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Tips, Techniques, and Questions -- Technical questions or tips |
2009-07-13, 3:26pm
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Glassy Broad :-)
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Join Date: Mar 29, 2008
Location: Eugene Oregon
Posts: 1,935
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When I decided to NOT take myself so seriously! Really! Just going out and playing with the glass. And PPP'ing every day. Instead of torching once a week for just a few hours, when I moved my torch to the store, and then home again to the Redneck Studio, I couldn't believe the vast improvement.
And the longer I hang out with my HH the more I learn, and yes, the #1 thing....Heat Control!
Great Question, thanks for posting it
Nita
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The difference between Try, and Triumph, is a little Umph!
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2009-07-13, 3:32pm
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da General
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Join Date: Oct 05, 2006
Location: San Francisco
Posts: 13,002
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My lampworking greatly improved when...
six months into it I was left all by myself during the holiday season (by choice!) and I torched 10 hours a day for five consecutive days.
I also happened to have gotten Double Helix and Precision 104 silver glass for Christmas. I played and played and played!!!
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Hayley
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2009-07-13, 6:21pm
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Anyone need some spacers?
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Join Date: Oct 08, 2005
Location: Pennfield, MI
Posts: 3,060
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My lampworking greatly imporved when...
I joined the Michigan Lampworkers for their monthly meetings, seeing others work glass in so many different ways helped me to see that there is no one RIGHT way to make beads. Our group meetings are fun, informative, and most of all we have the most loving sharing folks I have ever met, without them I wouldn't know half the things I do or have the guts to just keep trying for what I don't.
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2009-07-13, 8:22pm
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Jun 16, 2005
Location: Maple Valley WA
Posts: 7,064
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Heat control for me too and it happened during the J. Smirchich class.
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Lara
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2009-07-13, 8:45pm
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Just Plain
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Join Date: Jun 18, 2005
Location: Trevor, Wisconsin
Posts: 4,279
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My lampworking greatly improved when...
- I watched other people torch.
- I decided that the only way to learn was to experiment -alot - and not be afraid to use that expensive silver glass & dichro! To actually try things for myself without waiting to see what worked for everyone else.
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2009-07-13, 10:04pm
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Member
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Join Date: Oct 03, 2005
Location: Sydney, Australia
Posts: 89
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My lampworking greatly improved when I learnt where the "sweet spot" was in my hot head flame!
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Vanessa
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2009-07-13, 11:41pm
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Senior Member
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Join Date: May 04, 2007
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 1,212
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Quote:
Originally Posted by asimeral
Oh this is a good thread! So, Pam, Gail, TikiTeri, and others who mentioned or eluded to Heat Control, how does the newbie go about learning about it besides time behind the torch?
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The 3 P's ...
Practice, practice, practice.
Malcolm
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2009-07-14, 12:51am
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Senior Member
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Join Date: May 12, 2006
Location: Cheltenham, UK
Posts: 145
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My lampworking improved when I had practiced enough (years) and could make a bead automatically, at that point you can then concentrate on design and forget the basics.
A bit like driving, you know when you arrive somewhere and suddenly realise you cannot remember actually driving there. Its the subconcious part of your brain that is doing the driving leaving you free to think about other things. Definately not recommended for driving but brilliant when you get to that stage in beadmaking.
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Lesley
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"Every time you act on your imagination a thought gives birth, this is creation" (Richard Wilkins)
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2009-07-17, 8:24am
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Formerly Deesigned Beads
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Join Date: Aug 29, 2006
Location: Cape town, South Africa
Posts: 612
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My lampwork improved when I held back on trying something new, until I had finished filming the movie in my head.
Sometimes I will walk around for weeks/months mulling over something new, but restrain myself from trying it on impulse. I like to have the pattern and sequence of events planned out in my head.
The first time I did this, was a couple of months after I started to work the torch. I was determined to make a hollow. I read and re-read stuff on hollows, but something was always missing in my head. A couple of pages of the book were blank, and I held back. Then one evening while laying in the bath, I suddenly saw the whole process in my head. After I had made the imaginary bead in the bath, I jumped out, just clad in the damp towel, and lit the torch. I made my first thin-walled hollow. No blow-outs. No nothing. Just a beautiful hollow, like the one I saw in the bath.
