Here was an attempt to weave together metal (copper wire) with glass in a “warm glass” kind of way. The stuff that looks like paper is a form of glass, too. Glass powder glued on to a particular kind of paper. It’s… odd stuff. I’m not sure how to use it to get any result that I like just yet. I’m not sure where my pictures of these *after* fusing have disappeared to…. they weren’t that impressive anyway.

The big glob on the right is intended to be sliced apart and rearranged, too.  Someday.

gratuitous kitten shot

Kitten is not pleased that the string stopped moving.  what do you mean, you needed to take a picture.  Keep the string *moving*!

(He’s still alive despite that horrible terrible awful cold that some of you heard about.  Been off of antibiotics for a week now, but is still having some weird breathing noises start up now and then… sigh….  but he IS full of spit and vinegar again, which is a relief!)

Nightlights – abstract stained glass for Jennifer

Lessons learned:

  1. I forget how much i enjoy stained glass.  (You’d think I’d use this knowledge to get moving on those 4 window panels for my kitchen cabinets – eh?  nope.)
  2. Better planning needed, next time, for where that nightlight bracket lands.  Aim for a seam next time.

Nightlights – fused owl for Lara

Another very late Xmas gift….

After the first firing, both nightlights were flat.  I kept the abstract one flat,
but wanted to try making the owl light curved.
Curved owl light in the dark.

Daytime view of the curved owl nightlight.

As always, more lessons learned:

  1. First attempt at curving the panel was on a metal dish of unknown origin…. stainless steel is OK, but this one was not guaranteed steel…. and i ended up freaking myself out thinking of all the awful chemicals i might be unleashing on my house and stopped that firing.  Next time, no messing around like that.
  2. If using a ceramic (unglazed) bowl…. ventilation is key.  (I broke that bowl in half — but it worked anyway!!)
  3. This nightlight, so far, seems to be of a more decent weight for the glue I used.  I’ve not heard of this one falling apart just yet….

Nightlights – abstract fused glass for Linz

A very late Xmas project ….

Two nightlights fit on one shelf for firing.  The one in the back is the one pictured here.

Here’s what it looks like (kind of) when it’s turned on
And here’s what it looks like in broad daylight.

Lessons learned?
  1. Three layers at this size (roughly 4″ x 6″)  is too heavy for the first kind of glue I used :/  Linz reports that it fell off of the nightlight bracket in less than a week :/
  2. It’s harder to take accurate “in the dark” pictures than I imagined
  3. I still like fused glass with that extra layer of clear on the top (to make it look deep or submerged) a lot.

Exciting things in my basement….

  • Envirotex Lite (what’s the difference between regular & lite? idk! but I’m going to find out!
  • Roving + two felting needles….
  • Many, many half-finished metal curiosities!
  • A dozen+ landscape paintings that will get MONSTERS painted into them in January!
  • A piano waiting to be disassembled into many different pieces for different uses…. i forsee a bench, some jewelry, and some sculptures coming out of this 😀
  • Generally organized chaos!!!!!