April 2012 - Give-Away

Same rules as last time - just make a comment and at end of the month I'll put name in a jar and choose -
I think I need to add one more rule - that you cant win within 6 months of winning a give-away - this gives everyone a chance - so just go to bottom of  this blog thread and make a comment
Here is the give-a-way - another copper etched bracelet cuff

Forgot the April Give-a-way - will post tonight

I pulled a bracelet out for the give-a-way for April and forgot to take a pic and post -   I will get it done tonight for everyone to see -    almost half the month is gone already !

Stay tuned for upcoming step by step of screen printing  glass this weekend - I have to make some beads and need some zentangle  painted glass so I will do the step by step of applying to the glass - I will do further add on to the step by step  for making the screen at another time but will keep it all together.

Finished Making Final Batch of Fused Dichroic Slabs

Finished making even more of the Dichroic Slabs this past long weekend
was so nice out and I had the Grand kids - shopping for easter goodies etc..  I think I was lucky to do as many as I did - I think I did 10 slabs over two days  not bad - especially when I didnt feel like making anything.

here is pic of pre batch before firing I use up all my scraps which include the clear glass cap

Here is a spread of slabs and I added about 6 more to this pile

more of a side pic of them in a bin 

I've got about 40 slabs ready for cutting  - thats a chore - I'll have to take a pic of me in my garbage bag get up for when I cut - I try to do on a nice day outside on my deck as the water flies everywhere from my saw 

and its pretty mucky  - have fresh blades to start with so that is an improvement from last year 

My future crafters ( jumped a generation ) my daughter is crafty and can make things but she does not want to - both my granddaughters love my studio and find all kinds of crafts to keep them busy while I trot around finding something for me to make. 

Ava the painter - pretty good with a brush at 2-1/2

Zoe the crafter - she loves painting , beading and chain maille - so far - she really wants to lampwork and fuse glass - which I think this year she will be able to do - she will be 11 - at 8 I tried her lampworking and she did really well but I was the one having the panic attacks.  She made better 1st time beads than I did . 

More Hadar Metal Clay Lentil - Copper, Bronze and steel

Finished the last piece I made at class tonight - fired it last night after I finished putting it together and sanding
Some of the steel did not sinter completely but gives it a nice effect - some depth
The back I put two holes to pass a thin wire necklace through- very happy with this new medium

Its still a bit too cold to work comfortably at the studio but looking forward to long weekend  - I'll be able to leave the heaters on over night  to get the heat up 

Hopefully three days of fun 

Hadar Metal Clay - Finished my pieces

I finished firing my piece and applying the patina  tonight - The face is bronze and the scarf is a combo of bronze, copper and steel
This clay is a lot of fun to work with and now its even easier to fire

this is the lentil I made as well

Note the area that looks like a crack - I filled with more copper clay but I could have properly taken the time to fill the black area with steel , the bronze and then copper to make it look better - but its a test piece and I like to see the mistakes so I know what to do the next time 

 I have a large round lentil in the kiln now so tomorrow I'll be able to clean and patina

Been so focused on finishing these pieces I've forgot to pick out a give-away for April
I'll get that done tomorrow

Hadar Jacobson Metal Clay Class

Was a really super class - learned a lot and had a great time and met with some wonderful people
Made some of the Mokume canes and put together some small pieces then today put together a couple of pieces I really liked.
In a nutshell Hadar has made playing with base metal an easier task.  With the cost of silver everyone can now afford Copper, Bronze and Steel clays to work with.

We made canes from the Copper, Bronze and Steel

put them together into pieces 

She has also made it easier to fire.
More of a two step process that speeds up the firing schedule

1. You burn off the binder on what is basically a camp stove

Using a stainless steel  bowl (dog bowl) half filled with activated charcoal you sit your items on the charcoal and fire.

 it smokes as the binder burns off and changes colour.  When the binder has burned off it stops smoking and the pieces are a dark colour 

the bowl moves to the kiln where you fire for two hours for the piece to sinter 

There obviously is more to this but those are the basics.

The best pieces I made today - I took my face mold and made  bronze face and then thinned out my pattern to make the scarf

Here is the unfired piece 

 Face with patterned scarf

Lentil 

There was not enough time to fire so I brought them home 

I set up my little camp stove and fired my pieces to burn off the binder 

then I fired in the kiln for 2 hours (by the time it ramped up it was more like 3 hours) 

I only cleaned - have not sanded but I found a few cracks on the back and a burnout spot on the front - the neat thing is I can fill in and re-fire the pieces 

The pattern will show more on the scarf when I use the Baldwins Patina 

MARCH GIVE-AWAY - WINNER IS :

The winner of the March Give-Away  is : Ľubaša

Please email me your shipping address and I will mail out your bracelet this week to you

I want to thank everyone who participated

I will be posting April's Give-away  later today