I never press these thought processes into a fast forward motion. I allow my brain to move at it's own pace to figure something out, knowing that it will inform me when I can try that elusive design.
Oh and things like getting to know your torch. sweet spots and all.
Also - I always tell people that glass is like men. Since I treated glass as such I found that I had more control ...
Men like to think that they are in control, right? Glass too. When you make your man believe that he is making the decisions, things go smooth in the house, right? So I let the glass think it is in control. ME nudging gently in the background, softly pushing it into what I actually want it to be.
Please do not tell my glass I said this!
Oh, another thing: Chuck that marver and other tools. Let gravity and a smooth rolling action of the mandrel do the work to shape a perfect round/doughnut bead. I rarely use my tools, unless I want to distort the shape, eg. barrel, or flattened bead.
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Diana
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2009-07-17, 10:43am
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Sep 18, 2005
Location: WA
Posts: 1,177
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I notice that my overall skills have improved when I try something that I haven't attempted for a few months and then I can see that I've gotten better. It's PPP (and yes- mainly heat control which applies to everything).
I believe the improvement is gradual - like the results of exercising - and you realize what you are accomplishing over a period of time. If you measure yourself day to day, you may not see that much improvement, but cumulatively it pays off.
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Vicki B.
~~~~~~~~~~~
On a Hot Head for 6 years! 1 lb MAPP canisters from Ace
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2009-07-17, 7:30pm
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Dec 07, 2006
Location: Scappoose, OR
Posts: 1,445
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I still consider myself a newbie although I've been torching for about 3 years and I'm still learning so much about glass and heat. I've had a few "A-ha!" moments and they've been when I've made myself slow down and think about what I'm trying to accomplish.
If I'm making a bead with lots of stringer or dichro or foil, I try to think through the whole bead and prepare the components in the order I plan to apply them to the bead. If I'm working with boro and I'm doing an implosion, do I have my punties ready and at hand? Are the colors I plan to use easily accessible? Are the tools I'm planning to use easy to reach? As I'm making the bead, I try to slow down and focus on the process - where's the sweet spot of the flame, is my heat consistent, am I twirling the mandrel at a decent rate and consistently, did I get my base bead shaped before jumping ahead to decorating it?
I guess the short answer is that my lampworking skills improved when I learned to SLOW DOWN!
(so, do you think slowing down was critical for me???)
I've also found that taking classes improved my skills dramatically. Seems like I've had an A-HA! moment in each class, even those that weren't my style of bead. I definitely recommend taking as many classes as you can.
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Angela Kane To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. -One of a kind boro frit blends!
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2009-07-17, 10:50pm
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Jun 21, 2005
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Posts: 4,629
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PPP ... I'm a sporadic bead maker (too many other wearable arts pursuits to master as well) and each time I return to the torch I have to spend some time relearning. Not totally back to square one but a couple steps back from where I am when I'm on a roll! progress is slow ...
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2009-07-18, 3:29pm
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Melting
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Join Date: Jul 15, 2007
Location: Fl
Posts: 1,422
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For me, it was when I upgraded from the HH to the bobcat. Seriously, huge difference. On my HH it was a lot of effort to get a halfway decent bead. On my bobcat, almost everything comes out great. It also helped a lot with my impatience. When I first tried my bobcat I thought, "Holy cow! I'll never be impatiently waiting for glass to melt again!" Yeah, right...
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Theresa "T" Ehlers
Scorpion, EX20, M15
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SRA Member #E20
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2009-07-18, 5:06pm
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Aug 08, 2008
Location: Florida
Posts: 463
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my lampwork improved when I kept track of all the beads I made for about 2 weeks... I used a small notebook & kept track of the colors used, the time it took[on the timer on the Chili Pepper] & how they turned out ...then I looked back at what I liked & what I wanted to improve... & wow, I really liked some of the color combinations!
play with your glass [not your food LOL] use unusual colors, read tutorials, watch you-tube, take classes... look at beads that you admire & try them.... maybe PPP should be PLAY, PLAY, PLAY it always makes a dent in what you do :>
patsy
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2009-07-18, 5:20pm
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Ellyloo-YAH!
