Ice Cream In Cold Weather- Here's a Tutorial on How To Make Your Own

To me, it's never the wrong time of the year for ice cream, no matter how cold outside it is.

I thought I'd tell you how to make your own ice cream cone, so when the warm weather hits, you can have plenty on hand.

1. Using dark ivory, make a small cone.  I use my torch mounted marver to roll it out.

2. Using the ice cream color of your choice, start adding glass to the top of the cone shape and once you have the top section full enough, gently melt it so it becomes rounded and smooth.

Hint: be sure to rotate your mandrel so the glass can flow into place,  I often have my mandrel upside down, so the glass flows next to the mandrel and rounds out on the very top.

3. Now you're ready to add your "drips".  At the bottom edge of the "ice cream scoop",  I make "V" shapes with more glass.  I also take the end of my rod and drag it farther down, if I need to.

Melt slightly so it's smooth.

4. With a razor or the sharp edge of your Stump Shaper, carve a circle around the original scoop, so it shows well.  That also pushes glass in each direction and enhances your drips.

5. With your razor,  gently heat one area at a time on the cone and make your diagonal slashes.  I do one direction first and then the other direction afterwards.

6. Using a red of your choice, you can add the cherry on top.

7.  Voila!  A calorie free ice cream cone ready for you.

If you want to purchase a ready made ice cream cone, click here.  And don't forget, I'd be happy to make one in your favorite flavors...just ask me.

And if you haven't joined in yet, check out my One World, One Heart post below.  The details to win Scoot the Valentine Pup are in it.  This goes through February 12th.

See you tomorrow.

Not Your Regular "Fly By Night" ~ Ho, Ho, Ho!

Who knew that Santa traded in his old school sleigh and is now riding in his new chocolate ice cream cone airplane with a peppermint propeller?

You can see more views- and the side ones are better to see the cone part- in this listing.

Do you ever make beads just to see if you can do them or to entertain yourself? I do. If a sculptural bead design is logistically hard to make- like having an "x" and a "y" axis, (like a "t" shape), then that is fun for me to try.

I have to build out the part that isn't supported by my 1/16th slim mandrel. Meanwhile, I think about making the shape, how to keep the entire bead warm and what order in which to form it it.

I also think about how I'm going to "get" to some of the places. For example the red plane wings. Those started as elongated dots. I needed to put the glass into its position, but not press it yet, (pressing makes it more susceptible to getting cold, because it's thinner), and I still needed to finish Santa's body. So if I made his arms, could I have room for my tools to press the wings?
Just for the record, I mashed the wings and then added Santa's right arm, which had to be placed before his beard, which had to be added before his.... you see what I mean. The order of placement is a strategic one that has to be thought out. Who knew this right brained beadmaker could be logical too?

Is this a way you think when you're making beads? Do you think of the order of the pattern or the shape in a logical way, or design your beads on the fly? (I do that too sometimes). Tell us about it.

And don't forget, beads like this are fun for holiday decorations too. This one would be so cute on a Christmas tree.