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A Beginner's guide to Kiln-Formed Glass
by Brenda Griffith
128 Pages
Order No. 6966
$24.95
Build a repertoire of glass kiln-formed skills using this extensive reference.
Brenda Griffith gives you a complete at-home course in one of the most popular subjects in studio glass. By the time you're finished, you'll have mastered all the fundamentals, including draping, fusing, slumping, and more. The nineteen projects-from a Checkerboard and checkers to a Spring Garden Birdbath-are both beautiful and instructive. Kiln-forming enables you to alter glass in several ways to achieve many beautiful effects. You can slump or drape glass over a mold to change its shape. You can also cast small pieces using a mold, or fuse glass elements together by placing them flat on a kiln shelf, and forming them to create one entirely new piece. Incorporating metals into glass, either for functional purposes or as decorations, is another option.
Artist Brenda Griffith's comprehensive introduction to the craft presents all the fundaments, moves beyond the basics, and provides nineteen projects as learning tools and jumping-off points for your own imagination.
Get up and running by buying kiln time from a local glass studio and purchasing a few basic tools and supplies. When you're ready, follow Griffith's recommendations for choosing your own kiln and her advice on studio setup and safety. There are also lists of add-on, advanced, and specialty tools that will give you additional flexibility and enable you to complete more challenging work.
Learn every aspect of the varied techniques, from cutting and preparing the glass to firing and finishing it. By the time you finish reading this section, you'll also understand the processes so that you can plan how to use them in order to get the results you want in your own finished work. In addition you'll find tips for troubleshooting common problems.
Each project will familiarize you with a new technique. Remember Grandma's beautiful apple-pie crust? You can replicate that lattice pattern on a wonderfully evocative slumped plate that's strong enough to serve as the base of a table centerpiece. Simple and gracefully shaped, an iridescent pendant's eye-catching multi-level effect is created with simple fusing methods. Take a look at the cast dragonfly paperweights. They're fun as well as functional. And the festive candy dishes? You'll make the confetti and streamer motifs with mica powers sandwiched between 2 layers of glass.
Table of Contents |
An Overview Starting out I. Materials 2. Tools 3. Supplies 4. Studio Setup and Safety 5. Techniques 6. Cutting Glass 7. Kiln Forming 8. Kiln-Forming Techniques 9. Preparations For Firing 10. Finishing Your Fired Pieces 11. Troubleshooting Guide 12. Projects - Many projects to try yourself! 13. Templates Acknowledgements About the Author Gallery Contributors Index |
