Helix Elemental Jewelry

Winner of Rainbow Hibiscus Pendant.

2011-05-17T08:07:00.000-07:00

We wish to thank everyone who participated in our latest giveaway! This morning we logged into Random.org and, using the random number generator, generated a random number between 1 and 400 (the number of entires at the time of the drawing). As you can see from the screenshot the number 8 was generated, so the winner is "Kat F." as the eighth entry from the top. We have emailed the winner to inform and congratulate! Thanks again to all who participated! We will be holding another giveaway soon so keep looking!

-Russ & Christina

Rainbow Hibiscus Pendant Giveaway and Promotional Sale

2011-04-19T12:56:00.000-07:00

To those of you who have followed this blog and entered our previous giveaways we wanted to inform you that we have changed our business name from Helix Elemental Studio to Helix Art & Glass. Eventually we will develop a new blog but for the time being we just wish to promote our new Etsy shop DichroGem . The shop that featured our prior giveaways, Helix Elemental Jewelry is still open and all items there are under clearance at a considerable discount.
This new giveaway features one of our new jewelry designs, and all our new designs are now being listed in our DichroGem shop wich is also having a 45% off promotional sale. Just enter coupon code DGEM45 at checkout for 45% off your entire order.
This new design we are offering in this giveaway was a wonderful challenge in creating. The top right and lower left corner of this piece are crafted from a peachy cream glass. In between the creamy corners are wavy ribbons of transparent marigold, light turquoise and red glass running diagonally in gentle curves. Below the transparent colors is a ripple textured dichroic glass that creates colorful reflections as the light strikes the pendant at every angle. An additional multicolored dichroic glass has been fused over the top to produce even more sparkle and a rainbow of color. Adorned with a strikingly beautiful Hibiscus flower with gold highlights fused to the glass surface. An amazing one of a kind piece.

1 3/4" X 1" .
18" silver plated chain with a silver plated barrel clasp.

Here's how to enter!
1 .Visit http://www.dichrogem.etsy.com/ and/or http://www.christinacolwell.etsy.com//./ Come back here and leave comment listing the item that you would like to see in the next giveaway. Please provide the name and item # of the item you'd like to see in the next giveaway. You may select as many items as you like but please list each item on a separate comment . Each comment = one entry.

2.Blog, Twitter, Facebook this giveaway and leave comment for each action with link. Comment = one entry.

3.Follow blog and leave comment. Comment = one entry

4. This giveaway is open to everyone, everywhere.

5. Drawing will be held on May 17th 2011.

Have fun and good luck!

Winner of The Blue Sea Grass Pendant

2011-02-24T08:55:00.000-08:00

Today we drew a random number via Random.org, and the winner of the Blue Sea Grass Pendant is Shenny of Wroclaw, Poland. she has been informed by email and we hope to hear back from her soon. Shenny is also a VERY talented jewelry artisan. Check out her blog to see her beautiful creations! http://by-shenny.blogspot.com/.
Thank you to everyone who entered our giveaway. We will be sure to have a new giveaway soon.
Our half off sale will continue until 11:00 pm Mountain time tonight.
-Russ & Christina

Blue Sea Grass Pendant Giveaway & Half Off Sale.

2011-01-27T19:31:00.000-08:00

This striking dichroic pendant was one of the items most requested for our next giveaway. This sparkling blue pendant features a graceful enamel and gold "sea grass image" fused to it's surface. Pendant is 1 3/8" X 1 3/8" with a gold plated thatched bail and an 18" blue satin cord with gold plated barrel clasp.
We have many new designs in our shop and would love to see one in our next giveaway. We are also having a half off sale in our Etsy store Helix Elemental Studio. Just enter the code HELIXHALFOFF when prompted at checkout for 50% off your entire purchase. This code is good until Feb 24th. which is also when we will draw a winner for this beautiful dichroic pendant!
HERE'S HOW TO ENTER:
1 .Visit http://www.helixelemental.etsy.com// and/or http://www.christinacolwell.etsy.com/./ Come back here and leave comment listing the item that you would like to see in the next giveaway. Please provide the name and item # of the item you'd like to see in the next giveaway. You may select as many items as you like but please list each item on a separate comment . Each comment = one entry.

2.Blog, Twitter, Facebook this giveaway and leave comment for each action with link. Comment = one entry.

