Question about Lampwork vs glassblown beads

Well, I think Tink would answer better because she makes blown beads:) But the main difference is that in blown beads, air is blown in to expand the glass, and in lampworking the glass rob is melted around a mandrel and air is not blown in. When you make blown beads, you can use a hollow mandrel for this. I have made a few letting the hot air expand inside the bead and the air expanding the glass. This you can do without a hollow mandrel. Usually, the blown beads are larger (and lighter for the size,) due to the blowing and the glass expanding:) Good luck, and Happy Holidays, Cindy

Hi Cindy

Thanks :-) I can visualize what you are saying :-)

Do you feel that there are health risks when doing blown beads?

I'm thinking I would like to give lampwork a try sometime next year. I'm really curious about it. Any one have any ideas what is the cheapest that one can safely go about trying this out? We're doing semi precious gemstones from our property (I think I've mentioned this here before (probably signed the posts as Panther or Spike). I'm thinking there might be a way for me to incorporate lampwork with the semi precious gemstones. What do you think?

And a Happy Holiday to you and yours (and everyone one this group)

Noel

Depends on what you mean by a "blown" bead.

If it is a glass bead that was made over a torch - it is lampwork..... if you mean hot glass "furnace" beads -- which are made by a gather of glass from a furance, a bubble is blown into the center, and then it is pulled out into a long cane and cut into sections - then they are not lampwork. The more common name for that type is "furnace glass" beads.

Lampwork blown beads are generally made from borosilicate tubing (with various color added) = but are still technically lampwork, because they are made at a torch.

Howeve not all lampwork beads are "blown" -- solid glass beads (i.e. wound glass) is commonly known as lampwork.

If your beads are "hollow" they may be "blown" if they were made by blowing air into them while the glass was hot... However- again another "catch" - is that not all hollow beads are blown.... There is a mandrel technique that makes hollow beads.

so - - -what have you got? We'd have to see a photo....

Cheryl

Thank you Cheryl :-)

The ones my friend was doing would be classified as furnace beads then. I can't believe the work that I'm seeing here in lampwork. It's all so stunning!!! I asked later in the thread if it is feasible to combine lampwork with semi precious non faceted gemstones. What do you think??

I'll take pictures of the furnace beads today or tomorrow and get them up on the back of one of my sites :-) I'll put up a great necklace she did for me years ago (early 1990's) also.

Hope you are having a nice holiday!

Noel

I asked later in the thread if it is feasible to combine lampwork with semi precious non faceted gemstones. What do you think??

yes - and no if you mean putting the gemstones inside the glass - certain gemstones can tolerate it - many cannot.

I collected a set of discussions on this a few years ago - you can find it on my website in my Glass FAQs

Give it a try, you'll like it! I think as with anything you have to set up your studio with safety in mind, but I don't think there are more health risks to blown beads versus lampwork. You may need different eyeglasses. I use different eyewear when working with borosillicate glass versus effetre. Lots of people start with a hot head torch to diffray costs until they decide if they like it or not. Never know until you try:) blessings, Cindy

Some like to put cubic zirconium faceted stones in beads, and the glass tolerates that pretty well.

I thought the problem was that natural stones don't tolerate the glass working. Natural stones have uneven stresses, so high temperatures can cause them to crack, or even to "explode", if I remember right. CZs, being man-made and uniform, don't react much.

Going in the other direction, I have seen moldavite used with lampworking. Moldavite is a "natural stone". Kind of. Actually it's a glass that originates in Outer Space. I don't know what its COE is, and mostly I've just seen it with glass attached to it. I'd love to see it used more artistically. I think tektites could be used too.

Tina

Hi Panter

(and Hi to everyone - looooooong time since my last post)

Think all the previous posts have hit this right on - they look to be furnace blown beads to me also... But you can create blown beads (and even a version of 'furnace beads' at the torch)....

The method my father and I use to create blown beads via lampwork torch is mouthblown via pulled point tubing.

Sort of a merging of the furnace blowing/blowpipe method and lampwork blown beadmaking...

While this method harkens back (on a historical basis) to roots in scientific glassblowing at torch(es) it's easily adapted to hollow beads that are flared OR blown with detailed symetry (as in hollow cane) to be cut and fire polished the way furnace beads are if desired for a similar outcome.

Furnace blown beads tend by traditon and design to be far more hefty also.... both blown via tubing and blown via blowpipe are beautiful (like all things glass bead, lol) - just different look and tradition.

IF you want to see an example of the flared variety (and this isn't an ad guys - just a 'they're there, so look if you like..." so I hope I'm ok putting the link here) he had one or two on auction....

Link (probably need to cut and paste)

Hoping to get back to postin now and again - hope everyone is well ....

Faith TQC LLC

Panther wrote:

Cool. Thanks for the link.

And it's good to see you again. What have you been up to?

Tina

I think it's both. Life goes faster and we go slower.

Surely your muse is MURMURING, not muttering! Muddling -- that goes along with this alliteration. Muddling is good too. General direction and continual furthering works effectively. Imprecise, but it lets your fingers tell you what they want, while your brain just watches over stuff.

Except that you did say you're direction is more precise. I wonder if that's partly from your teaching. After all, with a good teacher, learning always goes in both directions.

It's great you're sharing your dad's work. May I suggest you put a link to your site and his work on your About Me page.

Things have been kind of ragged for me this last year, but things are looking up again. I posted a bit about it, but I think it ended up lost in space. Maybe I'll just repost that part.

Shirley Shone had wished for Christmas that rcb would get back on track with all the love, humor, creativity, etc. I'm trying to keep in mind that after all the good I've gotten from this group, it's time for me to pay it back by posting more.

Life is good.

Tina

Thank Tina, I am swallowing a little lump in my throat and dashing a few stray tears away. Shirley

In message , Christina Peterson writes

Yes, I have done that, and they work very well. I have never had one break on me:)

Well, you have to be careful not to inhale any molten glass.

really curious about it. Any one have any ideas what is the cheapest that one can safely go about trying this out? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Noel, that question's been asked on this NG about five hundred million zillion times. Go to Google advanced groups search and type in the pertinent info, and you'll get more answers than you ever dreamed possible:

~~~~~~~~~~ Do you mean melting them together, or stringing them together?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Check this out:

ROFL - ouch!