Frantz Art Glass Introduces "Try Before You Buy" Program

Something really cool just popped up for beadmakers and other glass artists who love glass color!  Frantz Art Glass - my favorite glass supplier - announced a few days ago that they were going to allow customers to try new colors before buying them.

According to their website, this means that when you make a purchase there, you can choose up to 2 new glass colors and receive a free rod of that glass to try out.

I have to say that I am pretty excited about this.  Frantz gets new Effetre colors in pretty often - and posts pics of them on their website.  However, it's sometimes really hard to tell just by the paddle picture what that glass is going to end up really looking like in a bead.  A lot of new colors look nothing like the pic on the Frantz website, for a number of reasons. That makes it hard for customers to commit to buying even a quarter pound of it to try out.

This new program is a wonderful opportunity for those of us who are addicted to new colors, but can't afford to buy them all, knowing some of them won't work out.

I know I am excited to try their new Navy Blue opaque glass - a color I have been waiting forever for!  You can even try the latest batch of EDP 254 - the opaque purple I wrote about in my last post, the one that works for Pantone's 2014 color of the year. Canyon - a light turquoise blue - also looks really pretty.

You can bet I will be snatching up a couple of free rods the next time I order.  Hopefully there will be some left!

Check out their newsletter here. (nope, I don't get a kickback for blogging this - I just love them)  Have fun!

CiM Glass Testing: 795 Adobe Ltd. Run

Last year I was asked by my cousin Andrea to make her some beads so she could make jewelry in her wedding colors for her bridesmaids. Her colors were peach and aqua - really pretty, right? I of course wanted to say yes, so I did. No brainer.

However, as many beadmakers know, the 104 COE line has no color that can be decisively called peach - in either opaque or transparent glass. The exception is Lauscha Peach, a light transparent which I don't really like using because it's very pale and doesn't translate to peach unless used alone.

So.... I had a challenge for myself - experiment with earth tones and layering to simulate a peach color. I found the solution after a lot of wasted glass and gnashing of teeth. CiM had come out with a new color recently called Adobe. It's a limited run (damn!!), and is described by CiM as an opaque brown.


There's absolutely nothing in this color that says "brown" to me.  In rod form, it looks like some kind of bright caramel candy -  or maybe a light, vivid terracotta. I didn't see peach at first, at all, so I waited awhile before trying it.  When I finally melted it, it went much lighter.  And when I tried layering it with a pale pinkish transparent, I got a warm, sweet peach color.  Yey!!

Peach is one of those colors that we beadmakers have been wishing, pleading, and begging for over the last decade.  I don't know if anyone else knows that Adobe can translate to peach - but I do know that this color is extremely limited.  Frantz only allows people to purchase 1/4lb at a time, and CiM has stated this is a limited run - so it's, well, limited.  I only hope Kathy at CiM has her manufacturers make something similar to add to their basic line so we can have peach whenever we want.

Now, down to the knitty-gritty.  Adobe is a joy to work with.  It has a medium density - it doesn't wash out very much when layered, even against black, which is nice.  I didn't have any problems with it bleeding or spreading out, or overtaking any other color. 

I don't have photos of it used with the aqua colors when I made beads for my cousin last year, but I do have some more current photos.  Here Adobe is layered with Effetre Rose Quartz, which is very very pale pink transparent - just enough to nudge the peach color out of the Adobe.  The peach is paired with soft purple made of layers of Effetre Violet and CiM Purple Haze.  Black is thrown in with clear for contrast.  The effect is a sweet, springy combination.

Adobe acts like most opaque CiM colors - nice and stable, with a tiny bit of striation when left solid.  It didn't burn easily, didn't pit and basically stayed put where I wanted it. Adobe is brightest when left raised - it warms up a little when melted in.  Hope you like the pics - the beads are on Etsy if you're interested.  :)

Random Stuff This Week

Ahhhhhh.  It's 8 million degrees outside (read: 95), and I am so thankful for my small, portable air conditioner. 

This week, I have spent most of my time here in the office doing computer stuff, so I haven't torched a whole lot.  It's too hot! 

I did manage to get a few beads made, though.  These are wistful wishes for cooler, autumn days. 

I made my first pumpkins of the season, changing up the green for the scrolling vines to CiM Soylent encased in Effetre Grass Green.  I really like the difference it makes - the green is still earthy, but a little more vibrant than I have had in the past. 

I used various shades of Effetre Coral for the oranges - Coral makes the best autumn orange, in my opinion. They're not really coral in color at all - funny how Effetre Coral hasn't actually been coral in a long time.  

I made more beads - they're listed over on my Beads For Sale page on my website.

I'm looking forward to going to the Frantz Art Glass Bash next weekend in Shelton.  This is always a fun time - lots of demos and such.  They always have huge glass sales during the bash, but alas, no glass for Kandice this time.  I don't have the extra funds to spend, but I am still going to go.  There are always lots of fun people to chat with and wonderful beads to look at, so hopefully this will help with the creative mojo, which has been on what seems like permanent hiatus lately.

Lastly, I have been working on a couple of websites....namely Coloraddiction.com and Kimberlyaffleck.com.  I've been meaning to redo both of them for awhile now - and I finally just took the time to do it.   Both are done in a similar style with different colors.  I think both sites look more polished now - what do you think?

That's pretty much it for now - I hope everyone is staying cool!  :)