3.Follow blog and leave comment. Comment = one entry

4. This giveaway is open to everyone, everywhere.

Have fun and good luck!

Time To Evolve..again.

2011-01-24T16:44:00.000-08:00

When I start to get bored with making dichroic glass jewelry it's time to do something new. In the very competitive jewelry market you need to try to be as extraordinary as other talented and successful artisans without copying them. When I wanted to experiment with more complex layering techniques I wasn't sure I could splice the more complex shapes without creating lots of divots or air pockets. I wanted to cut more fluid, wavy shapes and splice them together so as to give dimension to the piece. Another way of forcing new designs was to use alot of different materials. So I began ordering deeply textured dichroic glass and finding ways to use the very opaque dichroic glass that I previously disliked because it doesn't permit the underlying glass colors to show through.
Creating templates in Photoshop allows me to make more exacting cuts with my ring saw, but even still I have to meticulously grind and shape the glass to fit as perfectly as possible. I like to create "windows" in the upper layers that allow to shapes and colors of the lower layers to show through. And, as far as the opaque dichro, I just started using it behind a more pale colored glass instead of on top, and the results are very nice.

Now that glass work has gotten exciting again I can only look forward to refining the new ideas and building upon them and, hopefully, expanding them to their full potential. I've shown in this photo a couple of the templates I've used to create the top two pendants shown. The fairy pendant is the result of layering a pale aqua glass over a sparkly and very opaque dichroic glass with a wavy "ribbon" of opaque mint green through the middle.

Winner of Dichroic Bracelet!

2010-12-20T09:44:00.000-08:00

We have drawn a winner via random drawing (random.org), and the winner is 409cope (we don't know her real name yet) from Ontario Canada. She has been informed via email. We wish to thank everyone who entered our drawing. We plan to do more promotions and giveaways over the Winter months so keep watching!
Thanks again!

Dichroic Bracelet Giveaway And BOGO Sale

2010-11-22T15:05:00.000-08:00

I've neglected my blog for far too long! But what better way to get blog busy again than to give something away? We're having a random drawing for this beautiful Caribbean Blue And Purple Dichroic bracelet. 13 alternating cabochons on an 8" silver plated linked bracelet. Links can be removed to shorten to desired length. This has been our most popular color combination for bracelets. We're also having a Buy one get one free sale at our shop at http://www.helixelemental.etsy.com/ which will last until Dec 20th. See the shop announcement there for details. The drawing for this bracelet will also take place on Dec. 20th at 12 midnight. HERE'S HOW TO ENTER!!

1 .Visit http://www.helixelemental.etsy.com/ and/or http://www.christinacolwell.etsy.com./ Come back here and leave comment listing the item that you would like to see in the next giveaway. Please provide the name and item # of the item you'd like to see in the next giveaway. You may select as many items as you like but please list each item on a separate comment . Each comment = one entry.

2.Blog, Twitter, Facebook this giveaway and leave comment for each action with link. Comment = one entry.
3.Follow blog and leave comment. Comment = one entry
4. This giveaway is open to everyone, everywhere.

Have fun and good luck!

WINNER OF OWL PENDANT GIVEAWAY!

2010-06-21T12:27:00.000-07:00

A winner was drawn this morning via Random.org and her name is Adriane Coros of Long Beach, CA. Thank you to all who participated in this giveaway. We will be tallying all the requests for our next giveaway item and will announce the next giveaway in the near future. Helix Elemental Studio will be introducing new designs and incorporating new materials, such as silver, copper, bronze, etc over this next few months.

Fused Glass Owl Pendant Giveaway (And BOGO Sale)

2010-05-30T18:24:00.000-07:00

In the previous giveaway at Helix Elemental Art Spot we asked the paticipants which item they would like to see in the next giveaway. Well, the item most mentioned sold, but we still have the second most mentioned item, which was the Mint Green and Magenta Owl Pendant. The winner of this giveaway will be selected on the first day of Summer June 21st. This corresponds with the end of the buy one get one free sale which is going on now at Helix Elemental Studio.

This whimsical little owl has been made from layers of mint green glass with the breast portion cut from magenta glass. The eyes are white and green and the beak was made from orange glass. These little owl pendants get comments wherever they show up. What can we say? Owls are cute!

1 1/2" X 3/4". 3.8CM X 2CM.

18" black satin cord with a silver plated barrel clasp.

