Nope, Can't Use THAT Rod! - Page 3

glassactcc · #61 2012-02-10, 8:54am

Anna, the bead looks great. It looks like you achieved a lot of different color with the Terra. Nice job!

glassactcc · #62 2012-02-10, 9:34am

I just talked to my husband. He is going to stop at CRLoo to pick me up some dark ivory so I don't have to use all of my "curdled" ivory. This is a step in the wrong direction LOL!

ChaseDesigns · #63 2012-02-10, 9:35am

Y'all need to seek therapy. If I bought it, I'm gonna use it.

ChaseDesigns · #64 2012-02-10, 9:36am

I think it will kill you all to know I wasn't a fan of amber rose, so I covered it all in frit. Hey, I sold those beads.

LarryC · #65 2012-02-10, 9:47am

Quote:

Originally Posted by glassactcc

I just talked to my husband. He is going to stop at CRLoo to pick me up some dark ivory so I don't have to use all of my "curdled" ivory. This is a step in the wrong direction LOL!

My wife has a shoe hoard going.....We have a whole room dedicated to shoe storage. Maybe you could swap me some glass for shoes?

Dreamsincolor · #66 2012-02-10, 11:33am

Fellow members of the Glass Hoarding Sisterhood I have received the wake up call needed to melt some of the "Can't touch that" stash of glass. When I was trying to find space for the latest order from Frantz (the 70% off Vetrofond sale) that my DH urged me to get since I really wanted, not needed to stock up on, he asked what I was going to do with (or when) the "special stuff" I had set aside for SOMEDAY. I told him I didn't want to risk wasting it on bad designs. Then, in all truly innocent curiosity, he asked me if I thought the person who inherited it would take as long to start melting it. After my heart started beating again on it's own I decided there will always be more "never to be made again" colors coming along and life is too short. It immediately put me in mind of all the people I've known who saved money all their lives by doing without things they truly desired only to have it go to some nursing home or relatives who went through it at light speed. The only glass thing someone will inherit from me is the beads that don't sell. LOL

Andrea

Beadanna · #67 2012-02-10, 11:49am

I like your thinking Andrea. (And your husband's!)
Having used one small bead's worth of original Terra I just HaD to buy more Terra from the Double Helix website.

Dreamsincolor · #68 2012-02-10, 12:37pm

Thanks Anna. My husband is one of the worst enablers around, or maybe he's the best depending on how you look at it. His philosophy in life is "Anything worth doing is worth OVER DOING". I have to be careful what I wish for out loud.

Andrea

Beadanna · #69 2012-02-10, 1:08pm

Beadanna · #70 2012-02-10, 1:10pm

Thanks Cynthia! It's a little more subtle than I would like.
You've got a great husband there.

So do you Andrea.

And so do I

SunDoorBeads · #71 2012-02-10, 1:19pm

Cynthia- I am on the fence here I have glass I hoarded and then started making beads with it and wouldn't you know I got so many requests I had to track down more the problem I got the one color of glass that had an icky twin doubling as the good "original" stuff- I guess what I am trying to say is I have never had a problem using glass but then I get to thinking about the "what ifs" and it makes me want to lock my glass away under lock and key lol. I have my beloved streaky sapphire that I will break out every once and again and I have about 7 rods of Z-99 that I will use but other than that it looks so much prettier sitting on the shelf-
WOW I have been no help at all I just realized that!!!
Andrea & Cynthia- I ditto the hubby thing that Anna said you have great ones! My DH is all about getting the glass if the beads sell when they don't he calls it "my hobby" ROFL

SunDoorBeads · #72 2012-02-10, 1:20pm

Anna- that Terra bead is gorgeous you got some great color in it- I need to get some of the handpulled stuff off the website as well- I only ever had 1 lonely rod of the original Terra and I did dare I say, use it to make my sister a bead.

glassactcc · #73 2012-02-10, 1:23pm

We who have great husbands are lucky aren't we?

In my defense, (yes I am justifying my hoarding tendencies) I didn't want to use the curdled ivory for my domino beads because it gets covered up with enamels. I want to wait until I can use it for a creation that will lend itself to the interesting properties it possess, and enhance the beauty of the glass object for which it was chosen. OK, how was that? What a load of crap.

Beadanna · #74 2012-02-10, 1:27pm

It makes complete sense to me!

