Hi Laurie,
Thanks so much for the compliments on my beads!
I haven't heard about encased raku cracking eventually, nor have I had it happen to me. If you're encasing "pure" raku, you should use a clear that has a compatible coe. (Karla uses Kugler) All of the beads where I use frit or stringer, and then encase in clear, were encased with either Lauscha or Vetrofond. Also, I always pop them in the kiln while they still have a good glow.
This is just a guess, but maybe the people who have cracking problems are waiting too long, trying to see the colors develope, before putting the bead in the kiln. I wouldn't worry too much about the cracking rumor.

Thanks Dawn. I wasnt sure if it was true or not. I took some of my sad attempt at Raku but nicely encased beads over to a friend lampworker to see if I could get some much needed Raku help and she said the beads would eventually crack. I had heard that from others aswell....over on the other site. So I wasnt sure.

Thanks for all you Raku knowledge and secrets....hehe....I need to pull out the Raku again - contemplated giving it all away in the make a wish thread some time back. Glad I didnt.....I have all sizes including powder.

What is the best way to use the powder. I know Kaye - Koregon uses powder a lot. Her beads are amazing arent they.

I'm sure that if you use your raku sparingly when you encase them, there should be no problems.

And yes, I adore the way Kaye uses the powder and does the scrollwork on top. Her beads ARE amazing!

Here's one way I used the powder. I wanted to have a "tea stained" looking background for some flowers, so I made a tiny thin barrel of white, rolled it a few times in the raku powder and encased it in clear. Then I put flowers and vines on top. I think it gave them a nice "Country Garden" feel.

Thank you so much for the tips, Dawn. I think I am getting the hang of it with encasing but wanted some clarification on something (hope I can do this clearly).

After melting it in, I super heat it to the white/orange glow, then marver it and it is really really dark. Then I reheat it and gently marver it a couple of times. I noticed as I am marvering during this stage it is not as dark, and looking closely I can see some beautiful colors through that darkness.

At this point, if I don't want to encase, if do the final shaping and put it in the kiln, would it come out with those pretty colors or would it still be dark? Should the bead be heated and cooled more to remove some more darkness or would I lose the colors. At this point it is not black but like a dark brown but I can see blues and greens and I think purples shining through.

Hi Sherry,

I'm pretty sure I know what you're asking, and I hope this answers your question.

When I'm going to encase a bead I want to do so when the raku is REALLY dark. Like right after the first time I marver it. Because when you apply the clear, it tends to "pale" the colors under it a bit, and I want that raku to be the darkest it can be.

Not encasing the beads is just a little bit more tricky and all depends on what you want the end result to be. I've put the same, dark looking, un-encased bead in the kiln and found that I get awesome reds and purples. The hardest part for me was putting a dark bead in the kiln and just "trusting" that it would be colorful when I pulled it out the next morning. Like you, I felt like I had to "suck" some of the color or darkness back out of the beads before putting them in the kiln. But I found that I get my best colors when I don't try to suck the color back out. That's why it's always such a thrill to pull my raku beads from the kiln in the morning, because I never know exactly how they will look.....but I'm never dissappointed!

Try a few small test beads and stash them in the kiln while the raku is dark. Remember how dark they looked and if they're gorgeous when you take them out of the kiln....DO LOTS MORE just like it!!!....LOL!
I hope this made sense.....:wink:

Makes perfect sense :) Thanks Dawn. I know it's going to be hard putting them in the kiln that way as it will feel unfinished, but I will :) Your beads are gorgeous!! Thanks again.

raku
 

ok, i dont understand what you mean about getting the raku dark, mine is just green, no matter how long i heat it.???? help! did four straight months of raku, nothing, finally gave up.

I have a question that is related to raku, but not how to use it!!!!
I ordered from Valcox and it was shipped. Does anyone know if she ships from the post office or is Ups coming to visit me soon? I am the most impaitient person on earth! She is out of town until Monday or I would ask her!
Thanks to anyone who knows!

Everything I have received from her has always come by Priority Mail. Usually 2-3 days in transit. I'm the same way about having to wait. I think my mailman and UPS guy are afraid of me cause I always run out to meet them.

Hi Kelly,
No....don't give up! Do you have a picture of any of your raku beads you can post here? A picture would really help!
It's not "how long" you heat it that's important in bringing the colors out. Not so much as how hot, and then to chill it. Once I melt in the frit and let the bead cool just until it looses it's glow, then I superheat the surface real quick and marver it. It turns the raku black looking, but then as it cools, the colors start to develope. Go back to the very first post and try what I suggested. And do try the "rainbow dots" too. I promise you, once it "clicks", you'll be hooked! :grin:

Ok are there different colors of raku and do they all do different colors?? I have some orange iris raku and it's done nothing like you guys have gotten. I tried super heating and quick cooling without much luck so far.
so A) the colors it is when it cools in the blanket before kilning is the color it's going to stay right? It won't suddenly look neat after annealing it?
B) HH just can't do what needs to be done to get those colors??
C) Will the marver be cool enough (it's not the brass one) to do the "cooling" to get the colors..

I think that covers it all. Sorry if I sound really thick that after reading all this I am asking those questions.

Hi Arlene,
Don't apologize for asking questions. That's the way we all learn.

Yes, Raku is the Iris Orange. In rod and frit form it varies in color from light brown to brownish red. But it all produces the same effects in the flame.

I think your main problem is that you're on a HotHead. Not that I have any personal experience with them, but I've heard that you can't get the full range of colors from raku when using a HotHead.

As far as batch annealing goes, the colors will be the same as they were when you cooled them in your fiber blanket. It takes a rapid change from hot to cold to make the colors pop. The temperatures used to anneal will not change the color.

