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Glass Tips & TricksNewsletters from our past converted to fresh articles about stained glass.
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Fusing A Stained Glass Necklace
The "Hope" Fused Star Necklace is our symbol of good times.
Every day we hear more news about how tough things are. We got sick of hearing the doom and gloom reports so we made the "Hope Star" to counteract all the negativism.
This necklace is bright, it's whimsical, and it's positive. It represents a belief in the future. The idea is that if we can believe in good times, we'll harness the power of the universe and draw good to us.
Because each piece is handmade and fused, they each have there own unique look.
Every day we hear more news about how tough things are. We got sick of hearing the doom and gloom reports so we made the "Hope Star" to counteract all the negativism.
This necklace is bright, it's whimsical, and it's positive. It represents a belief in the future. The idea is that if we can believe in good times, we'll harness the power of the universe and draw good to us.
Because each piece is handmade and fused, they each have there own unique look.
The necklace is fairly simple, but it does take a few steps to make one.
First we cut colored glass to form the arms of the star. We use bright, primary colors for the Hope star to create a whimsical feel to the necklace. This is supposed to give one a light mood when it's seen, much like a child's colored drawing.
First we cut colored glass to form the arms of the star. We use bright, primary colors for the Hope star to create a whimsical feel to the necklace. This is supposed to give one a light mood when it's seen, much like a child's colored drawing.
Next, we lay out special fusing paper onto the kiln shelf. The paper provides a barrier to keep the glass from sticking to the shelf which would lead to breakage and damage to both shelf and glass.
The shelf was "painted" with kiln wash, but the paper keeps fewer sharp edges from forming on the glass.
The shelf was "painted" with kiln wash, but the paper keeps fewer sharp edges from forming on the glass.
Then each piece of glass must be polished to be free of any cutting oil or haze.
Then we stack the glass pieces up to form the star shape, making sure that all arms are touching each other and that they form a hole in the center so we can hang the star.
Once we have the shelf filled with pieces, we're ready to place the shelf into the kiln. Once in the kiln, we check our glass and re position any pieces that moved in the move..
We then fire the kiln to 1350 degrees. We set the kiln to gently rise to one temperature and then hold that for awhile so the glass isn't shocked and broken by rapid temperature changes and then we let the temp rise to 1350 and let the glass soak at that temperature. Then the kiln is allowed to cool at a very controlled rate, which takes several hours.
So, the next morning, we're able to open our kiln and see what success rate we achieved. The paper has burned into a fine ash.
To buy one, you can email us or just click here to go to our Etsy Store.