"Magic" color reactions and layering

Hello friends!

So I am pretty excited about this latest run of beads. I did some more designs in the "magic" color reaction colors so this is a nice addition to the beads I made last week. Getting a torch upgrade has been such an amazing thing! I can't believe the difference of all of the things I can do with all of that extra heat! It is so enjoyable to work! I wonder how I ever got by working on a hot head for almost 5 years!

So I thought I would go into some of my discoveries while making beads before heading over to the shop.So here is the first thing I discovered. Both of these beads are the same. So you want to know how right? Ok here is the deal.... The bead on the left is the bead on the right melted down into a round bead! Pretty cool huh? Same stuff, but a different look. As you also might notice I got some nice color reactions when the glass melted down causing that cool ring of orange. Now here is the thing. Only some of the colors react with each other and the others don't. That is why some of the round beads in the set have a few very crisp lines and others have more organic lines. The most reactive girls out of the bunch are 2 of my favorites: EDP and Rubino Oro.

The discs melted down make pretty plump round beads. They end up being 12-15mm which is pretty big for my normal size. :D Now the thing with making these rounds is that you need to balance the heat from top to bottom and side to side to make sure that all of the striped don't get swallowed up. The reactivity of some of the colors also "swallows" some of the color as well, so this might be something you want to keep in mind when making these style beads.

Here is my other experiment. The disc on the right was made with twisted cane and rounds of a solid color. The way these two beads are different was the application of glass. So on the right was a wind of cane, then a wind of solid color then melted into a solid disc.

The bead on the right was made by winding a disc of all solid colors and then applying cane on top of the melted in winds instead of inbetween them. As you can see by the results the different applications make for more of an organic style or more of a crisp design style. Pretty sweet eh?!

Now let's head over to the shop.

NEW IN THE SHOP...
The following beads have colors of: orchid, mint green, golden yellow, turquoise, and ruby pink.
"Gobstopper Batiks"- I named these beads because the rings remind me of gobstopper candy and the reactivity of the colors remind me of beautiful batiked fabric :D As I said above these pretty round plumpers were made by winding different reactive glass into discs and then melting them down. I just LOVE how you can see all of the neat color reactions from the glass reacting. A design with the beads facing hole side out would be a nice way to get the full effect of the beads.

"Stone Rekkets"- Another silly name,but they remind me of stone with their solid somewhat muted colors and "rekkets" because they look like vinyl records. I used the term "rekkets" for fun because with an Eastern accent "records" becomes "rekkets" lol. The winds of color stay separated in disc form, but look at all of the pretty colors! A design stringing them hole side out would be a nice way to show off the beads :)
"Concentric"- Rings of concentric circles make up this large holed disc. The hole is a whopping 12mm which will make it lots of fun for designing! The large hole actually fits my pinky finger. It makes me think of eating those little chocolate striped cookies but putting them on your finger and eating around them. You did that when you were a kid too, right? :) I think this focal with the "stone rekkets" set would make an amazing necklace.
"Helix Wheel"- I really like the way this one turned out! As I said above the different layering effects give it a different look. The twisted bands almost make it look like it's turning. This bead has a 4mm hole which gives it more design possibility. Again hanging it sideways with hold side facing out will give it the best look. This would be awesome combined with the "gobstopper batiks" set.
"Snakes Skin Vertebrae"- This focal got it's name from the look you get from the style of winding the glass above. Here you can really see that "snake's skin" look. I swear if you didn't know this was glass you would think it was stone. The bead is very thick and solid giving it a nice weight. This bead has a 5mm hole and would work great with a design where it was strung hole side out.

WHAT ELSE IS NEW?...

I am excited to announce that Genea Beads has been featured in the "Pastels" treasury posted by Mosiac Gems!

Well I just received my package that has some new glass inside along with something for the project on which I am working. I am excited to see how this will all work out. I will probably make some test lentils to check out the new colors I received. :D That is the tester side of me coming out lol.

Here is a picture Jan sent me of her gorgeous necklace she made with the "Vino Noir" set I listed the other week.
Isn't it just perfect with the Garnets she chose?! Wow!

Ok so this is totally random, but when I went to make dinner for Ricky and me I pulled the chicken out of the ziplock bag and thought it was cute that it had frozen into a heart! Silly, I know, but whatever keeps me entertained right?! :D

I think that's all I have to report for this week, but I will see you soon.

I hope you are enjoying springs warmer weather!

Much love,

Genea