Am I going anywhere with these?

Someone tell me! Are these enamelled pâte de verre shape assortment bowls and plates worth going on with? Hubby doesn't like the colours or the application of the enamels (tricky to get even) but they appeal to something in me. Also he says they're useless, so what are they for. It's true that pâte de verre is very thin and lacy at the edges, but that's what I like about it. There's something about the contradiction between fragile delicacy and clumpy child-like patterns...

A busy week

No wonder I am exhausted today. This week's batch: a large bowl using the same technique as the last one but going all out for the free form this time (still not sure I like it); 5 pate de verre moulds; 2 perspex plate stands (a real revelation to discover how to make these myself as they're expensive); some Kugler colours; and another little posse of drinking glasses. These and several floor models and failed experiments. I think I'll go and lie down now.

Bowl within a bowl

This was a pate de verre bowl that had incompatibility cracks, so we picked it up within a gather and blew it out again (Jake helping as it got too heavy for me). I can't decide if I like it or not. Curious how that happens. I like the effect, but it isn't quite right. Shape's not good and I had intended to give it a free form and then lost courage.

Devoré

A nice young thing with liquid blue eyes in Textiles showed my how to mix up a caustic brew to do some devoré printing. So I had a go on some velvet. Not wildly successful but I'm trying again today, painting rather than printing. Used the same silk screen to print a decal to fire onto glass. Also not successful. And one thing I have discovered is it's all too messy and if I'm going to design for screen-printing, I'll outsource the printing bit.

Outing to Stamford

Went on a ceramics repair day course at Burghley House yesterday. We learned a lot, especially about an epoxy glue which I'd read about for glass. Very useful. In the grounds of the magnificent house was a sculpture garden with these blown glass reeds by the lake. I quite liked them. A bit chihulesque. I think garden glass is not something I want to do. Which is just as well.

Glass Echoes selection panel

We spent about 5 hours selecting our co-exhibitors for the Glass Echoes exhibition (first week in August). It was reasonably harmonious as we seemed pretty much in agreement and there were a number of obvious 'yesses' and some that clearly didn't fit. But it is quite a responsibility and really quite hard to choose between the ones that some of us wanted to include and others felt less certain about. It's a salutary experience being at this end of the selection process because you do see how important it is to have really good images and that not following the submission guidelines as requested does count against you, because something has to tip the balance.

Marbles

Since I started glass-making, I have wanted to make some marbles. Why? No real reason. I tried making lampworked ones in Brierley Hill, but these are done on a bit iron and are the size of plums rather than cherries. Torched after you knock them off so they stay (more or less) round. Good fun; and a suitable way of ending the second semester at Farnham. Last week I made 11 doll's goblets; this week I made 11 marbles. Bottom drawer for a first grandson and grand-daughter! Dream on. Officially, next week is Week 30 and officially that's supposed to be the end of my playtime. We'll see.

Enamels

Working on the 'good bones/bad bones' ideas - here's a block using patterns derived from my drawings in enamels alternating with sandblasting. I think this works a great deal better than the sandcast pieces - though a lot more laborious. These are currently in 4 separate 4-inch squares and I am wondering whether to tack fuse them.

Enamel and pate de verre

This is the 4th attempt at this - ironically, the first was almost the best, but it cracked when I slumped it. However, I now know what to do next and I also know a bit more about how to mix the enamels so they blend to the surface.

The Game of Glass

Everyone's been asking what The Game of Glass is. It's a board game (using dolly goblets as pieces) and a glass die that you throw to land on board positions. If you land on a picture square, you take a card and it says things like 'off centre; start again' or 'nice dolly goblet; go forward two places'. This is meant to be my 'self-reflection'. Academia! I dunno. Matter of fact, I've thought about this quite a lot and I think it fulfills the criteria. Art school rules should flex like thin plastic.