Distressed and Tumbled - The Beads!

I wanted to share some new beads recently posted in my Etsy shop.

These beads have a distressed stone like appearance as they have been tumbled in my rock tumbler.

I do not use etching chemicals as I prefer a more natural process and do not like to have harsh chemicals in my studio. As well, there are a number of glasses that are resistant to etching chemicals but all can be naturally tumbled.

There is a variety of brands of glass bead sets that have been tumbled to create a natural stone like finish. 

Many jewelry designers will use these with semi precious stones to create a mixed media design. 

Each set paired the glass with fine silver wire wrapping creating droplets of silver around each bead.

First up, this set gives both a distressed and aged look. CiM - Creation Is Messy's Marble was used as the base glass. You will notice the reaction where the silver meets the base glass producing a gold yellow cast reminiscent of ancient marble statues in Europe.

CiM's Nymph is a green misty opal glass on which I wrapped a stream of Effetre Light Ivory and a wrap of fine silver. This is a beautiful color of green that when tumbled seems to glow from inside.

Another variation of this bead style was created with Bullseye's Sunset Coral with a wrap of French Vanilla and fine silver. 

I had expected this glass to be a brighter orange coral, but the silver fumed the glass creating a deeper red brown effect. Still beautiful with the tumbled matte stone finish.

Note the reaction to the silver in the second photo creating the weathered burnished look to each silver droplet.

I purchased this next glass as part of a special bundle at Nortel Glass. 

Jean is clearing out older Vetrofond glass in bundles of 4.5 lbs of glass for $25 CAD

Vetrofond Pink #068 is a peachy pink transparent that I wrapped with a stream of Effetre Light Ivory and wraps of fine silver. This glass tumbles so nicely and allows the light to transmit through the bead 

This last bead set used just the base glass of Bullseye Juniper Tint with a wrap of silver wire.

Bullseye Tints are extremely light transparent glass colors that are beautiful in this application style,

I thought the color of the glass reminded me of sea glass once it was tumbled and it really didn't need the ivory added to the design. The silver droplets do look sea tumbled with the distressed edges of silver.

I primarily purchase all my glass from Jennifer and Jean at Nortel in Toronto so I am not sure if they have any of these specific colors in their back stock. 

You are welcome to reach out to them to check or they may have suggestions of similar offerings for your needs.

#creationismessy

#cimglass

#effetre

#cimmarble

#cimnymph

#vetrofond

#bullseyeglass

#nortel

#pendragonfyre

#handmade

#handmadeincanada

@creationismessy

@nortel_glassgirl

CiM - Creation Is Messy 2023 New Color - Bear Hug Milky Ltd Run

This set of earthy brown beads was created on a base of one of the new browns for 2023 named Bear Hug.
In the set below, CiM - Creation Is Messy's Bear Hug Milky Ltd Run was paired with silvered ivory stringer.
Silvered Ivory handmade stringers are made by combining fine silver foil and Effetre Ivory. 

 

The stringer melted well into Bear Hug without any extreme webbing effects.

 

 

A very natural look for those "chocolate" hue jewelry fans!

Simple and delicious!

 

All the new CiM colors for 2023 are available through Nortel in Toronto through their online shopping cart. I suggest ordering some very soon before it is gone.


#creationismessy
#cimglass
#cimnewcolors
#cim2023
#cimbearhugmilky
#silveredivorystringer
#effetre
#nortel
#pendragonfyre
@creationismessy
@nortel_glassgirl

CiM - Creation Is Messy 2021 Color - Study of Oranges - Marmalade & Kniphofia Ltd Runs

In this post we will be previewing beads made with 2 of the new 2021 CiM - Creation Is Messy orange palette.

CiM's Marmalade Ltd Run was tested with Double Helix's Clio silver glass, I experimented to see the reactions between the two glasses based on layering it with CiM's new clear glass.

The round bead with Clio scrolls was created with a clear glass core, layer of Marmalade, scrolled with Clio. The bead was then reduced and encased with clear glass.

