Making beads
People are sometimes puzzled when they see my jewelry.
glass rods
You made the necklace, and the beads? The bead stringing they can understand, but they are sometimes shocked to hear that I made the beads themselves and ask how.
It all starts with glass rods and a torch. Here you see my work area with the many colors of glass rods arrayed on a hotplate. The red knob at lower left is part of the torch. At lower right you see the didymium safety glasses. Click on the photo to see a larger view.
Lampwork is the term used to describe working with molten glass using a small ‘lamp’ or torch. The beads are made by heating up the glass rods until liquid, and wrapping it around a steel rod coated with a release agent. After the bead is complete, the rod is removed and that leaves a hole in the bead.
Stay tuned for weekly posts about beadmaking, other artistic adventures, and the Friday Mo report!
Tags: beads, color, didymium, glass, handmade, lampwork, molten, necklace, torch
making glass beads | mary | 
May 23, 2010 4:44 pm
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By Bulgy, May 24, 2010 @ 12:49 pm
How long do old posts stay on?
By mary, May 25, 2010 @ 3:59 am
Posts will stay in the archives, so people can go back and read about Mo or tips on making beads, or general comments relating to art.