I'm often asked for a tutorial for this style and I've posted it a few times, but it gets lost in the threads so I thought I'd post it here...
Examples of scale beads - Olive, then EDP scales and lastly, on Ivory and Copper Green as a base:
What you need:
Vetrofond Dark Ivory, Vetrofond Ochre Green or Moretti Copper Green rods
Silver Leaf
Moretti Ivory stringer
Stringer in your choice of colors: Lauscha Olive (best), Lauscha Steel Blue (little harder to work with) or EDP (purple 254 - and just as hard to keep from devitting)
Tutorial (sorry, no pics):
PREP - make the Silvered Ivory stringer before you begin - The best way to make SIS for these beads is take a full-size, pre-manufactured Ivory stringer and wrap it in silver leaf then burnish it against the stringer to adhese. Make four or five of these as you will go through them quickly. Do not pull a stringer from a rod wrapped in silver leaf - it doesn't work.
1) Make a spacer (with your preferred base color - Vetrofond Dark Ivory, Vetrofond Ochre Green or Moretti Copper Green) with a raised ridge or line down the middle but do not round it out. The surface must be a little rough in shape before the next step.
2) Apply silvered Ivory dots. A row of 5 or 6 down the middle (yes on top of the middle ridge you created) then staggered on the sides.
3) On top of the SIS dots, place dots of colors you know spread or bleed: Lauscha Olive, Lauscha Steel Blue, EDP (Purple 254)...there are others as well...
4) Now melt in and let the glass droop a bit as you rotate. This is very important. The scales form by the glass moving around, getting really hot, and then the applied dots
spreading into position. Be patient - the process can take some time...
5) When you see nicely formed scales (tight lines between dots - see pictures), you're done. Just round out the bead and anneal!
6) They look best etched!