Striped beads

[truegem]

Ok, so you make a round bead, put dots on and add big ol' glop of clear around it and melt it in. It's supposed to make striped beads.
I hope you know the technique I'm referring to.

Anyway, when I make these, they turn out striped and everything, but the clear glass doesn't go all the way to the edges, making it look like an apple core. Does this make sense? I don't want it to look like an apple core, lol! I can't seem to get the clear to completely cover the bead. I've tried using more clear to no avail. It just ends up being a deeper apple core.

If anyone out there knows what I'm talking about, please help! I wish I had a picture to post.

[truegem]

Oh I see this question has been asked before. Looks like it just takes some practice. Question though....do you pay attention to where the clear goes? It seems to me it should not be outside the edge of the dots, so that the clear will stretch the dots outward. Again, I hope this makes sense.

[KJohn]

Hiya!

first, don't do the dots on a round bead. Spacer sort of okay, disc type is better. And melt the clear down slow enough that you can push/pull the ends to the mandrel with a tool. Use heat too, and/or cover with extra wraps of clear on the ends. Keep new clear over the clear, or it will pull up the base, mucks it up.

Edited to add, someone did a tut on gravity swirled encased striped beads, one of the dutch or german lampers? She had it on her site. Used a disc, same technique as I mentioned. Was it Manuel, or Marlene...?

[truegem]

Oh yeah, I know...disc. I didn't mean round round, lol.
Thank you! Will try pulling the dots!

[KJohn]

ah ok, just meant to push/pull the clear, though. And extra clear to top off sometimes helps me too.

[Chocake]

Try putting a wrap of clear on each side of your "big ol' glop" of clear over the dots, so they don't touch the dots below but the clear is wider then they are. (Kind of t-shaped, if that makes any sense) You'll still have to manually move it a bit but hopefully not so much. I think there's a free tut that shows what I mean somewhere around here.

[Keoki]

Make a small disc shaped bead. Add dots and melt them in. Wind clear glass over it. Be sure the clear is a little wider footprint then the disc bead under it and also be sure you add at least double the volume of clear than the volume of the disc. heat so that the clear spreads out and drags the dots with it. If you end up with an apple core appearance, you didn't apply enough clear to spread it all the way to the sides. Hope this makes sense.

[AKDesigns]

Originally Posted by Chocake

Try putting a wrap of clear on each side of your "big ol' glop" of clear over the dots, so they don't touch the dots below but the clear is wider then they are. (Kind of t-shaped, if that makes any sense) You'll still have to manually move it a bit but hopefully not so much. I think there's a free tut that shows what I mean somewhere around here.

Make sure that the first round of clear goes only through the center of the dots, don't let it cover the sides of the dots. when adding more clear like described above, do it on each side like you are adding a turtle neck and do one side at a time, making sure that your turtle neck of clear also doesn't touch the outer side of the dot.

[5betsy]

Perfect description! A turtle neck. Omg. That's the best way I've heard it.

[truegem]

Ok, gosh haven't had time to torch lately. 'Tis the season for having no time to torch. Can't wait for things to get back to normal.

[windsong1]

Would it be possible to use this method of stripes on a blown bead? Say, blow a smallish round bead, flatten end furthest from the blowpipe, do the dot thing and apply clear. Then blow. Trying to create oblong stacked dots on a blown bead.