What is Devardi glass???

[pam]

Originally Posted by J&M

Here's a few quickies using Trans. Orange and the Trans. Red, Black, & White.

Wow, nice, blood red!! Can't get that color everywhere!

[J&M]

Here's some of the Amethyst (?) over white with a touch of Taxco. There's some bubbles and the sides aren't quite perfect... but I was working fast. Too cold last night to work in the garage. (That's my excuse and I'm stickin' to it!)

[J&M]

Some more of that Trans. Red. (and a touch of Triton)
Happy Valentine's Day ... I'm off to play some more.

[BeadMaven]

OOh I like the red heart!!!

[tela]

wow....I have been looking forward to continuing a discussion I got pulled away from this morning, and it's gone?
What the heck happened here? where did it go?
jo

[J&M]

Originally Posted by tela

wow....I have been looking forward to continuing a discussion I got pulled away from this morning, and it's gone?
What the heck happened here? where did it go?
jo

I think it's been moved to the Family Room.

[Hayley]

The thread in the Family Room was started before the posts in this thread were pulled for review.

[J&M]

Originally Posted by Hayley

The thread in the Family Room was started before the posts in this thread were pulled for review.

O.K. My bad.

[yellowbird]

vanished? that is just wrong.

[Cherine Perrin]

I haven't looked at this thread in a while but I feel like I am the only one that is dissappointed with the glass itself. I worked with it about a week ago and didn't want to say anything or hurt anyones feelings. Natasha did a great job packaging. Because this glass is soooo cheap I don't feel like I was robbed or misled. But I do feel like this glass is poor quality for many reasons.

Dirty, broken and mishapen rods. Lots of bubbles and scum except for the semi-opaque orange. The glass is super shocky and I know i should preheat in the kiln but that just annoys me. I never have to pre-heat any of my other glass except anise white.

Now with the possiblity of children working in unsafe conditions, I know for sure that I won't buy anymore at least until the actual factory name is reveled.

[pam]

Actually, it wasn't moved to another area, but is under review.

[Kalera]

Natasha, my question is, if you have not toured the factory or spoken with any third-parties, with no profit incentives, who have, how do you know there are no children working there? Are you basing this strictly off of what your distributor is telling you?

[Hayley]

Natasha - please see below for some of my responses to your comments.

Originally Posted by prettyangel

Cherine, Thanks for your post. All info is important. This glass is not going to make 100% of the people happy 100% of the time. It's not a problem if you don't like it. However, I address some of your issues in this thread and other postings. You can also look back at other people's beads. Most are not having this problem if they follow a few things. You don't have to preheat your rods. Just heat them a bit slower in the flame and keep your flame a bit lower than you would Moretti. We are working on some videos and will post them soon to help with your issues.

I agree with all of the issues Cherine is having with the glass and it has nothing to do with heating a bit slower in the flame. Cherine is a very capable beadmaker who does gorgeous, perfectly shaped large beads as well as discs that require excellent heat control. I honestly do not think it's her techniques that cause her problem with using the glass. . . some of the glass are scummy and full of bubbles and shatter even after preheating.

Originally Posted by prettyangel

As far as possible children working in the factory, it is NOT happening. There was a discussion on this subject that was apparently moved to another area. Please search for it if you are interested. Gotta keep this about the Devardi Glass.

They have not been moved - they are currently under reviewed because they were reported. Most of those posts WERE about Devardi Glass. All the questions raised regarding where the glass came from, who made them, what the working condition was like, were children employed, . . . those were information that is as important as the working characteristics of the glass . . . at least to some of us.

I am still waiting to find out more about your manufacturer and its business practice. That combined with the quality of some of the glass . . . I am with Cherine, I won't be purchasing any more until more information is revealed.

[DesertDreamer]

I'm done with my testing and all the beads are either cleaned or in the kiln. I didn't get as many colors in my assortment as I'd hoped, but they're very interesting colors. Overall, I'd give my particular bundle a B-/C+. Some of it is lovely but there's definitely room for improvement. I'll post pix of my little test beads on Sunday (heading to Tucson tomorrow).

First, here's how "I roll" at the torch. I'm more than willing to gently heat a rod to get it going, especially if I can see a flaw in the glass like a sudden bump or bubbles. I ALWAYS heat and pinch off the first little gather, and I always make allowances for some spitting and cracking on a cut end because some glass will just get micro-cracks from the cutting. I take that all in stride. I also work rather HOT, on a Midrange, but for these tests I set a smaller, cooler flame than usual (at least for me LOL).

