a slightly wobbly line of white on the clear tube. I make sure that the start and finish is slightly 'fuller' loaded with colour. You will later see why it might be a good idea to do that! I do not want the whirls of colour to start at the same place, thus the slightly skew application. The amount of glass that I have loaded on the barrel is quite a lot, and if I encase this, I would create to many air bubbles.

So I heat up the stringer a bit, and flatten the white a bit ...

Then it is time to encase it. I just use an 'around the world' technique, but quite frankly - you could use your favourite one. Just ensure that you have covered the colour band completely. Melt in smoothly, and at the same time start heating up the whole bead on the mandrel. You want this baby to be super hot!

As the glass on the mandrel starts to smooth out, I start turning the mandrel slower, watching for the tsunami wave to start moving on the glass. Here I have allowed the wave to go to the bottom of the bead (damn difficult to turn a mandrel and take a picture!). I aim to keep that pointy bit (the wave) more in a horizontal position). Now I slowly turn the mandrel, keeping my eye on the wave, allowing it to shift as I turn the bead. With the white glass that I added, I need to stop sometimes, allow the glass to cool a bit so I can see how many swirls I have created. Other colours does not do disappearing acts like the white!

Ah, the swirls! Can you see how the thick start and end of the white glass has thinned out? But because of the volume of glass that I loaded, it is still visible.

Now it is time to add the second colour for the swirls. Or, if you want, you can skip this application and add some more clear glass to round out the bead ...

Again I add glass in a slightly skew line. BUT - I add less black glass to the bead, compared to the amount that I loaded with the white.

Encase ... (ensure that all the black is covered)

Melt smooth and allow it to start shifting. Ride dem wave! The black glows nice and orange, showing me how far the glass has moved. Your white lines will move a bit with this, too.

Aha. I have shifted the black so that the centre swirl has passed the 2 outside starting/ending points. I take the bead out of the flame, continuously turning the mandrel, allowing the glass to center itself around the mandrel again.

The bead needs some more glass, so I add a few lines of glass around the center and perimeters.

Melt smooth, and Voila!

Enjoy this fun technique!

Can anyone help me???

Ok, I must admit - I am clueless to we wonders of the web. Google I can do. But how the heck to I add my brand new Etsy shop to the Gadgets (or whatever) here on my blogspot?

Anyone out there who could help me?

thanks in advance ...

some new jewellery

I have not shown any jewellery for some time. I made these pendants last week, and finished the silver work to it last night. I used shards that I blew about 2 years ago, and murrini that I made some time last year. I only got to cut the slices last week!

Purple and blue shards on a purple base. Images shown is of the same bead, different views:

Ivory bead with Silvered Ivory shards and murrini. Different views of the same bead:

Another Ivory with SIS shards and murrini, different views:

Ivory flattened bead with purple murrini twisted:

new furniture in the shop finally!

Here is some images of the shelves in the shop. I like the way our little shop is coming together!

Rooms on View

I have some good news to share!

I have just been asked to submit work for a Decor show. Rooms on View is hosted in Johannesburg, and the designer of the South Africa House saw my work this past weekend. Please visit the site here: http://www.roomsonview.co.za/sahouse.html

I will submit a tea set.

Have a wonderful day everyone!

Decorex Cape Town and new work

I have been quiet for weeks and weeks, I know. But I would like to present the reason:

I was preparing for Decorex Cape Town. Finally it is over. I still have adrenaline cursing through my veins, my sleep pattern is totally out of wack and I have ants in my pants. I have forgotten how to just relax and do nothing for a few minutes.

So what have I been up to these last weeks?

Well, I had to design and build my stand displays, which needed to double up as shop displays. In the shop we have this narrow ledge about flank height, just too narrow to really display an article on it. So I thought if I build a pigeon holed display unit with a wider shelf on top, to cover the ledge, I would be able to hide it, and provide more display space in the shop. Yet I realised that shelves below eye level might not be a good idea for the show. Money (or the lack of it) forced me to stay with my original idea. 3 1 meter wide shelves were cut to size and I set about assembling them. Wood glue and lots of screws later I had 3 units that were sturdy enough to hold my work.

And that was the other reason why I was so quiet. I have been working, working and then some more work. Sleep became a luxury in my life. I gave myself one night off this month - it was on Leo's birthday, and we went to a gallery opening and afterwards some dinner and a game of tenpin bowling. He loved the world map I gifted him, and we had fun. But we were both under work pressure to complete orders (him) and me stock.

I love working in my new ceramic studio, a.k.a. the garage. I must really remember to take a picture of it. At the moment it needs lots of shelves for storage of plaster molds and drying casted clay. A plaster spillage made a beautiful pattern on the floor that needs to be chipped off. My work area is littered with stuff just stacked on top of each other. It is a real mess ...

But, finally I could deliver my work to the venue. Leo helped me to deliver the display units to the venue on Wednesday, and Thursday I delivered the ceramic and glass pieces. The CTICC was busy with last minute construction work, paint and wood smells mixed with the loads of flowers that were used as decoration on most stands. the cost of some of the stands could sustain me for a couple of years and I sometimes felt nauseated by the waste I saw.

Then the show started. A metallic voice announced that Decorex is officially open and trade visitors started to flow through the hall. At the end of the first day my face ached from smiling. Not to mention my feet! High heels and a show is not best friends, especially if you are used to wearing flatties every day normally.

The 5 days melted into a waking up, coffee, getting dressed, driving to the centre. Smile, sell, talk. Smile, sell, talk. Smile, sell, talk. Home, bath, heating left over lunch, bed.

Finally we could take down our stands, and escape the repetition. It was pure bliss to wrap the remaining pieces of ceramics and take them to the shop last night. And then SLEEP!