The focal bead was created in the similar layering process but an added layer of CiM clear glass was placed as a barrier between Marmalade and the addition of Clio.
The layering process demonstrates the option of getting a batik look of the stringer scrolls vs the soft hues of the pinks, blues and creams.
The spacers are pure Marmalade showing the lovely rich orange hues of the glass.

CiM's Kniphofia Ltd Run is a bright opal orange glass that was easy to strike and juicy in depth of color. It's name is derived from the flower known as the Red Hot Poker plant. Check out photos of the plant here.

Working from left to right, the beads were created as:
- a short barrel bead with CiM clear core, a layer of Kniphofia and Double Helix Melia scrolls reduced to a metallic shine.

- the central barrel bead is a CiM clear core, a layer of Kniphofia and Double Helix Melia dots and endcaps reduced to a metallic shine.
- a square bead with a Kniphofia core, a wrap of 99% fine silver wire and encased in CiM clear glass.. The silver has reacted to a blackened rustic look that some designers seek out.
The spacers are pure Kniphofia.

Similar reactions to silver are seen in these test beads, so layering with clear between orange and silver continues to ensure all stays true.

As a comparison to CiM 2020, I created a few more beads with the now SOLD OUT CiM's Goldfish Ltd Run which I purchased after loving it so much last year.

This focal hollow blown bead was created on a puffy mandrel (I am learning this new technique!). The  ends of the bead are Double Helix Aurae. 

The spacers show the various levels of striking that Goldfish can provide. I create these spacer beads 3-4 beads at a time, so the heating and cooling of each bead varies as they are added to the mandrel.


Oranges are beautiful and sometimes requires some special attention to pull out the richness of the color. Well worth the effort to add these to your glass collection.
D.


#creationismessy
#cimglass
#cimtesting
#cimnewcolors
#cimmarmalade

#cimkniphofia

#cimgoldfish
#cimglass2021
#nortel
#doublehelixglass
@creationismessy
@nortel_mfg 

Nortel's CiM Glass Sampler - Bountiful Harvest - Part 1

This is the first post to cover off new beads made with CiM - Creation Is Messy glasses within Nortel's Bountiful Harvest sampler.
This sampler is available via Nortel's online order site.

The 15 colors included in the sampler are:
CIM277 Phoenix
CIM720 Autumn
CIM442 Prairie Grass
CIM465 Oobleck
CIM718 Indian Summer
CIM216 Monarch
CIM217 Harvest
CIM106 Fire Cracker
CIM780 Maple
CIM121 Garnet
CIM487 Poison Apple
CIM729 Serengeti
CIM211 Orange Crush
CIM308 Ochre
CIM470 Eden

Although this sampler seems to be more of a "autumn" set of colors, I thought the colors are bright and cheerful for this first day of spring!

I recently used a few of these in previous posts, so as I work thru this sampler, I will"throw-back" to beads where I have already used up the sample rods.

For this post we will cover off 5 colors, so let's get started.

These 2 beads were created on a based on CiM Serengeti. This is an opaque earthy brown with red undertonesI made hand-blown glass shards of a Double Helix test glass named DH OX459. These shine beautiful when added to the Serengeti base bead.

I had a bunch of shards on a shelf in my studio that I purchased from thepurplelilydesigns.com. I hadn't worked with them since I learned to make my own. I pulled them out to spend an afternoon using them.

CiM's Poison Apple is a dense, saturated opal green that has always seemed to turn into an opaque glass after it is worked and annealed in the kiln. It has been in production for many years, artists have asked for CiM to try and re-engineer this glass to keep it's translucency. 
I received a rod of the new formula, so I will review it in a future post.
The beads below are the older formula.
You can see in the bead set how some beads are more opaque than others. this is due to the heat and amount of time the glass was worked. The shards are named Rainforest.

This bead shows the difference from the centre of the bead to the glass closer to the surface.

CiM Autumn is an opaque peachy brown. 
In this set of beads I used shards named Mood Swings. 
I wasn't overjoyed with the shard results, but the end result of the 99% fine silver wrap helped make these beads look a bit more rustic and I may try etching them to see if that endears them to me more. CiM's Autumn is still a beautiful glass color with a bit of a reaction to silver.

CiM Firecracker is an opaque dark cherry red that I have tested in the past with silver glass and it really sings!