Bad news first: I got a short rod of opalescent/opaque medium gray that's shocky to the point of not being useable under my normal working conditions. Every time I'd start to get the next bit warm, it would crackle and shock and blow apart rather violently. After I lost the third inch, I gave up. I garaged it in the kiln for 20 minutes and tried again, and just managed to blow off another 1/2 inch. Into the trash can with that one! Pity, cuz it's a nice shade of gray.

I was also disappointed that I got several doubled colors, i.e. two rods of the same color, instead of a true assortment.

Better news: I got a nice range of pastel blue-greens, from a sky blue to an ocean blue (there was a Vetro color like this a while back) to an ocean green to a pea green. I made small, plain test beads of each, and then a center-wrapped bead using Vetro clear. No cracking so far. The sky blue is really wonderful because it's very close to the Moretti sky blue, but doesn't haze up at all. That and the ocean blue-green color are my favorites. The ocean blue-green looks more translucent on the rod, but goes opaque and stays that way. The paler blue-green had a weird rod shape, like a 3-dimensional C. I was concerned about bubbles, but I kept the concave part at the top, and it all melted down very nicely.

Not so great news: I got a nice-looking transparent green, very pretty color. However, it crackles a lot, and gets this very weird, almost devit-like finish on one side that turns into micro-bubbles as it's being wound on. I fiddled with my flame (and my patience) and couldn't get rid of it. Hmmm

I got a dark transparent olive that's bubbly and not very exciting as a color. I got a medium transparent amethyst that's also bubbly but a prettier color. I got a pale pinkish transparent that reminds of of the pale rose Moretti (looks more peach than pink to me), also quite bubbly. They behave, though, so if you like the seeded glass look, it could be a good thing. Also, an opaque dark brown that's so dark it's really hard to tell that it's brown, and it looks greyish when encased. (All of the blue-greens were also paler when encased, but that's normal with many pastels, no biggie.)

I'm insanely in love with the transparent yellow. It's bright, strong, melts great, not as many bubbles and looks terrific over white (I used CIM Peace). Same with the transparent red. VERY easy to strike, looks like a cherry cough drop, also looks good over white.

Presently in the kiln there's a transparent black/deep gray that reminds me a LOT of Val Cox's veiled Gaffer canes. Nice! Also an opaque olive green that's not my favorite color (in general) but could be fun. The rod I got had a bump with some impurities in it (looked like a small piece of gravel, I swear) but I just heated around it and pulled it off. It seemed a little shocky at first, but settled down okay. There's also a color which looked salmon-y on the rod, but I'm not sure what it will be out of the kiln. The rod cooled more brownish.

I had one issue with two of the blue-greens and the salmon color. The rods had "nicks" in them, almost as if they caught on something as they were being pulled, like a "bump---bump---bump." They bubble at this point, a LOT.

The rods are, in general, somewhat irregularly shaped both in diameter and straightness. Mostly it wasn't a problem, though sudden bumps make me nervous. (Thar she blows!)

I want more yellow. Period. Probably more red, too. I want to try the transparent orange and the pastel orange, and some of the pastel reds.

Overall, I like this stuff (especially the price). It seems to play well with some of my favorite mixers (more testing, though, before I'm sure), and the colors are nifty.

[Bubbyanne]

Karen did you get any of the semi-opaque white you were interested in?

[Rob]

Originally Posted by lunamoonshadow

ROB!!!
*some* of us would happily give your "mystery" cast offs a good home & use them for PPP spacers you know
(lots of cash-strapped folks are willing to make special spaces for a little pile for "unknown coe soft glass" to use for practicing presses, or making spacers only!)

these days my unknowns are pretty much all boro. I figured out a long time ago I have to have labels.

[bob]

Originally Posted by DesertDreamer;

I'm done with my testing and all the beads are either cleaned or in the kiln. I didn't get as many colors in my assortment as I'd hoped, but they're very interesting colors. Overall, I'd give my particular bundle a B-/C+. Some of it is lovely but there's definitely room for improvement. I'll post pix of my little test beads on Sunday (heading to Tucson tomorrow).