You can enter as often as you like. Here's how:

1.Visit http://www.helixelemental.etsy.com and/or http://www.christinacolwell.etsy.com. Come back here and leave comment listing the item that you would like to see in the next giveaway. Please provide a link. You may select as many items as you like but please list each item on a separate comment with link. Each comment = one entry.

2.Blog, Twitter, Facebook this giveaway and leave comment for each action with link. Comment = one entry.

3.Follow blog and leave comment. Comment = one entry

4. This giveaway is open to everyone, everywhere.

Have fun and good luck!

PURE DICHRO

2010-05-05T10:45:00.000-07:00

Pure Dichroic Jewelry

When I very first began dabbling in fused glass jewelry making I was very sparing in the amount of dichroic I would use. Often nothing more than a small chip as an accent for a pair of post earrings. I guess I wanted to get as much out of this relatively expensive material as I could. It also took me many months to discover which dichroic materials were useful in the design ideas I had. I like to use dichroic glass in a way that imparts a sort of gem like quality to the glass. I like the colors of the glass beneath the dichroic layer to show though, which is why I rarely use dichroic on black. You can buy dichroic glass on black glass or on clear glass. Yet even some of the clear glass dichroic coatings are too opaque to allow the lower layers to show through. Whenever I ended up with this sort of dichroic I would usually use it for etching (which is also the ONLY reason I would buy black glass dichroic).

As I began to experiment more and more with this fascinating material, as well as view the work other dichroic artisans were doing, I realized I needed to get much more liberal with my use of dichroic glass.

One day I wondered what an all 100% pure dichroic piece would look like, so I made one, and I was really happy how it looked. I also enjoyed how baffled people were that saw it and tried to figure out what it was made from. At our local craft fairs we discovered that there were relatively few people who even knew of dichroic glass. I'd tell them it was dichroic and they would think I said acrylic. Eventually I finally came up with a quick and not too technical explaination of what dichroic is. "It is a high tech optical coating that adds sparkle and gemlike qualities to glass". Of course it actually does more than that. It changes colors depending on the angle viewed or lighting conditions.

The pure dichroic pieces I offered at our Summer long craft fair did quite well, so I began to make more. With just the right combination of dichroic layers you could have a very striking piece. With the wrong combination you have a dud. While I still make duds, I make far fewer than I used to, now that I know which materials do what. If the top layer of your piece is more opaque than all the lower layers, you have a dud, and have wasted all the lower layers.

My favorite all dichroic heart pendant belongs to my wife Christina. I did not make note of the materials used to make it and haven't been able to make another like it. I've made a few similar, but none as colorful as hers.

My most recent pure dichro piece is an owl pendant I'd planned for a while, but I needed just the right combination and variety of dichroic glass to bring out the owls features. The body is made from two layers of yellow/violet dichroic. The breast and eyelids are made from magenta/green Dichro Magic, the eyes are made from a pink/silver and the beak is Candy Apple Red dichroic. As the craft fair season is fast approaching I'll be making more and more all dichro items. Having a big, sparkling, colorful all dichroic pendant displayed right at the front of your booth really catches the eyes of those passing by.

Before Jewelry

2010-04-14T12:23:00.000-07:00

Years ago when I was still welding for a living I hoped for a day when I might have a shop of my own and make custom iron furniture. For a while we did dabble in such products. I would design, fabricate and weld the metal parts and Christina and I would mosaic the tops together. We also did mirrors of steel and mosaic tile. Marketing and shipping nightmares made us rethink our options. Eventually I took a class in stained glass work followed by a class in glass fusing, which natually led to my fixation on dichroic jewelry. Many of the earlier creations still adorn our home. Here are some photos of a few.

