Sources of Inspiration

http://pennielily.tumblr.com/post/38233901314

Have you ever gazed at the burning embers of a fireplace and thought, "I wish I could get my enamel (or ceramic glaze, or textile surface, etc.) to look like that? 

These earrings by Lynn Burcher of Gilded Lily Glass on etsy is a perfect example! These made-to-order earrings "smolder with red and copper dichroic glass."  Lynn also makes a matching pendant.  And, guess what, we're coming into that time of year where fireplaces will be lit ... even in St. Petersburg!  

https://www.etsy.com/listing/117721399/burning-embers-clip-on-earrings-fused?ref=market

You can get inspiration from the work of other artists, too. I'm drawn to the richness of the work of Janet Loomis of Anvil Artifacts, where the edges of painted tin appear to have been lovingly rubbed to reflect the patina of age.

When I was writing my second book, I thought, "How can I recreate that look of wear?"  "I'm Distressed" a project from "Mastering Torch-Fired Enamel Jewelry" is my stab at it.  

Here are the steps I took to make these earrings. You could also bump it up a notch by adding painted detail through the use of acrylic or liquid enamels!

I'd love to hear about some of your favorite sources of inspiration and would be happy to post them on my blog as a follow-up to this post!  This could be fun! All the best, Barbara

You can find Janet's lovely work here:

www.anvilartifacts.com

www.anvilartifacts.etsy.com

www.amazon.com/handmade/anvileartifactsdeux

   

The beauty of Liquid Enamel!

I absolutely love the versatility of liquid enamel!  I also love the satin surface of the fired enamel, which is very unlike other enamels. The porcelain clay in liquid enamel contributes to its buttery smooth surface.  

Liquid Enamel over Copper Pipe, Copper Mesh, and Copper Sheet

I use liquid enamel ... 

• as a replacement for Klyr-Fire.  You can apply it to the entire piece of copper and sift 80 mesh enamel onto the surface before the Liquid Enamel dries.  This approach gives you a good foundation for other techniques
• when I want to do sgraffito.  Sgraffito is a technique where you scratch through the unfired surface of the enamel to reveal either a different base layer of enamel or the metal beneath.  The lines of the sgraffito design remain dark as a result of the oxidation of copper during firing. Sifting colored transparent enamels on top doesn't budge the toasty brown color of the oxidized copper.  In fact, the transparent enamels can be layered upon each other to create shading and entirely new colors. 
• when I want to accent etching. You can dip an etched piece into liquid enamel, allow it to dry, and finger sand the enamel from the high points of the etched design. 
• when I want to preserve a very delicate material, such as copper mesh.  Because glass is an insulator, applying liquid enamel to delicate metals will protect them. 

Pictured below is "A Mother's Heart," by Kathleen Kilgore, Tampa Bay Sculptor. Welded from strips of steel, Kathleen wanted to add color.  White liquid enamel was handpainted by Kathleen on each of the strips.  Orient Red (1870) and Sunset Orange (1840) with a smattering of Raspberry (2836) enamels were sifted onto select areas of the sculpture. The heart received multiple firings.

"A Mother's Heart" by Kathleen Kilgore

  

This is a "first look" at liquid enamel.  Stay tuned for more. 

Enameling Clay ... Who Knew?

You know what really gets my juices flowing?  It's when I get a fabulous result from a "what the heck?" idea!  That's what happened when I decided to enamel ceramic beads. I mean glazes are glass; enamel is glass.  Made sense to me; in addition to the fact I had at lot of these ceramic beads hanging around from another lifetime.

The things I discovered ...

• You have to give them a hefty warming-up period
• A bead with a small hole is more likely to crack because the heat transmitted by the mandrel to that small area gives it an early dose of of concentrated heat before the rest of the bead gets warm. 
• The beads stay "hot" longer after firing than do metal beads, so be careful not to burn yourself
• The beauty of transparent enamels over white ceramic beads is hard to describe!

Slip cast and hand-built ceramic beads fired with Thompson Enamels 

Orange and Teal Leaves and Orange Flower fired by PWF Teacher Judi Nystrom, Sprinfield Illinois

Because it is so much fun! ... we decided to offer a workshop on making and enameling ceramic beads in The Studio at Painting with Fire.  Check it out!  We'd love to have you!

