Cross Tutorial

Like all my tutorials this is very, very basic.  I will gladly answer any questions. 

If I had the skills to produce a great looking tutorial, I’d be thrilled for you to follow it and make similar items all day long ~ since I can’t hopefully this will work as a starting point for your creativity.  I rarely use anything but a marver and gravity.

1.) Start with a barrel bead. 

2.) Add glass for the arms.  To do this I get the end of my rod hot and mushy and heat the spot on the barrel. I continue to heat at this joint until I am comfortable I have fused these two pieces completely.  Then I move the heat down the rod slowly.  After about ¾” of glass added I burn it off from the rod.  I balance the glass back and forth and usually end up with a sickly looking arm.  (Flash your barrel so you don’t crack the whole she bang.)  Then, I do the same thing on the other side and try to have a similar amount of glass in a similar shape.  (Flash the barrel again so it doesn’t crack.)

    

3.) Next I start back at the first arm out at the end and focus heat back towards the barrel.  The glass will melt back towards the union of the two pieces.  When I have the glass back to about the length I want I stop heating.  (Flash the barrel again.)  Then I flip to the other side and out at the end start heating and work the heat and glass back in.  If things go wonky, I can add glass or use my small mashers to squish the arm longer, or pull it out with tweezers (or your favorite method).  Remember to flash the cross because it is really easy to forget as you try to get it symmetrical and I find it really hard to get it back to this point if I have to heal a crack.

   

4.) I prefer fairly plain crosses and so have my customers.  I have used stringer at this point to tie the cross together, or done a twistie in the center.  I’ve done other manipulating or decorating.  What ever your style is can be added now. 

 

Better pictures to follow, I hope.