Fresh from the kiln: Fusography Coasters

Fresh from the kiln

These Fusography coasters just came out of the kiln and I'm working on getting them listed in the Etsy shop, but had to share them here first.

It's been a while since I did any with this cute camera design and the red and mint green are two new colors I haven't done before. What do you think?

Be sure to check the Etsy shop for these listings or drop me a line and let me know if you see one (or more) that you must have! Coasters are $15 each and shipping is $6 for up to 4 coasters.

I'll be listing these coasters in the Etsy shop today and tomorrow! Custom coasters, pendants, plates, and platters are also available with your own images! You send me the image(s), I turn them into fusible decals, create the fused glass pieces, fire the decals and you get one-of-a-kind fused glass art!

Fusography video series and ebook coming soon!

Good news for those of you who have been waiting patiently for the Fusography workshop video series! It will be available in August! If you are interested in updates on the video series or want to be informed of when it is available for purchase, sign up here. I've been working on the content and now I'm almost ready to start shooting the video. If I were to teach an in-person Fusography class/workshop it would take about a week, so the video series is the smartest, most time-efficient approach, even though I love in-person teaching. Maybe I will offer a downloadable cardboard cutout so you can pretend I am there teaching.

Super Sassy Sizzling Summer Sale

Have you ever realized you have waaaay too many of a certain thing? Maybe it's shoes. Maybe it's makeup. Maybe it's cats. What do you do when you make this realization? You declutter. Except with the cats. You're kind of stuck with them. Well, this is just the dilemma I found myself in with fused glass pendants. I have hundreds of pendants available and most of them are not listed in the Etsy shop (but they will be soon)! So, in an effort to reduce inventory and make room for new designs, all fused glass pendants in stock are now only $10. Yes, only $10!!! Stock up and save or do some early holiday shopping. The price is right!

Want to receive monthly updates on new items and sales? Sign up here!

Check out the newest Fusography designs in the Etsy shop! In the next few weeks, I will be stocking some new Fusography designs on my shelf in the Handmade shops at Southern Market too!

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Etsy Craft Party with Knoxville Creative Hands Street Team | June 6th, 2014

Do you love to create? Got a secret (or maybe not so secret!) stash of craft supplies? Do you often have glitter in your hair? Then you might be interested in coming to the Etsy Craft Party on June 6th. The Etsy Craft Party is an annual event and the Knoxville party is hosted by the Knoxville Creative Hands Street Team {KCHST}. As the Captain of KCHST, I want to personally invite you to this super fun crafty event. Visit this link and RSVP if you would like to join us. It's also a great opportunity to meet other local crafty peeps and find out more about KCHST and what we're all about.

Last year we crafted market bags from t-shirts and donated them to the Market Square Farmers' Market. This year's theme is Recapture, Bring new meaning to your photographs. This year’s theme focuses on transforming photographs into display-worthy works of art using a variety of craft supplies and creative techniques. You can find out what to bring and what to expect in the event invite.

It's going to be a lot of fun and I'd love to see you there. There are only 15 tickets left, so don't wait to RSVP! 

ON A SIDE NOTE:
Now is the time to sign up for Fused Glass Classes! The weather is perfect to work in the studio and open the doors to the sounds of the birds. Click the links to find out more information on Beginner Fused Glass Class and Intermediate Fused Glass Class!

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Love Instagram? Share your photos on fused glass!

You're a photographer. I'm a photographer. 

My Instagram feed is a little bit of everything...

Well, aren't we all photographers capturing what interests us with our smartphones, DSLRs and point and shoots. How many photos do you take every day, week, month, year? I bet your answer is "a lot". Photos of your kids, cats, dogs, sunsets, thrift store clowns, cute outfits, vacation, shoes, stuff you want, people you find interesting...after they have been shared on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter they are just stored on your phone, computer or Dropbox. Am I right? Maybe some of these photos see the light of day as prints, but most of them are probably hiding out on a hard drive somewhere, never to be seen again.

