Glass Kilns and the Freeze-and-Fuse Procedure

 

The freeze-and-fuse glass procedure can help you create great art works such as plates or jewelry using glass kilns. Freeze-and-fuse is a fused glass technique that fuses on small heat. You can use glass pieces to create jewelry or you can fuse these onto something else such as plates or bowls. Here’s the way this technique works.

 

 

First of all you need a flexible mold. Then you need to acquire clear glass powder that you can mix with other colored glass powders to create a variety of colors. Mixing 90 % of clear glass powder with 10% of colored powder will lead to obtaining a soft shade, while a fifty-fifty mix will lead to obtaining a stronger one. To obtain more and more shades you only have to change the color mix percentage whilst using the same colors.

 

Here are the materials that you need: soap or a different mold, water, a cup, towels, a paint brush, toothpicks, glass stringers and off course glass powder with the same coefficient of expansion. A dust mask it’s also useful since you risk inhaling glass particles that are very dangerous.

 

If you need more than a single color for your piece you must mix the colors in different cups. To mix the powder, just put it in a cup and add enough water to cover the glass powder. Mix the water and the powder using a small stick ant let it settle for a couple of minutes. Pour the water surplus in a paper towel and be careful not to throw it down the sink.

 

Using the same stick or a paint brush pour the paste into the flexible mold and tap it until it settles. For obtaining a better design you can add a stringer on the bottom of the mold, because it will become the top when you’ll fire the piece. With a toothpick you could lift up the bubbles to the façade. If you want to create a multilayered piece, use a paper towel to clean the margins. When the mold is full you can again use a Popsicle stick to make the surface smoother.

 

The next step is putting the mold in the freezer and let it there until it is totally frozen.

Make sure your kiln is prepared, take out the mole from the freezer and put it on the kiln’s shelf. Twist the mole until it lets the piece lose. If it doesn’t work it means that the piece is not totally frozen and you should put it back in the freezer. Heat the kiln at 1300f for twenty minutes.

The object will get smaller and shiny. When it is done don’t forget to anneal it. After annealing you can use a sandpaper to make the piece smooth.

The freeze-and-fuse glass procedure is method to create objects with glass frits that can be fused onto other objects if needed. What you need in order to achieve that is a glass fusing kiln. The glass kiln offers many interesting opportunities to create beautiful glass objects.

 

Your Kiln can also be used for clay:

 

Getting Fired Up Using Electric glass Kilns

If you use the right kiln and clay you can produce true pottery works of art. The new modern electric kilns are the latest method to produce high quality pottery using different temperatures. There are different types of kilns for all kinds of activities involving clay.

 

In terms of shape electrical kilns can be rectangular, round or square. Choose a model made of a superior resistant material, long-lasting quality elements and replaceable parts to ensure the durability of the kiln. Replacement parts, firing and temperature control or airing systems are some of the accessories that go with the electric kilns.

 

There are kilns of different sizes depending on the needs of the artist. The professional kilns are larger and usually front-loading but there are also top-loading kilns available for diverse heating temperatures. There are also some special kilns utilized for enameling metals, garnishing glass or for painting china. Airing system is useful for preventing gas accumulation in the firing are. There are also shelves that can be acquired and used for different kind of projects. Metal enamel kilns are utilized for firing pottery objects.

 

The cone 10 glazes are very useful when it comes to clay pieces fired on very high temperatures. There are many cone ten glazes available to create unique and exceptional effects such as the shiny pastel used to create colorful ceramics or textures such as the orange crystal appearance texture.

 

Electric kilns can also be used on lower temperatures for materials like earthenware clay. Made from several different clays for texture and elasticity earthenware clay is used for producing ceramic objects. However earthenware clay may also be processed on high temperatures in order to obtain great results. There are some glazes which could be used on earthenware clay to make it look like stoneware.

 

Earthenware clay is very flexible and adaptable to any processing method such as hand building, sculpture or wheel throwing. Thanks to its great grit, earthenware clay it’s very strong clay and it is easier to throw larger portions.

 

Earthenware clay is very easy to distinguish tanks to its reddish color. This material was used for 9 millenniums by people from all over the world. Some well known earthenware processing styles are terra cota, Japanese raku or the Mexican pottery. The earthenware clay can be mixed with glazes to create beautiful dinnerware or other kinds or different artworks. Many artists replaced the ceramic clay with earthenware clay thanks to its flexible and elastic structure.