Red Riding Hood Revisited

Two days ago, I told you that I was working on my bead for our Southern Flames Glassworkers group postcard.  And I showed you the darling print of the guinea pig dressed up.

So here is the end result.  No, I didn't dress up an animal as Red Riding Hood, but that still may be in the future...  But I did make this cute little girl and just happened to have a spare wolf hanging around my inventory (I know, what a coincidence).  I'm going to create a glass base for the two of them and make them a nice woodsy place to co-habitate.  Can't we all just get along?

See you tomorrow!  Right here at www.StudioMarcy.blogspot.com  or find me on facebook under Marcy Lamberson.

Mini Tutorial- Making Mushrooms by Marcy Lamberson

Mushrooms traditionally add a bit of fancy to

to an owners collection, or wardrobe. Often I think of them being appreciated by people who enjoy fairies, and small woodland type vignettes.
I just happen to be one of those people and perhaps you are too. If so, here's a very simple mini tutorial for you, so you can make your own.

Marcy's Magic Mushrooms
(Okay, I grew up in the 60's and they aren't that type, but it sounds good.)

Supplies
Glass: Light 

ivory, white stringer and color for mushroom cap. Most often it's red.
Tools: marver (I prefer a brass Stump Shaper, but any marver will do.)
Directions:
1. I work on a 1/16th mandrel, but 3/32 would be just fine also. Starting at the end closest to the hand holding the mandrel, start winding your light ivory into a chubby donut shape.

2. Marver your donut into a stem shape similar to a cone without a sharp point. Keep that end nice and wide to attach the cap, but make it smaller than the base end.

3. Pat yourself on the back.
4. Using your mushroom cap color, make a small donut with about 3 wraps around the mandrel directly next to the smaller end of the stem. This makes sure that your mushroom cap will be smooth at the mandrel. Turn your hand holding the mandrel and point the flame directly at the top of the donut, so it gets warm and smooths out.
5. Gently marver it on a slight angle to slightly spread it out and smooth some more. Please note, depending on how pointed you want your mushroom cap, this is where you decide. Use a sharper angle marvering it, if you want a more pointed cap. If you happen to marver it too much and your glass gets too thin at the top, just sparingly add a few more dots of glass around the top of it and gently melt in and marver again- g e n t l y and not too hot.

6. Now, you should have a band of color for the start of the cap. Heat your rod of the same color and the rim of the small cap and point your flame where the two meet as you apply more glass in circles, widening your mushroom cap. It's like making a disk on a slight angle or a half of a hollow bead. Every couple of wraps, be sure to keep your mushroom warm.
7. Aren't you happy that you didn't make the top of the stem too thin? Because you need this top of the stem to help support your cap and make it more secure and easier to marver. Whoops, that's the next step.

8. Once you have enough mushroom cap on, then you can gently heat and marver it smooth. It will slightly contract and that's okay, because you know how to add more glass. I think getting a nice, smooth cap is more important. Once you have it the way you like it, there's just one more step.

9. Add your white dots. Sparingly. A few seem to work the best. Melt them in gently and marver if necessary. But not too hard, because then they aren't as opaque. Finish fire polishing your mushroom and pop it into the kiln. Or...

10. On my green mushroom below, I added a little bit of sparkle.

 A light pixie dust, (goes with fairy objects after all) or even a few little thin green stringer strands of glass grass on the base of the mushroom stem can add a touch of detail to make it more special.

11. Pat yourself on the back one more time. Enjoy!

Winter Snow Scene...Choosing Colors for an Assemblage

Here we go... the last glassy post for 2008!

Today I have a photo of my entry for the Winter Challenge.

It's a three bead Winter scene, with a bobble head snow woman and a child with a carrot for her nose and a dog with a tennis ball.  They are on a white glass stand which is a bead also.

Today, I wanted to write about how I made some of my color decisions for this scene.

Of course I knew that the snow chick would be basically white.  I wanted her to look "girly", so decided to have her wear some clothes.  Periwinkle looks so pretty with white and as light blue is associated with winter sometimes, this would be a little stronger color that would show up better.  I added the swirls on her apron for interest and to tone down that amount of color in one place.  Her hat is periwinkle also with band of variegated greens, one is the bright key lime green that you also see on the child.  There is a crow sitting on the side of the hat, and that black is mirrored in the faces of all the characters.

I wanted the child's clothes to complement the snow woman.  I used the bright green on the jacket which would draw the eye in towards the face and make the child the focal of the assemblage.  I added some purple swirly details to the jacket and a small scarf.  Lapis blue is the other main color which although it's bright, still recedes a bit compared to the green.  The child is wearing blue gloves while holding the orange carrot.  They are opposite colors on the color wheel and will frame and bring more attention to the carrot this way.

The little dog adds a touch of detail to the scene.  Often I make white dogs with brown spots.  I knew that I needed a neutral color that would show up against all the white, so I made him from dark ivory glass with silvered ivory stringer spots for fun.  (Just had to try it to see what it would look like.)  He has a bright green tennis ball in his mouth, which helps your eye travel down to notice him.  I had thought to have him turned more to cover more of the snow lady, but liked this angle in the photo, because it looks like he's in motion.

And finally, the base.  I used four rods of white glass for it.  Holy cow, it got a bit heavy.  I had made a "pattern" out of play-doh in advance.  I figured out where each piece would stand and how much room was needed between them to keep them close enough together, but so they would easily fit too.  That play-doh is great stuff for working out logistics.

One of my 2008 New Years Resolutions was to be more "deliberate" in what I made and how I made it.  I still have a long way to go.  But today, I wanted to show you the thought that went behind this particular assemblage regarding one single aspect of it... choosing color.   We tend to talk technique, patterns, shapes and other more technical aspects, but deliberate color choice can be equally important.

Wishing you a happy ending to a crazy year.  I'm sure you can guess...tomorrow I'll write some of my beadmaking and glass resolutions for 2009.  Start thinking of yours, because I'm going to ask you to join in and post them.