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Join Date: Aug 01, 2006
Location: Port Colborne
Posts: 2,775
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When I started holding the marver up to my eyelevel when marvering.
Maybe not greatly improved, but it sure helps!
When I learned how to let the molten glass walk down the mandrel to where I wanted it to be. Gravity is your friend.
I still need heat control improvement, i'm SURE i'm not using my torch to it's best capacity, I think I work too cool. I see others gather great gobs of glass in moments, and it still takes me forEVERRRRRRrrrrrr.
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2009-07-18, 7:50pm
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Mary Lockwood
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Join Date: Jun 21, 2005
Location: Boonies
Posts: 5,831
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My lampworking greatly improved when-
I finally 'got' heat control. And there is only one way to 'get' it and that is taking it by force over hours and hours of practice.
Even now my gut instinct wants to marver the ends of that bicone while it's soupy hot but I can hear myself saying, 'wait for it...wait for it...NOW'. LOL
A whole new world opened up for me as well when I learned how to mash a bead into a tab shape without distorting all the encased stuff inside. Again- pretty much heat control.
Perfect dot beads--heat control.
Good encasement--heat control.
It really boils down to learning the properties of the glass, the environment of your flame and how to get them both to do what you want.
When you move into offhand work like implosions- heat control is a major part of that. Sculptural work---you can just forget it without a good understanding of glass and heat and their relationship to each other.
I'm with Pam- I used to play like that all the time. I would get a gather of clear molten, mash it with the mini mashers then watch it and count how long til it cracked. Make a bead of cobalt get it soupy soupy hot, take it out of the flame, tilt it on end and watch it. How long does it creep down the mandrel? When does the glow fade? Where does it fade first? How long til it cracks? How long do I have when I can reintroduce it into the flame without it exploding?
There's only the one way.
~~Mary
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2009-07-18, 11:29pm
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Borovangelist
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Join Date: Jan 26, 2007
Location: Auburn, MA
Posts: 3,002
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I got better when I learned to relax a bit and just enjoy working with the glass. I was so busy concentrating on technique, not burning myself, etc, I was missing the fun in just ignoring the rest of the world and working in cooperation with the material. Don't be afraid to waste a little glass on the way to making something gorgeous. In the past week I've made 4 marbles on my way to learning to do a certain look I was going for. It's been a fun journey and I think I finally figured it out
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-Tom
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2009-07-19, 5:28am
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Member
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Join Date: Nov 12, 2007
Location: Minnesota
Posts: 95
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Mine improved when I decided to stop putting so much pressure on myself! I'll take a day, about once a week, where I give myself permission to just play and do whatever comes to mind without worrying about whether it will be good enough to sell. Those are the days that I learn so much! I'm relaxed and have an "I don't care" attitude and it's amazing what comes of it sometimes. Those days have turned out to be my happiest days and I get some really amazing beads and new ideas out of it.
I still have soooooooo much to learn. I can't wait to take more classes!
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Peggy
The Glass Chef
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2009-07-19, 6:05am
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DSDWC
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Join Date: Nov 04, 2005
Location: Born in the backwoods. Raised by a bear
Posts: 1,268
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I began my adventures in glass at the Indianapolis Art center studying furnace glass with Ed Francis. The best piece of advice he ever gave me was “Work cooler, slow down”. Years later in at the Fire on the Mountain retreat in Ashville North Carolina I was working with boro and exploring ornament making with the intention of blowing goblets in my future when I hear Brad Pearson whisper over my shoulder “Work cooler, slow down”. The words from my past had come back to me again.
“Work cooler, slow down”
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2009-07-19, 6:25am
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Senior Member
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Join Date: May 11, 2009
Location: Massachusetts...I95 south...before Rhode Island
Posts: 2,006
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Hmmm...my lampworking greatly imporved when..........
