Some people dream of finding the right lover. I dream of finding the right bathroom. So when, after spending months in a construction zone, I got to shower in my brand new bathroom for my birthday, well...it was a glorious day. It really was a birthday present. Nathan-the-resident-carpenter dropped everything to ensure that, on my natal day, plumbing was working [...]
Hypothesis: A glass framework stabilizes a tack-fused stringer construction, requiring fewer stringers (and likely fewer firings). Background: I'm having a fair amount of success with tack-fused stringer projects that build on a glass support structure. Since the support framework is tedious to construct, I'm wondering if it's really contributing enough to be worth doing. Test: Make a stringer vessel without [...]
Thickness isn't the only consideration when engineering a project in kilnformed (fused) glass. The shape of the object can be important, too. If you're making a long, thin panel that's rather thick, such as the transom window I recently made for my parents' bathroom, you'll need to understand how the glass moves and responds throughout the firing cycle. I don't [...]
People who salvage old glass for kilnforming frequently tell you to avoid tempered glass like the plague because: It's impossible to cut or break (unless you don't want it to break and then it explodes all over you like a bad Clive Barker movie) It's dangerous; tap it in the wrong spot and--blammo!--here comes good ol' Clive [...]
Remember that Color Line enamel glass paint that I beta-tested for Bullseye awhile back? This, apparently, is what Color Line can do in the hands of someone who knows how to use it. (IOW, someone other than yours truly) Here's the story on that: Last weekend my friend Carla and I hit up the Oregon Glass Guild's Open Studios tour, [...]
I know I've promised a bunch of you that I'd deliver a compilation of knee replacement surgery information and I WILL PUBLISH THAT SOON. Promise. It's just that I'm having a little trouble developing a new template that doesn't take 9 gazillion years to edit and maintain. Thanks for your patience because I'm swiftly running out of mine. Whoever thought shortcodes [...]
Glassists testing products would do well to remember this maxim: Failure is good. Each failure deepens your subject matter expertise. Sigh. When it comes to enamels-on-glass, my subject matter expertise must be about as deep as the Mariana trench. Bullseye Glass kindly included me in their beta trials of a new (for them) product line: Color Line Enamels. Right about now I'll bet they're wishing they [...]
Imagine someone gives you eight 10×10-inch sheets of 3mm fusible glass and four bottles of glass enamel paint in the above colors and says, “Make something with this stuff. Let us know how you get on.” What would you do? I guess we’ll find out, ’cause Bullseye just did that with me. By the way…my first, get-comfortable-with-enamels testing results are posted. [...]
Note: This post was originally published on January 20, 2011. Since then, some of these offerings have changed, and more murrini makers are offering kilnformer supplies, so I thought this needed an update. I've been exploring all the different ways to make murrini cane in a kiln, and having a lot of fun with it. Check out some of these [...]
Several of y’all have asked me to explain how to use stainless steel rod to create custom dripping platforms for potmelts and such, so I thought I’d oblige…let me know if you have any questions. Glassists are also scavengers–our favorite stores are Harbor Freight and Goodwill–because we’re always looking for cool stuff to use in a kiln. And the most [...]
