Super Thin Casing

I was chatting with fellow Fire Diva about encasing beads. The subject of artists who use thin layers of casing came up.

The technique is called "Strip Casing" and while I have not totally mastered this to the point of sharing a bead, I thought I would share the sketch I made for my friend.

Instead of wrapping clear glass (blue) around the bead (purple) or laying thick strips down the bead, heat a gather, keep the rod at a sharp angle to the bead and cover the whole length (toward the left in the diagram) of the bead in one strip. Heat another gather and repeat. Keep the flame on the rod and not the bead during this process (except for flashing to keep the bead warm).

And MOST important: the sharper the angle of the rod to the glass, the less glass you will use. So, if you keep that rod at a 90 degree angle, you will use lots of glass. If the rod is almost parallel to the bead... much less glass.

So, do any of you strip case??? Send me some links to photos and I'll add them to the blog.

Now, as you may know, I'm in the fire, now flood, area of the mountains above Los Angeles. They have evacuated hundreds of my neighbors within a mile. And while a river does run through my studio, I am basically fine. Just damp and a little cranky! If you are interested in flood updates, I've been posting over on Creekhiker. Beadwise, I'll see you here on Monday.