Finished Slumped Fused Scrap Glass

Well here is the finished product of my patchwork 8” square slumped dish. This was created by making part sheets with glass powders sifted over stencils and found objects. The individual pieces are full fused then cut up and arranged to fit the square dish mold and then slumped. The designed part sheets are only one layer of 3mm glass, either clear or white opal. There is some waste as you have to trim off the edges of the part sheets where they shrink in and get a bit thicker then the center. Its not completely a waste as you can make frit or use pieces for jewelry etc.

Here is one more piece I recently completed. This bowl utilized a lot of scrap clear glass left over from cutting out large clear circles. The base piece was an opal piece of gray glass. Next I cut up the scrap clear glass into random sized pieces. Next I shifted Light Cyan 216 bulleye powder over the base gray piece and gently placed the clear scraps all over the powder layer. I made one slight mistake when putting this together. I picked up all the clear scrap pieces and set them in the bowl mold. Unknowingly the pieces got contaminated with kiln wash powder left on the mold.....darn. Won’t do that again. So when it was full fused some of the kiln powder showed up in the clear spaces between the layers of glass. Not all but some. I liked the piece so thought hard.....what can i do to save it? I got out my ColorLine paints and carefully added white to the most noticable areas where the kiln powder showed up. I also added some of the cyan glass powder to other areas less noticable and did a second full fuse. Turned out very acceptable and it turned out to be a more interesting piece. Sometimes glass is more forgiving than you think, so don’t give up to soon if something goes wrong.

Both of these pieces are good examples of designing with scrap glass. I dont have a lot of room for storing a lot of scrap so I try to use it up as it accumulates. Sometimes it gets your creative juices going figuring out ....”what can I do with those scraps”.

Crackle technique and Glass Wafers

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. I was excited to get back to glass fusing after all the cooking and house cleaning. I just recently bought 2 new ebooks. One is Lena Beckeus’ Fusing Techniques with Powder and Fiber Paper. The other one is INTRODUCTION TO KILNFORMED GLASS POWDERS Basic Crackle Texture, Micro and Backed Wafers by Bob Leatherbarrow. Im just starting to experiment with some of the techniques in these books. The photos above are my first attemp at the basic crackle technique. I used two colors, Olive Green and Woodland Brown for my powder layers. This was done on clear 3mm glass. One layer only of glass. After layering 3 layers of powder and spritzing with water I carefully placed a stencil on top and sifted woodland brown to create the pattern of squares. After full fusing it was slumped into a small sushi plate. I was quite happy with first attempt and am excited to do more.

The next set of photos was a piece I did before Thanksgiving. I wasnt to happy with it so decided to keep working on it. The border was just the dark green sponged on with enamal paint which I didn’t care for and the center had a small dark green square that I also didn’t like. So I sponged on the yellow paint on the top giving the border depth of layers. Then I had made some glass wafers by fusing glass powder directly on a kiln shelf as instructed in Leatherborrow’s book. I used a circle whole punch to make a circle stencil and sifted yellow and white powders and fused. I then decided to try placing the wafer over the center area I did not like. I thought it still needed some green in the center to repeat the green somewhere else. I used my enamal paints on top of the wafer. I wish I would have also used some of the yellow paint in the center too. I full fused this piece a second time. The wafer fused in nicely but has a slightly rougher texture when you run your hand across it. Its probably from the kiln paper powder that remained on that side when I flipped it over. Next time I will carefully place the wafer in water to remove all the excess powder and let dry before using it on a project. But overall I am very excited about these two techniques and am looking forward to improving my use of them.

Right now I have a piece in the works using up some part sheets I made awhile back. I cut off the thick edges and chopped them up into usable pieces to make a patch work piece. Some pieces have transprent backgrounds and some opal. I’m going to place them on a darker green opal base piece. Here is a photo of just the rough pieces layed out. My next blog will show results.

• HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
  

Fused Glass Deep Bowl

Soooo happy to be back blogging again. After the last ios upgrade the blogging app I use would not work. Waited a long time for them to upgrade the app. It finally updated yesterday, Yah.

So to get back into it I’m going to talk about this fused glass bowl. I wanted to do a coral bowl but one that would be usuable, not open and full of holes. This worked ok but not the look i wanted. I full fused the red and clear base together. Instead I should have fused the red strips alone on kiln paper to get the more rounded holes then put it on the clear base and fuse a second time. Oh well next time.

Also I had to slump it twice because it slumped unevenly and not all the way to the bottom. I had to slow down the ramp time and increase the hold time a bit. It reslumped just fine and is very even now. This bowl is 10” by 2.5 deep. This is the first time I have slumped in this mold. Another thing, the mold did not have a hole in the bottom to allow air to escape, so before the second firing I drilled a 1/16” hole into the bottom. I also learned the clear rim is hazy because it was slumped to fast in the first slumping. This tends to happen most often with the clear teka glass not with the opaque glass. So take it slow when slumping clear Teka.

Recent Paintings

Near the St. Joe river, Idaho....16x20 acrylic on Gessobord

Finally posting again. Sorry about the delay. I have been gone on another 3 month rv trip and just got back last week. The painting above was done in Idaho along the St. Joe River. It was a beautiful area although the sky was pretty smokey most of the time. There were these beautiful yellow wild flowers everywhere. Couldnt resist this view right next to our motorhome. I started this painting out doors and finished it in the rv.

The next painting of another bunch of yellow wild flowers was painted in Indiana. These were more daisy like flowers. We saw them through many of the mid western states. I painted this in the rv very loosely, almost abstractly.

Indiana Wildflowers....11x15 acrylic on watercolor paper

The bottom painting was done in my studio right after arriving home. This was inspired by the yellow birch trees I saw on the way up to Pikes Peak in Colorado. The sun was dancing on the yellow leaves as we rode the cog train up to the peak. I hadnt realized I was on a yellow streak with these three paintings until I posted them on this blog.

Pikes Peak Birch Trees.......15x22 acrylic on watercolor paper

I am going to be home until January and then off to Phoenix for 3 months. Hopefully ill get a lot of painting and fused glass projects done while I am there.

Digital Art

When you don't have access to real paints try using painting apps. I have an ipad pro and find painting on it very gratifying and useful for doing thumbnails and practicing. Adobe sketch has one of the best watercolor effects as far as creating a wet flowing realistic look. It also has layers so experimenting without worry is possible. Auryn Ink is also a good watercolor app. It does not have as much control or I should say as easily controlled painting system, but that is for you to judge. The still life above was done with Adobe Sketch and the one below was done with the Auryn app after creating a black and white line art in another app. I brought that image into Auryn and then painted on top of it. Give them a try

Photos for Reference Material

We are traveling in our motorhome on our summer trip so my glass fusing has stopped for awhile. I did not bring the kiln on this trip. So I am back to doing art on my ipad and eventually doing some painting. I have been taking many photos and would just like to show you how I use photo apps to make them better for painting references. There is an app called Pixlr that is great for adjusting your photos and changing colors to make a more interesting painting. I also use an app called Retouch for removing items from my photos I dont like, such as the paddle boat. As you can see the top photo is the original in all its local color glory and the bottom photo is the one I adjusted with the two apps I suggested. The bottom photo now looks like a reference ready to paint. Almost looks like a watercolor as is. Try using some of the free apps available. They are very useful and will help you to get away from painting local colors you see in your photos and help you to experiment with more exciting color choices.

Using Up Scrap Glass

I needed to use up some scrap glass. I dont have room to let it pile up. The piece above is just one layer of clear that I sifted tangerine powder over a stencil to create the design. It can be cut up or incorporated into a collage of other pieces of glass. It may be the starting point of a new project.

