Basic Beginner Beadmaking Class

Two Day Class

(above photos show just a portion of the techniques you will learn during the beginner class)

Please wear long sleeve cotton shirt as well as jeans or other long pants and closed shoes (tennis shoes are okay) to your class.  If you have long hair, please bring something to tie it back away and out of your face. 

Kits for beginning beadmaking may be offered at the class for an additional fee, please ask for details. 

What you will learn:

1. SAFETY!        

            Setting up a safe workspace

            Eye protection, appropriate clothing for flame working

            Proper Ventilation

2.  Equipment:             

Using & maintaining gas tanks, hoses, safety features & regulators

Torches

Shutting down the equipment when done

Kilns – proper kilns for annealing beads, digital controllers

Fiber blankets and vermiculite & the limitations of these methods

Basic tools used in beadmaking             

3. Ergonomics:

Workbench set up

4. Physical and Chemical properties of glass:

Different types of glass (hard glass, soft glass, different brand names)

COE’s and compatibility

Annealing, annealing range, annealing point, and strain point 

Reduction flame and oxidizing flame

5. Beadmaking basics:  (You will actively participate in this portion of the class and will make numerous beads to take home with you)

            Avoid thermal shocking

Winding glass on, laying down an even “footprint”

Positioning of the hands

Adding extra glass

Where to work in the flame

            Using heat and gravity to help shape the bead

Making even and dimpled ends

            Basic shaping with graphite and brass tools

            Making different basic bead shapes

6. More techniques for Two day class: (You will actively participate in this portion of the class and will make numerous beads to take home with you)

            Pulling & applying stringer

            Decorating with frit

            Making dots, twisting dots, layering dots, feathering and raking

            Making simple dot flowers

            Distorting the surface of a bead: poking, squashing, raking, twisting, cutting, etc.

            Basic encasing

7. Preparations and clean up: You will be shown these techniques as the beads will not be ready until the day after you make them.  You will either pick your beads up, or they will be mailed to you.  If you are unable to pick your beads up, please bring a self-addressed large envelope or small flat rate priority box with postage applied for shipping your finished beads.

            Removing beads from the mandrel

Cleaning bead holes

Other topics may also be covered as they arise during class.