Good Glass for Newbies?

[stephaniebee]

Hi, I set up my itty bitty studio with a HH and some assortments of glass of all colors. I think I'm getting ahead of myself, worrying more about color than basics like shape, dot placement, etc. What would be some good glass to buy for practice beads that might actually look okay, instead of smeary and weird? For example, a pound of black--what kind? A pound of white--what kind? A pound of--ivory? Red? Blue? What color, kind?

Also, I am working in my garage, with the garage door open, a door open directly next to my table, a vent at my feet and a vent overhead. (It's California.) Does that sound like enough, or do I need to add a vent and active removal of impurities in the air?

BTW love reading the forum, it has been very helpful and inspiring!

Stephanie Buehler
Laguna Niguel, CA

[BeadBlossoms]

Hi Stephanie,

Welcome to lampworking - you are going to love it!

As far as glass, white and black are always good, my favorite is CIM Peace, and CIM Tuxedo. A great hint someone gave me when I first started out is to melt turquoise. It teaches you where in the flame you should be...if it turns coral, you're too hot - move more to the top of the flame :) Keep melting it until you can keep the turquoise color - it may take some time. Plain old Effetre dk turquoise and ivory are great, and affordable.

And then there are frits.......:) Once you can shape beads, you might want to play around with it - very fun!

As far as ventilation, you may want to search the Safety threads - tons of info on that.

Relax and have fun!

[Jody Lee]

I'd go with the CIM white and black too. Transparents are a little stiffer, hence easier to control in the flame, than opaques.

Passing the Flame is a great book to have in your library. I love the Deanna Griffin Dove books too - she's got a bead shaping one, an encasing one, and a dots book - all are very detailed, with great pictures and excellent commentary. I review mine every couple months.

Have fun playing!

[stephaniebee]

Thanks, folks! I just ordered black, white, red, turquoise, ivory, & red glass, plus more mandrels, plus Passing the Flame. That should keep me happy for awhile.

I did take an intro class at Brea Beadworks, but it is hard to find a class that gets you from rank beginner to intermediate. For anyone "listening," it would be great to have more beginner/intermediate classes available, anywhere.

[bousky]

Welcome to the world of glass. I'm in Huntington Beach. About a month into working on my Hot Head I took a one on one class with StacyLynn and then went to Pacific Art Glass and bought a new torch. I would recommend spending time with your set up as is.

What COE of glass did you buy? Don't start with Bullseye on a HH, it was what I did and probably why I developed torch envy so quickly.

If you want to set a day when I can come to you for tips and advice, I'd be happy to do so.