It was the idea of all those awesome images you captured being hidden away that got me thinking. Instagram photos are square...coasters are square. Why not make some coasters with my Instagram photos! These images were all taken with my smartphone and shared via Instagram. How cool would it be to set out a set of coasters the next time you have friends or family over and they feature your awesome photos? As you can see from these samples the colors stay fairly true, with the exception of the bright pink/magenta. {I knew this color wouldn't print true on the decal, but needed to confirm how the color would shift.}

Here are my Instagram photos:

These are the bright pink azaleas that, as you can see below, turned a little more brick red.

This was a giant puffy flower, not a dandelion.
Interesting, but it needs a darker background to really be impressive.

I have to admit this is a pretty cool macro shot. Sometimes I get lucky!

This was a panorama and I cropped it down to an interesting square.

And here are photos of the coasters I created. These photos were taken with my smartphone, so they are not particularly awesome.

Notice the color change, but the image still looks pretty good.

This image looked about the same fired.

The pinks in this image stayed fairly true to the original. 

I was thrilled with how this image fired. The color is so vibrant. This photo doesn't so it justice.

Of course, I can fuse full-color images to anything I create, but coasters are something functional and decorative that everyone loves. They are a great choice for holiday gifts, a newlywed couple, parents, grandparents...well, pretty much anyone! Coasters are $15 each with a minimum order of 4. Design can be different for each and you can create a collage too. The coasters are 4 inches square and the image is 3 1/3 inches square. I will resize your image for you if you prefer. The image does not have to be square, I've made some with rectangular photos and they look great too. If you image has white in it, it will be fused to white glass, but you can opt to have a color border. Just like with a printed photo, white does not print.

JFG sign against a vivid blue sky makes for a neat graphic coaster design

Fusography is a great gift idea and if you are considering it for Christmas gift giving, please make sure you place your order by the end of November! Fusography orders take longer to create and the decals are only printed once a week, so be sure to plan accordingly. Call or email me if you have any questions!

PS Only 54 days until Christmas 2013...and counting.
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March is National Craft Month | My crafting journey

March is National Craft Month and I thought it would be a perfect time to share about my love of crafting. Plus I want to know what kinds of crafts you like to do. And don't think that you aren't crafty, because I know you are. Everyone loves to create something whether it is what I call 'big art' or just something small, like a little pencil sketch or doodle.

Ah, doodling. Doodling is what led me to quit my corporate job over 7 years ago and jump full-time into the photography business I operate along with my husband, Allan. I used to sit in long meetings and on conference calls and doodle. And one day I realized I wasn't cut out for the boring corporate world, but for bigger things, like doodling. And photography. But you are probably wondering what in the world photography has to do with my Sassy Glass Studio blog. Well, nothing and everything.

If you have been around me or my blog for a while you know that I inherited the fused glass business from my sister-in-law and that I agreed to take over the kilns and glass because I was already thrashing around in the land of the self-employed and figured I would have time to 'mess around' with the glass a bit. Ha! I no sooner took possession of all the equipment and glass than had a website and blog and an Etsy shop set up. But that's not what I really want to share during National Craft Month. What I want to share is how I have always loved to craft, to create something from nearly nothing and want to keep learning.

Since as far back as I can remember, you know like a hundred years, I have loved to draw. I am not very good at it, but I have a huge collection of crayons and colored pencils so that when I get the urge, I can sit and draw something. Anything. I think I just love all the colors more than anything. Which would explain why I love make-up but don't wear it. The colors overwhelm me, I think. Anyway, I digress. Art class through my grammar school years was the best part of every week and I learned how to create some many cool things. To this day I still think about papiermache. And paste. And construction paper. And right-handed scissors. And I smile.

During this time I experimented with creating really cool works of art with every type of wood I could lay my hands on. My dad was a home builder and architectural woodworker so there was never a shortage of wood. Give me a hammer and a nail and I would make a cool piece of art. I learned how to be very abstract during this period. Nothing ever looked like it was supposed to and I was pretty cool with that. I also designed my own greeting cards. A holiday wasn't complete unless you got a specially designed card from me. I had my own tag line on the back...Sign of the ____. Sometimes it was whale, sometimes it was owl, sometimes it might have been dog. I could have been Hallmark!

