Boiling Point

You remember last week when I mentioned Cindy Jenkin's book "Beads Of Glass"? Well it arrived the other day, and I have been flipping through the pages. It has some really great eye candy and wonderful tutorials sharing great techniques. I used the "boiled enamel" technique to make the beads I am going to use one of the tutorials in ArtJewelry magazine.



I need a bunch for the design. I think they look like acid washed denim. Very cool, huh? And I used 4 different shades of enamels to get the look, the four enamels that match the four colors of glass in the beads I showed you the other day. Black, turquoise, honey and khaki. The process for making is time consuming but easy. You dust on the layers of enamels then melt them in completely. Once they are all melted in you get them really really really red hot, it boils the enamels. The longer you heat it, the more of the under layers of colors that pop through.

Are you wondering what this cluster of beads is? They are my birthday beads!! Slowly over the past few weeks I have been getting packages here and there with beads from around the country. I love being in a birthday bead exchange!! Now, I was told there were 50 people in the birthday exchange, this certainly isn't 50 beads... so, maybe, I'll be getting some more!!

Alrighty, these two pics are the starts of a cool new necklace design. I have been making glass rings everytime I torch. (I only have one ring mandrel, so it is taking a while.) My order for 16g pure silver finally arrive yesterday, so I got to start to build it today. I was thinking I would float discs in the centers of the rings but decided it would be too busy. I like this look a lot!! I can't wait to get it finished so I can see how it lays. Cool huh?

So, the snow has still been falling and we are up to more then 30 inches of snow since Tuesday night. It is just crazy!! The kids had off school yesterday but thankfully, they went back today. They were driving me nuts!! Plus they were making me really behind in my work. How can I make beads and write three tutorials when three kids are home and they can't go outside and play... come on really now? How can I? Timing couldn't be worse either. I need to get the tutorials written and photographed, Ron has a project, a test and a research paper all due Tuesday, oh, I have to get my summer art show applications in the mail by Mar 1, and to top it all off, the kids are home on winter vacation for the next 10 days!! YIKES!! My hands are really full. I strive under pressure though... I'll get it done... and I'll let you know how it goes along the way.