First, here's how "I roll" at the torch. I'm more than willing to gently heat a rod to get it going, especially if I can see a flaw in the glass like a sudden bump or bubbles. I ALWAYS heat and pinch off the first little gather, and I always make allowances for some spitting and cracking on a cut end because some glass will just get micro-cracks from the cutting. I take that all in stride. I also work rather HOT, on a Midrange, but for these tests I set a smaller, cooler flame than usual (at least for me LOL).

Bad news first: I got a short rod of opalescent/opaque medium gray that's shocky to the point of not being useable under my normal working conditions. Every time I'd start to get the next bit warm, it would crackle and shock and blow apart rather violently. After I lost the third inch, I gave up. I garaged it in the kiln for 20 minutes and tried again, and just managed to blow off another 1/2 inch. Into the trash can with that one! Pity, cuz it's a nice shade of gray.

I was also disappointed that I got several doubled colors, i.e. two rods of the same color, instead of a true assortment.

Better news: I got a nice range of pastel blue-greens, from a sky blue to an ocean blue (there was a Vetro color like this a while back) to an ocean green to a pea green. I made small, plain test beads of each, and then a center-wrapped bead using Vetro clear. No cracking so far. The sky blue is really wonderful because it's very close to the Moretti sky blue, but doesn't haze up at all. That and the ocean blue-green color are my favorites. The ocean blue-green looks more translucent on the rod, but goes opaque and stays that way. The paler blue-green had a weird rod shape, like a 3-dimensional C. I was concerned about bubbles, but I kept the concave part at the top, and it all melted down very nicely.

Not so great news: I got a nice-looking transparent green, very pretty color. However, it crackles a lot, and gets this very weird, almost devit-like finish on one side that turns into micro-bubbles as it's being wound on. I fiddled with my flame (and my patience) and couldn't get rid of it. Hmmm

I got a dark transparent olive that's bubbly and not very exciting as a color. I got a medium transparent amethyst that's also bubbly but a prettier color. I got a pale pinkish transparent that reminds of of the pale rose Moretti (looks more peach than pink to me), also quite bubbly. They behave, though, so if you like the seeded glass look, it could be a good thing. Also, an opaque dark brown that's so dark it's really hard to tell that it's brown, and it looks greyish when encased. (All of the blue-greens were also paler when encased, but that's normal with many pastels, no biggie.)

I'm insanely in love with the transparent yellow. It's bright, strong, melts great, not as many bubbles and looks terrific over white (I used CIM Peace). Same with the transparent red. VERY easy to strike, looks like a cherry cough drop, also looks good over white.

Presently in the kiln there's a transparent black/deep gray that reminds me a LOT of Val Cox's veiled Gaffer canes. Nice! Also an opaque olive green that's not my favorite color (in general) but could be fun. The rod I got had a bump with some impurities in it (looked like a small piece of gravel, I swear) but I just heated around it and pulled it off. It seemed a little shocky at first, but settled down okay. There's also a color which looked salmon-y on the rod, but I'm not sure what it will be out of the kiln. The rod cooled more brownish.

I had one issue with two of the blue-greens and the salmon color. The rods had "nicks" in them, almost as if they caught on something as they were being pulled, like a "bump---bump---bump." They bubble at this point, a LOT.

The rods are, in general, somewhat irregularly shaped both in diameter and straightness. Mostly it wasn't a problem, though sudden bumps make me nervous. (Thar she blows!)

I want more yellow. Period. Probably more red, too. I want to try the transparent orange and the pastel orange, and some of the pastel reds.

Overall, I like this stuff (especially the price). It seems to play well with some of my favorite mixers (more testing, though, before I'm sure), and the colors are nifty.

Great description Karen, thanks for posting your testing results. I am relatively new to torching and I cant give the details you just did but I can say as a beginner it's a great inexpensive glass to learn on, also the service was great.
Bob

[Wiley]

Originally Posted by prettyangel

As far as possible children working in the factory, it is NOT happening. There was a discussion on this subject that was apparently moved to another area. Please search for it if you are interested. Gotta keep this about the Devardi Glass.

I finally got a chance to come see this thread again after being gone since early this morning....where is everything? Why was it deleted?

Was the name of the factory or town where the factory is located named? I would like to verify that there are not children working in the Devardi factory.

[Bubbyanne]

Some posts are being reviewed by Corri.

As far as finding out what conditions are in the factory where this glass is made will take some time for these questions to be answered.
About naming their glass source, I feel it's rude to ask repeatedly (feels like demanding) and I don't blame them if they don't want to answer.
It would be like shooting themselves in the foot when they're trying to start a business.

