FYI

Real Stereo

On a totally unrelated note, we just want to say that we support Real Stereo. Go here for more info...

Mikey's Helpful Hint of the Day

Get one of these gorgeous glass crates (they are free at Fantasy In Glass with a $5 donation to Silvercreek School)

Go to Ikea and pick up a set of wheels for about $10.00 (feeling a bit light headed spending that much money get a hot dog while you are there for 75 cents).

Screw one to the other (like my bank manager)

Place in studio, fill with glass and enjoy the great efficiency gained by such a simple act...

Great Used Coneart Kiln For Sale

'Red' is graduating to a very large Coneart kiln from a somewhat large Evenheat one. Not being independently wealthy means she needs to sell her pristine 23" round kiln to finance the buy. Here's the details according to Red-

Model # - GTS23.9 RM2
240 volts - 30 amps
6 individual fusing programs
Comes with kiln shelf , 3 shelf posts and stand
Heating coils in lid and walls 

In excellent condition..... $1800.00 

Even though this kiln is a private sale, Mikey will provide his normally helpful guidance on setup and fusing as if it were a kiln sold by us. 

You can reach Red at  rcooney4378@gmail.com

Full Antique Glass

We can split sheet glass used for stained glass into three basic groups (see here). One group that few craftspeople get exposed to today here in Ontario with no full-line distributor existing, is mouth blown full antique- a spectacular glass with an equally spectacular process of manufacture. Here's a video from Lamberts Glass in Germany. Make yourself a drink and wait until the three minute mark. It gets particularly interesting then.

Kiln Shelf paper

Up until about a year ago the only real choice you had aside from using kiln wash when fusing, was Bullseye's shelf paper. It was ok in that it gave a nice smooth finish, but at around $5/sheet and only good for one time use it wasn't cheap. Spectrum then came out with their own version, Papyros paper, which costs about the same for the same size sheet (20.5" square) but with care can be reused several times making it substantially less expensive. 
And cleanup is way too easy with the hazard of breathing in dust virtually eliminated. Here's a short video showing a Spectrum Papyros user with way too much time showing how easy it is to remove a full sheet with a spatula. She might be fixated a bit too much on the spatula thing but we thought the video showing how intact and unaffected the sheet was after a firing pretty impressive.

Life Goes On, But Not For All

Mikey insists that this blog be a place of brevity (hard when he has Conrad Black peering over his shoulder with a thesaurus) and knowledge- about our industry, technique, the trials and tribulations of being a retail store owner and even personal matters related to staff and our customers. 
Today it's personal.
Today we talk about Florian.
Florian was a student of Mikey's so long ago that it was a time before Fantasy In Glass even existed. 
And for the next 35 years she was a constant companion to all of us here, using the studio often five days a week, bringing her lunch, sharing conversations with whoever else might also be there, doing stained glass as well as the daily crossword in pen to everyone's annoyance. 
The only time we didn't see Florian was those times when she took off (by herself) on a driving road trip to Mexico, remaining there for several months- a ritual she continued at for many years until her health finally got her to reconsider. 
Florian saw many people come and go over the years- many much younger and less vibrant than her. She watched our children be born and grow up into adults. She shared both happy and sad events with all that came in contact with her. And for those 35 years, always remained a loyal and friendly constant to all of us here. 
In the later years admittedly she did slow down, but failing eyesight and weak legs assisted by a walker still left her determined and undeterred to descend those studio stairs every Friday and partake in the camaraderie of the Friday Intermediate Class. She sat at her regular spot, waited patiently for Vanna or Mikey to make her a coffee and then chatted away, perhaps even berating Donna if Mikey didn't get his dish of Cheeto's in a timely manner.
She celebrated her 93rd birthday just three weeks ago with the lifelong friends she had made in that Friday group.
Sadly it will be her last.
Florian passed away on Christmas Eve.
We will dearly miss her.
Our deepest condolences to her family and all those that she touched.

Fusing With Texture

The System 96 line has so many different textures (mostly in clear). But why the texture choices?  If you fuse with this glass wouldn't the texture just melt out smooth? 
Well yes..
And no...
You are correct to assume that if you fire a piece of say Clear Cord, or Clear Krinkle that it will melt totally clear if you do so with the texture facing up. 
But...
... fire that glass with the texture down and that's a different matter. You see that Cord or Granite or Radium texture will smooth right out, but the memory of that texture will remain (see pics below) giving your work an interesting added visual look. 

