Jellyfish Seascapes Tutorial by Moth - Page 2

Carmen Isaacs · #31 2008-07-19, 12:13pm

I have it and cant wait to try it, it looks amazing. I will be back in South Africa week after next and hopefully will get to play.

Moth · #32 2008-07-19, 2:31pm

I am so happy to be reading this thread about jellyfish playtime!!!

You go!

Can't wait to see the 'Deadly Weapon' beads...that's what I call 'em when I make huge ones.

Yeah...10mm is what I like to use, but I strip them clean and pull them down into 4-5mm rods for encasing these beads.

So...yeah...encasing them with the full 10mm rod (even though the sound of it gets me all hot and bothered because I'd love a torch I could melt 10mm rods for encasing with), will make huge beads. At least it would for me. I guess some people could encase thin with a rod that thick...but I can't get them hot enough to do it at this point. It would take me lots of practice, that's for sure!

~~Mary

GlassFirenze · #33 2008-07-19, 5:17pm

Mary! Congrats on your Tutorial... Having had you teach here in March I KNOW that Tut must be FANTASTIC!!! I'll have to tell anyone who missed out on your class to buy your tut! I too am looking forward to everyone's endeavor...

P.S... I saw the Fish made into a Seascape in the Gallery... BEAUTIFUL!!!!! SOOO VERY COOL!!

Your Alaskan Friend,
Deborah

JulieV · #34 2008-07-19, 9:57pm

Just downloaded mine! Away from home for a spell (but with my computer) so won't be able to try it for a while. But I sure am anxious!

simvet02 · #35 2008-07-20, 5:40am

OK, In the interest of sharing and warnings about what can go wrong, I have many examples. First, is something that I have been strugling with, the oxygen output on my torch. I have an M10 so I really don't have enough to really melt the larger rods of clear. Obviously I had it turned up too much, I can see the slight black film in many of the photos.

This first one was just my practice poking piece. I backed it with blue so I could see the jellies. I really like the second one, it looks like it is swimming away from me and I can see up inside of it.

Ok, the big one, This was the second jelly that didn't go in right. I love the boro look of the kelp. I have to look up what combo of glass I used for the kelp. The second frit stringer in the foreground lost all of it's color. I had used a mix with elektra frit in it and should have reduced it prior to encasing.

The second one shows the pink frit stringer that looks like a giant monster. I love the fine look of the tentacles. Notice the fine line from one of the layers of encasing that smoked.

Another look at the boroesque kelp and the smoked inner encased layer.

This one just shows the poor little barnacles that kind of got swallowed up by the encasing.

All in all it was a good first try. I love the jellies, the tentacles are so cool. Who would have thought that I could do something like this. Mary, thanks for being so sharing with your tallents.

jeepinwelch · #36 2008-07-20, 8:51am

Wow Jan! I love the tentacles on your jellyfish! Please share what you did for the kelp. I can think of a few thing that would look great in. Thanks for sharing!

KristiB · #37 2008-07-20, 12:36pm

I have one of Mary's very first jellyfish beads

I LOVE it!!!

I've never tried one myself, I may have to get the tutorial

Kristi

simvet02 · #38 2008-07-20, 2:23pm

I wish I could tell you. What I had written down was Kiwi with med green transparent over it but it sure doesn't look like that. I'll probably never be able to repeat it again.

I tried another one today and all I can say is that I'm just not capable of doing anything but large beads. I did another one that was so large that I couldn't get it hot enough in the end to smooth it completely. It's in the kiln right now so I won't have photos until tomorrow.

Moth · #39 2008-07-20, 7:33pm

Wow Jan! You are really running with this! What I love about your beads is it looks like you are having fun and you have a very realistic approach to trying new techniques. You are truly looking for the personality in the jellies too...love that.

Don't worry...they will get smaller as you get more comfortable making them.

I really like your boroesque kelp too. Ethereal!

Great job and I can't wait to see what you do next!
~~Mary

ziggys · #40 2008-07-21, 6:05pm

Hey Jan, I didn't know you had posted pics here until now. Thanks for sharing. (Some people are posting in the gallery in case you didn't catch that yet.)
Your bead is great! There is so much to look at. Along with the kelp, I love the color of pink/white translucent in the second pic. And of course the tentacles are magical.

I know what you mean about being able to make a bead like that. If I can come even close, I'll be thrilled.
Angela

kbinkster · #41 2008-07-22, 10:23am

What cool jellyfish, everyone! Mary, I think you are awesome (and have thought so for several years, now)!