Collaborations

2010-04-08T21:01:00.000-07:00

Christina and I are both in love with creating beautiful objects,and while we often share in idea's and insiprations we have usually worked in seperate mediums. We do have some stunning mosaic mirrors and tables we made together (most of which adorn our home) but when it comes to painting or drawing I'm sorrowfully inadequate. Christina does not particulaly love making jewelry either. Recently I've looked over some of her whimsical sketch pad doodles and we realized we could make jewelry from some of these cute characters she draws. It started with an owl, then a worm and then a pony. I take the drawing an scan it into Photoshop. Then I work out how I can layer the piece so it has all or most of the characters features but yet isn't too thick (or big) to wear as a pendant or earrings. I then print out a template as a guide line to cut around. I glue this template to the glass and coat with rubber cement. The rubber cement helps to waterproof the glass so the template doesn't dissolve in the continuous water which cools the glass saw I use to cut out the glass. After the pieces are cut I assemble them with one or both of two kinds of glue. If I'm gluing two layers of glass together that must have exact matching edges I use super glue and then grind or saw around the perimeter so the edges are flush. There is only one brand of super glue (that I'm aware of) that will not leave an ugly residue when it burns off in the kiln, and that is Duro Super Glue (not the gel). Other pieces are held in place with any of the more common pink glass glues (such as Bullseye Glasstac). Then I simply fire the assembled piece at a low fire (tack fuse) which fuses the glass together yet retains the shape.
Christina has several sketches that I've yet to make into jewelry but I have plans to do so in the near future. So far our most popular creation has been the owl pendant and earrings.

2010-03-09T12:52:00.000-08:00

How to Select the Best Wedding Band for your Marriage

Marriages are made in heaven and to make this day unforgettable in every person’s life, certain traditions have been followed since ancient times. One of such customs is wearing a wedding band. The shine and glitter of the wedding bands remains the same even after the fun and gaiety of the marriage fades away, reminding you of the wedding vows of eternal love.

As wedding bands are very special to you, similar to wedding rings, you could well choose from the best in the market. Many leading stores offer you a wide range of wedding bands to pick from; for example, if you want your jewels to be sparkling and showy, opt for a golden wedding band with a rosy-pink or yellow-gold shade. You can also opt a platinum band if you want to gift an exotic wedding gift to your partner.

Check if your partner loves stone-studded jewelry. Then, choose a band with bright and unique diamond stones. Eternity wedding bands are a perfect complement to your engagement or wedding ring.

To add more uniqueness to your wedding band, you can choose a common element for wedding bands. The designs may not match but you can choose the same metal for bands for both of you.

Once you have decided about the metal that the band should be made of, you just need to go to a popular and trustworthy jeweler. He would provide you with catalogs of awesome collections of wedding bands, such as Celtic or Trinity wedding bands, uniquely carved and designed to rightly make your wedding unforgettable and the most cherished memory of your lifetime.

This article was written by Elaine, who writes various articles on Fashion and Jewelry. This article is about appealing wedding bands. She would love to hear from you at elainebrown1976@gmail.com

Winner of Earring Giveaway...Shelley Zurek!

2010-03-07T07:04:00.000-08:00

After examining all entries into this months giveaway I selected via random.org random number generator this months winner, Shelley Zurek of Clarkston MI. Shelly has not only entered all of our past drawings she even hosted one on her blog stillblondeafteralltheseyears.com .
We didn't get nearly as many entries as in past drawings, but we are not be discouraged and will continue to do more giveaways in the near future.
Thanks to everyone who participated in this giveaway!
Also, we've decided to EXTEND THE BOGO SALE. We don't know yet for how long, but I'll announce a two day countdown on my Etsy stores shop announcement before I do. We are gearing up for craft fair season and making room for new designs while making our jewelry available at wholesale prices to everyone without a wholesale minimum.
Thanks again to all who participated in this giveaway! Now I guess I should let Shelley know that she won!

New HE Give Away! (And BOGO Sale)

2010-02-27T15:28:00.000-08:00

Helix Elemental Studio is having another giveaway, and a buy one get one sale in our Etsy shop which will continue for at least a week (possibly longer). Thanks to all of those who have participated in past giveaways making them a great success. Here is another shot at some colorful dangles. These bold contrasts seem to have a glow of their own when dichroic glass is added. These striking dangles start with opaque turquoise blue and tangerine glass. When pink/teal is layered over orange glass you get an amazing color
that can best be described as hot orange/pink. They are embellished with a white floral cluster with leafy vines climbing upward. These dangles were designed and crafted by Russ Colwell of Helix Elemental Studio. (2" X 3/8". 5CM X 1CM.
Surgical steel ear wires . )

So..if you want to enter this random drawing to be held Sunday, March 7th here's how:

1.Follow my blog and comment here. This equals one entry.

2.If you already follow my blog comment here. This equals one entry.

3. Post contest on your blog and comment here with link. Good for one entry.

4. Visit http://www.helixelemental.etsy.com/. Browse and comment here with a link to your favorite item. Good for one entry.