When I was in high school I took every art class possible. I learned about fine art and tried all the techniques only to find that as much as I loved creating, I was never particularly awesome at any one medium. For instance, to this day I love, love, love to get out my watercolors and paint. But I am not very good. I paint the koi in my fish pond and they end up looking like limp orange noodles. I give it my best shot, but I would starve as a watercolor artist. High school art classes definitely helped give me confidence to try art and experience some success. It also showed me that teaching art was pretty cool too.

So years go by and I don't really do any art. Not formally at least. I try out graphic design. Before it was done with computers, mind you. And I liked that. But it didn't really click. Fast-forward to the early 2000's and there I am with a camera in my hand. It's not the first time I held a camera, but this was different. This was exhilarating. And then, of course, came the fused glass. And now I combine the two, fusing full-color images by way of a specially created decal to fused glass. Pretty cool. And that knowledge I gained in high school that teaching art was cool, has led me to teaching fused glass classes. Teaching is so much fun and I learn something in every class. Amazing!

So there you have a round about, rather long story relating my love of crafting. But there is more than just the art. There's the love of writing, of attempting to stitch two or more pieces of fabric together and of renovating old homes. It's all crafting. And it's all me.

I want to know about you! What are your favorite arts and crafts? What craft or art would you do if time and money were of no concern? What would you like to learn? What craft or art would you want to teach?

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Fusography | Available in the Etsy shop!

So excited to get a listing created in the Etsy shop for the Fusography coasters! This is so you can order your own set of four one-of-a-kind fused glass coasters with your own fabulous photographs. You can find the listing here and more about how I create Fusography pieces here.

Listings for plates, bowls, and platters will be coming soon. There is already a listing for a pendant here.

This is an example of a set of coasters I created using my photographs. So yours would be different photos, but the same amazing quality.

Let me know if you have any questions about ordering or our wholesale program.

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How did I do that? Fusography >> full-color images on fused glass

This year I will be sharing more about how I do what I do both for those who appreciate fused glass art and others who create it. I am inspired by other artists and hope I may do the same for someone else. I love connecting with anyone who appreciates art so be sure to email or tweet me to let me know if I have inspired you!

It's been a while since I first introduced Fusography and I have been wanting to share some behind-the-scenes photos and information on the process. Creating fused glass pieces with full-color images is a multi-step process that takes about two weeks from start to finish. Of course, the time frame depends on many factors such as the type of piece being created, whether or not glass needs to be ordered and number of pieces being fired.

Finished coaster featuring one of my 'Knoxville Coffee' images

The easiest way to explain it is step-by-step and include photos. {Be warned that these photographs are horrible. As a professional photographer, I have access to equipment and lighting, but forgot that all my gear was at the studio and not at the house. Ugh!}

Some of the step-by-step will depend on if I am creating pieces to sell or if I am filling a custom order. If it is a custom order I will know what I am creating and the images being used, so the first step would be much easier.

First, I will make some sketches or a list of the types of pieces I want to create. In this case, I was creating a set of four 6 inch square plates to fill a custom order as well as coasters and nightlights, so there wasn't much to sketch, but that would typically be the first step. Part of the first step would also be to determine how many pieces I can create from one sheet of decals. The sheet size is 10 inches by 15 inches and the printer suggests filling the entire sheet. More bang for your buck! To fill the order for the four plates, I had to order to sheets, which meant I had to find some additional images to print.

Blanks ready for decals

Second, edit all of the images {if they haven't already been edited} and put them onto the decal sheet template. My husband does this for me because he is our editor and this is way easier for him than it would be for me. Once the sheets are created they are saved as an image file and eventually uploaded to the printer. The printer has a super easy on-line ordering system including payment so it doesn't take very long once the sheet files are created. The printer fills orders once a week, which can add additional time to an order depending on when it is placed. Orders are submitted by Tuesday, printed on Wednesday and I usually receive the decals on Friday. Planning ahead is key!