I guess we'll have to wait and see what information comes forth and decide whether or not to buy it then.

[Cherine Perrin]

Originally Posted by Hayley

Natasha - please see below for some of my responses to your comments.



I agree with all of the issues Cherine is having with the glass and it has nothing to do with heating a bit slower in the flame. Cherine is a very capable beadmaker who does gorgeous, perfectly shaped large beads as well as discs that require excellent heat control. I honestly do not think it's her techniques that cause her problem with using the glass. . . some of the glass are scummy and full of bubbles and shatter even after preheating.



They have not been moved - they are currently under reviewed because they were reported. Most of those posts WERE about Devardi Glass. All the questions raised regarding where the glass came from, who made them, what the working condition was like, were children employed, . . . those were information that is as important as the working characteristics of the glass . . . at least to some of us.

I am still waiting to find out more about your manufacturer and its business practice. That combined with the quality of some of the glass . . . I am with Cherine, I won't be purchasing any more until more information is revealed.

Thank so much Hayley.

[Wiley]

Originally Posted by Bubbyanne

Some posts are being reviewed by Corri.

As far as finding out what conditions are in the factory where this glass is made will take some time for these questions to be answered.
About naming their glass source, I feel it's rude to ask repeatedly (feels like demanding) and I don't blame them if they don't want to answer.
It would be like shooting themselves in the foot when they're trying to start a business.

I guess we'll have to wait and see what information comes forth and decide whether or not to buy it then.

Fair enough...if they don't want to answer...they don't have to. Hopefully they will understand that "we" (potential customers) will then have no choice but to believe that the factory in India is probably like all of the glass factories in India regarding child labor, toxic conditions, etc. as shown in articles like these and many, many others.

http://www.flonnet.com/fl2222/storie...4002108900.htm

http://www.iesglobal.org/improving-e...tal-health.htm

http://www.andhranews.net/India/2008...tual-55424.asp

With nothing to show otherwise *shrug* As many of you have said...it's up to us to buy the product or not. IMHO buying the product is rewarding the companies behavior.

[Bubbyanne]

I do understand your concerns Robin, it's important to know where our products come from. (Being a small business owner myself, I truly get it) There's no denying that children are being used in factories in India, as sad as it is.

I very much hope, that as information comes forward in a way that is acceptable as fact, will satisfy everyone's concerns about the conditions the glass are made under.

[pam]

Originally Posted by Bubbyanne

As far as finding out what conditions are in the factory where this glass is made will take some time for these questions to be answered.
About naming their glass source, I feel it's rude to ask repeatedly (feels like demanding) and I don't blame them if they don't want to answer.
It would be like shooting themselves in the foot when they're trying to start a business.

I guess we'll have to wait and see what information comes forth and decide whether or not to buy it then.

Bubby, I'm sorry, but every other glass seller that we use identifies who the manufacturer is of their glass. They will tell you name, address and phone number. Ask anyone where any of the glass comes from, other than Devardi, and you will get the answer. Why should Devardi not be held to the same standard?

"The rod I got had a bump with some impurities in it (looked like a small piece of gravel, I swear) but I just heated around it and pulled it off." Those are called stones and are caused by improper mixing of the glass.

The bubbles and scum are caused by not fining the glass, shortening the glassmaking process by at least 8 hours, and signifying improperly made glass.

[squid]

Originally Posted by prettyangel

This is Daniel, Natasha’s husband. In the very short period of time that we have been selling Devardi glass, we have made some great acquaintances. There are truly some wonderful people involved in the glass world. However, there are also a few who have done nothing but try to railroad our business. These are people who no doubt sell glass themselves, have friends who sell glass, receive free glass from vendors for testing or somehow are affected by us selling glass. Check their websites. They are also people who do very little but spend huge amounts of time on these threads, complaining, criticizing and trying to hurt people. Check their other threads. This thread even took on that tone before we even were known, and it has steadily worsened. It is shameful. So many good people on this thread have decided to completely leave LE because of this small handful of cantankerous people who are out to spoil other people’s lives and our business, only because they can’t handle our competition.

First of all, the only reason people want to know the source of our supplier is to interfere with our sale of this glass. You know who you are. You have tried so many ways to find out our supplier. Now you are accusing a great company of child labor. How dare you! You are hypocrites too, as your house if full of many things made in China, India and many other impoverished countries. And your items on many of your websites that you have for sale were made in India and China. So get off your high horse.