Moth · #42 2008-07-22, 2:30pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by kbinkster

What cool jellyfish, everyone! Mary, I think you are awesome (and have thought so for several years, now)!

Thank you!!!!
~~Mary

ziggys · #43 2008-07-23, 1:32pm

In case anyone would like another opinion on this tutorial, I think it's so worth the money and even more. That says a lot coming from somone who is on a tight budget and is very frugal.

I am learning so much in a very short time. It's great for beginners, yet goes way past that for sure. You can pick and choose what to learn. It's not just about making jellyfish.

It's challanging me in many ways. You can set goals. I'm working with larger amounts of glass than ever before, practiced more encasing than I ever do on my own, and building lots of different canes. I finally see why my color wheel never worked for me! I now understand how beads get their depth and interest. It opens up a whole world of design possibilites. And it's a blast.

And I REALLY appreciate (and am having more fun) because Mary has made her self available on here to answer questions and give suggestions! Not sure how long she can keep that up though especially since she plans to write an add on tutorial for advanced cane techniques. At least that's my understanding. Sure hope so.

Angela

Moth · #44 2008-07-24, 7:28am

OMG, Angela...I'll send you your check this afternoon. LOL

I could not have gotten a nicer endorsement even if I had paid for it. Thank you so much!!

It thrills me to no end to see people getting so much out of it. Yes, it is more than one tutorial...but you can't make the jellyfish without being able to make the canes, so I had to include all that information in there for anyone who might not be familiar with building some of the canes and twisties. It opened the tutorial up to more skill levels and I wanted it to be suitable and helpful for as many people as possible.

And yes, there are lots more canes that I use when I'm making these beads and I'll be coming out with a tutorial on those later. I haven't even started it yet. There are at least 8 more that I can think of off the top of my head, but they are a bit more complex and produce very specific results. I kept them separate from this tutorial because I figured not everyone would want them and the jellyfish tutorial was already getting pretty long even though I had it arranged tightly.

So, THANK YOU again for letting me (and everyone else) know that you are happy with the tutorial and learning a bunch. Makes my day!

~~Mary

ps- for anyone who doesn't know it, I have free tutorials for other stuff on my site. They are all the same as the ones I have posted in the tutorials section here at LE, except for one of them, which is more jewelry related, not glass.

ziggys · #45 2008-07-24, 3:13pm

Mary, you read my mind! I was thinking about my post a little later and thought maybe I should edit it to say you didn't pay me to write it.

I'm glad it made your day.

Angela

theglasszone · #46 2008-07-26, 7:01pm

The depth of information in Mary's Tutorial, from pulling canes and stringers, proper applications of mille, layering of glass to create depth and use of color is just fabulous! There's a world of information here - perfect for beginners through the seasoned glass vet - something for everybody and she makes you feel with her step-by-step instructions and excellent use of pertinent photos that she's right there beside you guiding you along. The inclusion of "Trouble Shooting" tips is practically Svengali - I almost said aloud "You read my mind"! Thanks for sharing so much of yourself with us, Mary!

~DeAnne in CA

BeadMaven · #47 2008-07-29, 6:01pm

I just got my copy too and I must Ziggys sums it up very nicely!

Quote:

Originally Posted by ziggys

In case anyone would like another opinion on this tutorial, I think it's so worth the money and even more. That says a lot coming from somone who is on a tight budget and is very frugal.

I am learning so much in a very short time. It's great for beginners, yet goes way past that for sure. You can pick and choose what to learn. It's not just about making jellyfish.

It's challanging me in many ways. You can set goals. I'm working with larger amounts of glass than ever before, practiced more encasing than I ever do on my own, and building lots of different canes. I finally see why my color wheel never worked for me! I now understand how beads get their depth and interest. It opens up a whole world of design possibilites. And it's a blast.

And I REALLY appreciate (and am having more fun) because Mary has made her self available on here to answer questions and give suggestions! Not sure how long she can keep that up though especially since she plans to write an add on tutorial for advanced cane techniques. At least that's my understanding. Sure hope so.

Angela

I had to jump in and give Mary kudos....its a nice tut Mary! Vewy nice!
I love it!

artic^wolf · #48 2008-08-13, 6:38am

For your inspiration

http://photography.nationalgeographi...otography.html

Moth · #49 2008-08-13, 7:12am

Thanks DeAnne and BeadMaven (I'm always inspired to make murrini when I see your avatar)! Hope you are enjoying it and that you share what you're up to!