This second piece is about 6x7. It too started as a clear piece of glass that I sifted a heavy layer of brown powder evenly all over. Then I placed some scraps of opal greens and reds and various transparent yellows on and full fused. When full fused it came out to nearly 6mm thick so I think I may clean up the corners and slump it. We'll see.

The Results

Here are the results of the projects I posted earlier today. Not masterpieces but a learning process toward materpieces.

This came out of the kiln pretty much looking the way it went in. It fired well at my fast rate in the fiber kiln with no bubbles. The blue color was my Color Line enamels from Bulleye. It worked equally as well as the GLASS LINE paints.

Now this one came out of the kiln a bit different then expected. When I back painted around the leaf pattern I did not realize the paint would be affected by the paint under it. It turned the aqua color much much darker so there was not the contrast I was hoping for. It is acceptable but not what I wanted.

I will keep posting more projects of this nature. I am waiting for some Papyros kiln paper which is sturdier for doing more of a watercolor effect .

This piece was pretty much as expected. Not perfect but has its merits. This was aloe vera paint made with glass powders and the aloe gel. I painted lines from a squeeze bottle and then combed thru the wet paint to make the pattern. There is also some french vanilla used on the 4 bolder stripes. This piece did not involve using the kiln paper between glass layers.

Experimenting Again with Fused Glass

Thanks to Tanya at AAEGlass I am experimenting again. I bought a $20 video she called "Lithograph in Glass". It is well worth the money and opens up all kinds of ideas for me and hopfully for you. Because I only have thin fire right now that is what I'm using. From her video I learned you can fire kiln paper between glass if you leave a 1/4 inch border between the paper and the glass edges so that the glass totally encloses the paper and none of the paper sticks out around the edges. After you cut the paper to size you can paint on it with your enamal paints. Dont water the paints down too much or the thin fire may deteriorate. On some of my glass trials I used an opaque glass as the base. If you want to use clear glass you'll see the back of the kiln paper on the back and I dont know if the logo pattern will burn off or not so either use opaque base glass or paint the back side of the paper also with any color or design you may like.

These pieces were just quick samples to see if it worked or not and if I could use the fast firing schedule for the Bonnie Glo Kiln. They are not works of art but I found out what I needed to know from doing these pieces. Now they can be slumped into small sushi style plates.

this piece was painted with 3 colors on the paper then the black line art was done on the top clear glass.

This piece has all the paint on the kiln paper with clear glass on top.

Two more pieces with the leaves are in the kiln now. This is almost like journaling or scrapbooking with fused glass. I used a paper punch to punch holes out of kiln paper that was either left white or painted a color. Also used layers of Glass Line paints on the paper. One I back painted around the leaves with the aqua color and the other one I cut out a second layer of paper leaves and also used pinking shears to trim the edge. Cant wait to see them fused tonight.

There are many ways to use the painted kiln paper. You can cut it up into shapes or paper punch shapes. You could stencil or rubber stamp on it. Or you could just paint a painting on it. You could also silk screen on to the paper. Lots of things to try. I do recommend buying the video mentioned above. It has some great ideas.

I had some glass scraps left over with some impressions I took from left over paints on glass. After the paints were dry I cut up the glass into pendant size and used it as a cap. I took a white piece of opal glass and sifted a solid color of powder over it then placed the cap with the color line paints on top of that and fired along with the first samples above. Each piece I used a differed color of powder for the base. I was quite happy with the look. I made four different colors of these.

The piece below was just a spur of the moment piece to help fill up the kiln. I had some scraps laying on the table and decided to try something. This is how you learn. I mixed up some brown powder with aloe vera gel to a peanut butter consistency. I spread it evenly across some clear glass with a spatula then placed scraps of glass on top and pushed them lightly into the thick paint layer. Then I scattered some scrap red frit over all and brushed it off the big pieces of glass. It will be next inline for the kiln. Its a good thing I dont have a big kiln because I would have glass pieces stacking up all over the place.

