Too lazy to search

[DarleenMB]

ACtually I'm stuck with dialup today because the DSL has, once again, gone down on a sunday. BAH I hate Qwest.

ANYhoo. Those of you in the know re: gaffer frits. What's your take on encasing?

I'm not talking about huge beads and huge amounts of frit. Just enough to give speckles on the background.

I didn't even think about this and have made some encased florals. Man I'd hate to have them explode on someone... eeeeeek bead bombs. Do you think the NSA will turn me in?

[BarbR]

Hi DarleenMB,

As you've probably already found out by now - you CAN safely encase Gaffer Frits. No explosions, no dramas....unless you use too much of course but that's hardly likely as they generally are intense colours and putting too much just goes dark and ugly.

I have heaps of Frits from all the companies....use them all the time.

[DarleenMB]

Hey Barbara, THANKS! I was pretty sure it was OK but then thought perhaps I should check with someone who's done a bit more with the gaffer frit than I have.

How's the weather in Brisbane? Someone posted the other day it was 110 down there. Man. I thought it got hot in Phoenix!

[DesertDreamer]

I encase about 50% of my frit beads...with Gaffer, with Kugler, with Vetrofond, with Moretti....I haven't lost ANY so far. I read a few days back that there were problems with Kugler so I made a few "extreme crash test beads"....base of Kugler clear, thick rolls of frits from Val and Spiral Dance (all 94-96 COE) and moderate to heavy encasings. Let 'em sit around for a few days, no problems. This morning I popped them into my deep freeze for a few hours, then dropped them into hot water (about one minute after a boiling pour into a pyrex measuring glass). They're all fine so far, back to room temperature. I put them in the kiln glowing but not moving anymore. I think the key is to have a good base of glass that's known to be compatible with your encasing glass, then sprinkle, roll, or dredge away!

[BarbR]

Hi Darleen

Yeh, it's been HOT HOT HOT down under!
Bushfires everywhere, record temps...way too hot to spend much time on the torch unless you've got Air Conditioning - which most Aussies don't, at least not in their "studio" sheds.

Spent about 2 hours last evening trying to make some presentable beads for a challenge. Gave it up for lost due to the heat.....not even the new Frits shipment just in could tempt me to stay longer at the torch. :-P