One full sheet of decals ready to be cut

Next I will create all of the blanks I need for the pieces receiving a decal. Most Fusography pieces will be white glass because white does not print and if the image has white, it will need to show through. Photos of people will almost always need to have a white blank so teeth and eyes will reproduce normally. Most blanks will be full fused, but some piece, such as nightlights will not have to be fired before the decal is applied.

Kiln full of blanks ready to be fired

One the blanks are fully cooled from the firing, I will clean them and prepare them for decal application. Applying the decals is a bit like cooking. The printer provides complete instructions for getting the decals off the paper and onto the glass. They highly recommend using distilled water in an electric frying pan. I have trouble following directions and use regular water and a regular pan. If you are a glass artist reading this, I would follow the printers instructions.

Heating the water for the decals

Getting the decals off of the paper and onto the glass is a bit of a process and requires patience. I have little patience so this step is very challenging. I go ahead and cut all of the individual decals from the sheet so I don't waste time. The warm water in the pan will evaporate so you need to work quickly. After the decals are cut, I take them, one at a time, and place them in the warm water until the decal curls, then I remove it with chopsticks and being the stressful process of 'sliding' it onto the glass.

Cutting the decals requires patience and good scissors

I recommend heating the piece of glass you are working with using a heat lamp, heat gun or even a hair dryer. Once the decal cools off it becomes stiffer and more difficult to work with. Placing it on a heated surface allows it to stay malleable longer. After you painstakingly slide the decal onto the glass and make sure it is both straight and unwrinkled, you will squeegee the air bubbles out. I use a couple of credit cards for this. Do not apply excessively heavy pressure or you will tear the decal.

Tools for placing the decals on the glass

Customer's images were used to create plates. Decals have been carefully placed.

Decals both on and off coasters

Once your breathing has returned to normal and you have massaged the massive kink out of your neck, it is time to dry all of the decal-covered blanks and prep them for the kiln. I have to apply the decals in my kitchen and then take all the blanks back out to the studio so I use a cool vintage tray to transport the pieces. Avoid stacking the pieces until they have been fired. Just to be safe.

Decals on nightlight blanks

Firing the Fusography pieces is the next stressful step in the process. It's stressful because you have to create a program for the kiln and when I programmed it the very first time I was panicking that it wouldn't work correctly. It did, but I still get nervous. Follow the instructions from the printer and you will be golden. One thing to remember is, the kiln must be vented for what amounts to the first 4 to 6 hours of firing, so make sure you will be near your kiln to close it down at the appropriate temperature.

Kiln is full and ready to begin the 18 hour process

Now, you patiently wait for the decals to be fused to the blanks and pray that you removed all of the air bubbles when you applied the decals. The firing schedule will take about 18 hours to complete. Once the pieces are at room temperature, you can remove them from the kiln and prep them for slumping or draping, if necessary. Fusography pieces can be slumped and draped just like any other fused piece. I have not experienced any crinkling or stretching, but results may vary depending on the piece and mold used.

Plates after slumping

Coasters after firing

Nightlights after firing

That is the last step in the process. Each piece can involve up to three firings and additional design and preparation time, which is why these pieces are more expensive than the rest of my fused glass art. And each piece is truly one-of-a-kind. Think of the possibilities! Pendants, rings, earrings, plates, platters, bowls, vases, coasters, business card holders, art panels and more can be created with your own full-color images or any of my available images {soon to be released}. 

Close up of  finished plate. Photo is horrible, but the image quality is actually great.

Another close-up.

 Let me know if you have any questions about this process, where to get the decals, type of equipment needed or if you are interested in taking a Fusography class.

This class will soon be available as a video and ebook! I plan to have it completed in the summer of 2016, but you can sign up HERE to be the first to know when it is available for purchase!

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