CBS Dichroic Extract with Kate MacLeod - Video

Dichroic Extract (a fine Dichroic coating powder) is a fairly new product available from CBS and it looks amazing, especially when you see Kate MacLeod using it.  Dichroic Extract has no COE which enables glass artists to use it on any type of glass.
 

Click here to view this video!

Easy way to know the COE of glass, video

We saw this video today, uploaded by D & L Art Glass, and thought glass fusers would find this really helpful.  It shows an excellent product, called a COE Testing Card being used.

Click on this link to view the video.

Dichroic Extract video

Our brand new online retail artist supply shop, Harrach Supply Store, will be carrying Dichroic Extract by Coatings by Sandburg Inc., soon! We found this YouTube video on their webpage, made by Glasscraft which shows the extract being applied to a piece of sandblasted glass.  The extract has no specific COE which allows glass artists the ability to use it on all types of glass.  Click here to view the video.

Yes, you can make lampwork beads from glass bottles!

The other day I found this thread on the site, Lampwork Etc., discussing how glass artists are making lampwork beads with recycled bottle glass, click here to view the thread.  It is full of interesting information, pictures and other links.  You might have to become a member of the forum to read the thread, but it is highly recommended since Lampwork Etc. is excellent for all glass artists.

I see that some people use chunks of broken bottles to create their beads by using them as glass rod.  You need to hold the piece of glass with something like a punty or other tool.  I also think that people with access to a tile saw can slice bottles lengthwise and then into thin strips and use those strips just like glass rod.

There is still a compatibility issue when using recycled glass bottles, sometimes bottles used by one company may still have different COE's.  For that reason it is best not to mix the glass with other glass, although if used sparingly, it is possible to add dots and decorations to the beads without them breaking.  A small amount of frit and powders can also be used to color the bottle glass beads as well, but keep in mind the fact that you will be mixing COE's and the beads may break.  It would be easier to make single color beads when using recycled glass from one bottle when lampworking (or fusing), but it is always fun to experiment.  You might discover that you can do some mixing without any breakage.

COE's for different types of glass

Type of Glass	Coefficient of expansion
Bullseye tested compatible (Also Uroboros 90)	90
Effetre (Moretti) sheets and rods (some variation; should test)	104
Spectrum System 96 (also Uroboros 96)	96
Borosilicate (Pyrex)	32.5
Window (float) glass (Also includes most bottles)	83 to 87 (depends on manufacturer) May be even higher or lower

Yes, you can melt glass seed beads in your kiln!

Lately we've noticed a few people writing online wondering about recycling seed beads by melting them in their kilns.  We haven't tried it ourselves at Harrach Glass but it sounds like a great idea!  What a great way to recycle old glass beads and create a new form of glass art!

We recommend that when melting the seed beads, glass artists should stick to using all of the same color and brand beads.  That way you will probably have beads with the same COE.  You can crush them like frit and put them in a mold or melt them together to form glass globs.  To fuse seed beads onto another type of glass, it would be best to do compatibility tests first.

Time lapse glass fusing video

We really like this video showing an artist, from reflectionlabs.com,  creating a fused glass piece depicting the San Francisco Peaks.  It really gives the viewer an idea of how to create a fused glass scenic art glass piece, step by step.  Remember to use compatible glass!

View the glass fusing video here!

Fusing with crushed recycled glass bottles

Wow, what a fun video!  This You Tube video was made by reflectionlabs.com and really shows an excellent example of glass art made by using recycled glass bottles.  They actually make a great leaf lamp using crushed bottles!  Be aware that not all glass bottles have the same coe, so we advise our readers to always use either one bottle for each fused element, or use multiples of the same kind of bottles.
Click here to see the video.

by reflectionlabs.com

How to fuse textured dichroic glass with a clear glass cap without loosing any texture, tutorial.

This tutorial is for artists who are wanting to fuse textured dichroic glass with a clear glass cap (ie piece of clear glass fused on top of the dichroic glass).

Artists new to fusing textured dichroic glass will sometimes get frustrated when trying to keep that textured look intact while fusing.  What typically happens is that when the textured glass is fused in the kiln, it flattens out and looses its textured appearance.  So the easiest fix for this little problem is quite simple; you will need to sprinkle some clear frit, with the same COE on top of the dichroic glass' textured crevices, then put the clear glass cap on top so that it lays flat.  If the clear frit seems to fall out of the edges of the piece you are planning to fire, use some thinned out Elmer's Glue or a bonding agent made specifically for glass fusing to hold the frit in place.  Just mix the Elmer's Glue with the frit and pack it on top of the dichroic glass.  It is easy to add other colored piece of glass (this includes dichroic glass too!),  frit, stringer and or noodles to this method by either placing them between the clear cap and the textured dichroic (and clear frit) glass to get a 3-D effect, or place those elements on top of the clear cap for a flat looking effect.

