View Full Interactive Version Of This Page : Looking for off-mandrel Raven/Crow tut
I can't seem to find a tut for doing off-mandrel birds...
I've been conspiring with my sister(who makes wooden/bamboo Native American style flutes) and started making glass "bird" beads for her flutes. On a flute, the bird is the detachable piece (usually decorative) without which there is no sound. See below for a clue what I'm talking about...sorry no pics yet of the glass bird with wood flute. She's busy making the flutes to go with my "birds" still...
Anyway, I have an idea for a "bird" that involves a raven seated on a branch grooming his wing and wondered if anyone had any tuts or ideas on how to accomplish that. I will say I love the crows Gnimelf does
PLEASE???? There have been 50 people view this so far. I know at least 1 of those 50 HAVE to be brilliant, generous, sweet & kind enough to have some hints/tips/ideas? I would be forever in your debt & willing to grovel nicely at your feet if I ever meet you in person...otherwise you can just picture me doing so.:smile:
While I've done some sculptural work I haven't done much & I can't seem to find anything tutorialwise that would work(I did see a bird but it was a bead in & of itself).
Marsh glass (http://www.marshglass.com)has some off mandrel tutorials on his site. They might help. Good luck.
theglasszone
2008-02-26, 11:18am
Marsh glass (http://www.marshglass.com)has some off mandrel tutorials on his site. They might help. Good luck.
What a great suggestion! (I believe this work, referenced in the tutorial/link, is done in BORO.) I know from my own "attempts" to do any kind of "off mandrel" sculpting, this is a very fine art that takes a skilled, practice hand and a keen knowledge of heat distribution...especially when working with soft glass (the tip I've seen repeatedly, to not go "back" from your starting point as you work, lets say, from the body outward) is a great "key" suggestion. I've seen some wonderful bird, beetle, insect work - and it's a wonder to admire and I have the UTMOST RESPECT for those who can accomplish it. I'm a long way off, but wish you the best of luck. I'm sure once you put your mind to it, get a feel for it with some trial and error, and a TON of practice, you'll accomplish your dream!
Regards from CA,
DeAnne
I was thinking that if you took the second picture and printed it then shaded it to 'blob' formation and add a punty where it would be most convenient to you. Post it in front of your work station and play.
I see the picture above and think OK rotate it clockwise and add the punty to the tail... You can see the formation better. (Really I have never done this, so it could be all blah blah blah.... :lol: )
I'd try to take a class with Wes (the guy that made the crow in the photo). What you are wanting to do goes beyond the scope of a tutorial.
Paula
I like these videos on youtube. (http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=sunfireglass) He does all offhand work with several varieties of bird. The basic techniques should get you on the right track to being able to modify the design into other species of bird.
Jaci-I wish I could find a pic to use...unfortunately none I've seen match the "pose" I have in mind
Paula-boy I would love to take one of Wes's classes...only problem? money. I'll be saving up for that though, believe you me!
Mary-wow those vids you found are great. I think that should be very useful! I'm kind of getting ideas just from watching the soaring eagle one. I'll be heading back after I post this to check his others. Good music too. I had to laugh though, I can't hardly torch a thing without music in my studio too.
Great suggestions everyone. I really appreciate it. I know some of you may never have experienced this, but it's very frustrating obsessing over this idea/design and not knowing where to start.
I'm sure this won't be anywhere close to perfect at first, but I promise I'll post some pics of my pitiful attempts along the way to keep you posted as to my progress!
Wow there are some nice video's on U-Tube. Didn't realize they were there! Joe sure is busy!
Paula
Otter's Flame
2008-03-01, 3:21am
Eidyn,
I am a Native American Flute maker and I make glass "birds" for my flutes. I will try and put together a tutorial for you. Does your sister have a completely flat surface on the top of her flutes and the air channel on the bottom of the bird or does she cut the air channel into the top of the flute body?
Otter
Eidyn,
I am a Native American Flute maker and I make glass "birds" for my flutes. I will try and put together a tutorial for you. Does your sister have a completely flat surface on the top of her flutes and the air channel on the bottom of the bird or does she cut the air channel into the top of the flute body?