For this test, I used Midnight Shards and the blue/ silvered ivory against the rich red is really pretty. My only observation was that Firecracker was a bit shock with a few small air bubbles in  the rod.

___________________

CiM Maple is a transparent warm golden brown. I have used this glass many times in the past and it is a go to brown when paired with silver or silver glass.

This set of beads were decorated with my own hand blown shards of silvered ivory.

Happy Spring!
D.

More experiments with CiM Elixir!

Just a quick post to share a couple more bead experiments with CiM - Creation is Messy's Elixir.

The following beads were created on a base of CiM Elixir.

One bead has CiM's Peppermint Cream Ltd Run and combination of Double Helix's silver glasses Melia and Clio central dots.. the middle was encased in Zephyr and Melia was added to each end with silver wire and reduced.

The other bead was on a base of Elixir with twisted dots of CiM's Peppermint Cream Ltd Run, Double Helix's silver glass Melia and Zephyr. Melia dots reduced completed the bead. spacers are Elixir. 

Til next time, D.

Testing 2019 CiM Colors with Silver Glass

This post carries on with more CiM - Creation Is Messy glass combinations with silver glass.

First up is a barrel bead made with a base of CiM's Aiko Ltd Run in the centre and CiM Emperor ends. 

This bead has surface treatments of several silver glasses including Double Helix glasses including Kronos 2, Skiron and Aether in powders and shards. The bead was completed with a generous wrap of fine silver wire. The spacers are CiM's Aiko.

This bead has a base of CiM's Enchanted Ltd Run, with stripes of CiM Aiko. Double Helix Skiron shards were added and gently warmed to a golden glow. The spacers are matching Aiko.

This last bead was testing how Double Helix Skiron silver glass would react on a base of CiM Little Boy Blue. I superheated the bead and it produced highlights of purples and magenta. Definitely will be trying some further testing with these two glasses. The spacer beads are CiM's Little Boy Blue (now Sold Out).

Finally, this barrel bead made with a base of CiM's Egg White with a generous wrap of Skiron and 99% fine silver wire. 

Til next time,
D.

ICYMI - Double Helix Silver Glass Test Beads

Just a quick post on some Double Helix silver testing that I completed a while back but realized I didn't post.

Each of the beads below used Effetre Pale Lavender as a base. As with all lavender glasses, they shift their color based on the lighting. In the photos below, the glass is more on the pink side under the studio lamps.

The focal bead  was made on on a base of Pale Lavender with layers of Double Helix's Rhea ruby and ribbon of Double Helix Psyche encased in clear glass. This allows the silver infused glass to bloom within the Psyche to blues and creams.

In the photo below, the barrel bead used similar layering and bloomed with a more muted pattern. The Psyche rings at each end fumed the surface of the bead to a golden cast. 

Below are two photos of the same bead showing the change in the bead based on lighting.

Daylight 

Starting again with a base of Effetre Pale Lavender, I added streams of CiM - Creation is Messy's CiM Serenity Ltd Run. This brought out some teal tones to compliment the streams of Double Helix Psyche captured under the clear glass encasement. I added 99% fine silver wire on each end of the bead.

Studio Light Tent

Have a great weekend!

D.

Torch Session - Revisiting CiM Colors - The Blue Palette

CiM - Creation Is Messy’s extensive list of colors to a new beadmaker may seem overwhelming. Beautiful colors with amazingly creative names.

The best resource to seem some time getting to know the color ranges is the CiM website.
Kathy’s organization by hue palette has allowed me to mix and match color families easily.
Over the next few weeks, I will be testing  new colors and revisiting some that deserve a second look.

Today’s post are beads from the Blue Palette

This focal bead was created with one half of the bead with CiM Limelight Ltd Run that was sprinkled with Double Helix fine Aurae glass frit.  Limelight is a great base for silver glass.
The other half of the focal along with the two spacer beads are CiM Blueyah Ltd Run. This transparent blue is showing as sold out on the CiM website, but it may still be available via Nortel glass.

CiM Jet Stream Ltd Run is a stunning rich blue. It is a beautiful base for silver glass as well as silver wire as shown in the simple classic set below.

