MagicFire Beads

This is where I would like to show you a few pictures of my "studio" and how I make beads. I use the term studio loosely, because it's really just a corner of my basement and it's not very pretty. But it's my place to play with glass and I love it! (Click on the pictures to see a larger version!)

Here is a picture of my general setup; yes, it's messy! I love to have lots of glass rods, stringers, tools and frit at my fingertips! I use a Lynx torch and two oxygen concentrators to melt the glass.



Here is a picture of part of my glass stash...yes, that's a lotta glass!! I have Effetre/Moretti, Bullseye, Czech, Lauscha, Caliente glass, Uroboros 96, and the reduction glass like Reichenbach, Zimmerman and Kugler.



The torch uses oxygen and propane. Here I have lit the torch and only the propane is burning:



Now I have added oxygen so it is what we call a "neutral flame"; here I am adjusting it with the knobs, adding more oxygen:



Here I'm picking some scummy glass off of the end of the rod...I like clean glass!



I'm adding glass to the mandrel (the steel rod that we wrap the glass around to make the bead); I'm careful to keep the rod in the flame, not the mandrel, so the mandrel doesn't get too hot causing the bead to go out of control:



I'm now adding more glass to the mandrel:



Now I'm heating the bead to smooth it out and make it round:



A close-up:



I decided to press this bead. I am using a Zoozii's nugget press.



Then I added white dots, with pink dots on top of them. I flattened the dots between layers so they would be nice and crisp. Here I am adding pink glass:



Melting in the dots:



One final pressing (or two) to fine-tune the shape:



Then I can switch glasses! (I have to use reading glass under my safety glasses!)

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