Otter
Cool! Most of her flutes are Eastern style with the channel cut into the flute, but the flat marvered underside of the glass seemed to require a bit of sanding to make it perfectly flat to match the (yes) flat surface on the flute to fit the bird. If you have any tips for how to get around that I sure would appreciate that too! I should add that so far we've only done the one flute which because of the style of flute bead I did was made of bamboo (I understand it was a pain to work with as far as making the bead fit). I'm sure some other wood would be easier to work with & not as exacting. Also I'm using a flat head screwdriver to make the notch in the end of the bird...any better ideas? OOOH I can't wait to see your tut!!!:happy:
From my sister....thanks & would you be interested in her email address? She's got a lovely stash of various hardwoods (cedar, walnut, hedge apple & lots of others) since she lives in a hundred acre plot of woods & is willing to trade wood as well as info.
Also for those who're interested I'll post it here too....our first effort on the flute bead project....
That is a GREAT start!!! I love the hole in that bead!!!
Thanks Jaci! I have to say though that using a flat mandrel is going to take some getting used to.
Hi guys, thought you'd like to know I've done 2 birds in the last few days...sorry , nothing to show for it though. I ran out of propane just as I was finishing my 1st then dropped & shattered him as I went to remove him from his punty. My 2nd bird looked great...until I dropped him as I went to switch hands & put him into the kiln. Hope to have something soon for you to see!
~Mary Beth:-({|=
You are brave anyway....Paula
I would say more driven than brave...I can't seem to get this out of my mind right now.
o.k. folks don't laugh TOO hard...Wes did say I should wait til I could get my hands on some boro to start practicing with...but could I contain myself that long? Heck NO!:rolleyes: So here it is. My first attempt at working off-mandrel, and doing a bird for that matter. It only took me 3 tries to get one all the way INTO the kiln without dropping it! Note to self...MUST GET LONGER HANDLED TOOLS for doing this stuff! lol At least you can tell it's supposed to be a bird. Drum roll please?.........
Introducing Daffy Duck (I had some excess black on hand and seemed to channeling duck more than raven that night)!
I am impressed - I like ducks.
Good work
- Deb
I just saw this thread. Mary Beth, you've taken on a lot. Have you ever seen Shane Fero's blown birds with tubing? I have a feeling that you might love the look of those. btw, his tubes are soft glass.
So you're doing boro and not soft glass, right? How large are your birds going to be? I do sculptural glass and I find that if I start small and practice, it's easier to get bigger later. You might want to try that too.
Marcy
I just saw this thread. Mary Beth, you've taken on a lot. Have you ever seen Shane Fero's blown birds with tubing? I have a feeling that you might love the look of those. btw, his tubes are soft glass.
So you're doing boro and not soft glass, right? How large are your birds going to be? I do sculptural glass and I find that if I start small and practice, it's easier to get bigger later. You might want to try that too.
Marcy
Oh...too true Marcy I started out trying to make them larger, thinking the details would be easier, bad move!
I'm actually using soft glass for now. I've been told that it's easier to start sculptural work with boro, but I'm just not drawn to that palette. Crazy huh? I meant to make a small order of boro, thinking I'd just use it to get a feel for things, but I've never gotten around to it. In the mean time, other projects have taken priority for now, but I fully intend to get back to this idea as soon as I can! As to size, I'm thinking pretty small. It would need to fit, relatively unobtrusively, on a "flute bird" bead, so maybe 1-1 1/2 in max? And yes I love Shane Fero's birds!
Mark Parkinson
2008-06-01, 2:52pm
have you seen this tut on youtube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ABt-FM7eao
if you use a punty instead of a mandrel the basics are there,
I played with it for a few birds and got some good results to get a better wing (for me) I made up some discs by makings a ball on the end of the rod flattening it pulling off and holding on a hot plate until needed.
to apply the wing I picked up a wing with tweezers heating one edge gently as I heated the body of the bird then joined them, gently heat the disc and pull it to wing shape by pulling from the 'back' portion about 1/3 around the edge,
when done I went back in and heated the tip and pulled a point by tweezing off a bit.
Mark Parkinson
2008-06-01, 3:51pm
and just because ... they can too fly :)
Bwaahaahaa! I LOVE your piggy Mark!
No I hadn't seen that tut! And it looks perfect for me...THANKS!!!
those are wonderful, Mark.
Marcy
Since experiencing all the ravens in Alaska, I've been working on some too. I've found it easier to get a more natural look with more fluidity by heating and removing glass as opposed to adding glass. If that makes any sense.
Actually I believe I do know what you're trying to say Tink...I'll try that too. Thanks
It's wonderful how many different ways there are to accomplish anything, and wonderful how fun it is trying each and every one of them to see which works best for me!:biggrin:
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