Congratulations!!! melting glass is a huge desire of mine but time and money has prevented it :(
I do make glass beads though....haven't reset it up in my shop yet though.
Have fun and keep us posted.

I've been dabbling in slumping glass lately. I have a small Paragon kiln .I've slumped a few things so far - it's addicting for sure ! Once I learn to slump - it's on to fusing .... then enameling.... and the list goes on ....and ....on .....and on.....

LOL

Hi - I am another one who wants to learn about fusing, slumping...all that stuff. I found this website with a tutorial that seems to have alot of info. Havent bought the kiln yet...but I know I will soon. Keep posting. It looks so interesting! - Carol

Here is a link that might be useful: Tutorial

It is expensive & I would have had to wait except I had a little extra $$.

Carol, I think I've read that tutorial several times now (they have a great bulletin board too that I joined last night).

It'll be an experience, all right! I'm sure I've bought glass that is fusible, so I'll need to go thru all of it & divide the fusible with the non-fusible.

At least mixing the wash is easier than mixing the fuel/oil mix for my small tiller, lol!

Sandi - There is a chart in that site somewhere that showed the COE of all kinds of glass. I found it very interesting. Just wondering about post consumer glass...colored wine bottles for example. I love free materials! Seems like there are lots of potential fused pieces to make for mosaic projects just fusing chips of wine bottles. Thats what I want to experiment with when I make the jump to a kiln. I plan to take a class sometimes just to get the feel of it. Did you take a class or just jump in? What project are you going to work first with your new kiln and all your glass? - Carol

Carol, I took a free workshop during April (I also got to try my hand at beadmaking at another glass shop). Our creations during the fusing workshop were coasters, but we just got a brief overview of the kiln & its operation. Most of our time was spent creating our coasters.

The glass I got to start with is all System 96, but plan on getting into the 90 & 104 too. I think I'll make some tiles or maybe a small plate. I bought some noodles but still need to get some frit & streamers.

Regarding wine bottles - I read that some of the red & yellow isn't really that color, but it's a plastic coating. I did locate a mold that you place the bottles in though (can't remember where though but it was too long for the kiln I bought). The shop that I got my kiln from had one of the wine bottles for sale.

The kiln is still in its box right now. I went to Lowe's today & bought some coasters so that it'll be mobile. I have some of those cubes & one of them is going to be the kiln's home. I decided not to put it on my work surface since I'm vertically challenged and this way it'll be easier for me to put projects down into it rather than trying to climb onto something. I'll post pics when it gets set up.

Hi Sandi, will you have a chance to fire up the kiln this weekend? Hope so!

Some bottle glass has coatings, and some is even just painted! Cheaters. I saw a mosaic piece in a gallery. Different colors of bottle glass were melted together. Beer and wine bottles (brown, gold over clear). The fused pieces were various amoeba like shapes. Probably 2 - 6 inches across. Looked a little like tortoise shell. They were mosaic'd with various other glass pieces making a picture about 2ft x 4ft. It was abstract..but very cool! Anyway, thats what I am inspired to try.

Keep us posted as to your kiln progress! - Carol

I don't think I'll get a chance to fire it up this weekend - going to a gardening buddy's house tomorrow & taking the girls to band camp on Sunday. I'll have the house to myself 'til Friday!

I went to my sister's today & she finished up a SG piece for our aunt (the pinwheel pattern from the June issue of The Score) & I cut a Celtic Cross piece out. The pinwheel piece turned out really well - she wrapped it in ball chain.

Have you gotten a chance to fire up the kiln yet? Just wondering. - Carol

Carol, it's together but no, it's been too hot here. It's 7 pm now & is still 99°.

Yes, its way too hot here too (houston,tx) to be messing with 1200 degree kilns! I did happen to catch an episode of a bead making on a craft show lately. (lampworking) The ladies made glass beads from strips of glass they got from breaking bottles. Thats pretty much what I want to do...recycle bottles and make glass shapes to use in mosaics. They used a torch...too hot to do that now too, but nice to know how it works. Think I will eventually invest in a torch, kiln later. Hopefully I can get some interesing results with it. A local glass recycling place saved a bunch of wonderful colored wine and various bottles for me. So, I have this great stash waiting for me to do something with it. Have to remember to enjoy the heat for now...we will be wishing for it again soon enough. - Carol

Here is a link that might be useful: recycled glass beads

Carol, I didn't realize that you're also in Texas. I'm north of DFW (about 30 minutes from Denton, near Frisco). I head down to Houston all the time (I've got family in Liberty & my sister has a house on Crystal Beach.)

They said on the news this morning that it didn't get below 90 until after 2 am. I'm so ready for it to get cooler. I'm also gearing up to start beading (to the point of locating retail MAPP gas). It's just too hot to do anything right now. You'll have to tell me how the recycled beads work.

Just noticed that in the above link I referenced...the woman used propane and not MAPP gas. Propane would be easier to find, although she does mix it with oxygen. Since you come down I45, there is a place in LaMarque you might want to visit. They offer classes and stuff. Looks interesting, but its kind of far for me. I live west of Houston. Anyway, check the place out if you get a chance when you go down to Galveston some time. Looks like it could be fun. - Carol

Here is a link that might be useful: Sand n Fire

Hi: I'm new to this site but visit the quilting site all the time. I have slumped the wine and beer bottles that your talking about and want to tell you to make sure your form for slumping has holes drilled in it. Otherwise the glass could explode. Normally your supplier will drill the holes while it is greenware. I was told to have the bottles completely dry before you fire them. Also, make sure you put a couple of coats of kiln wash on your form before you slump or your bottle will stick to the form. Since you have a new kiln, buy the tray that fits into the bottom of your kiln and kiln wash that also. If you use kiln wash on these items you will never have anything stick to the kiln. Hope you have fun. By the way, I'm near Austin. Small world. Monica

Hi Monica, have you ever used the broken glass from bottles (or any kind of recycled glass) in a mold in your kiln? - Carol

Hi SandiD, I don't know if you have started beading yet but if not you will find all the information, tutorials etc. you could ever need on www.wetcanvas.com/forums. Go to Glass Art which is then subdivided into three main parts - the Tech forum has been my saviour as until recently I couldn't even get glass here in Spain let alone lessons! The Showcase (daily Show and Tell) has beads to blow your brains away, some fusing and some stained glass. By the way I use a Hothead with propane (the Mapp cannisters just worked out too expensive).

Any info on this wine bottle stuff would be great? Are forms necessary? Has anyone put a dry bottle in their kiln for experimenting?

Looks like I'm resurrecting an old post here, but I was wondering if SandiD is still on the board. If so, Sandi, where did you get your kiln? I live in the Houston area and am planning to buy one in the near future.

Thanks,
Sheryl

I thought you all would enjoy this gallery.

http://www.earthandfiregallery.com/GHouse1.html

Geesh, am I a dunce! I was reading along and kept thinking "WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?", and was going to send a welcome message, when I looked at the dates and realized its age. I was gonna be sooooo full of questions in my response. Thanks, CRYSTAL, for the gallery. I sooooo want a kiln, but haven't plunged yet. One of these days, I'm gonna haul off and call the Little Rock SG store and get order one and then see if I can take it to them for a quick lesson.

How did this come up w/o a bump? Look at the dates.

I dunno. I was trying to figure that out last night..then I got tired

Maria

Ghosts in the machine OOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooOOOO!!!!

Yesterday there was a post from an advertiser, which bumped it up. Seems the advertising post has since been deleted.

oh don't dispell my haunted thread myth with your logic and and knowledge! LOL

hey Gin gin, hows things ?

Maybe it was a ghost posing as an advertiser