I recently joined an awesome Ning group called
Artisan Whimsy. The creators of the group are the administrators of Creative Bead Chat on Facebook. I love love love
Creative Bead Chat as it's a great place to share ideas, ask questions, and form friendships. Artisan Whimsy is like Creative Bead Chat on steroids! The site is so well organized and currently there are 20 groups in different techniques/genre of jewelry making blog posts on a weekly basis. If you haven't visited the site yet, come join in on the fun we are having!
I joined the Enameling Group lead by Heather Marston and signed up to post about Torch Fire Enameling. I focused on the sifting method which I learned from one of my favorite teacher,
Richard Salley.
Here is my mini tutorial I posted :)
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Aloha from Kauai! I am super excited to share this blog with you! I
am by no means an expert in this field but will humbly share my
experience about torch fire enameling. I love working with metals and
being able to add colors to metals was icing on the cake! I took
Richard Salley’s
Torch Fire Enameling class at Bead & Button Show in 2011 and fell
in love with torch fire enameling! I will be sharing the sifting method
of torch fire enameling as I am still a newbie to the immersion method
taught by none other than one of my favorite teacher,
Barbara Lewis.
One of the beauties about torch fire enameling is it requires minimal tools. Here is what you need to get started:
Enamel – Very important that you only use
Lead-Free enamel for torch fire enameling. With Richard’s recommendation I purchased
Thompson’s Complete Med Temp/Med Expansion 80 Mesh Enamels (169 colors!)
which will give you 17g of each color. It’s a great way to determine
which colors you like and experiment the different color combinations.
This sampler pack will last you a long time for jewelry making.
Another excellent one stop source is
Barbara Lewis' Painting with Fire website!
Barbara carries pretty much everything you will need for Torch Fire
Enameling and her site is much easier to navigate and find what you need
:)
Tripod – I recommend getting the 9 inch height so you have
room for the torch head to go underneath. You will not be using the
mesh that typically comes with the tripod. It’s a huge heat sink. I
use the mesh to cool fired pieces.
Trivet – there are various sizes but you need get a trivet that will sit on top of the tripod. I use
Thompson’s TPT-3 (2-3/4” d). I have several trivets in different sizes so that I can torch another piece while the other one is still cooling.
Sifter – different sizes available to provide different coverage and effect.
Cheap Pliers – I use cheap pliers to remove the trivet off the
tripod. Don’t use your good pliers! Get flat nose (not chain nose) so
that you have a stable grip. You don’t want the hot trivet to be
tipping over.
MAPP Gas Torch
with self igniting torch head – I got mine from Home Depot. It’s the
yellow canister. MAPP gas is hotter than propane which will melt the
glass faster. I like the torch head where I can turn the flame on an
off by just pushing the button. (personal choice) MAPP vs. Propane?
That will be another post J Don’t be afraid to use the torch! I have
to admit I was scared of it at first but now I have 6 torches of
different sizes with different fuels for various projects (officially a
pyro!)
Holding Agent/Enamel Adhesive – You can use enamel holding
agent like Klyr-Fire (dilute with water 50/50) or use a cheap liquid
hair spray (I was told the cheaper the hairspray the higher the alcohol
content which works great, i.e. White Rain) One thing to remember is to
let the piece dry after you sift your enamel before firing. If you put
too much holding agent and there is wet enamel, it will pop during
firing and leave holes.
Safety Glasses – Always protect your eyes! Torch fire
enameling is quick so I don’t use didymium glasses but you may want to
get one if you plan on torching for long hours to protect your eyes.
Mask – I use the 3M 8212 N95 for soldering/welding. This may
be overkill but I try to take every safety precautions. You are working
with ground glass and whenever you are sifting or transferring enamel
from one container to another, you should be wearing a mask to protect
your lungs. Also it’s super important to wipe down the area with
wet paper towel so that you are not sending enamel dust in the air. I keep my mask on until I’ve finished cleaning the work area.
Let’s get started!
Step 1: Clean your metal – Use mild detergent (like
Dawn) and rinse off well. Scrub if necessary. The water should not
repel from a clean surface. Dirty piece will cause enamel to pop or
crack later.
Step 2: Lightly spray enamel adhesive on metal (back side first)
Step 3:
Sift
the backside with counter enamel. I place the little trivet (this is
not the same trivet I use for firing) on top of old glossy magazine
pages to collect enamels and pour it back to the container. Try to get
an even coating. You can use a darker color enamel or mixture of all
the left over. Heat the piece from the bottom and melt the enamel until
you reach the orange peel texture look. Don’t over heat the counter
enamel side as you will be applying the flame directly later when you
are enameling the front side of the piece.
Let it cool (don’t quench in water as the shock will crack the glass)
Step 4:
Repeat Step 2 on the front side of the piece. I typically start with
opaque enamel as my base coat. Unlike the counter enamel, heat the
piece until it looks glossy/shiny.
That is when the glass is fully fused. If you want just one coat of
color and you have good even coverage then stop here. In this picture I
wanted only the bottom half enameled.
Step 5: This is where the fun
begins! Layering different opaque and/or transparent colors. Color
combinations are endless! Keep in mind transparent enamel requires a
little longer to fuse than opaque colors. Wait for the surface to give
you the even glossy look. It’s almost like watching solder flow.
Tips:
- If you are planning on layering multiple colors in the front, be
sure to apply several layers of counter enamel. Otherwise, the front
side will have more enamel than the back and the piece will curl.
- If you have holes, be sure to keep it unclogged with enamel. I use a toothpick.
- When re-torching a piece, heat it nice and slow. Give it enough
distance and once the enamel starts to change color bring the torch
closer. You are working with glass and you don’t want to temperature
shock the piece.
- Don’t over heat the piece. You will have enamel pull away from the edges.
- Don’t put the torch too close to the piece. I have a tendency to
bring the torch tip closer and closer to the piece and have to keep
reminding myself there is a “sweet” spot where the flame is hotter.
- Keep your edges clean when you sift the enamel on. Otherwise, the piece will get stuck on the trivet.
- If you don’t like how the color turned out, layer with another. Some of my favorite pieces started out super ugly!
- Layering opaque over transparent enamel will cover over and mask the transparent underneath.
- Keep your work area clean
- Torch in a well ventilated place even if you are wearing a mask!
Earrings are done! Pretty happy how they turned out :)
It’s so great to be part of this wonderful community. I’m looking
forward to learning from you all! Mahalo for reading and happy torching
everyone!
Kumi Fisher (aka Malie Kai on Facebook)
www.maliekaidesigns.com
