Black Lace Beads

[ralphus]

I'm trying to create this effect - http://www.smircich.com/html/black_lace.html - using a hot head on bulk.

It talks about a neutral flame and a yellow heat colour.  Is a neutral flame, a normal flame?  Is a yellow heat colour a flame produced when you cover the hole on the hot head or is it something else?

Thanks

[flowerjasper]

hi,
i have seen that  link , and got intense black because i loved the effect,
i have intense black frit as well as stringer,the frit i find breaks up nicely depending on what you put it over, very good on pale pink, almost leopard skin over opal yellow, nothing at all on lauscha olive,
i have not managed the web effect yet, i am on a HH on bulk too,
you really have to heat it, until it drips, which i find difficult to keep the "ends" of a focal bead nice,but creates lovely swirls as the surface swims,
i will post some pics tomorrow, so you can see the effects,
good luck,
sandy
not sure about the flames tho!

[Mary]

You won't get a true neutral flame on a HH, it's always slightly reducing, but that doesn't matter for this effect. The yellow heat he talks about is the bead colour, not the flame - it's hotter than red glow. But I could get the effect on my old HH. Just use hair thin stringer, and heat for a long time, you'll see it start to web. Try it on ivory or periwinkle blue!

[Sherry Bellamy]

Or, if you make a nice big, say 1/4 inch-ish dot of opal yellow and melt it in, you can put just a wee tiny dot of intense black in the middle. Then cook it, and it will evenually totally cover the opal yellow with web. I did it on a hot head, years ago. Somewhere I've got a picture, I think.

Okay, found a picture. The thing is....I don't think it was opal yellow. I think it was silver pink, Effetre 255. It just looks sort of pinky. Anyway, not a particularly lovely bead, (I was in my "everything needs red dots" phase, evidently ) but it shows the effect.

[sparrow]

Oooh, thanks for sharing that pic, Sherry, I've only tried it with stringer, not dots.

Becky, I did it on a HH no problem, just scribble it on (as Mary says, hair-thin) and heat, heat, heat. You can see the effect happening really well, so you can control it fairly well. I found a few pics, these were really early on (I haven't been playing with lace recently), so excuse shapes etc. (funnily enough, one of them has red dots ):

[Stacy]

I'd be really interested to know what he means by the "BB" in "BB sized gather". All I can come up with is "Bowling Ball" and I've got a feeling that might not be right.

[Mary]

BB guns are those toy guns that shoot wee plastic pellets - smaller than a pea. My son wants one, but I won't let him!

[fionaess]

Looks like Sherry and Sabine both had the 'red dot' disease 

[flowerjasper]

heres my hot head intense black efforts!

pale pink and intense frit,


same beads with an opal yellow focal,

the frit on, opal yellow, tourquoise , ivory and red copper green swirled around,
sandy

[Shirley]

Look pretty good to me, Sandy.

Nothing wrong with hotheads, you know

[SueP]

Not sure if it works on a hothead but these are Cim Hades stringer swirled with effetre white (ends are vetrofond black) From my fuglie tin as ends not right

[flowerjasper]

Look pretty good to me, Sandy.

Nothing wrong with hotheads, you know

you are so right shirley!!!!
am more than happy with my hothead, have spent many a happy hour making beads(since oct 2007), the noise i know offends many, i have 2 boys to bring up on my own...... trust me blocking out trivial spats is fab!!
maybe one day i will up grade, but for now i am happy,
will be listing some more beads on ebay soon,  "above the clouds" and "dragons egg"
sandy x

[ralphus]

Thanks very much everyone - I now know that I didn't boil the first bead and my stringer is too thick on the second.  I'll try again at the weekend.

Lovely beads everyone.

[beadysam]

This is a dogy shaped bead but it shows the effect - and it shows that if you heat it enough, you get blue!!!

[turnedlight]

I'd be really interested to know what he means by the "BB" in "BB sized gather". All I can come up with is "Bowling Ball" and I've got a feeling that might not be right.

Lol! I thought it meant 'ball bearing', but of course, they come in all sorts of sizes!