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I happened into the fused glass space in 2001 and combined a love of recycling with fusing and the rest is history. When I started there was very little information available about fusing with recycled glass, and I like to think I’ve helped change that. Problem solving is my happy place, and glass problems are my favorite flavor. Luckily for me there are still so many questions to be answered!
Whether you are interested in a specific topic, or just getting started, I have tutorials for you!
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Most of all, have fun! This is art, we have fun here.
Topics of Great Interest to Glass People
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Kiln Carving Recycled Glass with Fiber Paper Overview
Kiln carving is another really versatile way to add texture and design to recycled glass artwork. Kiln carving refers to "carving" in the glass that takes place in the kiln during a firing cycle. Kiln carving utilizes fiber paper to make the actual design. Fiber...
Engraving on Recycled Glass
Sometimes it is fun to just gear up and doodle on glass with an engraving tool. Typically, the engraving happens after the artwork is complete, so the lines are much more opaque and free form than the lines in the carved work featured here. I like to use my...
Recycled Low E Glass
Low E (emissivity) Glass is something of an interesting animal. I discovered by accident that it has some special properties. Low E is the name for glass that is coated with thin metal films to reflect heat/light. There are two different types of coating, the...
Creating Texture – Carving
In an earlier post we talked about using recycled textured glass in artwork. There are also other ways to get a texture in your artwork. Carving the raw glass with a variety of diamond bits is an effective way to get a variety of texture. These pieces were all...
Identifying Tempered Glass
Last year I was gifted with a big glass donation from Red Butte Garden. As I was unloading all of the glass, one of the pieces cracked. That may sound like bad news, but it was actually awesome. That meant it wasn't tempered. 1/4" float glass is the workhorse of...
Using Recycled Textured Glass
Unsurprisingly, I get a lot of textured glass donated to the cause. It is pretty special, so people are more inclined to hang onto it until they find a home for it. The bad news is, it's usually a pretty small piece so there isn't a lot of room for error. There are...
Varieties of Window Glass
One of the things you learn very quickly when working with recycled materials is to never expect the same result twice. This can be a great thing from an artistic standpoint, because you really learn to roll with it rather than get all wound up in it. This became...
Dirt and Sand Inclusions
Amazingly, you can use regular old dirt as an inclusion in glass art. Well, recycled glass art, I don't know about that fancy schmancy art glass stuff. Easy enough. Dig out a little pile of dirt from your yard. Put it in a terra cotta saucer and run it through a...
Using Hard Water Deposits in Design
Very rarely I get a batch of window glass that has hard water deposits on it. Most people throw this glass away because it appears useless (and is often the impetus for window replacement.) BUT, some pretty cool things can happen with hard water deposits on glass...
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