Oh thanks Michelle

.

glassactcc · #75 2012-02-10, 1:53pm

Thank you Anna

glassactcc · #76 2012-02-10, 1:56pm

Yes, then there is that problem too. Need more "rare and hard to find" glass to complete the project

Maybe that's why I buy in bulk

I really don't like the word "hobby". That might be a whole nuther thread but it sounds so insignificant. I won't allow that word in my house. It's the "H" word.

Quote:

Originally Posted by SunDoorBeads

Cynthia- I am on the fence here I have glass I hoarded and then started making beads with it and wouldn't you know I got so many requests I had to track down more the problem I got the one color of glass that had an icky twin doubling as the good "original" stuff- I guess what I am trying to say is I have never had a problem using glass but then I get to thinking about the "what ifs" and it makes me want to lock my glass away under lock and key lol. I have my beloved streaky sapphire that I will break out every once and again and I have about 7 rods of Z-99 that I will use but other than that it looks so much prettier sitting on the shelf-
WOW I have been no help at all I just realized that!!!
Andrea & Cynthia- I ditto the hubby thing that Anna said you have great ones! My DH is all about getting the glass if the beads sell when they don't he calls it "my hobby" ROFL

Elizabeth Beads · #77 2012-02-10, 2:03pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dreamsincolor

It immediately put me in mind of all the people I've known who saved money all their lives by doing without things they truly desired only to have it go to some nursing home or relatives who went through it at light speed.

Andrea

Actually that is my excuse for buying glass not for using it. I'm spending my kids' inheritance (as my father was fond of saying, even if he was lying).

My husband is great too. I think he encourages me to buy glass so he won't feel guilty buying coins.

It is sort of like bead store beads, I rarely make jewelry and never with the beads I love most, but I still like having them and buying more now and then. I finally decided that it's OK to just have them, no pressure to do anything with them. I like to take them out and look at them.

Maybe my grandson (coming in June) will want to string beads with his granny some day.

The same with glass to some degree. I like having some of it, like my Z-99. No plans to use it or sell it, I just like having it on the shelf.

Which reminds me of the other show, the double whammy, that someone will come out with a comparable glass and your $15/oz. hoard will go back to being just glass. I'm feeling pretty happy that I sold my original Terra.

Beadanna · #78 2012-02-13, 9:37am

I'm dipping into my stash of original Terra and getting niiiice results today. I already got Kim Neely's archive and am using the suggestions there to try my very favourite beads in the world. I'm using both Terra and T265 and liking what I'm getting. I hope the kiln fairies leave them as they went in. . .
If you don't have the archive go to Kim's Bluffroad website where all her tuts are 50% off. Well worth it at twice the price. Beautiful bead porn.

Beadanna · #79 2012-02-14, 4:41am

Well the kiln fairies weren't as good as I hoped. Have a look at post 99 in the New Terra thread - http://www.lampworketc.com/forums/sh...=216414&page=4 - and see the effect I was hoping for. Kim gives some great advice on working Terra as does Dawn in that thread.

This is what I got -

They are not all Terra - some of them are TE265 (later called Ekho) and one or two are Mayex from Brad's StrikingColor.

beadsoncypress · #80 2012-02-14, 8:18am

glad i am not the only one saving my glass. my reasoning is that someday i will be good enough to use it!

Eileen · #81 2012-02-14, 8:48am

OK, I've been out of town playing with my grand baby, and at night I would lie in bed thinking about things. One of the things that crossed my mind was the glass that had come right before I left town. $25.00 a quarter pound, YIKES, maybe I'd better save it until I'm better, yada, yada, yada so I don't turn it to poop.
Then it clicked in my head. We go out to dinner & spend $25.00, and it is certainly going to turn to.... well, you know.... but I still enjoy the dinner.
So I'm going to try to not think so much about the cost, and just go for it a bit more often!

glassactcc · #82 2012-02-14, 8:53am

Are the green/blue ones Terra Anna? I have not looked at the other thread because I am NOT buying Terra

I do like the color you got. The other ones don't look like they did much in the way of colors. I have some of the TE stuff and I have only used it a couple of times but I pull stringer with it. I find that when I apply the silver glass in stringer or dots, I get a much better result then a whole bead, but I'm sure that is user error.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beadanna

Well the kiln fairies weren't as good as I hoped. Have a look at post 99 in the New Terra thread - http://www.lampworketc.com/forums/sh...=216414&page=4 - and see the effect I was hoping for. Kim gives some great advice on working Terra as does Dawn in that thread.

