Friday, February 11, 2011

Pretty Shiny Glass

I love dichroic glass when it's fused.
If you aren't familiar with dichroic glass, it's a metal-coated surface on glass that's used for optics and some space age glass applications;
the metal is applied to the surface of the glass in a vaccuum.

Sometime in the 1970's someone who worked in hot glass wondered what the dichroic glass would do when it was heated to melting temperatures.
And learned by experimenting, that it created a two-color light reflection.

I cut the glass, layer it with white, clear or black glass, and fuse it in my kiln.
It brings out the beautiful, shiny light reflections in the glass.

This little connector is made using a cabochon of fused dichroic that I made before the kiln was packed up and moved. I keep coming across little pieces like this in the studio.
I need to cut some and try fusing again, to make sure the kiln relocated okay.

And before it gets too hot outdoors. Definitely NOT a problem right now!

2 comments:

Folk Heart said...

I never actually knew what was involved in this incredible glass. Thank you for the explanation, and I'm heading to your Etsy to check this out. Very adaptive and useful design.

Lois Moon said...

Gorgeous!