October 2018

Beautiful fall day.
Enjoying the mild weather.
Spending some time outside.

~Julie

New Jaws Project

The weather here has been really nice and allowed me to finish up the outside projects before the real cold and snow hits. I do love to take walks with the sun shining and the leaves crunching under foot.

I used the Patty Gray Jaws technique to create a project. Partly to refresh my memory of the process and partly to use up some scrap glass.

I have a 8" Patty Gray dam that I can use and if I use this dam I will be able to slump it because I also have a slump mold that will fit the 8" dam project.

I started with a clear base with two layers of black glass for the sides.

I then started adding yellow, red and clear scrap.

Here is the jaws scrap glass before fusing.

Here is the project prior to fusing it.

Here is the project just after fusing - still in the kiln.

Here is the finished project in a sunny window. 

The center section (jaws) really pops with the black sides.

Love this technique and the project.

~Julie

New Work

This past summer I was able to retire.

Yes. I retired from my day job.

It seems impossible that I could be entering this new stage of life, but I am very much looking forward to spending more time with glass. Last spring I signed up for a few glass classes in Madison, WI during August that would get me back into fusing and slumping. The classes worked. I hope to showcase a few new projects in the coming weeks/months that show off my new skills.

This piece is a favorite of mine from the class. It was a new technique for me using a new mold. This class was taught by Patty Gray and the mold we used for this technique was a 12" Round Patty Gray Dam Mold. The technique is called 'Jaws'. Until this class I had only used dam molds limitedly. I only own a small one.

 I started with a clear bottom layer and then the top two layers were circles with a center portion removed.
Three layers.

I used scrap glass to cut triangular pieces from various colored glass.

All the various triangular glass pieces were then put into the gap in the circle.

The project was then full fused.

I love how it turned out and need to find just the right mold to slump it. I'm thinking a mold that will give it a gentle rounding or curve. I will post again once I have it slumped.

~Julie

Spoons - 

                           I have a new mold. 

I have a new mold that will slump spoons. 

I'm trying to up my game by creating spoons that match my bowls. 

View of the kiln: Fused glass ready to slump into the molds.

Recycled glass with enamel dots.

Spoon and bowl made from recycled glass with enamel dots.

This spoon and bowl have cobalt blue enamel dots.
Enamel allows many color options with recycle glass.


~ Julz

Glass, glass, glass

 Posting again.

Recording progress, projects, and documenting so that I don't forget. 

Here I go. . . 

Mosaics. A way to use some scraps. And sometimes just make small pieces of glass into great designs.

~ Julz

More recycled glass with emamel color

Window glass turns a fine ice-blue color after being fired in the kiln.

I love the ice-blue color, 

but adding a bit of enamel can bring a new dimension to my glass pieces.

I ordered a sample selection of enamels from Thompson Enamel 

and have loved experimenting with the opaque and transparent colors.

Pre-fired glass blanks in the kiln. 

The enamel colors don't really show themselves until after firing.

The bowl below was made from the bottom right blank.

I love the color.

~ Julz

Recycled glass w/ enamel color

I am really enjoying the use of enamels with recycled glass to add a bit of color.

 a bit of color brightens the cold days. . . 

This square dish will be great for organizing my desk.

The yellow and orange colors really shine through on this wonky bowl.

I still need to smooth the edges of this blue bowl. I can't wait to get it finished.

~ Julz

February 2013 - glass

February 2013 
What I am working on now. . . 

Staying warm.

Temperatures in Wisconsin have gone from below zero with -20 windchills to 40 and back in the last 5 days. Today it is sunny and a cold 14 degrees.

The above two pics are a bit of fusing that happened around the holidays. I really like these stars hanging in my front window. They catch the light and sparkle on sunny days.

(Perhaps permanent, front window ornaments.)

We had 9+ inches of snow last week.

With my studio in the basement, 

my glassing view is now up and out over snow banks.

I am trying my big kiln out on some recycled glass with enamels today.

I'm hoping for the best on their first run through the kiln. 

Enamels can drastically change color when they are heated.

The small kiln has an enamel blank that I am slumping on a, new for me, mold -

I don't really like the blue-dot design, 

so I decided to try slumping over this mold that I have had for more than a year 

and not used yet. I will be able to figure out the mold without using expensive glass.

It's good to be dabbling with glass again.

~ Julz