5. Post a link to this contest on any social networking site (twitter, Facebook, Ning, etc) Comment here with a link. One entry for each comment with link.

Good luck to all, have fun and win!

Winner Of Heart Pendant Giveaway

2010-01-17T12:59:00.000-08:00

Thank you all for your participation in our free heart pendant giveaway. A winner was drawn at random this morning and the lucky winner is Rita Lemos of Portugal. Here is a link to her beautiful blog http://lovely-lala.blogspot.com/. Congratulations Rita!

We will be annoucing a new giveaway in the near future.

Thanks again to all who participated!

Dichroic Heart Pendant Give Away

2009-12-27T16:54:00.000-08:00

Helix Elemental Studio is giving away a three layered dichroic heart pendant with silver plated chain with a silver plated lobster clasp. It is valued at $17.00 in my etsy store. A random drawing will be held Sunday January 17 and the winner announced. It is easy to enter the drawing. Here's how:

Follow my blog and comment here. This equals one entry.

If you already follow my blog comment here. This equals one entry.

Post contest on your blog and comment here with link. Good for one entry.

Visit http://www.helixelemental.etsy.com/. Browse and comment here with a link to your favorite item. Good for one entry.

Post a link to this contest on any social networking site (twitter, Facebook, Ning, etc) Comment here with a link. One entry for each link.

Thank you all in advance for your participation. Have fun and win!!!!

My New ShopBot! Click and SEE!

2009-12-14T22:25:00.001-08:00

Snowman Set

2009-12-02T13:40:00.000-08:00

This is my first example of jewelry that recognizes a holiday. An area I've been pretty negligent. I guess my fear has been being stuck with some unsold items that sit around for a year before I can try to sell them again. But I had a custom order request for snowman pendant and earrings, and thus I'm quite pleased. Sufficiently silly looking dichroic snowman jewelry. I've decided to make another pair of the earrings to list in my Etsy shop.

A Cure For Crafty Hands

2009-09-29T12:24:00.000-07:00

I have to say I never realized how torn up my fingers could get doing glass work. Holding small pieces of glass against grinders and ring saw blades had left my fingertips cracked, cut, peeling, bleeding and so sensitive I could barely stand to touch anything. If I let them callus the calluses would split and bleed. When I tried taping them up there were times when I'd remove the tape to find my skin peeling off with the tape. For months I tried everything I could think of to get them to heel. I think there's also something about glass dust (more like glass mud since it's wet) that is very bad for hands. They would dry and crack in addition to the trauma that the glass edges did to my finger tips.
One day my wife brought home a product called O'Keeffe's Working Hands. It comes as a lotion in a tube and as a cream in a round container. If you're one of those folks who get those painful cracks near your nail beds, this stuff will heal them almost overnight. After using this stuff every night at bedtime and throughout the day my hands and finger tips are almost completely healed. If you could have seen how ravaged they were before you'd know what an accomplishment that is.
So between grinding down the edges of the glass before I press it against the ring saw blade and the regular application of O'Keeffe's Working Hands my misery has been greatly relieved. I mean, it's not like I'd ever consider quitting doing glass work. Something had to give.

New Designs

2009-09-16T21:23:00.000-07:00

The jewelry market is VERY saturated and it is not easy to keep sales coming in with so many talented artisans out there. I felt it was time to evolve. For most of the time I've been making fused glass jewelry I preferred to do a shallow "tack" fuse on my pieces. This resulted in more defined edges, and rather than incorporating the glass I pretty much just layered it. I like the interactions from the different layers of transparent glass. I rarely used opaque glass.
I decided to do a few things differently. First I began a marketing campaign, which is pretty much an OJT thing for me. I'm learning as I go along, trying to decide where best to focus my resources. Then I lowerd my prices. I took an average of about three dollars off of my jewelry. And lastly I began to shift direction with my designs. I'll keep some of my more popular items (like the puzzle pendants), but now I'm doing more of the full fusing designs and using alot of the fusible decals to embellish my pieces. Above is a comparison of my old vs my new designs. I have really enjoyed creating in this new style.

