Reichenbach 104 L 2015: Pink Lady

Well - the studio redesign for beadFX is done, and while there are just a few more items to take care of - it is up and running.

I personally feel like I have hardly had time to sit down at a torch lately - and judging from my out-put - I would say that is about right. The glass gods could be working a little harder at conspiring to get me to the torch for my taste - I think they are slacking a bit here.

Anyway - I did manage to sneak in a minute or two to check out the Reichenbach (after typing that 7 different ways - I hope I finally got it right!) - Pink Lady. This is a pretty intense transparent pink - in the tradition of the Reichenbach furnace glasses - so I immediately tried working it thin.

This is Pink Lady, laid down in a thin encasement, over white. It is an intense fuchsia pink - very nice - but I did get a smidgeon of scorching (near the left side - see the greyish bubbles). Don't work it too hot.

 I then made some encased cane - Pink Lady over white - pulled into stringer - and made some of those ghastly traditional spiral roses.

 If you aren't familiar with these, these are traditional on the old "wedding cake" Venetian beads - lots of goldstone and little pink roses.

 To make them, make your cored cane, then make a base bead. Spot heat a circle on the bead to glowing, but not soft. Heat the tip of the stringer to make it sticky, and start in the middle of the circle. Work to the side of the flame, in that spot where, when you bring the stringer up to the flame - it starts to glow. Start in the middle of the circle, and make a spiral with the stringer, trying to keep it as tight as possible. (Tip, push on the stringer as you use it. Once it is glowing - it is too hot to control. Your goal is to have it hot enough to soften and move, just before it starts to glow.)

Melt in enough to have it stick - try not to overheat it and let is smear.

 The sad part is, they really do resemble roses, no matter how sloppily done (witness my pics!). Some green ribbon cane swiped on for leaves completes the illusion.

 It's an interesting phenomenon - our brains really do try to impose order on the world by seeing familiar things and interpreting patterns. Like a pink spiral becomes a rose. Not sure if it would work with another colour - would blue cored-cane give the illusion of blue roses?

The reason I dislike them is because they are like hearts  - charged with a lot of sentimentality and preciousness. In other words - they have become a cliche - for me - like white picket fences and gingham aprons.

But don't let MY prejudices stop you from having fun making them! ;-)