KATERYN'S "MUST HAVE" LIST OF SUPPLIES FOR BEGINNING BEAD MAKING:
Hothead torch (to use with MAPP gas)
Glass rods (pastel, transparent, filigrana)
Dozen mandrels, medium size, 9" or 12" long
"sludge" to coat mandrels
C-clamp
Ring clamp to fit around bottle of gas
KATERYN'S "NICE TO HAVE" LIST OF SUPPLIES
Tunston probe
Millefiori chips
Dozen thin mandrels (*Arrow Springs)
Either book by Cindy Jenkins
Long tweezers
Fiber blanket to cool beads
Dual action marver
Graphite paddle
Rose didymium glasses
Old cookie sheet to protect work area
Screwdriver
Pliers
Bead reamer
Commercially made stringer assortment
Rod rest
Alabastro and Opalino shades of glass
Silver foil (or gold foil/leaf)
SAFETY
Tie back long hair Wear all natural fabrics
Have water and ice nearby for emergencies Fire extinguisher for emergencies
Wear those didymium glasses! If you don't have them yet, wear SOME sort of eye protection!
TIPS
- Work about 1 inch above blue flame for cleanest, shiniest beads.
- Dip bead/mandrels in cold water if a cooled bead is not coming off easily.
- Soak beads in warm water for 10-20 minutes, then clean out remaining slip using a mandrel
- Serrated paper clips, stiff pipe cleaners also work well to clean bead holes.
GLASS BEAD RESOURCES:
La Compagnia dei Maestri del Vetro, the Atlantian Glassworkers guild
Guildmistress: Mistress Caitlin Cheannlaidir (caitlin@phosphor-ink.com)
Windmasters' Hill Baronial Glassworkers' Guild
Guildmistress: Lady Sveva Lucciola (ladysveva@yahoo.com)
Frantz Beads
A commercial store located in Washington state. Windmasters' Hill folk tend to order from here, mostly because the owners are friendly and helpful.
Arrow Springs
Another commercial store, located in California. I love them for their thin mandrels that have a copper sheathing over the "handle" area. This extra thickness is nice while working the bead, and very nice indeed if you have any difficulty getting the bead off the mandrel while it cools. My regular thin mandrels are bent in all sorts of strange shapes, but not these! There is some play between the sheathing and the mandrel underneath, however, that feels a lot like it does when your slip cracks while you're winding glass onto a bead. This takes some getting used to!