Can anyone help?

glassymom · #1 2012-02-10, 8:32pm

A man (keith) posted on LE looking for someone to make his wife a bead. I have tried to help him but I just can't get it.....is it even possible?
Can anyone help?
Here is what I have done so far.....The first two single beads are the same as is the second from the left. He liked this one best but as you can see in the second pic it has the periwinkle showing through. I tried 3 other times..the two on the right are layered over white....I used gold pink color for the first one and one of the two on the right....then Joy sent me a rod of cranberry and it was not dark enough so I did another gold pink and yet still not so good.

Am I doing something wrong? Is it impossible? Or is there someone (he's in canada so thats a plus) that could help him? He had wanted it for Valentines day but now its really cutting it close......
any hoo, what are your thoughts??
Sue

KristyN · #2 2012-02-11, 9:30am

Sue,
Wasn't exactly sure what you are going for? Are you wanting a darker pink on one side plus not showing any periwinkle on the other side?

If so, why not try layering gold pink (rubino) over a darker opaque pink instead of white. Or sometimes odd colors work (like orange, red, etc....opaque or transparent).

Since you're in a time crunch, why not line up some potential "under color glass rods" on your bench and make a small barrel on a mandrel of each color ..and add the next color to that one, so you end up with a long, multi-colored bead....then encase in rubino and see if you have a winner. Be sur to put your glass rods back down in the order you are layering, so you can reference back which color "works." Don't even anneal it (it will probably shatter depending upon how thick), but you will be able to see the colors cooled in final state and know if you have a winner.
Good luck!
-kristy

glassymom · #3 2012-02-11, 10:03am

Hi Kristy
Keith is looking for straight lines (best as possible) of pink/purple/blue The first one I did over periwinkle the others over white. I used gold pink as my pink and also tried cranberry but that did not come out as well. My problem is not getting straight lines....they move as the bead melts together. I've tried with my razor tool to keep them straight but no luck........AND, as you might be able to see in one of them, I have a great pink on all but one spot. I can't seem to get my gold pink to be totally pink. That is a regular problem I face with that color.....one spot staying clear or very light pink.

Any tips/hints to keeping the lines straight?

Kitty · #4 2012-02-11, 3:59pm

Pink is a stinker and I don't have any experience with gold pink really. I am still unclear after reading through again, which color you want? Do you want the color you got when you had periwinkle underneath?

As far as straight lines, since you are doing donut beads, I might start with the middle color first. Or you could go back in after you have shaped and laid all of the colors down with a thin stringer of the color to get a straight line.

Art is a process of fixing things and disguising the flubs.

glassymom · #5 2012-02-11, 4:19pm

LOL, color is good using the gold pink (cranberry wasn't dark enough)
Straight lines is the problem. I've tried middle first (purple) and i've tried pushing the color straight with my razor. I just can't seem to get the lines straight enough!

If someone is good with this I can give you keith info and you can see if you can help him..... I feel really bad that I cant' seem to get it right but if its not me then I don't know what else to do.

Kirima · #6 2012-02-11, 4:30pm

Maybe you could try to work with encased stringers to avoid any bleeding of the colors into eachother?

AKDesigns · #7 2012-02-11, 4:30pm

If you're doing transparents over white you have to start with the middle first and work with stringers. I would use rubino for the pink and then Lauscha turquoise (will opaque though) for the blue because both of them spread over white and will meet up with the purple middle. When you lay down your stringer keep it raised so you aren't melting it in at all as you lay it down. That way you can push it straight if you didn't lay it down straight. I use a tungsten pick to do that. Once it's straight then melt it down. Also make sure the seam isn't a bulge but has the same amount of glass as the stringer width before you melt it down.

An no I don't want the custom order myself.

glassymom · #8 2012-02-11, 5:47pm

My colors were periwinkle with cobalt blue trans, purple trans and gold pink. Then I tried white with the same colors and white with cobalt trans, purple trans and cim cranberry.
I did middle purple first, then the blue and then the gold pink and melted them in....then tried purple melt in, blue melt in and then gold pink and melted in. Then I tried it the opposite.....

Can I encase those colors? and incase them with? clear? I have cim clear.......
will that work?

SunDoorBeads · #9 2012-02-11, 6:22pm

I will tell you this when I need the lines to be as straight as possible I make the line using a stringer then I marver the stringer it becomes flat but still raised- then I take my 4 in 1 tool and make sure the edges are as straight as possible then I melt in- much like Amy said and yes you need the same amount of glass or else some areas will look "lumpy" and not a true straight line. Hope this helps! I think the beads are looking great- and remember as nice as it would be I think true "perfect" straight lines are a bit impossible. After all these are handmade beads

glassymom · #10 2012-02-11, 7:16pm

Thanks for the help everyone!
I'm going to give it another try for him! I know it is handmade and so does he, I was just hoping for better for him, Im sure we all know how that is!!

Michelle, what is a 4 in 1 tool?

Thanks!
Sue

SunDoorBeads · #11 2012-02-11, 7:30pm

This tool I think I sleep with it at night ROFL I love it next to my favorite dental pick this is the tool I cannot live without!
hmmm I cannot get the direct link to the listing but here is the catagory from Arrowsprings
it is simply called the "shaping tool" scroll down a bit on the page and you will see it- it has a pointed head and two sizes of rolled edges.
http://arrowsprings.com/html/shaping_tools.html

glassymom · #12 2012-02-13, 11:44am

LOL, funny how we are with our tools. Mine is a sharp knife that I bought at dollar tree...I use it for everything and next to that is a brass pokey thing from a trade here.
Thanks for the link.......its not working for me now but I'll keep checking...maybe its something I "need"

calgary · #13 2012-02-13, 1:42pm

I believe this was it. That page was down for me too. However there is a miricle of a website called http://web.archive.org . With that you can view many pages on the internet is sort of a history type fashion. Searching that site I got this: http://web.archive.org/web/201104221...ing_tools.html

Which in turn gives me this:

Hope this helps.

calgary · #14 2012-03-07, 8:02pm

Solved by glassymom.

Thank you for your help !

glassymom · #15 2012-03-07, 8:28pm

Thanks for the pic keith. And so glad I was finally able to make a good bead for you! Help is here whben you decide to give it a try yourself.