Before I go, let me ask you, what has been your unlikely discovery and is it still in use?

More enameling fun and a giveaway!

Hi friends, I'm sitting in my room at the Hilton Hotel near the airport waiting for our departure flight to Florida ... and reminiscing over the past week.  It started with two days in Austin.  My husband is a avid fan of Diners, Drive-Inns and Dives so dinner on our first night in Austin was at the Monument Cafe, Georgetown, TX.  The food was great, but we also enjoyed the surrounding sights and smells at the vegetable/herb gardens and market of the Monument Cafe.

Monument Cafe, Georgetown, TX

Traveling for me always includes scouting out craft galleries where I can breathe in the creative energy of local artists.   This happened during a stop at Oxidize Metal Art Gallery.  Oxidize Gallery is a tiny space! But don't be fooled.  It is filled with lots and lots of spectacular jewelry! I had an opportunity to meet the lovely jewelry artist, Elizabeth Boswell.  Guess what we talked about ... enameling!  She's currently adding color to her jewelry with the technique of powder coating. Elizabeth explained that powder coated metal would not chip, even when flexed.  She's very interested in enameling, though, especially after I told her how easy it was!  While in Austin I saw her book order come through the website!  

photo: Elizabeth Boswell

From there we headed to Guero's, a highly-recommended Mexican restaurant on South Congress Street, which is alive with craft vendors, food trucks, and people merrily buzzing throughout the unique indie shops.

Adjacent to the restaurant was a small, but bustling craft show.  Who would I run into there but Carol Bradley, an online friend and registrant in two of my upcoming classes.  Carol's enamel work is gorgeous and we had fun talking about colors and techniques. 

Two hours later would find me at an evening of "performance art" at a creative hot spot for jewelry ... Creative Side Jewelry Academy, where lots of happy campers were finishing up a fantastic metal casting workshop with Kate Wolf.  Jim and I absolutely were enthralled with Kate's hour and a half demo of wax carving.  Like all professionals, she made it look way toooo easy.  I mean, 40 years in the business has a way of doing that!  

photo: Creative Side Jewelry Academy

The following day we fled the traffic congestion of Austin and headed for Texas Hill Country and Rachel Ashwell's The Prairie.  The countryside reminded me so much of my former surroundings in  Maryland, with rolling hills and pastures sprinkled with lush green trees.  Art Retreat at The Prairie was where we would teach our students, learn from our students, and mix and mingle with other students and teachers.  What a beautiful setting to relax and learn something new! 

Carol Myers, Barb Solem, Julie Panusis, Barb Solem, Deryn Mentock, Diane Cook

Results of the Shield of Faith project, which emphasizes overfired white enamel, gives the enamel artist two necklaces in one!  Each side of the pendant is so different, you'll be able to wear it on one side one day and then reverse it for a whole different look!  A necklace for each of your personalities!  

From left to right:  Cynthia Hill, Shonna Estep, Leslie Todd, Carol Bradley, Mary Word, and Gracie Albright

Barb Solem through Vivi Magoo Presents! hosts a well-planned event at a great location, with wonderful food.  Her dedication and planning of the event gives her students and teachers the ability to relax and do what they love to do most ... create beautiful jewelry!  I would definitely do this retreat again in a heartbeat! 

Vivi Magoo Presents will be hosting Art Retreat in the Desert in Tucson,  but don't forget that Painting with Fire will be there, too!  Somehow I think Tucson is big enough for the both of us ... plus a million other people either selling or teaching!  

Now on to the Craftsy class giveaway!  All you have to do is to leave a comment at Stacey Merrill's blog, Artsnark Artifacts.  

Thank you, Stacey, for hosting this giveaway.  I've been getting great reviews from students and I particularly like how students can ask questions at any point in the video.  Their question indicates the lesson and the time in the video when the question was generated.  How genius is that?  Those guys at Craftsy have it goin' on! 

Have you been wanting to learn torch-fired enameling?  Now's the time!  

So let me ask you ... when you travel, are there particular types of places you look forward to visiting?   Have you been to an interesting place lately that just fed your soul?  I'd love to hear about it!  

Craftsy launch Tuesday, November 4!

