Fusing with a Triangle Bead Mold

Fused Recycled Glass BeadsIn the last post we made a triangle bead mold for making fused glass beads.  Today, we are going to walk through how to use the mold.

Step 1 – Line with Thin-Fire

Triangle Bead mold with thinfireI cut my thin fire about 1/4″ (.6 cm) higher than the walls of my mold to compensate for shrinkage.  You could also kiln wash the mold.  The thin-fire is important because it will give your bead a nice clean edge on the bottom side.

Step 2:  Cut your glass

Recycled Bottle Glass for BeadsYou can make your bead as long as you wish.  Here, I have cut three pieces of bottle glass into 1″ (2.5 cm) long rectangles.  Note that two of the pieces are 3/8″ (.76 cm) wide, and one is 1/4″ (.6 cm) wide.  While the exactness of the measurements isn’t all that important, it is important to make one side slightly more narrow than the other two.

Step 3: Glass in the mold

Recycled bottle glass beadStart with one of the wider pieces of glass, making sure the mold is snugly together.

Step 4:  Adding a mandrel

Adding the MandrelPlace the narrow piece of glass next, and add something to make a hole in the bead.  I’ve used a short piece of stainless steel wire coated with kiln wash.  I also used pieces of 1/8″ fiber paper cut into a thin strip in the same batch of beads.  Both worked equally well.

Step 5:  Adding the top glass

Recycled Glass Bead before firingAdd the second wider piece of glass to the top.  For practicality, it is easiest to build these beads directly on a shelf that will go into the kiln.  If you are having trouble with them shifting as you move them into the kiln, a tiny bead of glue as you assemble would be helpful.

Step 6:  Fuse!

I used a standard fusing schedule to make my beads.  In fact, it’s nice to be able to just tuck these little molds in around the edges as you fuse other stuff.

Triangle Recycled Glass Beads

 






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