One more not so good trial piece. But we'll see when its fired. The piece below is Aloe Vera and powders mixed in squeeze bottles. After squeezing lines of color on clear glass I combed thru it with a tool to create the pattern. I let it dry overnight and placed it on another piece of clear Tekta. It is also in the kiln right now.

So stay tuned for the results in the morning. Can't wait!

Fused Glass and Stencils

Stenciling on fused glass is easy and fun. With this piece I used white opal glass for the base. Next I used the bird stencil and taped it down. I painted aloe vera gel gently across the stencil onto the glass letting some of the gel go beyond the cutout onto the stencil. Then I sifted black powder evenly over the image area. Then I gently lifted off the stencil and shook off the loose powder onto a paper and poured it back into the jar and washed off the stencil. I cleaned up any areas of the design that needed it with a small brush. I fired this single layer at 1450.

On the top layer of tekta clear glass I used another pattern stencil. Again I taped it down but this time I mixed the powder and gel together to make a paste about the thickness of creamy peanut butter. I used a palette knife and squeeged the mixture across the stencil making sure all the areas were filled and smooth across the stencil. For this step I used woodland brown glass powder. After firing I was surprised the powder was much lighter brown than I anticipated, but I find it acceptable.

While the base glass with the bird was firing I prepared the top clear pattern and it had time to dry. When the base piece was done firing and cooling I placed the top piece on and full fused at 1500. This is what you see in the photo. Next it will be slumped into an 8" square plate.

Fused Glass Fish Platter or Art Panel

Yesterdays project was to use up some scrap glass from my scrap bin. This fish is what i came up with. I fused it at 1375 to retain some dimension. I like it this way for an art display piece but probably would fuse it full fuse for a platter. Hard to decide on which one to do.

This was from the day before the fish. This is another 6x6 piece painted with Color Line Enamels. It took 2 fusings to get the artwork the way I wanted it. Now one more firing to slump into a square dish. It will be food safe and 100% glass.

An update......This is the piece after slumping.

Fused Glass Enameled Painting

This is my newest project. A scene from the "Valley of the Fire" Nevada. The photo above shows the steps I have taken so far to create this painting in fused glass. It is in the kiln right now for its third firiing after the third layer of color was applied. Tomorrow I will update this post with the results.

Here it is....out of the kiln and I think its done. Have to take a second look at it in the morning.

More Comparisons

Repainted and fused version.

Original full fused version.

This was the second test piece that I decided to try adding color to the back side. I painted the clear areas with ColorLine paints and then sifted glass powder over the whole thing. I sprayed with hair spray and dried it in the household oven and refired in the kiln. I fired it bottom side down with the new color so the top would stay shiny.

Fused Glass Comparison

Well I added more color using ColorLine paints. I'm still not happy with it. The bird is ok but the branch is a bit distracting. Should have left it alone. Now all i can do is paint over it with a lighter color and refire again. The leaves could use another layer of paint in the lower right corner. The bubble in the top right corner that I drilled out did smooth out and fill in but it still left a circle shape in the design. Its is more acceptable now. I may fix the branch and leaves and fire one more time then slump into a 6x6 sushi dish.

Here is the piece fired the third time. The colors are much better and the branch and leaves have more interest. I still plan on slumping into a sushi plate. This photo was taken at night with lights on so colors are more vivid.

It has been slumped now and I am glad I made it into a dish. It has even more character now.

Glass Fusing Gone Wrong or Not?

This top photo was a real surprise when I opened up the kiln. The objective of this test was to create clear holes that see through to the base layer. I used aloe vera gel and glass powder to create the design on the base layer and added a big piece of clear ice frit under the area where the see thru was. I oven dried the aloe paints in my home oven at 225 degrees. Next I created the top layer by sifting black powder and lifting out the see through circles. I added a bit of brown powder around each hole. Next I placed a large piece of clear glass frit at each corner between the layers hoping to allow bubbles to escape during the full fuse.

