Gamer + Learning Stained Glass = Epic Project

As you all know, I'm taking stained glass classes.  I love it so far and have a greater appreciation for this glass art.
So my first project turned out pretty good.  Copper foil method koi fish.
Now we're learning about lead came.  Our teacher wanted us to choose our own projects keeping straight lines in mind.  Straight lines... hrm... after brainstorming a bit... what could be more "straight lines" than Tetris?

After deciding on the size and how many squares (don't hate me because it's not 10 across!) I created a grid on my computer.  8 squares across and 12 squares high and each piece is 2in (5cm) square.  I didn't want any two colors touching (one corner doesn't count, lol) and each piece had to be turned at least once.  That's a puzzle all in itself!  The colors are as close to official as I could find where the glass still matched.

Here's my progress so far.  Sorry that it's not the best picture, had to take it with my cell phone camera.

Only some of the rows have been completed so far.  I'll work in it some more this week... I had no idea how time consuming this stuff is.  I'll keep y'all posted!  :)

Who Likes Polka Dots?

I do!  I do!  It was fun creating my first polka dotted sushi plate. 

So what colors would you like to see on my next plate with dots?  I'm taking all suggestions!

My Stained Glass Adventures

Well here's my first stained glass piece completed!

Stained glass is more fun than I thought it would be!  I love cutting and grinding each piece of glass.  Foiling... eh, I don't love that part.  Soldering is actually fun!  I'm not very good at it yet but I will enjoy practicing and getting better.  :)
Traditional stained glass panels aren't really my thing so I'm looking forward to creating some fun and unique pieces... leaning towards 3D style like prisms and stars. 
Our next project will be a leaded panel... I'll keep y'all updated!

Facebook Fan Giveaway Entry Form

Hey all you people out there in Internetland!
My giveaway for facebook fans is officially up and running!

Check my website for your chance to win a pretty awesome looking sushi plate.

Facebook Fan Giveaway Page

Here's the prize for this drawing:

 

When I was making this plate, a tiny piece of green glass stringer wanted to be friends with the plate and got fused onto the edge of the glass.  I could have just melted it down and made something else... but I'm sure someone out there would love to give it a good home.  :)

Facebook Fan Giveaway!

I'll be having random giveaways for my Facebook fans!  Something different each time... could be a necklace, maybe a suncatcher, might be a plate... or something else!


Be a fan and fill out the entry form on the amykglass.com website for each drawing.  One entry per fan each drawing and no duplicate winners in a one year span.  More info and the entry form link will be announced when it's time.  :)
Winners will be announced on the website and on this blog. 


More information to come.. stay tuned!

Help name the latest suncatcher!

Finally got creating this style of suncatcher mastered... now I just need a name!
Help me name this design!

 

  

The blue and white swirls together.. reminds me of a sky.  Looks great in a window (turns lighter blue) and also on a wall.

Searching for great naming ideas for the style, not colors. 

Launching a New Website!

Here it is!

http://www.amykglass.com/

Yes I know some of it is empty... but it's a work in progress and I just had to share with y'all.  :)

I'll have information about my glass, myself and the studio. 
Tips, tutorials and giveaways will be added in the future.
I look forward to sharing!

If you have any suggestions or ideas for the site, please let me know.

Light tables can be expensive... here is a solution.

Transparent glass items can be difficult to photograph... you want to show off how the light shines through it.
A regular photo booth can to some degree but if the item is small it's a challenge, especially if you want to lay it flat.
I was getting frustrated with my dark photos and my friend Lee Black, a great photographer, suggested using my laptop to help shine light through my glass.
So here's what I did and I'm really happy with the results!  I'm sure this could be used for small transparent items that you'd like to shine light through.

What you need:
Camera
Steady hands or tripod
Laptop or flat screen monitor
Tracing Paper
Product

Here's my laptop.

Change the background to white and move any icons out of the way... less is better.

