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Bobby
2008-01-30, 6:08pm
The little brass disk with the threads on the back came from "Walnut Hollow". I picked mine up at the craft store. It's in the wood burning section. They have quite a few other shapes like stars, squares, arrows and hearts that are small enough for glass stamping. I like these because the edge is sharp and makes a good clean press into the glass.

For cutting your own shapes the large disk is good one. It's the size of a dime and is also thick enough to take a deep cut and hold up to the heat of the glass.

One thing you have to be aware of when making your design is the back has threads that you will later put into a handle. You won't want to cut into them.

I put scotch tape on the disk and then trim the tape to fit the disk. This gives you a place to draw your design and have a sharp line to cut on with the jewelers saw. I clamp the disk with a pair of locking pliers before sawing which makes the cutting easier. You can carve between the toes with the burr before or after cutting the shape out.

I used a small burr from Dremel Tools to clean out the brass from between the toes. Take small layers at a time and go slow because you will have this stamp for a very long time. Once you get your first pass done you can dig a little deeper and not slide off or out of your pattern. Slow is the key here. You will be happy in the long run.

While working on the stamp it's a good idea to press it into a little clay.....or the pad of your thumb........to see the progress and areas that might need a little more work.


When I finished my first one it came out wide......just like my foot. Now how did that happen ? ? ? ..............................

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The tools that I used.
______________________________________

Now for the tutorial

1
Draw a circle on the disk to let you
know where the threads are on the back
so you won't cut into them.

Draw your design on a piece of scotch tape
and attach it to the top of the disk.


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2
Clamp the disk with a pair of locking pliers
to keep it stable while you are sawing.

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3
Starting the cut.


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4
The first cut.

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5
The second cut. Stay close to the toe lines
so it will make the final clean up easier.

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6
The final cut. Now you are ready to play with
the shape.

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7

A side view of the thickness. This keeps the
stamp stable for the hot glass.

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8
Start out very slow and let the burr cut a shallow
channel along all the lines of the toes and the pad
of the foot between the toes. Make a few passes
to get the channel deeper. Once you have this you
can take more and more from the brass without
skiddering all over the place. Only cut down into
the brass about a fourth of the way. This gives the
very small toes some backing to keep them strong.

When you get the shape for the toes completed
with the burr you can file the heel and sides to
shape. File the instep in a little to form the foot.

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Remember to anchor the piece and your hand holding it,
so you don't slip with the saw or the burr.

A picture of the stamps I made pressed into clay.

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O.K. now go have fun ! ! !
Post pictures of your stamps ! ! ! ! ! ! !

Whitehotglassworks
Bobby

P.S. more brass stuff and such ! ! !

http://www.lampworketc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=38040

http://www.lampworketc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=80198

http://www.lampworketc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=43634

Have fun
Bobby

sean
2008-01-30, 6:26pm
Bobby,
Thanks for sharing! Are you using jewel saw blades? Thanks again!

ROC
2008-01-30, 6:38pm
Neat Bobby, thanks! You make it look so easy. My foot will probably be short a toe or two, though. lol

menty666
2008-01-30, 7:05pm
Very cool, thanks!

Where do you get the nifty handle?

Bobby
2008-01-30, 7:31pm
sean............yes the jewelers blade that I cut my sterling silver with.

ROC......that is too funny ! ! !

menty666...........it's one I had laying around....not a clue, but you can find ex-acto holders with different openings. I've been known to drill down into the ex-acto holder top to make an opening.

Thanks for looking and I'm glad you like the tutorial.

Bobby

Dreamscapes Studio
2008-01-30, 8:37pm
That's GREAT Bobby!!! Thanks for sharing your talent with us:biggrin:

melzip
2008-01-30, 8:49pm
Now that is just to cute!

Nice job!

How much would ya charge for one, for those of us who might be to lazy to make our own? :biggrin:

Bobby
2008-01-30, 10:23pm
103409

These just came out of the kiln. I wanted to show different glasses. The blue one should show up with a white core before the transparent. I did find out that it shows up better on the opaque glass. Haven't tried silver yet or other colors.......I think I will leave that to others.
Sooooooooooooo Do Enjoy ! ! !

Bobby

Bobby
2008-01-30, 10:28pm
Melissa............you know that thing about too many ideas and not enough time in the day. A few more ""free"" hours once in awhile would be nice.

Bobby

Anne Ricketts
2008-01-31, 6:37am
My friend's husband wants a "footprints in the sand" bead, wonder if this just might be the trick! Thanks for sharing this tutorial!

Sharon Abood
2008-01-31, 7:54am
Great tut! Thanks for sharing.

LAG
2008-01-31, 6:19pm
I love the foot press.. how cool.. I think you otter market it???

gubnavnania
2008-02-01, 2:01am
This is way too cool.

Thank you for posting the tutorial :D

rainygrrl
2008-02-02, 12:16pm
Excellent tut--thanks!

newlondonbrat
2008-02-02, 2:23pm
That was awesome. Thanks for sharing

tradesbears
2008-02-02, 6:42pm
great idea!

CO_Phantom
2008-02-03, 1:56am
Wow, Bobby, your creativity never ceases to amaze me!

I will go to Michaels to see if they have some of those brass discs you were talking about. WalMart might, too...they sometimes have a small woodburning section. Strange, no?

Thanks for sharing this.

-Amy

ginger2
2008-02-03, 8:16am
You make it look easy.....thanks for the tutorial!:biggrin: Nice job!
ginger

nivedita
2008-02-03, 11:30am
thanks so much for the clear and concise tutorial... it set my mind carousing off wildly....

country kid
2008-02-09, 5:48pm
Thanks Bobby
That's just what I needed....I'm going to be working on a Mountian Maddess Collection Which would not be complete without a big foot, foot print.
Kare

Bobby
2008-02-09, 11:41pm
Kare that sounds like fun..........post pictures if you have them.

A big thank you to everyone who posted comments to this tutorial.

I enjoy sharing them.

I have been over to the tips section with the push pins thread
and just realized that I could put a footprint on a pushpin.

..................wow...........where's the V-8 ! ! !

Here's a link:

http://www.lampworketc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=81430

Enjoy the glass

Bobby