When fused, you will see that the dichroic glass now seems to have more depth and it's texture is intact!  Another different, yet fun effect, is to use the clear frit on top of textured dichroic glass with a black back on the bottom of the "sandwich" and instead of using a plain glass clear cap, use another pattern of clear dichroic glass (this time with a clear back) on top.  With the new fun patterns of dichroic glass available, you can create very exciting "scenes" using this method!

Glass Bottle fusing

This is excellent information for anyone thinking about using glass bottles for fusing or slumping.  We found this information on the webpage by Glass Fusing Made Easy (which we highly recommend reading).


Bottle glass comes in an assortment of colors like smoky, brown, green, blue and of course clear. Glass bottles come in a mixture of shapes, colors and sizes.


You can use any type of bottle; wine, vodka, beer, etc. Don’t mix your bottles in your fusing projects, because there is no indication or guarantee of COE between manufacturers. This glass is considered "soft" glass.


So, what is the COE of bottle glass? The glass ordinarily has a COE between 85 to 87. Although the COE can be as little as 83 or as great as 90. The best way to find out the COE of any glass is by testing .



This glass fuses at a higher temperatures than other art glass, and has a tendency to form devit when firing. Watching your firing schedule and using a devit spray is highly recommended.


This glass can be extremely thrifty to use for glass fusing projects. You can purchase bottles for slumping purposes, or gather them from a variety of places for free. 

Glass bottles can be used for a variety of projects in glass fusing. They can be left intact and slumped for wind chimes, cheese trays, spoon rests, etc. You can purchase molds for slumping bottles. These give the bottle a curved looked when fired. When slumped without a mold, they are flat.


Bottles can be shattered to make frit and used in molds. Break them up into large pieces and fused them together for drapes, slumping into molds, glass weaving, etc. You are only limited by your imagination when it comes to using bottle glass in your fusing projects.


Wash and dry your bottles before using them in any technique. Clean glass will contain less inorganic materials that can inhibit your glass fusing process. Some even believe that cleaner glass can prevent the problem of devitrification. 

Cutting bottles can be tricky. The surface is hard to scribe onto and is not always smooth and even. The thickness can be different even on the same bottle. Some bottles have what is referred to as a “relief” area. This looks like a dimple in the glass and is the weakest point.


Try using glass bottles in your fusing experiments. They can add a mixture of texture and interest to your pieces.


To read more from the webpage Glass Fusing Made Easy  http://www.glass-fusing-made-easy.com/bottle-glass.html#ixzz1Ri5vBJRr

Adventures in COE's???

I took this picture to show  how I keep my glass rod organized.  The glass rod is what I use to make my lampwork beads.  The round white things you see in this picture are pieces of PVC pipe.  It works great for holding glass rods!  I used a hacksaw and cut the pipes into lengths long enough to hold the rods.  I also pull the glass out of the pipe a little bit so that I can see the color of the rod easily.

I try to keep my glass organized.  It doesn't always work.  I use a few different types of glass, including glass that has different COE's.   COE is very a very important part of working with hot glass.  It means,  Coefficient of Expansion.  The lower the COE, the harder the glass and the higher the temperature is needed for it to begin melting.  

When melting glasses together, either when fusing or lampworking, it is very important to make sure that the glasses used are compatible.  That means that the glasses should have the same COE.  The term COE basically means, how fast or how slow the glass heats up and cools down. That means, if you accidentally used glasses with different COE's it is very possible that when the piece cools down in a kiln, it will develop stress cracks which will inevitably break the finished piece.  That happens because the pieces are not cooling down at the same rate!  And unfortunately, that will produce cracks.  

When buying sheet glass,  many companies will put labels on their glass stating the COE.  When buying sheet glass that is not marked, a sample fuse is very important to test compatibility before creating a project.  Usually sheets of glass made by the same manufacturer are not even compatible!   Many manufacturers make sheet glass specifically for fusing, and it is these sheets of glass that are marked with COE's.  COE's are shown as numbers, just keep the numbers together and you'll be ok!

There are also a few different types of glass rod for lampworking.  It is important to use compatible glass rod too!   There are also two distinct types of glass rod, soft glass and (borosilicate) boro glass. Never mix soft glass and boro glass.  Soft glass rod comes in a few different COE's and they should not be mixed either!  Although,  it is possible to mix small amounts of soft glass that doesn't have the same COE's but it should not be too much, or there is the usual possibility of the piece breaking!

Below is a sample of a Bullseye COE label that you'd find on a sheet of their fusing glass.