Carefully flip the laptop over so it looks like this... hold onto it if necessary.  Doing this won't hurt anything if you're careful.

Take a single sheet of white tracing or tissue paper and lay it over the monitor screen. 

Have the product that you'd like to take a picture of ready.

Gently place the product on top of the paper.  Take a picture!  DO NOT use the flash.  I like to use a tripod and add 2.5 second exposure... just to let in a touch more light.

Crop and edit your photo... all done!

  

Use this at your own risk... it worked for me so I just wanted to share.

NOT recommended for heavy items... you could damage your monitor screen.

Stained Glass and Lead Poisoning

I had it in my mind for a long time that if I learned stained glass I would be at risk for lead poisoning and get sick.  That mindset kept me from advancing towards learning this art.   I was wrong.
After lots of reading I learned that while stained glass workers do tend to have slightly elevated lead levels in their blood, if I'm careful there shouldn't be any reason why I won't be safe and healthy.

•Touching cold lead does not absorb through your pores.
•Soldering iron does not get lead solder hot enough to create harmful toxic fumes.  (But I'll use a fume trap just to be extra safe.)

Safety:
•Avoid dropping hot solder and have it burn through your skin.
•Avoid eating or having open drink containers in the stained glass work area.
•Wash your hands often and don't touch your face.

I love this article written by Glass Campus please read it!

Stained Glass Lead Poisoning

If I'm careful and treat it like raw meat (avoid touching but when I do, wash hands after) there shouldn't be any lead poisoning in my future.
Good idea to get a blood test each year just to be safe.
Only lead free solder is allowed for items that are near food (napkin holders, etc), jewelry, anything within reach of children, and items being constantly touched (ie: chessboards, etc).

My Stained Glass class starts on February 10th... wish me luck and remember... Safety First!  ^_^

Glass Craft & Bead Expo

I just found out about this event and now I'm very interested in going.
Going to be held in Las Vegas, April 9th-11th.  Classes start on the 7th.
Too bad I didn't know sooner... the classes I'm interested in are already sold out.  :(

Ah well I think that I'd still have a fabulous time at the expo... being able to talk to vendors, look at products, and see shiny new things!  Any opportunity to learn... count me in!

Glass Craft & Bead Expo is the premiere event in the art glass industry.

Oh and to quote Scott... "IT'S VEGAS BABY!!!"

Will Fuse Glass for Pizza!

I'm new to the Etsy community and love it so far!  So many people seem so nice and helpful.
So I decided to join an Etsy Team.  What is a team you ask?  Well an Etsy Team is a collection of artists and crafters who share ideas and help promote each other.
Will Craft for Food is a team for creative people working hard to turn to their art/craft into a primary source of income... and to keep sane and creatively fulfilled. 
Here's the story I shared with the team:
http://willcraftforfood.blogspot.com/2010/02/member-story.html

Check out the blog for some great articles and links to some nice shops. 

Will Craft for Food
  
Thanks!

Taking a Walk on the Cold Side

Stained Glass is considered cold glass.
Fusing Glass is considered warm glass.
Torchwork and Glass Blowing are considered hot glass.

I'm at a crossroads... so I've decided to branch out and take a stained glass class.
Warm glass is awesome and I couldn't imagine my life now without it.  I took a torchworking class (Intro to Boro) at Aquila Glass School.  The class was cool but I think people already working with hot glass would get more out of it than I did. 
Another reason that I'm looking at stained glass is... well many supplies and lots of glass for stained glass came with my studio.  So start up costs would be much lower.
Here's some of what I have to work with:

 

Several packages of copper foil tape (probably expired but stored well), a foiler, many rolls of 50/50 and 60/40 solder, three soldering irons, many boxes of various beveled glass pieces, two wet grinders (not pictured), a band saw, a wire saw (hidden on the left) and lots non-fusible sheet glass.

