Q & A Mondays are answers to reader questions submitted via email or social media. All personal information has been removed for privacy reasons and messages have been edited for clarity. You may submit your own questions through the About/Contact page.
Q: Can I refire a bottle (after full fuse)? I want to decorate the flattened bottle with paint line. I also want to add stringers and buttons (coe 90) onto flattened glass bottle. Will it accept the glass or reject & crack?
A: Hi there, the paint will work, the 90 will crack. You can use most Thompson Enamels and stringers for float glass with bottles or most bottles will work with the 82 CoE frits from Glassycuts.com
Q: I have fused donut circles for wind chimes. I recently saw irregular shaped donut wind chimes and was wondering how the artist got the shapes. Photo attached. Initially thought triangular bottles but have never seen ones in all those colors.
A: Hi there, they cut the rings taller so they collapse into the triangular shapes when they fuse. If you look at this article and scroll down, you can see where I cut the rings at 3/4″ and they come out irregularly, I think the ones in your photo are 1″ tall before fusing.
https://glasswithapast.com/knowledgebase/fused-bottle-glass-donuts-and-rings/
That teal color is to die for, so pretty!
Q: I have a question concerning waterslide decals. Waterslide decals can be made using a laser printer. Do you know if this type of decal can be fired on glass? I guess what I am asking is are these the same type of waterslides that you have used? Or will laser jet decals burn off?
A: Hi there, if you are making waterslide decals with a laser printer you’ll need to make sure you use with that has a toner containing Iron Oxide. The iron oxide is what turns reddish brown and stays on the glass when fired. They can be fired on glass, I’ve only ever used the waterslide decal paper that is specifically designed for glass, although I know there are other scrapbooking or non fired types also.
Ink jet toner will burn off, it is an organic dye that doesn’t survive the heat of the kiln. Hope that helps, let me know if I can help with anything else.
Q: Hi, Just hoping you may have a full fuse firing schedule for Vintage Coke bottles? Thanks so much .
A: Hi there, I don’t have one specifically for old coke bottles. I would recommend getting some Fusemaster Overglaze for them, it’s different than superspray, it makes a clear shiny glass and prevents devit. I’ve had good luck with it also keeping the printing on the label shiny rather than powdery and icky. It would have to be tested with your specific bottles, of course, but I’ve had good results with other types of bottles that I’ve used it on.