Spiral issues...

[Smurfy5]

So, I am realizing that I am not to swift when trying to do stringer work... I see beautiful spiral like designs and I know I need more practice but was wondering if anyone has some tips or knows of a book or video that is really good at showing how to do nice curly, swirly kinds of lines. I do have Corina's dvd but maybe I need to watch it again?
Thanks so very much
-Kirsten

[Carolyn M]

It takes a long, long time to really master stringer work. I don't think I'm really there yet. Really it's the old PPP!!

[StOrM]

I hate stringer work also......I have problems finding that right flame to work in. My dots are decent though......

So i agree any tips other than PPP......

[Shawn T]

Try encasing your rod in clear and pulling that into a stringer, then make your scroll work out of that. Your stringer will be much stiffer and move slower allowing you more control over your movements until you get better and more practice. Then move up to just transparent colors especially colbalt and black as they are stiffer colors. Before you go to the pastels which can be much softer and bend very easy, making them harder to control.

[sunnyone]

yup..this is a ppp! great tips Shawn!

I love stringer!!!!

crystal

[beadworkstudio]

Pull really thick stringer and work in the side of your flame. On my Minor, I could work way back in the flame and do ok, but it took me almost a year to relearn it on my Pirahna. I wasn't paying attention one day and wandered to the side, and it worked.

[Cindy2]

Buy some of the pre-made stringer in "stiff" colors like orange. Make a large flat tab bead and turn your torch down (if you can) to a smaller flame. Melt the end of the stringer just enough to get color in it. Then touch to the tab bead and slowly decorate. Good luck!

[sunnyone]

With a minor you can really dial down the flame for stringer work...just make sure to throw enough heat into the piece if it a good size one or it will cracky crack crack! hehe

crystal

[JuneauBrat]

Besides stringer control, I found if I "doodle" it helps with design and size control.
I found several web sites that have scroll designs, like for certificates and greeting cards etc. Trace over the designs over and over again, then start practicing on your own. The designs are small enough so you can get a good feel and flair going to transfer to your beads. The designs are free so just the with just the cost of printing them out makes it pretty inexpensive.
Just my 2 cents that's worth less than a penny in our current economical state of affairs...

Sue

[kbinkster]

Oooo, I love doing stringer work like making spirals and squigglies and writing names on beads. I use two different methods, depending on which torch I am using.

If I am on my Lynx (or Phantom, using the centerfire), I sometimes like to dial in the needle flame (red and blue valves only) and use that. I can just put the flame wherever I want on the bead and go around melting the stringer onto the bead - very precise. When I am on the Bobcat or even when I'm on the Lynx and just don't want to dial in the needle flame, I use the outer heat envelope of the flame, working to the side of the flame like mentioned by others. This method takes a lot of practice to get down and it gets your fingers toasty.

Like Shawn said, the stiffer your glass, the easier it is. If you have BE glass, it is a little easier than Effetre/Moretti while you're learning.

I tend to keep my stringer as perpendicular to the bead as possible or lean it back a little. I find that if I let it angle down in the direction I'm drawing, it is easy for it to set onto the bead too soon and in a way I don't like. I keep it up and push a little.

[Smurfy5]

Awesome tips! Thank you all so much for your advice, I will have to keep trying... and I do have some BE so maybe that is what I will try next
Thanks!
-Kirsten

[Elizabeth Beads]

Hold your stringer like a fishing rod, find the sweet spot, and move the bead mostly, not the stringer.

Liz

[Cabanlet]

I think you need to try different ways and find one that works best for you. Try all the different tech. described here find the most comfortable one and PPPPPPPPP. I know I have PPP for 2 years to get spirals and squigels that I like and that look like that was what I wanted to do with the stringer!! LOL I move the stringer, not so much the bead. That was how I started and can't change it now. And did I mention PPPPPP!!!
Amy

[patienthand]

HI,
I turn my torch down lower and work on the edge of the flame, not in it. Another good tip is to have a pair of tile nippers handy. Its a trick I learned in a Patti Walton class. So, if you get those lil balls on the end of your stringer, and dont want blobs on your bead, just nip the end. She also uses the tile nippers when plunging the centers of flowers etc, to avoid blobs on the bead. She nips AFTER its plunged into the bead.

Hope this helps a little, and its just a matter of glass in the fire, learning flame control, and your torch, and where to work in the flame.

Candice

[ellyloo]

Oh! Another tip I read somewhere, and I've got to try... is use a stringer the same colour as your bead to practice on! that way you can melt it all in, then start again, and your bead is still useable when you're 'done', or think you're good enough for a contrasting colour.

That really appeals to me.