Thursday, January 31

Spring 2019 - New CiM Color - Cerulean Sparkle Ltd Run


The question of the day - does this new glass sparkle?

Today's post experiments with a new offering this spring by CiM - Creation Is Messy.
Kathy and the team have created a couple of new colors with accompanying versions incorporating gold aventurine. 
Today's post is discovering Cerulean Sparkle Ltd Run

What is aventurine? Click here to read the full details at Wikipedia.

An excerpt describes the "name aventurine derives from the Italian "a ventura" meaning "by chance". This is an allusion to the lucky discovery of aventurine glass or goldstone at some point in the 18th century. One story runs that this kind of glass was originally made accidentally at Murano by a workman, who let some copper filings fall into the molten “metal,” whence the product was called avventurino. From the Murano glass the name passed to the mineral, which displayed a rather similar appearance.[1] Although it was known first, goldstone is now a common imitation of aventurine and sunstone. Goldstone is distinguished visually from the latter two minerals by its coarse flecks of copper, dispersed within the glass in an unnaturally uniform manner. It is usually a golden brown, but may also be found in blue or green."

The challenge in this glass was to see if the sparkle in the rod would transfer to a completed bead. My initial test used it layered with clear glass in an attempt to "magnify" the effect. 
A still photo it doesn't capture much sparkle even when holding it up in sunlight.


Then the lightbulb above my head appeared and I pulled out my iPhone and tried a video.
Although the "sparkle" is not front and centre, in the movement of the bead there is a sense of iridescence in the bead. 
Check out the video here. As the bead is moved, I do see a sparkle like sheen so I will be testing it again as a base of a bead to allow a more concentrated foundation.


The Verdict?  Maybe the recipe needs more concentration of the aventurine bring the sparkle to life. It clearly needs more experimentation, which I have planned for future test beads so stay tuned. 

All the new CiM colors are available through www.nortelglass.com. Contact Jean for your glass needs!

#creationismessy #cimnewcolors #cimceruleansparkle #pendragonfyre

Spring 2019 - New CiM Color - Budgerigar Ltd Run


Today's post highlights one of the many new CiM - Creation Is Messy green colors for Spring 2019.

The beads below were created from CiM's Budgerigar Ltd Run.
Described as a translucent lime green which is bright and cheerful for spring.

It plays nice with silver glass whether it is on the surface or as a base with silver glass frit encased in clear.

The first focal bead was created with a sprinkle of Val Cox new frit, Flora. It was then encased with Double Helix Zephyr clear glass
You will see a wrap of 99% fine silver at the centre of the bead that was melted in to create the silver droplets suspending in the glass.



The second focal tested encasing Budgerigar with DH Zephyr and layers of Double Helix silver glasses, Kronos 2 and Helios. 


Unfortunately, I spent too much time playing with the decoration and the glass cooled too much and resulted in a crack. Not the fault of the glass, it was definitely the artist.

Definitely a very pretty color and I am looking forward to further testing this with other silver glasses.



All the new CiM colors are available through www.nortelglass.com. Contact Jean for your glass needs!

D.

#creationismessy #cimnewcolors #cimbudgerigar








Wednesday, January 30

Spring 2019 - New CiM Color - Wisteria Ltd Run


Well despite the snow and cold weather outside, the glass studio is brightening up for Spring 2019.
The new color samples from CiM- Creation Is Messy arrived and as you may have seen on the Pendragonfyre Facebook page, there are lots to experiment with.

Today's post highlights a glorious new purple that was the first color to catch my eye in this new package!
Wisteria Ltd Run is a misty opal lavender. Like most lavender glasses, it is a color shifter  - it goes bluer under fluorescent lighting, and a warmer pink cast under natural lighting.

For this initial test, I tried pairing it with Double Helix's popular silver reduction glass, Aurae.

The silver glass did fume the surface of the Wisteria bead slightly, but the result is still very beautiful. The spacers show true color of the glass.

All the new CiM colors are available through www.nortelglass.com. Contact Jean for your glass needs!




Stay Tuned for new colors and new beads!

D.
#creationismessy #cimnewcolors #cimwisteria