» Listings for October 2012

1. Hints & Tips Section

   Posted on 9:06pm Tuesday 30th Oct 2012

   Check out the 'Hints & Tips' section and go to Glassy Tips for information on glass frit and rods.  I am working on this section and am going to try and tidy it up and organise it a bit more.

   I have just included some information on working with Reichenbach Silver Smoke frit.

2. Gaffer Purple

   Posted on 10:15pm Monday 29th Oct 2012

   Some Tips on using Gaffer Royal Purple and Purple Rose

   I have found that when I use Gaffer Royal Purple and Purple Rose, once I have finished shaping my bead if I flash the bead through the flame I can produce different effects depending on which part of the flame I flash the bead through.  If I flash the bead through the flame nearest to the torch, I can produce stronger richer purples and if I flash the bead through the flame further away from the torch I can produce lighter purples.  These colours do not devetrify like the old Zimmerman purples, but if any areas of devetrification do occur, these can be removed by flashing the bead through the flame nearest to the torch.

   

   Gaffer Royal Purple, Gaffer Purple Rose and Reichenbach Purple Rose

   Have a look at Lara Lutrick's fantastic blog article which compares and contrasts Gaffer Royal Purple G198, Purple Rose G199 and Reichenbach Purple Rose RW0733 with Zimmerman Z99, and demonstrates the wonderful colours of these different glasses.  Lara's beautiful beads can be found here in her etsy shop.

3. Joining Crafty Things

   Posted on 9:47pm Monday 29th Oct 2012

   I have spent most of my day on the computer joining crafty things.  So far I have joined:

   • The Top 100 Lampwork Bead Artists    http://lampwork.gotop100.com/index.php
   • UK Handmade                                          http://ukhandmade.co.uk/
   • UK Craft Blog                                            http://www.ukcraftblog.com/
   • Pinterest                                                    http://pinterest.com/
   • Handmade Crafts UK                              http://www.handmade-crafts.co.uk/

   These are all fantastic sites for lampwork artists and craft lovers.  If you decide to join any of these, please can you like beadbug and link beadbug.

4. Shop now linked to Facebook

   Posted on 4:10pm Monday 29th Oct 2012

   I have been busy today and have managed to link the lampwork supplies shop to Facebook.  This is great as people looking at beadbug Facebook can now just press on the shopping cart link and it takes them straight to this shop.  Follow us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/carolinebeadbug

   We are also now on Twitter: http://twitter.com/carolinebeadbug

5. Added Etsy Handmade Beads to Website

   Posted on 4:07pm Monday 29th Oct 2012

   I have just added my Etsy store to the website; this is where my handmade glass lampwork beads live. The only problem is that the beads are listed in order of lastest beads added to Etsy, so I cannot rearrange the beads as I do in my Etsy shop.  If you would like to have a look at my handmade lampwork beads, please click on the Etsy link above.

6. Love Bug Custom Glass Frit Blend

   Posted on 10:45pm Friday 26th Oct 2012

   Love Bug frit blend is CoE 92-96, which is suitable for use on glass with a CoE 90-104, when using about 5%.  Love Bug is a beautiful frit blend with pinks, purples and a subtle green sparkle.  These beads have been made on a base of clear with a splash of earth toned glass and Love Bug frit.  I think these beads are so pretty.

   

7. Reichenbach Glass made with Gold

   Posted on 5:33pm Friday 19th Oct 2012

   Did you know that the following Reichenbach colours have been made with gold.

   002 Gold Ruby, 006 Aurora Reddish, 008 Aurora Yellowish, 010 Violet Blue, 011 Heliotrope, 012 Amethyst Reddish, 013 Amethyst Bluish, 014 Hyazinth, 019 Gold Topaz, 063 Flamingo, 064 Opal Pink, 065 Opal Raspberry, 066 Opal Dense Rose, 096 Purple, 097 Lilac Red, 099 Red Violet, 150 Old Rose, 151 Soft Rose, 152 Soft Violet, 162 Sahara, 164 Ochre Yellow, 168 Apricot, 212, Brilliant Gold, 218 Iris Yellow, 231 Brilliant Ruby, 232 Wine Red.

8. Gaffer Royal Purple G198

   Posted on 7:32pm Tuesday 16th Oct 2012

   Playing with Gaffer Royal Purple G198 to see what effects I can get on different coloured base glass. 1) Royal Purple K2 on a base of copper rich glass, this has produced wonderful colour shifting purple with a lovely deep purple/red edge to the frit; these beads have a slight rough feel due to the copper rich glass. 2) Royal Purple K0 (grain) on a base of copper rich glass.  3) Royal Purple K0 (grain) on a base of copper rich glass and pure silver foil.  3) Royal Purple K1 on a base of orange glass and swirls of iris orange; this has produced a gorgeous deep pink/purple effect.

       

9. Frit Colours

   Posted on 10:58pm Monday 8th Oct 2012

   Some glass frit colours are difficult to describe, and some can change colour or appearance when they have been heated.  Over the next few month's I will be making beads with all of the frit colours that we supply, and will be including pictures of the beads to demonstrate the colours.

   Very pleased with the results of Reichenbach Summer Meadow frit; these beads have been made with a variety of different coloured frits, but the green is Summer Meadow; as you can see the green is gorgeous and it appears to be a colour shifting/multi-toned green.