This is what I got -

They are not all Terra - some of them are TE265 (later called Ekho) and one or two are Mayex from Brad's StrikingColor.

Beadanna · #83 2012-02-14, 2:58pm

Cynthia, I'm embarrassed to say that I put dots of different glass on the mandrels so could identify them. But I didnt take note of which was which and couldnt remember.

I have some in the kiln and they are all Terra. So tomorrow things will be clearer hopefully.

Lyssa · #84 2012-02-14, 6:58pm

I do this too. It's like buying the perfect pair of Manolo's and not wearing them 'cause you're afraid they're gonna get scuffed.

(No, I'm not a girlie girl (quite the opposite), but my best friends ARE named Carrie, Miranda, Samantha and Charlotte.

)

My solution is to not buy expensive/rare glass. I don't buy more than 1/4 pound of anything at a time, so for me it's all kind of rare, and I don't pay more than $3 a quarter pound. At this stage, I only barely get predictable results from "regular" glass, I can't imagine the chaos that would arise if I tried to use fancy stuff, like silver glasses or reduction glasses. I still feel I'm not good enough to use it, and I'm not gonna pay so much for something that's just gonna sit on my shelf.

Problem is, I do get nice glass as gifts from lampwork friends of mine. One woman heard me saying I didn't have any pinks and she gave me a couple rods of highly expensive stuff (like Rubino) and I used it before I even realized what it was. I made play beads with the stuff. I know people say there is no wasted glass, it's all PPP, but some of the beads I made with the Rubino would make you all CRY because I didn't know the difference.

LarryC · #85 2012-02-14, 10:44pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lyssa

I can't imagine the chaos that would arise if I tried to use fancy stuff, like silver glasses or reduction glasses. I still feel I'm not good enough to use it, and I'm not gonna pay so much for something that's just gonna sit on my shelf.

That takes a lot of the fun out of this....You will never be good enough if you dont at least try these colors. Kind of a self fulfilling prophesy.

Beadanna · #86 2012-02-15, 5:21am

Quote:

Originally Posted by LarryC

That takes a lot of the fun out of this....You will never be good enough if you dont at least try these colors. Kind of a self fulfilling prophesy.

I agree with this Larry.
Come on every one - have a go!
You might surprise yourself.
I got such a nice response from Kim Neely in the New Terra thread about those mediocre looking beads in the post above. It made me look at them in a very different light. We are much better than we think we are.

Beadanna · #87 2012-02-15, 5:52am

I like today's ones better but I'm still trying to tweak the kiln to get Kim's lighter colours. She says she sometimes gets the darker tones - maybe one third of these beads turn out darker and it's just the nature of the glass. And perhaps too long garaging.

glassactcc · #88 2012-02-15, 8:38am

Oh Anna, I like these too. Love the blues and greens mixed with the sepia tones. Even some purple in there. Very cool.

Lyssa, I never buy rare glass after it has turned rare. My glass has all turned rare on my shelf, most of which I paid either regular price, or got as seconds. I think paying $100.00 per lb. for glass is sort of ridiculous if it is a glass like ASK or some Ivory that curdles. I think putting these glasses in bead form will not give you the return on your purchase. I use mostly Effetre with a little Vetro and CIM thrown in so I really don't use silver glass too much. At least with silver glass though, you are getting glass with silver in it so I understand the cost.

Elizabeth Beads · #89 2012-02-15, 9:47am

I guess everything is relative. I can make 4 large focals out of two rods of $100 silver glass (1/2 rod of silver glass per bead plus some inexpensive base glass and some clear for encasing). If I sell them for $25 each (which is a reasonable price I think) then I have gotten my return on my purchase.

Of course it's more complicated than that, there is gas and electricity and time, maybe a learning curve, and maybe a bead cracks along the line.

And some of the ASK glass is so gorgeous alone and so reactive as a base color for some silver glass. I admit to buying some of it after it turned rare, although I do have a bit of glass that turned rare after I bought it. So it all balances out I think.

We all have different approaches and what works for one may be different from what works for another. Cynthia makes gorgeous beads with basic colors and no one can dispute that.

Liz

Lyssa · #90 2012-02-15, 11:42am

Man, I miss being able to spend only $25 going out to dinner. Last night we spent $50 at a cheap restaurant ordering only 1 appetizer, a bowl of soup, the children's chicken strips and french fries, and a garden burger with fries.

Ah, the joys of living in Hawaii.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eileen

We go out to dinner & spend $25.00...