First Double Puzzle Dangles

2009-08-23T08:01:00.000-07:00

I havent crafted a great many of the double puzzle pendants, but I have made a couple recently. Actually both of them sold at the craft fair yesterday. I also had a pair of double puzzle dangles on display which matched one of the pendants. But the dangles didn't sell yet.
My previous attempts to make the double puzzle dangles didn't go too well. Simply because they were much smaller than the pendants. As I've gotten better at making the pendants I decided to try to make another pair of the dangles. Actually the trick to success is to just to be VERY patient with the removal of the glass. I have to alter the puzzle shaped templates I use to cut out the puzzle shapes in Photoshop (or by hand whichever the case may be) so they sorta kinda fit together. Then I have to make the final fit happen by meticulously taking off minute amounts of glass, checking the fit and then taking off a little more. It's VERY easy to overdo it, and if you do you've pretty much blown it. They don't always have to fit perfectly, but there has to be enough contact for the pieces to fuse together securely, and I do a pretty shallow fuse on my pieces (though I do add two minutes to my fire time when I fire connecting puzzles.
Now, of course, I've got to make more!

Intoduction Of Bracelets

2009-08-03T22:36:00.000-07:00

I've begun to add bracelets to my jewelry designs. They have been pretty popular at our local craft fair. They are a bit time (and glass) consuming so they are so far the most expensive item in my shop. I'll also be adding rings more regularly as well.

Dichroic Magic

2009-02-17T14:51:00.000-08:00

I recently purchased this 4x4 piece of Green/Magenta/Blue Premium Dichroic glass from Artisan Dichroic. It was a bit more pricy than the other "non premuim" solid colors. I can't wait to try it out. Dichroic is supposed to mean "two colors". How many colors can you see?

Ghost Gift for Ghost Hunter

2009-02-17T09:55:00.000-08:00

Christina and I are both fans of the SciFi Channel series Ghost Hunters and Ghost Hunters International. We have both had experiences in the past with haunted locations. I stayed with my brother for three weeks in a very haunted house in Los Gatos, CA back in 1980. Christina and I lived in a haunted apartment complex in South Salt Lake in 2003, and occasionally the ghost would drop by our apartment and freak us out.

We have discussed sending a ghost pendant to TAPS for some time now, and I finally discovered a really cool glass combination of Lacy Transluscent White and a rainbow hued dichroic glass that produces a sort of opalescent appearance.

We addressed the pendant to one of our favorite Ghost Hunters investigators Donna LaCroix (care of TAPS) with a note expressing our fanhood.

Metal Up/Metal Down

2009-02-01T12:16:00.000-08:00

As described by Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, Dichroic glass is glass containing multiple micro-layers of metal oxides which give the glass dichroic optical properties. Dichroic glass was originally developed by NASA and its contractors for use in satellite optics and spacesuit visors.[1]

Multiple ultra-thin layers of different metal oxides (gold, silver, titanium, chromium, aluminium, zirconium, magnesium, silicon) are vaporised by an electron beam in a vacuum chamber. The vapour then condenses on the surface of the glass in the form of a crystal structure. This is sometimes followed by a protective layer of quartz crystal.[2] The finished glass can have as many as 30[2] to 50 layers of these materials yet the thickness of the total coating is approximately 30[2] to 35 millionths of an inch (about 760 to 890 nm). The coating that is created is very similar to a gemstone and, by careful control of thickness, different colours are obtained.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

As used by glass artists dichroic glass has many varieties and color combinations. Dichroic glass is usually sold as a coating on clear glass or black glass. Dichroic on black glass will always look the same regardless of what is layered beneath it. I always use dichroic on clear, because it will look different depending on what color glass you have layered in over. Dichroic is available in plain colors , usually two colors, such as pink/teal, or orange/cyan, or violet/yellow. These colors become evident as light strikes the dichroic surface at different angles. Often a third color may become visible. Dichroic is also available in various patterns such as swirls or wavy lines, and also may be seen with images etched on it like dragonflies, kitties or hearts. Often I purchase dichroic glass in rainbow hues in patterns like "Pixie Stix", or "Cork Screw".

Dichroic glass, like iridescent glass always has a metallic side and a glass side. Because the dichroic coating is one one side of the glass the piece will look quite different depending on how it is layered and whether or not the dichroic surface is facing up or facing down.

The Above photo demonstrates the differences achieved by identical dichroic glass coatings with metal side up and metal side down.

NOTE: When layering dichroic on dichroic, you cannot fuse metal side to metal side. the dichroic surfaces will not fuse to each other.