I use the Bonnie Glo fiber kiln in which you can fire at faster schedules if you want to, with good success. So I used the medium fast schedule they provide. In my previous project using aloe vera paint I prefused it first then added more paint on top and added a base second layer of glass and full fused again. In this project, not thinking well, I fused all the layers at the same time. MISTAKE! You can see this test was supposed to be a 4.5x4.5 square piece but the bottom layer cracked and spread apart. Dah! I think the aloe vera gel gases had no where to escape to even though I put large frit in the corners to seperate the layers to create an escape. I am figuring that the fast ramp did not give it enough time for the escape of the gases so the photo is what I ended up with.

Just to not give up on the piece of glass I am adding some paint and powder to the bottom side and am going to fuse it one more time. I may be able to cut it up and use it for jewelry or add it into another arty collage fused glass piece. I am also going to try the experiment again firing the two pieces seperatly before full fusing them together. I am intrigued by the idea of seeing through the holes to something below on the base layer so stay tuned for that in the future..

This next piece with the bird also had some problems. It was fired along with the piece above. I also put large clear frit pieces in the corners to allow bubles to escape but again one of the corners turned into a large bubble. I have read you can drill a hole in the bubble and refuse the piece and the air should escape. We shall see if that works after a second firing. Also not thinking, the leaves of the branch were put on as light green powder using a stencil but after firing they disappeared because I decided to use the streaked green base glass. So now I have painted over them with the colorline paints. The bird came out interesting in that I used blue powder with some french vanilla powder sifted in areas over the blue. When fired I had forgotten that the blue and the vanilla would have a reaction and thus created some brown areas. I really liked the effect it created. I will remember this effect for future projects. I added some more blue paint and brighter yellow on the beak and legs, and will fire again today. Also before the first firing yesterday I lightly sprayed the piece with White Rain Hairspray to keep the powder in place. But the spray comes out of the bottle in little uneven droplets and I think some of the texture in the bird was created by that. But again I like that texture. Stay tuned for the second firing results. Happy Fusing!

Fused Glass Painting

This is Mount Shasta in Late summer at sunset. It is 6x12 100% fused glass. It was painted in 2 layers and fired twice. I was quite happy with the painterly effects. It fits into a metal stand for display. Email me at lpcolor@sbcglobal.net for price and purchasing info.

Another Desert Painting

This is also White Tank near Phoenix Arizona. Does this make you want to take a hike? This is a 16x20 acrylic on gessobord. The rocks are my center of interest but then i want you to slowly continue you journey through the rest of the scene.

To purchase anything on this blog please email me for price and info at lpcolor@sbcglobal.net

More Hand Painted Fused Glass Pendants

More hand painted pendants fused and ready to wear. Designs are permanently fused glass with a southwest influence. These can be purchased as well as the Pickleball pendants posted earlier, by emailing me at lpcolor@sbcglobal.net. I will quote you a price as well as how long to receive them. These are available now but others will have to be made for future orders.

Acrylic Paintings

Back to painting again. I love willow trees and saw many on our trip to Canada. I was in my kayak and had to paddle underneath this one. I thought it would be a challenge to paint and feature the light and shade it created. This is 16x20 acrylic on Gessobord.

I am presently working on this desert scene of White Tank Park in Arizona. This is the beginning stages. I used quinacridone magenta for my underpainting. I'm working from a photo I took in the middle of the day which lacked light and color. I decided to make it more of a dramatic sunset time of day.

I decided to add the saguaro cactus in the foreground from another photo. It helps to add a better focus area.

The photo above is the next days work. The values in the foreground are still not right. The ground needs to be much lighter heading in towards the cactus. My next painting session will be adjusting values and highlighting certain areas around the focus area. I will update this post when the painting is finished.

Here is the next step of the painting. Close to the end. Need to look at it for a week and see if it needs any changes.