It’s funny how things happen in life. A decision you carry out in one aspect of your life can send you in a new and unexpected direction in another aspect. In the early Spring of 2003, I had Lasik surgery. All of a sudden my eyes were much more useful to me than before. I had worn glasses since grammar school and contacts since the age of 16. Having good vision without the assistance (and bother) of lenses was liberating.
Throughout my life, I’ve always had some sort of craft project going. If you’re reading this blog, you probably know just what I’m talking about. At the time of my eye surgery, I was on a cloth doll-making jag. Girl and boy dolls, flip-flop dolls, Humpty Dumpty dolls, bunny rabbit dolls (of both sexes) and, of course, teddy bears lined the shelves in my sewing/bedroom. But with the improved functionality of my ocular tools, I started looking around (pun intended) for something different to do.
Since the only glasses I needed now were sunglasses, I decided it would be fun to string some beads together and make myself some eyeglass leashes. So I dug out my old bead box (which had been rescued from a dreary life of carrying fishing tackle) to see what I could find to use for my project. I hadn’t opened this particular box in at least 20 years, not since my days of doing macrame, but I was able to find plenty of material to make a couple of leashes. "What fun! Let’s make some more."
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| Here are some of the eyeglass leashes I made from purchased beads in the spring of 2003. |
In the fullness of time, the book arrived. I sat down and read it (no glasses needed!) from cover to cover. Well, to be honest, I read up to the section on Advanced Techniques. From there on, I basically looked at the photos and read the captions to see what was possible. Then I went back and reread the sections on Getting Started and Making a Basic Bead. "I can do that!"
"I’m going to buy a blow torch," I informed Stan. One of the benefits of having been married for thirty odd years is that you’ve stopped asking for permission years ago.
"What do you want that for?!" I could see a look of sheer panic in his eyes as he asked that question.
"I’m going to melt glass to make beads," I explained.
By the time my Beginner Kit arrived and I unpacked my tools and new Hot Head torch, Stan had built a nice sturdy work table and located it in the garage near the end where the big door goes up. He firmly bolted my Hot Head to the table and positioned a fire extinguisher on a nearby shelf. I was off and running!
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| My first "studio" in the garage. |
My copy of Making Glass Beads by Cindy Jenkins was published in 1997 by Lark Books. It is a 112-page hard bound edition with a full color dust cover and includes more than 250 color photos. Many are instructional, but most of the photos are of beautiful glass beads, beads unlike any you would normally find in a bead shop.
The book begins with a brief but interesting history on glass beadmaking and has photos of some very old beads. The Getting Started section discusses basic tools, setting up a work area and important safety considerations. The section on Making a Basic Bead tells the reader how to prepare a mandrel, ignite and extinguishing a torch, form a bead, remove it from the mandrel and clean it. The information was very basic, very well explained and liberally illustrated — just what I needed.
Subsequent chapters discuss simple variations on shaping and decorating the bead, pulling and using stringer, then on to intermediated techniques such as combing, feathering, pinching, poking, snipping, plunging, mixing colors, making twisties and much more. The Advanced Techniques section addresses making millefiori, using dichroic glass, hollow beads, vessels, and more.
Making Glass Beads was a good "first book" for me because...
As I was becoming interested in glass beadmaking, the first thing I thought of was taking a class, naturally. Unfortunately, I could find no lampworking classes anywhere in my area at that time. The closest class I could find was in the Miami area, more than three hundred miles from St. Augustine. The class lasted for three days which meant I would have to pay for traveling and accommodations as well as the class fee. I wanted to continue to learn, but I needed to do it with an view to the cost, since we were planning to start construction on our new home (Cracker Cottage) later that year. I realized, if I was to continue to learn how to make beads, I would have to do it on my own, at least for a while.
Making Glass Beads provided a lot of the same information I would get in a beginner’s class. It covered all the basics, was clearly written, well illustrated and was encouraging to me. The positive learning experience I obtained from this book gave me a foundation to continue trying to learn on my own through other books and tutorials.
Another reason Making Glass Beads was a fortuitous "first book" for me was because the Getting Started section provided good information on torches, fuel and torch setup. Discovering that I could buy a simple single fuel torch for not much money was very important in my decision to move forward in lampworking. I found a Beginner Kit that included a Hot Head torch, basic tools, mandrels, bead release and a small selection of glass rods all for around $100. With house construction imminent, and knowing how many times I’ve taken up a craft then moved on to something else, I knew I couldn’t afford to invest in a minor burner type torch, tanks of propane and oxygen and regulators just to see if I would enjoy the craft.
Some other beginner's books on lampworking don’t discuss the Hot Head option. If, for my "first book" I had chosen a beginner’s lampworking book that didn’t explain the Hot Head option, I probably wouldn’t have gone forward with lampwork, at least at that time.
A note on Annealing in the Beginning:
When I began learning, the price of an annealer was out of the question. But it really didn’t matter to me, because I just wanted to learn how to make beads. I had no intention of selling them. Heck, I would be happy if they were pretty enough not to throw in the trash! Within a year, when money wasn’t quite so tight, I bought a good annealer from Arrow Springs which I am still using. It was the first piece of expensive equipment I bought. For the first use of my new annealer, I laid the loose beads I had made up to then in the annealer and did a batch annealing. Not one broke.
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| My trusty annealer purchased from Arrow Springs in 2004 |
I own another book by Cindy Jenkins, Beads of Glass - The Art and the Artists. This 152-page totally inspirational book includes short but fascinating biographies of 43 top lampwork artists, then offers a section that illustrates beadmaking techniques, mini tutorials really, from more than 50 contemporary lampwork artists. Hundreds of color photographs provide eye-candy to the addicted beadmaker. At the time of this writing, both books are available through amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.
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| Early beads made while learning from Cindy Jenkins' Making Glass Beads |
What I Plan to Review Next:
Even though my copy of Making Glass Beads by Cindy Jenkins imparted a great deal of knowledge, I still had questions. In my next blog, I’ll discuss my second "beadmaking class between covers," Passing the Flame by Corina Tettinger, and how I came to own that volume.
