AEDM day 10

Began taking this panel apart, it will become 2 windows that look just like this just half that and you get the idea

someone used zinc when building this unit...a sign that the technician wasn't knowledgeable about what he was doing
the zinc was more expensive to use than lead
pulled lead had it been used would have made taking this apart today a lot easier...alas i did have years on my side
the brittleness of the zinc allowed for the piece to practically fall apart in my hand

especially with a pair of nippers


here the unit is all apart off the tray
the tray stored out of the way to return to the owner
area cleaned up and the pieces soaking





here the pieces are soaking





the next step is to true up the edges they were pretty chopped up where the builder was making them fit into the narrow zinc i suppose...and dirt etched from years of being a window unit in a house
i cleaned all the grime off and the next step of grinding the untrued edges begins

using an electric grinder
when i learned the only thing available was a
grinding stone!!!
i liked the new technology that invented the electric grinder









then here are the cleaned up pieces being laid out

to rebuild into the 2 new windows...

and that is my art filled day number 9...
i also began the next painting for lesson 8..i have my elements affixed to the canvas and they are drying...
painting tomorrow!

Platter One...Done!

Between these 3 photo's it might be possible that you can get a sense of the final results of this turkey platter.

Glass it difficult to photograph and I can't seem to make my flash turn off...I have done it before but either the feature now won't co-operate, or I am not doing the turn off thing right...so the pictures have some glare.

This side to picture has the least glare....

This is not a decal...the process for vitreous staining and enameling to glass has been explained before on this blog so I will kind of just highlight.

The colors are fine ground glass chips with minerals and ores in the mix and flux as well to help imbed the mixture down into the glass creating new glass with a specific design.

High kiln heat fuses the mixture into the substrate and each color has a specific maturation temperature...too much that color fires out.. the chips remain they are glass

the ores are touchy.

So you need to schedule the different color layers according to temperature.

Yesterday marked the last kiln visit for this platter...

Thank you for stopping in!

Days for Aberdeen Class Seminar Arrive

I arrive in Aberdeen and set up the classroom.

You see along the wall under the windows I set up assembly style.







After a brief lecture about glass in general and about points specific to fusing...the students make a tile.






After much dilemma over kiln issues...no plug after all, for my huge kiln I brought along..a borrowed kiln that essentially wouldn't heat up well...I pushed the little quick fire I brought along to handle the many fuses of the day and here are the students results.
Bails attached and ready to send to them...this about 1/2 of the class projects..at the time the others were in different stages of completion.

All in all I think the students had a great day!

3 other artist involved were
a couple: Nick and Nichole Fisher represented murals
Rocky Hartberg for Story Illustration
Michelle Bacon on Ceramics

Judging workshop with Nathen Cantwell and Emily Williams Wheeler
key note speaker: Brad Bachmeier


We had a full 2 days...it went smoothly and I think everyone teachers included came away with information to ponder.

:)

Film at 11:00!!

It has taken forever for me to get to this point! First, not everything I needed did I order with the camera...frustrating! (they should have a more complete list) but, the piece arrived and I finally filmed something.

THEN, all the 'fun' begins...NOT!

The program discs that were sent with the camera to work through editing and such tasks...a task as necessary as getting the film OFF the camera were so confusing. It took me 2 days to get the film off the camera...then editing oh shuuuure ...that wasn't happening.

Then I remembered I had a different program that I had ordered a long time ago when I was considering getting a camcorder... Corel VideoStudeo Pro X2...

I am removing those other programs!

This came with instructions! the Canon did not..these instructions have pictures! ThankYou! VeRy Much!

So here is my debut..How to Drill Glass...In the bazillion years of instructing glass techniques..one of THE most frequent questions I have been presented with "how do you make holes in glass?"

Diamond tip bits, and water to keep the glass cool are the most important aspects of the process. This shows the simplest set up for single layer glass to be drilled..the thicker the glass the setups change however, this is a basic introduction to the process.

Now you can take those little pieces of found glass shards from a walk on the beach or park, drill them full of holes and incorporate them into all kinds of projects...from jewelry to decorating journals and fabric projects...lets go find some glass!...(hey or shells...)

I need to add that your hands remain dry while using the drill..just the tip of the drill bit is actually wet. Remain aware of what you are doing at all times so you prevent shocking yourself.

There are available foot operating pedals that you can use for turning the drill on and off, you may want to investigate one of these tools for other applications such as the grinder...they make excellent partners to equipment.

Be careful, if you do have any questions please do not hesitate addressing them here..

Thank you!

Supplies/Materials

The glare from the overhead light makes this piece of glass appear irridized, but it is flat black.
A better picture shows in the listing on etsy
http://maryhuntstudio.etsy.com
If you know anyone that works with glass you might want to pass the information forward.
I have TONS of glass and can create a custom box for their particular use.
Scrap glass is wonderful for small projects, such as box making, jewelry parts, experiments...
to use in fused work...if you already work with glass, of course this is familiar to you..but if you are just beginning! and have found out how expensive glass is even for a small 7x7 sheet, you can appreciate the scrap box source.

These sales begin at 10.00 dollars on ebay bidding links...none i saw had nice chunky pieces as I can offer.
But I have the small stuff too.

Help me out if you will and forward me to anyone who you think can benefit of my offer...remember I will customize the color selection, and if a large piece of glass is desired I have that too.

Thank you

Window

Close up of the patina added to the solder lines. Patina is a acid that cleans the lead, but also allows a chemical reaction color the lead. I chose a traditional black for the church panel lines. Then the panel is polished, both sides.

Let us refresh ourselves from whence this panel started...a pile of parts.

To the finished window.

Done panel one. I shall begin pulling pieces from the pile and begin panel two of this restoration project. I won't post panel twos transition it is the same as this one...exactly. Have any questions just ask.

Thank you for the interest in the process.

Panel Update

It isn't a very exciting picture but, side 1 is soldered. I will next put a frame on the panel which will be part zinc...up to the curve then pulled lead. I have plenty of reinforcement within the design, so I shouldn't have a problem when I flip it. I will get help from my husband Craig to do the flipping. Then solder side 2.

Update on Window Restoration Project

Progress is surely being made with this unit.

But let us follow through the process:
First let me say that the artisan of yesterday, who ever he was, he did a fine job of cutting this glass.
He didn't have the nice pivotal easy handled cutter we can use today.
Nor did he have an electric grinder for smoothing the edges. His was a file for smoothing the edge, lots of hand work!
His only choice for holding the glass together was the lead method.
Two choices today.
The lead method: by which strips of channeled lead are stretched to make rigid, then soldered at the meeting points once wrapped around the glass, and cemented.
The copper-foil method introduced through Louis Tiffany, which has been greatly modified and improved since introduction! The foil, now with adhesive on the back, wraps around each piece of glass, then is soldered into place. Lots of steps are eliminated, plus for me it is a lot easier to reinforce. I use a flat metal that slips in between the glass, giving the total unit added strength.
All this now explained.
After I trued up the pieces of glass, they were cleaned of their cement deposits, then foiling begins.
Just as you imagine the foil is wrapped around the glass then smoothed with a fid (straight stick) so it is adhered well.

The whole unit ready to solder

These are the tools that I used to cut or break the glass to fit and then foil.

These are the tools I traded to begin soldering. The solder iron, its rheostat, flux, and solder. Now I begin soldering the unit together. Reinforcing it for strength at the same time.

Class in Progress

Here is Janet taking beginner flat panel stained glass.

She did very well and likes it a LOT! Her FIRST project on the table...