Off mandrel rose Tutorial
 

I've been asked a few times how to do these so I finally took some pics as I was making one. This is my first tutorial so hopefully I included all the steps.


Off mandrel rose

Material needed:
Petal mashers
5-6mm boro rod about 6” long
A pick
Needle Tweezers
Annealing kiln
Glass rod for leaves and flower


Make a ball of glass on the end of a rod


and mash it with your petal masher.


Pull the petal off the rod, set on non burn able pad (marver)


and pickup with tweezers and put in annealer. Make all of your petals and leaves in advance, make extra as they may crack when you flash them in the flame.


Vary the size from 3/8" to 3/4" or so, you need at least 3 of each size you make. As you are doing layers of 3.


For soft glass... using a boro punty heat up


and maria the end,



add a small pea size amount of your leaf glass,


then either add a pea sized ball of your petal color and pull and shape a center

or add a petal and using the needle tweezers roll it into a cylinder.

Add a small petal above the leaf color and pull slightly to shape,


using the tweezers to also roll the petal,


pull slightly to shape.


Rotate 120 degrees and add a second petal and pull and shape,


then a third between the two, pull and shape.


As you add the petals, place them on 90 degrees to the flower and then use the tweezers to roll the petal more round then pull and shape.

Now add a row between each previous petal, on the bottom of the petal, pulling and shaping as you apply. Remember to flash it in and out of the flame.


Continue until it is at least 2 layers , Adding just above the leaf color and between each petal. (I've made up to 5 layers on a minor and an oxycon)

Now if you want it to hang add a loop to one of the last petals you added by applying a dot of glass about center of the petal and one forward of that,


continue to flash everything, build up the dots into 2 columns, turn upside down and join the two columns together making a loop, form and straighten the loop.



Add leaves same as the petals. Heat the leaf and pinch the center with the tweezers. Reheat and pinch the edges at an angle. Heat just enough to pull and form.




Or if you have a leaf masher you could pre make the leaves with that

Flash the flower in the flame, grab a center petal with tweezers and heat the bottom to remove from the boro punty.


Marver the bottom flat and melt in.
Place in kiln

You really have to remember to FLASH everything!!!! Don't stay on one spot.

The largest flowers 15 petals are the size of a silver dollar, the smallest with 3petals about the size of a dime

Thank You for the tut.I've admired your roses for a long time.
Thank you for sharing.
Janet

David that is a wonderful tutorial! Thank you for so generously sharing.

Very, very nice! Thank you so much for sharing this beautiful technique and taking the time to make all the important visual additions. It's great!

:)
De

Gorgeous, thank you for your tutorial! I know I will be trying this soon :-)

Killer job with that tut! Thank you!

Who helped with the pics, or did ya rig it so ya could do it on your own?

Great work! That's an excellent tut. The step-by-step photos are clear and your descriptions are good. I loved your "petal mashers"! :D

Wow! Thank you for this tutorial. It might just make me try off-mandrel work.

Lisa

Awesome tutorial, David, thank you so much for sharing! :-)

Rig it... Gayle I just took photos as needed :lol: Some that I should have in there I can't do cause I don't have 3 hands.


Thanks all

Very nice!! have you considered submitting your tutorials to magazines before going public with them? You can get great exposure and a couple extra dollars in your pocket. After the mag goes public, you can sell tutorials online through like others here are doing.

Anyone know if Step By Step beads is still in publication? my subscription ran out and I haven't seen it at my local crap store.

Thanks so much for your time and effort in putting this together for all of us to enjoy :)

Thank you for your hard work! I look forward to trying it.

Awesome tutorial! Thank you so much for posting it. I always wondered how people made them.

You are wonderful for posting!=D>

David, thank you so much for doing this! I really admire your flowers and I am looking forward to trying it too!

Very Nice David!

David,

Can't believe it's your first tutorial! Really well done. The pics are clear, the step-by-step is easy to follow, and the flowers are amazing. I think I still need practice time before I'll be ready, but one day I'll drum up the courage to give them a try. Thanks so much for posting this.

BTW, where did the petal mashers come from? They're a clever design.

Thanks again!

Phil I saw where someone had taped spoons to a pair of tweezers, made more sense to me to rivet them together

OM word fantastic David!! You are so clever :)

Wonderful job! I LOVE your tutorial.

Oh David, GOOD ON YA!
Verrrry nice tut, well thought out, pix are great, and I'm thankful that you chose to share will everyone. And you know how I feel about your "fowlers" I've been a big fan from day one, good job buddy!
Tell Carol hello for me and I trust she's feeling better! Thanks again David!
Nita

David, again thank you so much! Damn fab tute you put together for us!!! You can have a laugh at my tries and I mean it'll be a laugh, but I'll have a blast having a go and can't thank you enough for being generous and sharing to everyone. Kudos to you!

David, Thanks for sharing this tutorial. Beautiful work.

Thank you David for this tutorial! May I ask a very silly question? How do you put off-mandrel work into the kiln? Do you have a fibre blanket lying on the kilnfloor where you just put it?
Verena

Fiona, Karen, beybey Thanks
Thanks Nita, I'll tell her.
Michelle, do you remember my first ones? :lol: Come on ya no you wanna make one

Verena, no I just let the "glow" fade past dark red and set it on the kiln floor with the petals up

Very nice tutorial and well done pictures! Thank you so much. I cant wait to try it!

Thanks much!!!

Fantastic - well written and beautifully photographed!

I love your spoon masher tool - I'll have to make a set like that for myself.

-Diane

Wow - fantastic tutorial and so generous for you to share it. I love your flowers. Thank you so much!!!!