Now, because of this texture, we do have to recognize the fact that bubbles might be trapped. In the sample below it's a nice added effect which we don't mind. If not, a bubble squeeze is necessary, and might not always be 100% successful. 
Now, use two reeded textured glasses and fuse them texture to texture at a right angle to each other and you'll get a perfectly uniform grid of bubbles which can look very nice.

Or like the plate below, fill the crevasses of the texture with powders and fire them and this is what you get.

So, remember, textures do have a purpose.

Playing in the Kiln

Testing out some of the new molds that just came in, here's some pics of some work in various stages of completion...

Just a Reminder

We Have the Most Talented Customers!

Another panel from Bernie L. and a great one it is. Picasso's Three Musicians (circa 1921)(Bernie's version circa 2013). Glass and copper foil. Painted detail with Pebeo Vitrea 160 and a hair comb...

It's In!

Our large Slumpy order of frits, powders, decals, molds and some surprises is now in and on the floor. See back a couple of entries for the packing slip to see what's in.

(displayed somewhat competently by Vanna Opal)

Kokomo Glass

You've heard us rave about one of our favourite lines of machine rolled glass- Kokomo- for a long time now. How their colours are the most unique, the colour mix is not unlike an art glass, how it's the best cutting glass on the market, and even how it's a glass used by Louis Tiffany Himself. They've been around for about 150 years which will be evident from watching this (sadly) not very good video. The highlight of their production to me is being able to see how they mix and manufacture a full sheet of their glass- something that you get to see only a glimpse of at the 23 second mark for about 45 seconds.
See it and judge for yourself here-

Another Blog

Tripped across this blog with some tips awhile ago and thought it might be helpful...

A Great Idea From Surprise, Surprise- Sandy

Using metals such as silver or copper as an inclusion is a great way to liven things up as you can see from the picture here. Metals react differently under heat and the colour changes can be very dramatic at times. 
Sandy took it up a notch here by not only using copper washers as inclusions but sticking out at the top to act as a jewelry bail!

Packing Slip Posting

As is the tradition at FIG, here's the list of supplies we have coming in next week. You'll find molds, frits and powders, stringers, vitrographs, decals and some other stuff. 
Wondering if a particular Slumpy mold you might be interested in is on the order? Just pick one from here and see if it shows up on our packing slip below (pics below are expandable)!

'Stained' Glass Solarium

An interesting diversion for those of you who spend too much time already on the internet...

Florian...

... has the distinction of being Fantasy In Glass's longest customer (I dare not say oldest for fear of reprisal). She was a student of Mikey's before he even started Fantasy In Glass over 30 years ago, and still comes in every Friday to class. Today is her 93rd birthday. Celebrating here with Al who's birthday was last week (in case you're not sure, Florian is the one on the right)Donna the Cheetos trafficker lurks in the background).

Employee of the Month

Toronto, ON- Dan Savus, a housewears department shelf stocker and occasional cashier at Acme Glass, expressed sadness Wednesday over the rapidly approaching end to his reign as Employee of the Month. Fellow employees didn't have the heart to tell Mr. Savus his reign had actually ended five years ago.

Some of Our Customers Are So Talented...

Here's Leslie Duff describing her work-
'This glass piece includes round bottle bottoms personally excavated from an old building foundation (unbeknown to me @ the time). Some of the glass is 100+ years old! Very interesting unique designs
So OF COURSE I saved them for "something"
And here is my something:
I built an 8x10 bathhouse ( a friend gave me a claw foot tub )
And of course you need to have a Bubble ( bath) window!
Enjoy!
Leslie

Huge!

We have our largest order ever due next week-  frits, powders, decals (many in colour and gold)(and letters), millefiore stringer (including the very trendy vitrographic stuff), silicone bumper pads for your bowls and dishes and one million molds (well, maybe 800 or so?)... 

Christmas Store Hours

Just Like Goldilocks

... if you're looking for glass that's just right, at FIG that could mean glass that's Thin, 3mm and Thick. We have them all (in Black and White and Clear)...

Something to Leave...

... on your partner's/kids'/mom's/dad's/orthodontist's pillow as a gentle reminder.

... or pin it to their chest if subtle isn't your style...