And as far as chilling the beads, I've used a graphite marver, a brass tool, and a little stainless spatula to marver and chill the beads and they all produce the same results.

So I hate to say it, but you may not be able to get those blues and purples using a HotHead. But the raku can make some really nice browns that are very appealing too. Especially in "Fall" colored bead sets.

I am having a problem with my black pitting. I am getting better colours and then suddenly my black starts pitting, it is driving me crazy. What am I doing wrong?
Carmen

Hi Carmen,
I heard a while back that someone got a batch of black Effetre that was pitting. Do you have another brand of black to try, or maybe some that you know is from a different batch....or maybe a different color all together?
My first guess would be that you're not doing anything wrong, but may have a bad batch (or at least, rod) of glass.
I know if you work raku for way too long, it might pit a little bit, but usually it takes a really long time for that to happen. Maybe you could try some cobalt blue and see if you still get the pitting.

Carmen,
You might want to try the Lauscha black. It's great with Raku because you can cook the snot out of the raku and the black doesn't pit/boil/exhibit any other nasty behaviors.
Carol

Thanks I will give it a try. I keep saying to my friend Lynne Smith that I am going to send her all my raku because it is driving me crazy but yet I still continue to torture myself.

THANK YOU for this thread! =D> I actually got my Raku to turn awesome colors! I put one of my brass stamps into a plastic dish that contained ice water. (Making sure the water didn't get into the stamp). Then, when the bead was hot hot hot, I placed it onto the stamp, then back into the flame, then back into the stamp and voila! It actually worked.

You all rock. Thank you so much for sharing your talent with us!

Where am I in the getting-it-to-turn-colors process when everything just goes gun-metal gray and stays there? Is that beyond toasted or not toasted enough?

It's funny but when I started out, I got nice colors from the raku -- I guess that was beginners luck. Now I can't get it to do anything but either stay kaki beige or that dull metal color (which is not pretty and eats up the whole bead sometimes).

However, I am also wondering if raku frit ages poorly. The container I'm using now is the same container I started using last August and I've wondered if it has absorbed too much moisture or something. Is there anyone who has had success with the same container of raku frit after many, many months?

Giselle

Woohoo! That's great!
Before I had my new studio I spent a year in my blazing hot garage (some days around 100 degrees) and actually did the ice trick a few times myself. I actually kept an ice cube on my stamp, and just before I would squeeze the bead, I would move the ice and give a quick wipe with a towel.....LOL! Oh, the things we will try to get those great colors!

Hi Giselle,

First I would need to ask if you're using a torch with oxygen & gas mix. If so, the gunmetal grey would indicate that you're using a reducing flame that is too rich in propane. Try working your bead in a more neutral flame by either boosting your oxygen or reducing your propane. Raku is loaded with silver, and will reduce (have the metals brought up to the surface) very easily. This can be very pretty too, but if you want those gorgeous colors to show, use a neutral flame.

Also, I would doubt that your raku has gone bad. Glass is, for the most part, non-porous and I would imagine that it will be as good 20 or 30 years from now as it was when you first purchased it.

Why not try some encased dots to get you going. Make a base bead, and using a stringer of raku, apply your dots but don't melt them in. Once you have all your dots on, heat each dot one at a time and flaten with a metal tool. (You can use an old butter knife) You will notice the dot gets really dark when you chill and flaten it. THAT'S GOOD!!! Now just waft your bead in the flame to keep it warm, but don't melt everything in. Now encase all your little dots with drops of clear. At this point you will see some nice blues and purples, and they will look even nicer when you take them out of your kiln. This will be a good excercize in chilling your raku, and will help you know what to look for.

Good luck, and let us know how you make out!

hi all

i tried posting awhile back but my posts never showed up.[-X

just want to say, don't give up like dawn says.
i'm on a HH and you can get great colors, dark but bright blues, purples, etc.

it's just one of those things i guess,
once you *get it, you'll see. seems a lot have different spells and magic lol.

a lil tip i do sometimes, although it doesn't seem to matter. i get colors with or without it.....
i was worried about the cold water i've read about in the past, so i put my marver on one of those "ice packs", the ones for coolers and such.

Finally, I have pics of the twistie beads with the intense black.

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e3...s/rakuset4.jpg

Hi Elasia,
Thanks for sharing that information! I'm sure that will be very encouraging news for those on HotHeads.
And thanks for sharing the "ice pack" tip! That's a great idea!

Oh YUMMY!!! Those are just gorgeous, Kevan! =D>

Thanks for telling me about the intense black, Dawn. I thought they would crack or something if I made twisties with 104 glass.

I'm also posting a pic of twisties with raku. I always use vetrofond black as a base, I find it stiffer, so you can heat it more without it blobbing off the mandrel.

Thanks everyone for your input

:shock:

now see? some say kronos is the "new raku".
with beads like that i have to disagree lol.

gorgeous!

oh, one thing i forgot to ask last post. one night when i didn't have the raku gods with me, i got this nasty brown...NASTY!
and i was wondering why, i did nothing different? no colors other than that brown. i tried posting a pic but that's when i didn't show up here heh.

probably not an answer for that ;) it seems to depend on so much sometimes.

When it's that rusty yucky brown KEEP HEATING IT. It does that before it changes colors.

I have heard that a HH won't bring out the colors. Someone here, I forget who it is, uses a HH and her raku stays perfectly beige. It's a nice beige, but it's almost the same as sage green to me.


There is only one kind of raku, from what I understand. Iris orange Reichenbach 108.

Actually there is another. R-106 (dark Raku) It does some really cool stuff too, but does devit much easier. It is the top stringer on this bead.

Raku
 

HI,
I for one haven't had any luck with the raku! But now I will try again! Thanks for the tips.
:razz: