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Handmade Glass Beads by Jim Stewart The technique and technology of making home made glass beads is considered as one of the oldest creative pastimes of humans. Egyptian faience beads are glass-like beads which come from a sort of clay bead which has a self-forming vitreous coating. They are perhaps the earliest beads found from the ancient Egyptians. In some cultures, glass objects were reserved for royalty and owning a glass object was closely related to owning other luxurious objects. What are glass beads anyway? Glass beads are beads made of glass. They are occasionally called lamp work beads. This kind of bead can be poured into molds, cut and polished as fake gemstones, and can be stretched and pulled into any shape you wish. These beads can be simple or decorative depending on the artist's preference. Different kinds of glass and colors are used and played with to create the desired look. Before you start to make your own beads and end up with a bowl full of different sorts of beads all mixed up, take a little time to find out How to Organize Your Beading Stuffs. The first thing to do before using the torch and other dangerous tools for glass bead making is learn some safety tips in jewelry making. These tools can be awfully deadly not only to you, but to others around you. When making glass beads, you have to melt a narrow rod of glass employing a torch. The molten glass is wound around a mandrel which is a thin length of stainless steel. The space where the mandrel is placed becomes the hole of the bead. Holding and turning the mandrel in different positions permits gravity to help form the bead. There are explicit tools needed for pushing and pulling glass beads to form different kinds of shapes. Working with a lamp to create glass beads isn't particularly easy, but patience and practice will help along the way. You have to remember that you are working with glass and a torch; you will have to learn the different levels of heat that are required for the glass to flow. The beads are pulled out from the flame to chill; they're left out in the open air which means that while the exterior of the bead is fast cooling, it is still very hot within. The uneven temperature coming from this technique will most likely cause a bead to break as the beads often cool too quickly. Kiln hardening is a technique by which both the outside and inside temperature can be closely regulated. The bead is placed in a high temperature kiln to make certain that all the glass is evenly heated. After several hours, the beads can now be put out at 70 degrees for cooling. But it is important to be sure that the glass beads you buy are all kiln annealed. For small glass beads, you may also try cooling them within layers of insulation. This method isn't like the hardening process but it has proven to be effective for small quantities of glass. Most products and tools come with a set, so always follow the Beading Instructions an Important Tool for Beading if you want to learn and get it right. More Information: If you want to become more organized in your jewelry business then our beaded jewelry software is guaranteed to help you do that. We can also help you get the most out of your jewelry business with our free jewelry book and free jewelry pricing calculator.
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