Opal Yellow/Black/Intense Black Reaction?

[Sam_W]

This is driving me nuts - I've been trying to get a reaction similar to this bead:

http://www.wetcanvas.com/Community/images/19-Feb-2005/10029-oysiib3.jpg

using opal yellow and intense black. What I'm trying to get is the threading/pebbling look where the black and yellow meet, but I'm having zero luck.

Anyone know how this effect can be produced?

Thanks -

Sam

[Sylvie Anne]

Sam,

Is there silver at all in that bead?

[kimberly]

Hi Sam,

There is a lot to making that particular bead. High heat in the areas you want the "pebbling" will help you get that look. Also, extra oxy helps, too. But, much of the delight of making organics like that is the serendipitous nature of the beast. Never know when you are going to get something you love, or something you "throw in the pond". Looks like Lara's Lutrick's bead.

In fact, a little shameless advertising here:biggrin: : If you can get in one of my classes sometime, I concentrate a lot on that particular technique. Lots of fun to do, but way easier to show than describe!!

[Peg Medill]

Hi Sam,

There is a lot to making that particular bead. High heat in the areas you want the "pebbling" will help you get that look. Also, extra oxy helps, too. But, much of the delight of making organics like that is the serendipitous nature of the beast. Never know when you are going to get something you love, or something you "throw in the pond". Looks like Lara's Lutrick's bead.

In fact, a little shameless advertising here:biggrin: : If you can get in one of my classes sometime, I concentrate a lot on that particular technique. Lots of fun to do, but way easier to show than describe!!

****Don't forget besides Wa. State classes, Kimberly does travel to other places to teach. She just got back from Italy and has even more new techniques to share. An amazing teacher and so patient! Peg M

[Lara]

Sam

Yep that is my bead, glad you like it. Kinda wish I had kept it as I can't seem to get anything quite like this again, it was one of my favorites. If I recall, this bead was made with my very last piece of orginal opal yellow and it just isn't the same for me now. I have been trying and trying to get another bead to get these colors, whithout luck, at least not this much color (have a bead in my auctions this week out of the newer opal yellow and it is basically all tan).

I think this is how I made this bead, it has been a while.

1 - Ivory base rolled in silver.
2 - Twisty of opal yellow and intense black wraped around the bead, leaving some of the ivory showing.
3 - Heat the bead till all nice and flowing (ie heat the snot out of it) and let flow down the mandrel.
4 - Shape with marver.
5 - Repeat steps 3 and 4 many times.

An interesting variation is to put the silver on after the twisty, a very different look and very pretty too.

I think that you are asking about it the reaction between the intense black and opal yellow or the silvered ivory. In any case, lots of heat will do it and I find some seperation (pebbling) happens when I let the glass flow and move (tip from Kim's class).

I made this bead on a HH.

Lara

PS - I also highly recomend Kim's class.

[Lara]

Also, if you are using intense black, pull very thin stringers, it helps with the seperation.

Lara

PS - lots of heat, did I mention heat the snot out of it.

[Sam_W]

Wow, thanks for all the input - the step-by-step is greatly appreciated Lara, glad I know who made that great bead now.

I tried a twisty of intense black and opal yellow, even going so far as to pull teensy threads of the black to wrap into the twisty, but my results were black, really black, and holy crap, did I use any color OTHER than black in that twisty?

I'll try heat blasting it a little more and using even less black - maybe just dot on some intense black to the opal yellow rod, then pull and twist that. I really like the color variations in the opal yellow and was hoping to add it to my vortex beads, so we'll see what happens.

Thanks again and Kim, if you ever get to Dallas, I'll definitely join a class.

Thanks again folks - off to try superheating some opal yellow.

[Lara]

When we say thread of intense black, it is about the width of a human hair. Very Very Very small. Was your's that tiny? I heat up the bead until I see the black starting to spread.

Lara

[Sam_W]

The good news and the bad news -

The good news is that I got an effect simliar to what I was looking for on a test bead. My threads of black were thin enough (about hair-thin, maybe a little thiner), I just wasn't getting it hot enough. Once I heated the bead to where it was sloppy and flopping all over the mandrel, the really intense reaction kicked in and the black spread like it was supposed to.

The bad news is that in my excitement I spent a few seconds too long looking at my handiwork. I felt the bead snap all the way up the mandrel and an otherwise cool-looking piece of work has gone on to bead heaven.

Thanks for all the input, it's been really helpful. With any luck, I'll resist the urge to gawk next time and end up with an actual finished work, rather than a couple of neat-looking shards.

[Lisi]

Lara,

I recognized this bead as yours right away! I love it and I am amazed that you got this lovely effects on a HH torch. Not to say that the torch can't do it, (it can obviously!), but you do some amazing things anyway!

(I loooove the TS coral/intense black long tab bead I got from you!)

[Lara]

Thanks Lisa. I'm flattered that people recognized my bead! If you used my coral IB bad for anything, I would love to see what you have done.

Sam, I hear you! Of course I have never done that. :lol: HA, only all of the floral lentils this weekend I made that were so pretty, cracked in half cause I was gawking too much. #-o

Lara

[Sam_W]

After all the great feedback I received from my question (and special thanks to Lara and Kimberly for their expert advice), I thought I'd post my results to show that A> I can follow instructions and B> how easy it is to forget to flash a bead in the heat.

http://www.samwitt.com/artificer/beadxperiments/Stormeye.jpg

So here's my prototype stormeye bead and it's delightful crack that runs the length of the bead. Boo. Hiss.

For this bead, I formed a base of ivory, mashed it in my Zoozii's Kalera long and lean press, then wrapped and burnished the whole shebang in silver.

Dots, swirls, and stripes of opal yellow followed and were left raised on the silver (which I was careful not to burn off quite yet).

I then got a small (3mm or so) ball of intense black glowing on the end of the rod. With it still glowing, I tacked it onto the end of the mandrel and then spun the bead to thread on a spiral of very thin intense black.

Melt melt melt melt melt melt melt melt melt melt melt melt - until the glass was literally dripping off the mandrel and I had to keep flipping it around like a very hot wad of pizza dough to keep it from falling into my lap.

A little raking, a little swirling, a little more melting - then back into the press. I added the 'neck' at the bottom of the bead last by superheating the base of the bead and wrapping it all up with more ivory. My trusty graphite marver molded the neck a little, so it looked a little more natural.

Then I admired my work for 10 seconds too long, and the whole thing split down the middle.

Thanks again for the help!

[Lara]

Your getting there Sam. May I suggest trying a bead with just IB and ivory. It works easier on just these two. Try without the silver as the silvered ivory will kinda engulf your IB design.


Lara

[Lizabeads]

****Don't forget besides Wa. State classes, Kimberly does travel to other places to teach. She just got back from Italy and has even more new techniques to share. An amazing teacher and so patient! Peg M
I wish I could get her to Alabama !!