ugh to not melt, you risk some cracking. So it's a bit of a dance between not too much heat on the main bead and lots of heat with that rod of clear. The more molten the clear rod, the better. Plus you have to avoid creating bubbles between the base bead and the clear AND an even coat of clear is important so the bead is well balanced. There are many encasing methods and a lampworker usually finds one that works best for them.
minimal bubbles and reducing encasing haze lines that can be troublesome. 
oid trapping air bubbles inside. We all have our different ways of applying the glass and my favorite method is one that is more time consuming (of course!), but the end results are worth it. The glass used can also affect how difficult it can be—some colors are stiffer to apply and others, like clear, can be hard to find crystal clear rods with a minimum of scum or tiny bubbles that you don't want to transfer to the encasing layer. Another thing that can be tricky is encasing a color that tends to bleed up onto the encasing layer if you don't cover it up completely before you melt it all back down.
ds Not difficult at all, as long as you know what encasing technique to use with the bead style and size.
uickly and it's bubbles all over the place! Since bubbles can cause stress, I always try to avoid them showing up "accidentally," and only like them in my work if they are placed there intentionally. A steady hand and good heat control is key to even encasing with boro...
ip casing because it goes on the thinnest. I make big beads so that's a huge plus. I heat the rod and place it at an acute angle to the bead, until the whole thing is striped with clear. The round the world method seems to suit my rare small beads well...literally winding glass round and round. I case with sheet glass on some beads..but that requires math to make sure the sheet will fit the bead. This is the cleanest way to case. I also case with clear frit (small pieces of crushed glass). This creates a mesmerizing mottled look on organics.
lements (unless this is a look you are going for) so knowing how cool to get your bead and how hot to work your encasing glass is a big piece of the puzzle. It is not that difficult to master once you have mastered heat control. You also need to know what method of encasing will work best for what bead. The amount of encasing is what gives an optical effect so a thicker casing is great for aquarium beads while encasing some silver glass is best with a thin even layer. All in all it is practice that makes the process easier I spent over a month just working on encasing skills!
design doesn't smear and warm enough that it does not crack. I too use the thin casing that goes up and down the bead in the direction of the mandrel. It give a nice even very thin layer of glass.
cane and stringers. It is so much fun to choose the colors and making different combinations - different stripes for the canes and different layers of color for the stringers. I love waiting until the gather of glass... is heated to exactly the "just right" temperature, waiting a bit more until it is ready to pull, and of course the actual pulling the glass into its final form. I have boxes and boxes of these to prove it!e silvered ivory. When I look at silvered ivory beads...it's like looking into a mini-universe!
t challenging thing for me is making a sculptural piece that works visually from all directions. When it works it's heavenly. The most challenging on an annoyance level for me is stringer work. It's never a labor of love. | |
| Clockwise from top—Tribal heads: Barb (riversedgeglass); Yellow round: Sonja (SilverRiverGlassWorks); Magic Mice: Lori (ashlyndesign); Multicolor round: Judith (icarusbeads); Blue organic: Rosemarie (spawnofflame); Shuttle: Lara (Lutrick); Blue nugget: Patrice (Shepherdcreations); Yellow car: Karen (giapet); Blue/brown organic: Susan (susanlambert); Critters: Sharon (rightturnartwerks); Blue cubes: Kathleen (uglyducklingbeads); Cupcake: Holly (HollysFollyGlass); Green inchworms: Abigail (abbielyn) |
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| Amy Sims Designs |
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| Giapet |
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| Spawn of Flame |
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| Ashlyn Designs |
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| May Beads |
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| A. Houston |
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| Lara Lutrick |
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| Babs Beads and Designs |
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| Ema K Designs |
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| Holly's Folly Glass |
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| River's Edge Glass |
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| Shepherd Creations |
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| Silver River's Glass |
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| Paul Bead |
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| Susan Lambert Glass |
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| Arensea |
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| Ashlyn Designs |
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| Babs Beads and Design |
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| EmaK Designs |
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| Hollys Folly Glass |
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| Lutrick |
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| Maybeads |
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| Rivers Edge Glass |
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| Shepherds Creations |
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| Silver River Glass Works |
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| Spawn of Flame |
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| AHouston |
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| Icarus Beads |
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| Paul Bead |
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| Susan Lambert |
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| Ugly Duckling Beads |
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| Amy Sims Designs |
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