Additionally, you know for a fact that doing business with impoverished countries only benefits those countries. China and India would be nowhere near where they are if it weren’t for us doing business with them.

I am not going to reveal my sources because my business would be over if I did. And then the suppliers would not be able to improve their conditions you so loudly but falsely proclaim you are after. If you have nothing better to do than to post awful things on the internet, I feel bad for you. Your lives are small. My wife is a wonderful, wonderful person. You don’t know her. She is a true humanitarian, and you have no right to treat her like dirt. She would never buy or sell glass made by children. If you don’t want to buy our glass, don’t buy it. But move on and leave us and the rest of the people who are interested in it alone. You don’t have to ruin our business just because you don’t want to buy our glass. Find some other thread to bash people on. Daniel (I apologize to all the wonderful people on this thread that have to read this, but I am fed up.)

You have not been attacked - you've been questioned and when questioned, you've been evasive and now, downright rude. If you don't want to answer questions, then perhaps you should stay out of the thread.

Badmouthing the people you are trying to sell to is not helping your cause.

[Carolyn M]

Well that pretty much decides things for me!!

[Wiley]

WOW... Asking questions means "we" are "out to destroy your business? LOL.
I don't sell...glass or beads and I don't have a website. A blog...yes, that has not been updated in months.

When have you been to my house? You don't know what I have or where I shop.

As far as time on a forum....you all seem to be here much more than I am.

LOL. Well I guess you told me! So sorry for asking a business owner a question. Love the customer service.

a

Originally Posted by prettyangel

This is Daniel, Natasha’s husband. In the very short period of time that we have been selling Devardi glass, we have made some great acquaintances. There are truly some wonderful people involved in the glass world. However, there are also a few who have done nothing but try to railroad our business. These are people who no doubt sell glass themselves, have friends who sell glass, receive free glass from vendors for testing or somehow are affected by us selling glass. Check their websites. They are also people who do very little but spend huge amounts of time on these threads, complaining, criticizing and trying to hurt people. Check their other threads. This thread even took on that tone before we even were known, and it has steadily worsened. It is shameful. So many good people on this thread have decided to completely leave LE because of this small handful of cantankerous people who are out to spoil other people’s lives and our business, only because they can’t handle our competition.

First of all, the only reason people want to know the source of our supplier is to interfere with our sale of this glass. You know who you are. You have tried so many ways to find out our supplier. Now you are accusing a great company of child labor. How dare you! You are hypocrites too, as your house if full of many things made in China, India and many other impoverished countries. And your items on many of your websites that you have for sale were made in India and China. So get off your high horse.

Additionally, you know for a fact that doing business with impoverished countries only benefits those countries. China and India would be nowhere near where they are if it weren’t for us doing business with them.

I am not going to reveal my sources because my business would be over if I did. And then the suppliers would not be able to improve their conditions you so loudly but falsely proclaim you are after. If you have nothing better to do than to post awful things on the internet, I feel bad for you. Your lives are small. My wife is a wonderful, wonderful person. You don’t know her. She is a true humanitarian, and you have no right to treat her like dirt. She would never buy or sell glass made by children. If you don’t want to buy our glass, don’t buy it. But move on and leave us and the rest of the people who are interested in it alone. You don’t have to ruin our business just because you don’t want to buy our glass. Find some other thread to bash people on. Daniel (I apologize to all the wonderful people on this thread that have to read this, but I am fed up.)

[squid]

Originally Posted by Carolyn M

Well that pretty much decides things for me!!

yup.

[Carolyn M]

Daniel

You have been making glass beads for what......6 months?? You have no idea it seems of the depth of knowledge and experience of the people you so rudely condemned in your post. Pam, Kalera, Robin etc etc are highly respected extremely experienced beadmakers, and frankly if you want your business to crash and burn, trashing them is a really effective way of doing just that

[Wiley]

Well, i sure as hell won't try it now! Not even if the factory is perfect.

[born2snooze]

Amen!

Originally Posted by Carolyn M

Daniel

You have been making glass beads for what......6 months?? You have no idea it seems of the depth of knowledge and experience of the people you so rudely condemned in your post. Pam, Kalera, Robin etc etc are highly respected extremely experienced beadmakers, and frankly if you want your business to crash and burn, trashing them is a really effective way of doing just that