The 3 central beads in this set was created with CiM Slate Ltd Run sprinkled with Double Helix fine Aurae glass frit and reduced to a golden glitter.

As  shown in the two spacer beads, this transparent slate blue stayed true and did not fume in the presence of the silver glass.

Here in this set, the same CiM Slate Ltd Run was complimented with 99% fine silver wire. 
Simple and elegant!

CiM Birthstone Ltd Run is an aqua blue transparent that is currently showing as sold out at CiM.
Check with Nortel as they may have some stashed away in their archives.
The focal cube bead was dotted with dots of Double Helix Light Aurae silver glass. 

CiM Seamist is a limited run glass that is currently sold out and I am hoarding my supply of it as it was created as a specialty formula of a core of clear, encased in transparent blue, encased in clear. The result creates unique beads with a cloudy look that is very pretty.
In testing the glass with silver, I did discover that 99% fine silver wire created a reaction that was most likely because of the outer layer of clear on the rod.
The reaction lends to an antique look that would also work well for natural nautical looks.

I
CiM Seamist and CiM Jet Stream Ltd Run were paired in the focal bead below.
You will notice that the silver wire was added to the areas that were predominately Jet Stream and the reaction that we saw in the previous set was less noticeable.
The two spacers are made with CiM Seamist.

Til next time, the next post will explore the Green Palette.

D.

Torch Session - Revisiting CiM Colors - The Purple Palette

CiM - Creation Is Messy’s extensive list of colors to a new beadmaker may seem overwhelming. Beautiful colors with amazingly creative names.

Although most beadmakers purchase their glass through their favorite distributors, the best resource to get to know the color ranges is the CiM website.

The site's organization by palette has allowed me to mix and match color families easily.

Over the next few weeks, I will be testing both new colors and revisiting some that deserve a second look.

Today’s post highlights some beads created from the Purple Palette

CiM Plum Unique #3 is creamy pale opal purple that creates unique striations in every bead.

In the set below, there are 2 plain spacers and one round bead with 99% fine silver wire. There is no reaction with the silver and allows the silver to remain bright.

The focal barrel bead has the additional streams of CiM Mulberry Ltd Run an opal purple  that on it's own can be quite dark. Layering it over the lighter opal creates more depth in the bead. The silver wire stayed truly bright. 

The resulting beads almost have an alabaster look to them.

I treasure the rods of these opal purples as it sold out several years ago. If you are looking for these shades, check with Jean in her CiM archive at Nortel.




In the photo below, this is CiM Mulberry Ltd Run, showing the deep and rich dark purple glass.

CiM Rapunzel Ltd Run is an opaque lavender pink that is bright and cheerful. In the set of beads below, the graduated spacers really appear as a light purple with a pink undertone. This color will shift to a more purple hue in sunlight.

An observation to note is when Rapunzel is paired with 99% fine silver wire, the wire takes on a golden tone and lightly fumes the base glass with a golden hue.




CiM Emperor is a golden transparent purple that is described by one beadmaker that in sunlight it "glows this wonderful deep cherry jam pink colour". In the beads below, it was tested with silver wire and the result was beautiful with no brown reactions to dull the color.




CiM Bashful Ltd Run is transparent greyish purple that is more on the grey side than purple. In the beads below, I tested it as a base glass with coarse Double Helix Aurae silver infused glass frit.  When the bead was reduced to bring the metallic shine with the surface, the Bashful glass took on a golden fumed surface which is complimentary to the golden shine of the frit.

Silver Glassy Goodness - Double Helix Combinations

Several weeks ago, I cleared off my torch worktable and spent an afternoon revisiting some Double Helix glasses that I had ignored lately. The bead in this post was one of the results of the "without rules" torching session.

This Big Hole tab shaped bead has twisted combinations of reduced Double Helix Psyche silver infused glass encased with Zephyr clear.  

The shoulders of the bead were created with Clio and streams of 99% pure silver wire wraps completed the bead. 

The silver wire has melted into streamed droplets for a tactile feel.

The result was stunning when it emerged from the kiln the following morning!

In natural light, the bead shows it's true brilliance!

Happy Friday Everyone!

D.