How would you like to work in a place like this?

photo: Craftsy

Yes, there are people who actually have jobs like this ... over 200 of them!  It's in a place called, "Denver," which has the distinction of being a "mile high" up in the sky and to being home of Craftsy where you can ...

photo: Craftsy 

I learned of Craftsy in July when an email appeared in my inbox announcing a class. What caught my eye was their great graphic artwork!  I went to the site and thought, "Hey, what's this?"  The wheels started turning and before long I was sending a email saying, "Wouldn't you like to offer an enameling class?"   A few days later came a response, "Of course we would!"

The detail to which Craftsy produces a class is like nothing I've ever experienced before.  I had two lengthy conversations with Grace, their acquisitions editor, where we discussed the content of the class.  I submitted a formal class proposal backed-up with photographs. A contract was signed and I was passed off to my producer, Amana.  

Over the few weeks, Amana and I talked on the phone for 4 hours, going over the class outline.  Because I was teaching in Denver in late August and the filming was scheduled for mid-September, Amana came and spent several hours observing the workshop and reading my first book.  Her intent, before filming, was to know as much about my topic as a student leaving a workshop.  She sure accomplished her goal.

What I guess I'm trying to say is that Craftsy's preparation through all phases of the class development, starting with their interactions with the instructor,  insures that you have a great learning experience.  

photo: Craftsy

The launch of the class is Tuesday, November 4.  Please visit my blog every day until then because I'll be posting more information about my experience, what you can expect to learn in my class, and information about the learning powerhouse known as "Craftsy!"  And, guess what?  We'll be having a class giveaway!  So, come back for the next episode ... "Craftsy: How it All Began."

White is White ... Except for When It's Not!

Thompson Enamel produces 9 different white enamels, which gives the enamelist some nice variety.  So, if you're looking for a more translucent white, you can find that with 1040.  If you're looking for a very opaque white, you can find that with 1055 and 1060.  But, if you're looking for one of my favorites, you'll find that with 1020, which is also very opaque.

While I like 1055 and go to it often, I find 1020 to be much more reactive to copper when torch-firing the enamel.  To me this means that with just a little over-firing, you can get gorgeous blue-green freckles peeking through the surface of the white enamel.  If you've got a big lampworking torch like I do, I can over-fire enamel all day for special effect, with very little effort.  If you have a smaller torch, the fact that 1020 is so reactive will make a big difference.

Today I took a break from packing for Art Retreat on the Prairie to play with some Titanium White.  Here are the results ...

I really got into decorating #1.  You know the old joke, "How many artists does it take to do a painting?  The answer is "two."  One to do the painting and the other to shoot him when he's done."  Yes, it's easy to continue to play with color because it's so addictive! 

#2 was simply several layers of 1020.  When you over-fire enamel, it pulls away from the edges, leaving you a rusty, crusty frame around the piece ... which I LOVE!  This piece is sans decoration now, but will probably get a ceramic decal!  

#3 is given the same firing technique, but is decorated with Flame Orange and Raspberry (transparent).  

Speaking of 2836 - Raspberry ... if this is one of your favorite colors, please know that it is currently unavailable and will not be available for AT LEAST a month.  There are issues with the availability of the ingredients that go into make the glass.   Now for the shameless plug ... We have some in stock. 

One of the perks of being a Thompson Enamel distributor is knowing what's available, what's in the pipeline, and what's dried up like a cracked river bed ... at least temporarily. 

A "happy accident" with enameling

Yesterday, during my demo at a workshop I was teaching at the studio, I grabbed for the container of Aqua.  Unfortunately, I thought I was picking the Opaque version, but instead chose the Transparent one.  Not a big deal, you might think, but it can be.  Most of my experience with transparent enamel over filigree beads has been one of a dark enamel where the color is barely perceptible, which is why I recommend that you apply two layers of an opaque enamel as a base coat.  It provides the canvas for the transparent enamel.  Yesterday I had a surprise! 

The bead on the right is an example of Aqua transparent over two layers of white.  The bead on the left is the one I created yesterday ... three layers of Aqua Transparent over metal!  It's a deep rich color that the photograph does not adequately capture, but I think you get the picture!  


The Happy Accidents Group on facebook is shaping up to be a really nice crowd.  Why don't you join us?  Would love to have you! 

