Lumps of Glass

[DONOTDELETE]

I've been off the torch for a while, and this always happens. When I've been away for a bit I come up with briliant ideas for new beads, then I sit down after a long break and try to make one of these new thingies. I am carrying two lumps of perfectly annealed glass around in my pocket today to remind me of the folly of long torch absences. Both were new techniques and I suppose both could be called beads, but GACK!, what miserable beads.

I am going to try again tonight, correcting my stupid mistakes, and trying not to shatter too much glass by not paying attention to what is happening at the other end of the mandrel. This is a "skill" slump, not an "artistic" slump. I have plenty of great ideas, but unfortunately they exceed my skill to implement at the moment. Rats!

Vince

[LouisCamp]

Hi Vince;

I hear ya....to much other stuff going on. Guess I can alway sell my marbles as buttons.....


Lou

[Mag_Alef]

Yup, Vince, I know what you mean. It's like riding a bike...you never forget how to do it, but that doesn't mean your hiney and legs won't be sore after a long hiatus from it!

Mags

[MikeAurelius]

Don't feel too bad Vince, yesterday was my first day back at the torch in over a month! And the first thing I did was melt a mandrel!

[b2beads]

A month without torching??? Say it isn't so! B2 [/color]

[Stacylynne]

Vince I still have not been able to get set up and am almost feeling kind of nervous about geting back on the torch, For some reason I have a fear that I wont be able to create anything but crapy beads, Im itching to get back at it......Stacylynne [/color] [/color]

[DONOTDELETE]

I just took my torch and glass camping with me, to allow my sister and a friend of hers who works at the lodge to try it. Lots O lumps!

The main problem I was having was unfortunately with my bead release - I'm getting down to the bottom of the bottle, and have diluted it too far, so it kept cracking after about three wraps on the mandrel. Of course, the wind and cool air temperature didn't help at all in that respect.

I made: three MUCH smaller beads than I usually do, one of which is still stuck on a mandrel.

My sister made: a lovely multi-colour lumpy thing with a pulled-loop (pretty darn good for her very first time, actually, and in windy, buggy conditions).

Roxy made: a surprisingly subtle coloured smooth thing (surprise was that the colours looked waaay wild when hot, and then cooled to almost disappear together) (smooth because she finally got frustrated after holding it in the torch for 20 min to even it out, and handed it over to me to finish) with a poked-hole (took me WAAAAy too long to manage that with the cold air, too..) and I think she's hooked and will be ordering a beginner's kit. My sister wasn't impressed enough to get into it herself. Ah well!

Lovely forum, BTW.. I find it easier to read, and I've been DYING for the discussion catagories! (could there be a "show and tell" one, as well as a "personal greetings")

X.