Computer/Design Area

2009-01-28T13:24:00.000-08:00

Our two computer systems are partitioned off from the livingroom by the bank of grinders, saw, and sander. We have fiberoptic internet through Xmission. We have been very pleased with their service. For our phone we use Vonage. Can't say enough about Vonage. It's a great service and if you have a business you can't beat the unlimited free long distance and tons of other features that don't cost a penny extra.

We probably spend a third of our time at the computers listing items, designing, and doing marketing work and research. It's my least favorite chore. I much prefer just making jewelry.

The woman with the pony tail is my wife Christina. We share one brain.

Cutting, Layout, Assembly Area

2009-01-28T13:01:00.000-08:00

Other than a nice leather sofa and a TV, there's nothing to suggest this is a livingroom. We store all our glass, hand tools, findings, paints, etc. I have a Morton Cutting System which I use frequently. For a work and cutting surface, I have a few tables topped with drywall. It's great for stained glass work because you can insert pins, nails, etc. It's also heat resistant. I don't think there's a better surface for working with glass. I have racks where I keep my 90 COE, 96 COE and art glass separate. I have a small, portable work table I place in front of the sofa so I can continue to work while I'm "relaxing" in front of the TV.

Christina and I work nearly every waking moment.

Grinding Area

2009-01-28T12:52:00.000-08:00

Yes, this is a very messy thing to do in your livingroom. Fortunatly the home we rent already has the most hideous carpet I've ever seen in one house. When the landlord asked if we wanted him to replace it, we declined. We would rather trash trashy carpet than have to spread tarps or whatever all over.

Our bank of grinding tools consists of the ring saw, large grinder with an ultrafine dichroic grinding bit, a small grinder with a standard bit, and a Covington wet belt sander.

A Rotating Ring

2009-01-28T12:50:00.000-08:00

Ring Saw

2009-01-27T16:20:00.000-08:00

A tool I find essential for making glass jewelry (besides the glass grinder) is my Taurus Ring Saw. It uses a very strong and flexible diamond coated stainless steel ring which rotates around pulling cooling and lubricationg water from the reservoir beneath the bed of the saw.

It is available with a standard blade, a thin blade, a mega blade( for cutting stone/marble) a dichroic blade (fine grit so as not to chip dichroic coating), and a separating blade (for inside cuts).

The diamond coating on the blades (as with glass ginder bits) do not cut flesh and are very safe to use. They will only cut hard materials, so keep your fingernails and jewelry away from the blade. Diamond blades will also make short work of a callus.

Tack fused dichroic and transparent glass

2009-01-19T12:11:00.000-08:00

Full fused opaque glass with dichroic, topped with clear glass.

2009-01-19T12:09:00.000-08:00

Adhesives

2008-12-20T10:13:00.000-08:00

As far as I'm concerned, there is only one adhesive. I've tried nearly every so called "super strong" jewelry adhesive on the market. I've also tried 2 ton epoxy. Because metal and glass are non porous materials, finding a reliable adhesive took me a while. Non porous materials are notoriously difficult to bond. If I can snap a bail off of a cabochon with two fingers I consider that bond to be unreliable. The only adhesive that provised a bond I can't break with my fingers is Triolyse Adhesive. It is a UV glue, and when I first investigated it I dismissed it because you had to cure it with a UV lamp or set the piece in bright sunlight to cure. And this would only work with transparent glass. But more recently it has been sold with an activator that allows you to bond even opaque glass without a UV lamp. You simply apply the activator to one bonding surface and the cement to the other. The pieces are bonded (yet repositionable) after 10 to 20 seconds. After about 6 hours the piece is wearable.

The activator does leave a residue that cleans up easily with alcohol. And it is a tad pricey at $17.00 for 10ml. but a very little bit goes a long way. And, it's worth it not to have my jewelry returned due to broken bails.

Quality Control

2008-12-17T17:02:00.000-08:00

I am something of a perfectionist. I'm rarely thoroughly satisfied with anything I've made. I've learned to live with some degree of imperfection, and when you're melting glass in a kiln there is a certain degree of luck involved in creating a good finished product. I've also learned that that rare piece that I think is the best I've ever made, isn't necessarily an instant hit with anyone else. You never know what someone else may like, even if you don't.

However, I will not list or sell any item I outright dislike, or any item that has a flaw related to some error on my part. I won't sell devitrified glass. I won't sell anything not properly annealed.