A little bit about me ...

Let's start with the premise that I hate being in front of the camera!  But, when you're being ganged up on by your family and they're chiding you, you give in.  If you don't see anything else from this video than the fact that you can make beautiful torch-fired enamel work, just take it from me ... you can!  Be kind!  I'm no actress!





Please go here for more details about the eCourse.  :-)  Barbara

March Madness Sale on Enamel

Do you want to live your life in black and white?  If not, don't miss out on our March Madness Sale on Thompson Enamel.  From March 24 to midnight March 31 you'll save 10% on your order of 3 oz. or 8 oz. Thompson Enamels at my website, Painting with Fire Artwear.  Now might be the time to bring more color to your life!  :-)  Barbara

Thompson Enamel Collections

You probably remember I mentioned that during a drive from Maryland to Florida we were having fun in the car with designing enamel collections with names like: Rumrunner, Margaritaville, Flow Blue ....  Well, here they are and they're available at my etsy shop.

Each collection consists of 5 - 1 oz. packets of Thompson Enamel, 80 mesh, medium temperature/medium expansion enamels.  Some are transparent, most are opaque.  Prices for each collection vary from approximately $19.00 to $23.00.  Some of the enamels have gold in their formulation which accounts for their higher in price.  On the listings I have tried to show different pieces of jewelry or beads that have been made with some of the enamels for your reference.  But believe me ... there is so much more you can do by overlapping, layering, etc.

Sea Grasses ... Nut, Lichen, Robin's Egg, Nile Green Transparent, Moca

Summer Breezes ... Turquoise Transparent, White, Cascade Blue Transparent, Horizon Blue, Lichen

English Garden ... Foxglove, Goldenrod, Orchid, White, Heron Blue Transparent

Hot 'n Spicy ... Goldenrod, Mandarin Orange Transparent, Orient Red, Nut, Orchid

Rumrunner ... Lichen, White, Mandarin Orange Transparent, Horizon Blue, Orient Red

Cafe Au Lait ... White, Nut, Moca, Black, Orchid

Margaritaville ... Bitter, Goldenrod, Lichen, White Mandarin Orange Transparent

Flow Blue ... White, Cobalt, Horizon Blue, Nut, Orchid

Persimmon Delight ... Pumpkin, Heron Blue Transparent, Moca, Cobalt, Nut

There are a few more coming ... so please check back!

Sea Grasses Collection

Over the past several months, I've had people ask me if I would sell smaller sizes of enamels in sets.  On my 13.5 hour drive from Maryland to Florida, I came up with some nice enamel collections ... with some cool names.  Each of the enamels are sold in 1 oz. sizes and are opaque, unless indicated as Transparent.

This one is called "Sea Grasses" and consists (from left to right) of Nut, Lichen, Nile Green Transparent, Robin's Egg Blue, and Moca.  These are Thompson Enamels, 80 mesh, medium temperature/medium expansion.  The cost for this collection is $16.40, plus shipping.

Nile Green Transparent over Nut

Lichen

Robin's Egg Blue

Nut 

I'll be adding more collections, like Summer Breezes, English Garden, Hot 'n Spicy, Rum Runner, Cafe Au Lait ....  Don't those sound great?  :-)  I know you're already conjuring up images of what enamels with be in each set.  

Let the Weighing Begin!

Thompson Enamels

No, I'm not at Weight Watchers! but I am getting ready for my workshop in Reston.  I am so looking forward to meeting a lot of blogging buddies and to teaching others have to have fun playing with fire ... in a good way!

The whole business process has been so educational but what's been great about it is the students are pointing me in the right direction ... I'm just following their lead. Students said they wanted torches and equipment ... so I got equipment.  They wanted beads  ... I got beads.  You're getting the idea ... Point me in the right direction and I'll go.  Then they said, "You should really have enamels that we can buy after the workshop."  So that was my next step.  And that is where I was yesterday morning, weighing out these sherbet colors ... which will become much more intense with the addition of heat.

The workshop is very organized ... it needs to be because we enamel at least 60 objects during the 6 hours. It's filled with demos throughout the day ... a show 'n tell ... and let's not forget lunch!  So, I'm still packing and packing and packing ... but it's all worth it when the day arrives and there are so many bright faces!