tools & supplies

23 02, 2015

The suspense is kilning me

2017-10-07T18:08:12-07:00

Apologies for the pun. When it gets that bad, you know the glassist is kilnless. Try saying “glassist is kilnless” five times, very fast. Probably not survivable. Neither, according to my fevered brain, is not having a working kiln in the house. First time in more than 15 years and, naturally, the number of just-gotta-do-it-right-NOW projects has reached an all-time high. [...]

The suspense is kilning me2017-10-07T18:08:12-07:00
20 02, 2015

Color Line Enamel Trials, Round 1

2017-10-07T18:08:12-07:00

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 [...]

Color Line Enamel Trials, Round 12017-10-07T18:08:12-07:00
14 11, 2014

Kilnformer’s murrini you can buy

2017-10-07T18:00:35-07:00

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 [...]

Kilnformer’s murrini you can buy2017-10-07T18:00:35-07:00
27 10, 2014

Plaster mastery

2020-11-26T12:53:53-08:00

In the first article in this series, I discussed why glass casters should build a parts library of mastermolds. In this article (part II), I'll talk about the easiest of mastermold-making techniques: The plaster mold. Silicones, urethanes, and resins--the stuff I make most of my glass casting mastermolds from--can be spendy and hard to find. The moldmaking techniques they require can [...]

Plaster mastery2020-11-26T12:53:53-08:00
5 06, 2014

Waxworx 101a: Selecting waxes

2018-11-29T16:16:50-08:00

Wax ain't just for candles. Surgeons pack bone with it, medievalists seal letters with it, it coats cheeses and shines your car (or your shoes), makes edible Halloween lips and honeycombs and mascara and photocopies and lava lamps and soap and art. It's pretty wonderful stuff and, much as I dislike using it, invaluable in glass casting. HOWEVER...it's daunting, potentially dangerous, and very, very [...]

Waxworx 101a: Selecting waxes2018-11-29T16:16:50-08:00
17 03, 2014

dripping in glass

2021-06-04T15:51:31-07:00

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 [...]

dripping in glass2021-06-04T15:51:31-07:00
3 02, 2014

WaxVac frit-drawing tool

2014-09-14T11:30:36-07:00

WaxVac Hampton Direct $7.99 on Amazon I put earwax vacuums right up there with nosehair clippers and recreational high colonics, so it kinda took me aback when online artist friends said they LOVED theirs. (eeeeeuuuuwwwww) Turns out that if you don't use one for slurping out your ears, it makes a fairly good frit-drawing pen. The one I tried, Hampton [...]

WaxVac frit-drawing tool2014-09-14T11:30:36-07:00
13 02, 2012

Cutting remarks (cutting glass with a tile saw)

2021-05-27T13:38:25-07:00

It's all in the way you slice it. And the way you slice it is, apparently, profoundly affected by a good blade. Check any glassmaker's forum and you'll probably find someone with glass cutting issues, usually stemming from a tile saw that's more like a Cuisinart than a slicer. I don't claim any special expertise at this stuff, but I do have a decades-old, cheap, badly made, out-of-true tilesaw that reliably cuts amazingly thin murrini cane* slices. I do this a lot. So I must be doing something right...right?

Cutting remarks (cutting glass with a tile saw)2021-05-27T13:38:25-07:00
6 12, 2010

The missing link in my studio

2017-10-07T17:58:57-07:00

Thinking of designing a glassmaker's studio? Or remaking the one you already have? Here's a tip: Design your studio for the ENTIRE glass process..which turns out to be a lot more than just the "making" part. If you don't, the day could come when the mess literally locks you out of the studio.

The missing link in my studio2017-10-07T17:58:57-07:00
8 09, 2010

Pop goes da weasel

2017-10-07T17:58:40-07:00

Ever had one of those moments of sheer, utter astonishment, where your mouth drops open all the way down to your ankles and stays there? That was me on Monday, thanks to the artwork pictured above. The rightmost panel quietly separated itself from its hanger and came off in my hands...while I was rehanging it. Since it's been hanging perfectly well on that same wall for more than three years, I was, uhm, kinda taken aback.

Pop goes da weasel2017-10-07T17:58:40-07:00
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