I have a drawer filled with rejects. Most of these duds are from the early era of my fusing experience, but I still toss a piece or two every other firing or so. If a piece look boring to me I'll toss it.

Also when I am photographing items for sale in an internet store, I'm shooting on a macro setting. I will see flaws not visible to the unaided eye. Sometimes I just need to rinse or clean the piece or remove a tiny piece of fuzz or a hair. Sometimes the flaw is in the glass itself.

If I see a minor flaw in a piece which becomes a glaring flaw when magnified, and I still like the piece, rather than listing it online I will set it aside for sale at a craft fair.

I also have a couple drawers full of pieces (mostly earrings) that I think can sell but don't impress me enough to list online. I often sell these at discounts. There's nothing wrong with them other than they haven't gained my favor. As a matter of fact, my wife Christina took a bunch of small stud earrings to work tonight and sold six pair to a co-worker. Five bucks a pair. Normally my stud earrings sell for $10.00 to $13.00 a pair depending on the type of glass used and amount of time it took to make them.

Christina will not let me throw anything away.

Findings

2008-12-16T14:25:00.000-08:00

It took me a while to find the jewelry findings that most met my requirements. Of the several ways to hang a pendant on a chain, the one I use most often is the bail. I like the Aanraku bail because it looks good, is available in 3 sizes and is avainable in Sterling plate, gold plate and nickle plate. It has plenty of surface area for the adhesive to secure it to the cabochon. They are a staple in my supply caddy.

I also use Aanraku bails for my dangle earrings, though sometimes if I need something smaller (or less expensive), or if I've run out of Aanraku earring bails, I will use beaver tails. They are simple, inexpensive and very effective. I just bend the opening forward so it sits more centered on the earring, allowing the earring to hang straight.

I've tried several different clasps. I used to use the barrel clasp most of the time. But because they sometimes work loose, I've settled on the hook and eye clasp. It's simple, inexpensive, easy to secure, and unlikely to accidently disconnect. The one advantage the barrel clasps have over all these other types is you do not need a jump ring to secure them. The ends of the barrel clasp function as the jump ring and all you have to do is loop it through your chain with some small pliers.

The Glass

2008-12-11T10:22:00.000-08:00

I use only COE 90 fusable glass. I'd say pretty much exclusively Bullseye these days. I prefer to work with transparents. Usually striker glass. 1.5mm thin. Striker glass has the distinct character of NOT really resembling the color and opacity the glass will be after firing. Much of it is colorless before firing, so if you're not careful you'll get your scraps mixed up with your clear scraps. I tape my striker scraps to the original piece (which is labeled) to prevent confusion.

I use lots of dichroic glass. I try to buy quarter sheets because they are simply more economical, though where I purchase my glass not every kind of dichroic is available in quarter sheets. I like to keep a selection of solid color dichroic, rainbow hued dichroic (Pixie Stix or Reptile, etc), patterned dichroic and textured dichroic glass available.

I buy mostly CBS and Savoy. Thin. Always thin.

I do alot of etching of dichroic glass. I use an ordinary Sharpie marker to stencil the glass and apply etching cream. The etching cream will not penetrate the Sharpie ink.

I buy all of my glass from Artisan Dichroic; http://www.artisandichroic.com/index.asp.

They only sell COE 90 glass. Bullseye and several brands of dichroic glass. A really great selection. Quarter sheets to 4"X4". Even the Bullseye is available in 4X4. Very reasonable shipping.

Compact Photo Studio

2008-11-30T16:19:00.000-08:00

One thing we don't have in our home studio is ANY spare room. Our livingroom is our studio and consists of a sofa and TV surrounded by equipment, tools, storage cabinets , work tables and materials. In deciding where to photograph our crafts we had to clear out a leaking water cooler and set up a tote against the wall with a seamless background (big sheet of white paper taped to the wall). I purchased a Lowel EGO Digital Imaging light (about $125.00). This compact studio light literally transformed my photography. I supplement the lighting with a shadeless lamp fitted with a daylight temp flourescent bulb. I mount my camera on a tripod and zoom in via macro lens, displaying my jewelry on various textured surfaces such as a bowl of white sand with sea shells, a bowl of fine gravel with little tree branch and stones, a piece of striated sandstone, white marble and petrified wood. I'm always on the lookout for new surfaces to shoot on. I tryed various fabrics for a while but found them inferior. My photo studio takes up about 24" X 15".