I signed up on first, WC, then here.
I started accepting other artists' suggestions and advice as just that, suggestions and advice and NOT criticism.
I reallized what PPP stood for
I started telling myself to be more patient (still working on this!!)
I took my first formal class (Kate Fowle)
You know guys...I could hog this thread
DUane
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2009-07-19, 6:26am
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addicted to dichro
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Join Date: Jan 05, 2006
Location: Maine
Posts: 2,402
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When I started drinking coffee.
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2009-07-19, 1:55pm
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Star Traveling Super Hero
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Join Date: Jul 20, 2008
Location: Lansing, Michigan
Posts: 87
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when i stopped the chatter in my brain and connected spiritually with the glass and started to study the scientific elements and the amazing chemistry that creates beautiful colors.
if you think too much and go too fast, you will find yourself going very slowly.
if you cut out the chittyvritty, and focus, you will find yourself going much faster.
there is no point in going faster if you have to correct.
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I've Got Blistas On Mah Fingas!!!
Carlisle CC on compressed o2 with a tranny pedal
(Otherwise known as a Scream'n he-she)
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2009-07-21, 8:29am
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In spite of it all!
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Join Date: Aug 19, 2005
Location: Bend Oregon
Posts: 4,724
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.... I stopped being so tense and relaxed about not being able to touch it with my fingers.
.... I thought of all the glass people as once having been here done that too.
.... I learned to use graphite tools and stopped being afraid of what they would do to the glass.
.... I remembered to drink plenty of water during my torch sessions.
.... I turned on some inspiring music for torch sessions or looked through magazines for color inspirations the night before.
.... I avoided the gallery threads because they influenced what I really wanted to do... sculpt!
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2009-07-22, 9:12am
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Ellyloo-YAH!
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Join Date: Aug 01, 2006
Location: Port Colborne
Posts: 2,775
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...when i realized it's natural to be 'all out' of ideas and creativity, and taking a break to recharge is "OKAY".
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2009-07-22, 12:33pm
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Jul 18, 2007
Posts: 217
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I got my hothead. Really I love it immensely.
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Kellie
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2009-07-22, 12:44pm
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Formerly Sassygirl
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Join Date: Apr 14, 2006
Location: Murrieta CA
Posts: 1,727
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My lampwork improved when I started realizing that perfect beads are rare and that all beads don't have to be perfect they just have be well made and something either I or a buyer loves.
We can't all be a master lampworker but we can always strive to improve and be the best that we can be while enjoying what we do.
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Stacie
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2009-07-22, 12:53pm
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Junior Member
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Join Date: Jul 13, 2008
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Posts: 601
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I want to thank everyone for sharing their thoughts, knowledge and experiences. Being a newbie is fun, but it can be hard at times. I can't wait until I experience more 'ah ha' moments and even more when I didn't even realize that started to get 'it'.
Thank you all.
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Minor
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2009-07-22, 2:48pm
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Ellyloo-YAH!
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Join Date: Aug 01, 2006
Location: Port Colborne
Posts: 2,775
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...when I finally realized "SOMEone will love it! (even if i'm not keen on it)." That meant i allowed for a lot more variety, and my palette grew.
(i keep thinking of them. sorry they're not all in one post. )
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2009-07-22, 8:50pm
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Sparkle Strumpet
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Location: Port Saint Lucie, FL
Posts: 2,666
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When I gave myself the gift of glass.....I just let loose. I bought 5 lbs of black, 5 of white, 5 of clear, and at least a quarter pound of every other available Moretti color at the time.
It gave me so much more freedom...I could practice shape, balance, placement. I got a feel for size and symmetry....
I miss those days of exploration....
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2009-07-22, 9:27pm
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Oct 28, 2006
Location: Washington
Posts: 725
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My lampworking greatly improved when i stopped stressing on my lack of ability and started to have fun
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Kobuki*Delta Elite*Mirage*Blast Shields*two DeVilbiss 5 LPM* tanks* foot pedal.
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