So I say... why not put all of this to good use?  I was never excited about stained glass before... thoughts of working with lead and hot irons didn't exactly float my boat.  But now the more I look at it... and realize that it can be much more than just making suncatchers and panels... I'm interested for sure!

My classes start on February 10th... I'll keep everyone posted.  :)

Oh and if you work with stained glass, I'll take all the advice I can get!

Having fun with a Wire Glass Melt!

If you could see me now... I have a very big smile on my face!
Took the plunge and decided to do my very first wire melt last night.
This process is melting glass at higher than normal fuse temperatures over stainless steel wire or rods (like I did) to create an awesome color design.
This is a great way to use up past failed experiments (and scraps) to create something beautiful.
Here's what I did:

 

I coated the inside of a 10" unglazed clay flowerpot base with 5 coats of kiln wash.  Topped that with several stainless steel rods (1/8").  Stacked scraps on top of that... colors I thought would look nice together so I chose blue, pink and white.  Wrote up a pot/wire melt schedule and ran that for a day.

And when I looked this morning, here's what I found:

 

I think it looks amazing!  I love how the colors turned out... I'll take a better picture when it's finished cooling... the lighting in my studio isn't the greatest.  There are small bubbles but I can fix that with a regular refiring.  :)

I did learn that any glass stuck to the metal rods will splinter and break off when they're cooling... it doesn't stick to anything or hurt the kiln so clean-up is a breeze.

Knitting for Charity

I've always appreciated knitting/crocheting... always wished that I could do it.  To be honest I've never tried.  When I saw this charity that was asking for 8"x8" knitted/crocheted squares so they could make blankets for children in Africa, I had to pass the info along.

 Knitting for Charity Website

Quoting the website:

"Ronda visited us in 2008. She told us of the scale of the disaster facing so many children in South Africa today who are imperiled by the twin issues of HIV/AIDS and poverty. She explained she often gave out blankets to children as she drove around Johannesburg, and of her frustration; too many children, too few blankets.

Many of these children are orphaned or have been abandoned. Many live in great poverty in shack settlements. Some head up families of their siblings together with other children and some live alone, without shelter, in hills and dumps around the cities."

Oregon Glass Guild - 10th Annual Glass Gallery

I'm very much looking forward to this event... looks like there will be an amazing showing of local glass art.  Free admission too!  Hopefully I'll be able to show my glass at this event someday.  

My Studio Workspace

Busy busy busy!  Here's where I am most of the day, in my lovely basement studio.  I'm just starting out and you could call me a "one (wo)man band".  I do it all and it definitely keeps me busy.  Whew!
Here's the grand tour:

It may look dark and depressing... but it's where I create beautiful glass art.  :)

Splash Suncatchers

Suncatchers can be so fun. The colors really shine when the light passes through them. Guaranteed to cheer up any window!  So I decided to make my own design for awesome color schemes.
Every splash suncatcher is unique... I choose the colors and let the glass almost design it's own shape. If you'd like one of your own, check out my Etsy shop. Send me a message if you'd like one made with your favorite colors!

Pot/Wire Glass Melts

Here's a website showing some very awesome pot/wire melts.
I just love the colors and I have a ton of scraps ready to be melted down! Just ordered some supplies and I'll be waiting anxiously until they arrive.
Here are some examples (not made by me) of pot and wire melts:

Here's a great tutorial about how to make this awesome glass.

It Has Begun!

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who's encouraged me while I've been creating glass. Your inspiration and support means a lot to me.
Today I created my etsy.com account so I can begin selling my glass art.
Looking forward to sharing more about the studio on this blog and don't forget to check out my new shop!
Amy Kirkman Glass Studio
(it's a work in progress so I'll keep ya updated ^_^)

Getting a Reaction

Here's my first time playing with Bullseye Reactive glass. The outcome is awesome and cannot be fully captured with a camera.
I used Bullseye Reactive Iridescent and Light Cyan to create this crackled effect.
Here's some info about reactive glass: Get a Reaction