Thanks for the link, Lori! I'm gonna go look at it right now!
~~Mary

Moth · #50 2008-08-13, 7:23am

Wow, Lori. I sure wish I could do that in glass. I don't think my skills are quite there yet. LOL

I did make it my desktop wallpaper though. Really beautiful...thanks for sharing.

~~Mary

artic^wolf · #51 2008-08-13, 7:41am

I believe you can! It is gorgeous, if you give him a go please let me see.

NLC Beads · #52 2008-08-14, 10:49am

Just got my printed copy in the mail today - there's something too irresistable about paper instead of online.

Love it, great work Mary, thanks for all the time you put into it. You're a great, patient teacher in person and it translated beautifully to print.

ziggys · #53 2008-08-15, 11:47pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by artic^wolf

For your inspiration

http://photography.nationalgeographi...otography.html

Wallpaper on my 'puter too now!

Thanks!

pegz · #54 2008-09-13, 7:00am

I just got the tutorial, and it is beautiful!!! I can't wait to try it out!

JulieV · #55 2008-09-13, 7:17am

You will have hours and endless hours of fun with it! It's the greatest thing since sliced bread!

Hourglassbeads · #56 2008-10-06, 7:50am

This tut is jam packed with great information and very well written!

I spent 1/2 the day doing the prep cane work and here is my first 3 jelly beads.

1st try staying close to instructions

2nd bead I ventured out a bit

3rd bead playing more with shape

Since alot of time is spent making canes for this bead I used what I had made so they are similar but now I can't wait to really play with colors!

Thank You again Mary for sharing this wonderful process! I felt just like I was taking a class at home. Jellies are so fun to make and I only held my breath on the first one

Maria

Moth · #57 2008-10-06, 8:03am

Those are fantastic, Maria. Thanks so much for sharing your success right out of the gate.

Your canes look great, your jellies are awesome. Well done. Can't wait to see more as you experiment and play.

Take care and thanks so much for getting the tutorial from me.

~~Mary

theglasszone · #58 2008-11-28, 6:02pm

Finally had a chance to use this wonderful tut - if you haven't bought it yet, I can't recommend it enough...there are so many useful and interesting techniques in this one!!! Jam packed!!!

More pics. in the Gallery under the "Jellyfish Seascape" thread:

DeAnne in CA

Reenie · #59 2008-11-29, 4:42am

Mary I got a question for ya.....
Here's my first attempt at a jellyfish.

The second one (using colors in your instuctions still)
I tried to make a lentil bead (large) and everything kind of squished.
How can I avoid this?

and 3....
I haven't been able to do it since. I warm up the clear and stick the jellyfish in ...wait a few seconds but when I push....just the clear moves and it totally moves out of shape but the head of the jellyfish guy doesn't spread. I have no idea what I'm doing wrong but have tried on about 4 other beads.
Any advice????

Moth · #60 2008-11-29, 3:20pm

I think you aren't heating deeply enough into the bead. What is happening is that the jellyfish head isn't getting hot enough to soften. It has to soften for this to work and since you aren't getting it to work now but you did before, that tells me that you just aren't heating deeply enough for that hot clear to actually soften the jellyfish mantle. Go hotter, deeper and let me know how it goes.

As far as the lentil goes, any time you are trying to form a layered bead into a lentil, you kind of have to roughly shape it as you go, like I would make the very first layers of my bead thin tab shaped. Then build from there. As you build up enough glass, press it in the lentil mold even if it isn't big enough to fill it yet. This will help you not to have to squish all the layers all at once.

Once you have added the jellies, did the final encasement and are ready to press, this is a heat and practice thing. Here is the best I can do at describing the timing.

You want to heat the whole bead to glowing, not soupy soft...but movable (pressable temp). Give it just the slightest press...not much mind you...not even half the amount you will have to press it. Now you want to let the bead cool down to the layer where the jellyfish sits, which as you know is not deep down into the bead at all.

Then, squish it the rest of the way. By letting the glass layers that you don't want to distort firm up a bit, you will be able to control them better. Repeat this however many times you need to to get the right shape.

You want the inside core of the bead to be HOT, the layer with the jellyfish in it to be not so hot, but still moveable, and the outer layer of clear almost too stiff to press. Almost.

This kind of locks everything into place so it doesn't smear and smoosh around in there.

Same goes for florals or encased designs of any type that you want to shape into a pressed mold. Let them cool just a bit more and you will need to experiment and practice to know just when is the right time to do it. But you will get it.

Good luck!
~~Mary